Yahoo Finance ‘Can you please explain’: Supermarket typos, packaging errors exposed
Many Aussie shoppers who find a typo on a product, sale or advertisement love to share it online: maybe it’s the inner schadenfreude in us all.
In a post on Facebook on Tuesday, consumer advocacy group Choice published a number of “word-related blunders people encounter on their daily travels” that featured overpriced items, descriptions that didn’t match the product, or ‘missing’ ingredients.
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Fancy bananas for a whopping $24.90 per kg? You’d be paying about five times more than the average price.
Or an amplification device that “barbeques indoors with less smoke”?
And does this chorizo have emu meat… or pork?
And if you ever wanted a chocolate topping that had less calories the more you ate, look no further than Tasmanian Premium Topping.
The blunders prompted Facebook users to share typos they spied in their local supermarkets.
“I was looking forward to a passionfruit, but not at this price,” one user commented, lamenting the $78-each price tag.
Another user posted a photo of instant coffee that was labelled ‘expresso’, a common misnomer for espresso.
Sometimes, the same word featured on a product more than once is spelt two different ways, such as was the case of this Nivea day cream.
Other products have been noticed for its missteps, too.
Australian models Steph Claire Smith and Laura Henshaw, who are co-owners of health food brand Keep it Cleaner, were embarrassed after a fan discovered the packaging on their popular protein balls listed “betroot” and “doghnut” as ingredients.
Sydneysider Jason Moss, who has to avoid high-sodium foods due to a heart condition, was shocked when he found that the ‘no added salt’ version of Woolworths’ Diced Italian Tomatoes actually contained more than double the amount of salt of the regular product, the Daily Mail reported.
One user posted on Coles’ Facebook page wondering if a local product was really made in the UK.
“Dear Coles,” she wrote. “Could you please explain why these pastries are made in the United Kingdom.....don’t we have bakers in Australia?”
It’s not just supermarkets, either: in May, the Reserve Bank of Australia was left red-faced after it was caught with a typo on the new $50 note.
But maybe no mistake was as bad as this typo by Hong Kong airline Cathay Pacific, which spelled its own name wrong.
Oops this special livery won’t last long! She’s going back to the shop!
(Source: HKADB) pic.twitter.com/20SRQpKXET— Cathay Pacific (@cathaypacific) September 19, 2018
At least they had the grace to laugh about it.
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