SANDWICH, Mass. -- A Christy's convenience store in Sandwich, Mass., was fined $750 last week for for selling bags of ice containing less than the advertised five pounds of product, reported The Cape Cod Times.
After receiving a complaint from a consumer, inspectors from the town of Barnstable Consumer Affairs Division on July 25 weighed 58 bags of ice at Christy's locations in Hyannis, Sandwich and West Yarmouth; 55 of the packages, distributed to the stores by Hyannis-based Cape Dairy LLC, contained as much as 15% less ice than the label indicated, [image-nocss] Tom Geiler, Barnstable's director of regulatory services, told the newspaper.
Because regulators had had no previous problems with the stores in question, Geiler said, they issued written warnings and prohibited the underweight bags from being sold, said the report. Two days later, following a repeat complaint from the same consumer, inspectors returned to the stores.
It turned out they did still have short-weight bags in the case, Geiler said.
Regulators issued 10 citations for $75 each to the Sandwich Christy's store.
Christy Mihos, owner of the Christy's chain, said that the situation hasn't chilled his relations with Cape Dairy and its supplier Brookline Ice. The two companies have agreed to pay the fine and had responded in an exemplary manner, he said. Cape Dairy is a really good supplier and they have done everything within their power, Mihos told the paper.
Mihos said he has no problem continuing to buy products from Cape Dairy, which currently provides the chain with all of its ice and ice cream under an exclusive contract.
During the process of replacing the ice, Christy's lowered the price on a five-pound bag from $1.79 to $1.49, to ensure that consumers were not overpaying, said the report.
Cape Dairy owner Stephen Ward said that the light bags came to him directly from Brookline Ice, and that he had no role in packing the ice.
I buy the product and I sell the product, Ward, who has invited weights and measures regulators to come look over his Hyannis facility, told the paper.
Retrieving the faulty packages and replacing them with full-weight bags consumed much of his week, added Ward.
Bags of ice, said Geiler, are typically overpacked by as much as one-half a pound to ensure that the package still contains the requisite quantity when it makes it to the customer despite possible melting and leakage, effects that were made all the more likely by temperatures that regularly soared into the 80s this week.
Ice is difficult to handle this time of year, said Geiler. But if they put it out for sale retail, they are required to meet the labeled weight.
Following the initial inspections at the Christy's locations, consumer affairs personnel also weighed hundreds of bags of ice from other convenience and grocery chains across the Cape, including Cumberland Farms, Tedeschi's, 7-Eleven and Stop & Shop. All of the packages inspected at these locations passed muster, said the Times.
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.