Tis time loyal readers for another Prats of The Week Award.This week, as many of you may have guessed, it goes to Sainsbury's (again!).
For why?
Well my old muckers, it seems that they had a wee bit of a bust up with one of their pregnant customers (Janet Lehain) over the issue of cheese.
Mrs Lehain asked for some Canadian Cheddar while she was shopping at Sainsbury's Clapham.
However, Sainsbury's is a fully paid up supporter of the Nanny state. As such the member of staff serving her refused to sell it to her.
Errmmm...for why?
Seemingly, according to the member of staff, it was made from unpasteurised milk and constitutes a danger to pregnant women.
Factoid: it transpires that pregnant women are advised to avoid eating ripened soft cheeses of the Brie, Camembert and blue-veined types, whether pasteurised or unpasteurised. Hard cheeses such as Cheddar can be safely eaten during pregnancy.
Mrs Lehain, unlike some people, was not prepared to take this lying down and said that she was aware of the current medical advice and wanted to buy the cheese.
Mrs Lehain, finally having extricated the cheese from the jobsworth, wrote a letter of complaint:
"What followed was the most patronising encounter I have had the misfortune of experiencing in a long time and made worse by the fact it was entirely unexpected given the seemingly simple task.
The member of staff told me how lucky my generation of pregnant women are to have such information available to them because this was not the case 'in her day'.
I could only respond by saying that I thought pregnant women in the past were probably a whole lot less stressed and guilt-ridden as a result.
I asked if I could have the cheese if I promised not to eat any of it. How ridiculous that I had to openly lie in order to buy a piece of cheese!
Even if I were ignorant of the risks associated with this period in a woman's life it is not the job of a supermarket to tell people what they should or not be eating.
Indeed if I am missing something, and the Government in its wisdom has made supermarkets guardians of public health without me noticing, then I should like to leave the country now."
Sainsbury's ended up making some grudging apology. However, it seems that they still believe that their policy of delivering unwanted "health advice" is correct.
I wonder if they do the same for pregnant women who buy booze and fags?
Quite why supermarkets now choose to act as Nanny's lickspittles is beyond me. I assume that they feel that they will get some favour in return.
Sainsbury's, well deserving Prats of The Week!
Here is Justin King's email (CEO of Sainsbury's), if you want to tell him what you think: justin.king@sainsburys.co.uk
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"I wonder if they do the same for pregnant women who buy booze and fags?"
ReplyDeleteNah, they heavily tax those!
By sheer coincidence the verification word is 'bloted', not on Sainsbury's cheese I'll bet!
I wonder if I go into sainsburys today and attempt to buy a packet of biscuits and a bar of chocolate, whether one of the drones will refuse to serve me as I'm over weight......In the NHS, it is written into the terms and conditions of employees that, unless they are qualified to do so, they must not give health advice....I suspect this was to counter the problems of the busy body that became a GP's receptionist and thought that when she took the job she magically became a doctor;-)
ReplyDeleteI find it unbelievable that Sainsbury's think it is right for them to give unsolicited "health advice." What would happen I wonder if, one of the drones gave advice to a customer which she followed and it caused a severe reaction and ended in death or serious harm.
Incidently, I own some shares in Sainsburys and so I shall ask Justin King for his comments and will point out that it is not a supermarket's role to give health advice unless, that is through a qualified pharmacist and I doubt such a person would be wrapping cheese on a deli counter.
Dammit. Being an obese man, it won't be long before supermarkets refuse to sell me burgers, chips, or anything else with a higher fat content than deemed 'healthy'.
ReplyDeleteYet another reason to support your local markets, corner shops et al.
It is no business of a shopkeeper to refuse to sell a legally available product, or to enquire who is going to consume it.
ReplyDeleteSainsburys should do more than make a "grudging apology". They should instruct their staff never to refuse to sell anything unless there is a legal reason, such a valid age restriction, for doing so.
I have stopped asking myself what this country is coming to, as it is already there.
anticant: "I have stopped asking myself what this country is coming to, as it is already there."
ReplyDeleteWell put; I may use this line myself, perhaps substituting the word "world" for "country."
It reminds of the time I was discussing some absurdity or other with a friend who sighed wearily and said, "Well, we live in a world of idiots."
That seemed to sum up the situation nicely, and I've yet to see him proven wrong.
Sainsbury's well deserve this award. As has been stated, it is NOT in their job description for supermarkets to dictate what pregnant women, or anyone else for that matter, can and can not eat. I actually cannot eat cheese, being allergic to it, but if some jobsworth tried toquery anything I had chosen to buy for the purpose of eating, I'd be very tempted to tell them to get lost, to put it politely!
ReplyDeleteThere's a difference between someone offering advice and imposing their belief system on a customer. These supermarkets have got so powerful, they now feel they can dictate people's lives as they see fit.
ReplyDeleteThey've forgotten their job is simply to provide goods at a price people want. Now they consider themselves up to shaping society given they know best.
Actually, given the way we've allowed them to decimate the high street, maybe their inflated opinions are partially justified.
In my local town, we have a fishmonger, three bakeries, two fruit & vegetable shops, two hardware stores, three newsagents and numerous miscellaneous shops. There is no monster supermarket for miles around (due to huge local resistance). I wonder if these things are connected.
There's not much chance of my local Sainsbury's refusing to supply me with what I want. It's invariably out of stock or discontinued!!
ReplyDeleteNever any shortage of exotic foreign delicacies, but everyday items? NO CHANCE....
If I hadn't read it here I'd never have believed it..WTF?
ReplyDeleteI wonder if joke shops do 'pregnancy cushions'? I'd be tempted...
ReplyDeleteOn a wistfully optimistic note, I see HMG is looking at the impact of supermarkets on communities with a view tto curbing their power...
Jay