The Buzz | The price of rice… is not quite right

A day after insisting that alleged supermarket inflation was due to pricing errors without intent to overcharge, the Consumer Council has now decided to revoke the “Certified Store Quality Symbol” from Royal Supermarket, saying it considers the justification given by the company to be “unacceptable”.
The decision comes after representatives of the Consumer Council, together with their counterparts from the Directorate of Economic Services, met with Royal Supermarket asking for clarification on the recent complaints about inflated product prices.
In a statement yesterday, the CC said it rejects all acts of unreasonable price increases resulting from the pandemic, especially since the launch of the electronic consumer card.
On Sunday, the government said it had received nearly 400 reports of supermarket overpricing, which allegedly coincided with the start of the e-voucher subsidy scheme.
Kong Son Cheong, the Head of the Licensing and Inspection Department, had said that most cases were found to be related to mistakes on the part of the establishments or their staff members, and the price hikes had been exaggerated by reports on social media.
No mention was made last night of Macau’s other supermarkets, which have also been criticized by netizens for the same practices.