Price changes from shelf to box? “Affixed Prevails” (Here’s What to Do)

A The Food and Economic Security Authority (ASAE) is attentive to food prices and, given the news that there are different prices between shelves and payment boxes, underlines that the posted price always prevails, adding that customers should complain if they see this situation.

“ASAE recommends that consumers resort to the legal mechanisms at their disposal, being able to consult the ASAE website for more information on how to report these situations, which does not invalidate the personal complaint with the person in charge/employee of the commercial establishment to verify the prices posted in detriment of the prices chargedbeing certain that the posted prevailswhereby the economic operator will have to make the respective correction and effectively charge the posted“, said an official ASAE source to the News by the Minute.

Last week, remember, the ASAE carried out the “biggest operation” in terms of super and hypermarkets, as announced by the Government, and several criminal proceedings for speculation were initiated.

“At an operational level, ASAE maintains its role in verifying compliance with the legislation in force, having instituted several criminal proceedings with regard to objective speculation (deviation between the shelf price and the cash price), as well as carrying out administrative inspections to monitor the evolution of prices to investigate possible situations of illegitimate profit”, added the same source.

ASAE is analyzing “complaints and complaints”

ASAE confirms that “has been receiving some denouncements and complaints, analyzing them and remaining in permanent operational readiness, attentive to the phenomenon, intervening with actions whenever necessary”.

“Also remember that the competent authorities, including ASAE, will remain vigilant and will continue to trigger actionsin an assessment and proactive action of the situation, in order to guarantee the supervision of economic operators, within the scope of their competences, throughout the national territory, in favor of healthy and fair competition between economic operators, in safeguarding food safety and health consumer public opinion”, added the same source.

ASAE has been monitoring, since 2021, the supply and availability of essential goods to consumers in super and hypermarkets, but with the acceleration of inflation – and as “situations of shortages, nor stockouts have not been identified” – the action was extended to the “monitoring of goods destined for the value chain in the intermediate phase”.

“That is, products that are intended to be transformed or used in the production of goods for subsequent final consumption, in close cooperation with economic operators in order to identify any situations or products in which constraints are foreseen in the supply or stock of raw materials“, explained an official ASAE source to the News by the Minute.

Price check? “It is important to distinguish two situations”

So, regarding the verification of pricessays the ASAE, “it is important to distinguish two situations, namely, objective speculation (deviation between shelf price and box price, charging higher in box) and the open clause speculationthat is, fulfilling the concept of ‘illegitimate profit’, therefore when there is an economic gain without apparent justification, or even in disequilibrium with the usual practice of the sector”.

Final note to the parliamentary committee on Economy, Public Works, Planning and Housing that approved, on Wednesday, the ASAE hearing on the escalation of food prices above average inflation.

Also Read: ASAE Hearing Approved on Escalation in Food Prices