Yahoo Finance Coles misleading their customers - this time over Apples
Coles is in hot water again for deceiving their customers with false advertising – this time over their apples.
It comes after a recent court ruling banning the supermarket giant from advertising that its bread was baked on the same day it was sold - which had turned out not to be the case.
A recent Coles advertisement, in which brand ambassador and celebrity chef Curtis Stone promoted ‘Spring fruit and veg from Coles’, has also been deemed ‘misleading’.
Related: ACCC sues Woolies over faulty products
After mentioning 'Spring fruit' the ad then cut to Tasmanian Pink Lady apples on special that week.
Coles may have gotten away with it had the ad not been seen by a Tasmanian man with his own apple tree.
The Advertising Standards Board received a complaint from the viewer who objected to the way these apples were being presented, arguing the inference was that they had been freshly picked during the Spring season.
The Tasmanian complainant took objection to Coles’ ad based on his first-hand apple growing experience.
“This is wrong and not possible, I live in Tassie and my apple tree is dormant! These apples would have been in storage for MONTHS, they are not fresh,” he wrote to the board.
Related: ACCC still checking electricity price data
Indeed those apples weren’t picked in Spring but in fact four months earlier in April – which happens to be Autumn.
Coles responded to the complaint, arguing that while they sell some of the apples immediately after they are harvested, they use cold storage facilities to preserve their freshness to fulfill demand for the fruit for the rest of the year.
Their argument: “Apples can remain fresh, even if placed in cold storage.”
The Board took objection to the particular word ‘Spring’, arguing that in conjunction with the word ‘fresh’ the ad implied the fruit had been ‘freshly picked during the Spring season for immediate sale’.
Related: Coles slapped with fresh bread ban
The advertising board therefore determined that the TV spot did in fact breach one section of the Food Code.
The disgruntled viewer then suggested a way for Coles to make amends.
“This ad is misleading and my wife would like a personal apology from Curtis (or cash),” he said.
Some cash would have been nice, but it seems the only outcome is that Coles will not re-publish and re-broadcast this particular advertisement featuring apples.
