In 2012, the Trade Inspection carried out 23 thousand inspections and received 18 thousand notifications from consumers concerning poor quality of goods being sold. The inspections focused on, among other things, fuel, child play facilities, foodstuffs and products sold in fan zones

"A package of frozen fish had no information about the country of origin"; “I bought hot dogs which contained preservatives and only 10% of meat”; “This butter tastes like a blended spread”; “Grocery store X in town Z sells products after their ‘best before’ date” – these are not extracts from a register of complaints and grievances, but just a few examples of notifications received by the Trade Inspection. Last year, the Trade Inspection (TI) received over 18 thousand notifications about poor quality of goods being sold. In response to these notifications, over 3 300 inspections were carried out, while the total number of inspections was 23 000.

More and more consumers react to irregularities. For example, one consumer informed the Trade Inspection in Katowice that a bar in Silesia kept a register of debtors and a book of customers to whom alcohol was sold on credit. The book of customers contained their nicknames known in the local community, the amount of credit given for the purchase of alcohol and information that the seller accepted responsibility for awarding the credit. The matter ended up in court. Any sale of alcohol on the basis of the so-called “book” is punishable with a fine.

It used to have a different taste…

Assessing the quality of goods, consumers rely on their own taste buds and often come to the conclusion that the product no longer tastes as it used to. Quality-related concerns are most often voiced by consumers purchasing charcuterie or meat preparations. Senior citizens, in particular, tend to notice differences in taste. It is certainly due to the fact that the law no longer sets out minimum quality requirements for meat preparations. As a result, consumers may find considerable differences between charcuterie of the same type but produced by different manufactures, who may use different ingredients despite the same name of the product. It is not illegal. Therefore, consumers are advised to read labels carefully, including those of charcuterie sold by weight. Differences in taste are noticeable to customers, who find that butter, pasta or alcohol no longer tastes as good as it used to.

MSM – mechanically separated „meat”

As is evident from the information received, consumers nowadays have a better knowledge of legal provisions: they do not just look at prices, but pay attention to the ‘best before’ date and compare ingredients on the package with the product itself. However, when mechanically separated meat is listed as one of the ingredients, consumers still tend to confuse it with meat – while in fact it is not meat within the meaning of the applicable provisions of law, which define “MSM” as a product obtained by removing meat from flesh-bearing bones after boning, using mechanical means.

Price inequalities

There are also problems with prices. Consumers inform the Trade Inspection of issues such as the lack of price tags on items sold at a local shop or about differences between prices on the shelf and the ones on the receipt. Other complaints concern goods sold after their ‘best before’ date. Notifications received from consumers are a valuable source of information and they often give rise to inspections carried out by the Trade Inspection.

About the Trade Inspection

The Polish Trade Inspection operates through its 16 voivodeship inspectorates. Every year, they inspect thousands of products, checking their quality and, in the case of non-food products, their safety for consumers. In addition, they provide advice to consumers and  mediation service. The inspectorates comprise consumer conciliation courts, which enable consumers to resolve their disputes with businesses in a faster, easier and cheaper way.

Additional information for the media:
Małgorzata Cieloch, Spokesperson for UOKiK
Department of International Relations and Communication
Pl. Powstańców Warszawy 1, 00-950 Warsaw
Tel.: +48 22 827 28 92, 55 60 314, 55 60 430
Fax: +48 22 826 11 86
E-mail: [SCODE]bWFsZ29yemF0YS5jaWVsb2NoQHVva2lrLmdvdi5wbA==[ECODE]