The statement of claim alleges that the weight was misrepresented because it included “the weight of the packaging in the net weight on which the price is calculated,” or by other deceptive means. Including the packaging weight in the net weight was said to be contrary to federal regulations and guidelines.
For that reason, argues the statement of claim, the plaintiff and other Canadians regularly overpaid for meat products. The plaintiff estimated in the claim that the meat product packing made up between five and 10 per cent of the price of the meat products at times.
The claim argues that the defendants breached s. 52(1) of the Competition Act, which provides that a representation cannot be made to the public that is knowingly or recklessly false or misleading in a material respect. It alleged the grocers knowingly misrepresented the weight of the products to overcharge class members.
“The Grocers failed to take reasonable steps to ensure that the Meat Products were properly weighed and labelled when they knew, or ought to have known, about the issues the plaintiff complains of,” the claim reads.
The plaintiff is a B.C. mother who brought meat products and groceries for her family. She purchased various meat products from the defendants and spent “hundreds or thousands of dollars on Meat Products per year.”
She seeks damages for the proposed class under s. 31(6) for recovery of an amount equal to the loss or damage suffered and any additional amounts, along with punitive damages.
“The Grocers’ conduct comes at a time when inflation and high food prices are on the minds of many Canadians and is the topic of countless news stories,” the claim says.
“The Grocers themselves have made public statements about their commitments to keeping food prices affordable. Nevertheless, they misrepresented the Meat Products so as to discretely overcharge its customers. This is conduct warranting punitive damages.”
The claim was brought on behalf of all persons in Canada who purchased and overpaid for the defendants' meat products on account of the misrepresented weight of the products.
The claim was filed on Jan. 9 and has yet to be certified as a class action by the court.
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