Chicken companies guilty of false and misleading claims
Tuesday 9 July 2013 @ 1.38 p.m. | Corporate & Regulatory
The Federal Court has found Baiada Poultry Pty Ltd and Bartter Enterprises Pty Ltd, the processers and suppliers of Steggles branded chicken products, engaged in false, misleading and deceptive conduct in describing on product packaging and in advertising that its meat chickens were ‘free to roam’ in large barns when this was not the case, according to a Media Release from the ACCC.
The Australian Chicken Meat Federation Inc (ACMF), the peak industry body for Australia’s chicken meat industry, was also found to have engaged in false, misleading and deceptive conduct, by claiming on its website that chickens produced in Australia were ‘free to roam’ or able to ‘roam freely’ in large barns.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) instituted proceedings against the respondents in September 2011.
“Consumers must be able to make informed purchasing decisions. Promotional activities that convey an impression of farming practices are powerful representations that influence food choices,” ACCC Commissioner Sarah Court said.
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