Over the past five years, the Consumer Council of Fiji has received 1790 complaints related to food services or food products in supermarkets.
“This figure, nearing 2000 complaints, might seem small, but it is just the tip of the iceberg”, says Consumer Council of Fiji information and media manager campaigns Vinash Singh.
“We can see in 2023, we have already received over 300 complaints and for 2024 we have already received over 200 complaints,” he said.
“So, this year will probably increase more than 400 complaints regarding food services only in supermarkets.”
Mr Singh said in 2021, however, the complaints were lower possibly because of the pandemic.
He said based on the complaints received and weekly market surveillance, several recurring issues had been identified.
“One of the issues which we always discover is discoloured and rotting meat. Now, of course, you know when meat that is discoloured, it’s not fit for sale and it’s not fit for consumption.”
He said fresh produce and consumables also presented significant issues.
“Local fruits and vegetables, such as potatoes and onions, are often found rotting or with fungal growth. We have seen this in carrots. We have seen this in potatoes. When it starts to go bad, what certain supermarkets are doing, they will cut and remove the rotten parts, and they will resell these repackaged or these cut fruits and vegetables.”
Mr Singh said hygiene and sanitation issues were prevalent as well.
“The presence of rodents and cockroaches in stores has been observed, along with dirty shelves and storage areas, particularly in the bulk sections.
“In a few supermarkets we have discovered they were using cats to control pests in the supermarket. When we tried to ask around, they said, oh, that’s their method of pest control, because they have a lot of pests.”
“That’s a big no.”
