WRONGFUL RETAILING

Hokitika Guardian, 6 May 1926, Page 4

WRONGFUL RETAILING

The Hoard has just received an interesting report from its London .Manager, referring to a ease which he has been investigating, where meat was wrongfully retailed as "New Zealand.” Extracts from this letter read as follows :

" I have to advise that my attention was drawn two or three weeks ago to an advertisement of a store advertising Canterbury lamb: legs lOd, shoulders fid. loins Bd. These prices were practically below wholesale tost, and I at once sent an officer to investigate. and I enclose a copy of liis report to me on Hie result.

" You will see from the report that this was a clear ease of wrongful retailing, as the salesman definitely sold to our officer, Argentine lamb branded with their indelible stamp, for Canterbury Jamb. In addition to the advertisement our officer had the evidence of the Argentine ticket which he took from the carcase. "The whole circumstances were reported to the solicitors for the New Zealand Government to take action, but I regret to say that after they had taken the opinion of eminent counsel, they advised the High Commissionerj that it would be useless going on with the ease, st* we could only proceed against them on a fraudulent sale, and under this section it is absolutely necessary that an invoice or description in writing be obtained. This point has been tested by the Appeal Court, and they had no hesitation in saying \vc should lose our ease, etc., etc. *• This goes to show how impossible it will lie to obtain any conviction under the Merchandise Marks Act for fraudulent sale, and at my suggestion Hr James Allen lias written fully, giving the facts of thi sense to the President of the Board of Trade. Sir P. ( unliffe-Lislor. showing the necessity for an amendment of the present Act. The King’s speech at the opening of Parliament recently, indicated that a new Merchandise Marks Bill will be h.'rnlight in hv the Government very, shortly, and if the proposals of the Imperial Economic Committee are carried out in framing this hill, it will throw the responsibility on to every retailer to clearly mark his goods with the country of origin. This will make it very much easier for us to obtain a prosecution.

" While wo were placing the facts of the above ease before our lawyers, the newspapers reported the,prosecution of a housewife in the suburbs of London against a Imldlior for supplying Argentine chilled beef for English home killed. This information was laid Inthe housewife herself under the " Pure Food and Drugs Act ” and you will notice from the ftill reports extracted from the “ .Meat Trades Journal.” which I send yon herewith, that the ease was not nearly so strong ns the .evidence we had in our ease. This was Hie first I had ever heard of a prosecution under this Act. arid our solicitors were very surprised when I brought this ease before them, as evidently they had no knowledge that wo can prosecute under this Act. Under this Ael. it is not necessary to ask for a. certificate, hut merely to make a sale, and take delivery, and prove that the goods wore not as verbally described. Now that we have this knowledge, it will lie an easier thing t-o obtain a prosecution, as it was practically impossible to obtain a prosecution under the ‘ .Merchandise Marks Act.’ ”