A supermarket around the Ajao Estate axis of Lagos state has been sealed by the Lagos State Consumer Protection Agency (LASCOPA) for putting up expired products for sale.
The General Manager of LASCOPA, Mr. Afolabi Solebo Esq., explained that the seal-up became unavoidable after the owners of Cynosure Associate Super Stores, located at 18, Lateef Salami Street, Ajao Estate, failed to remove expired products from their shelves.
According to LASCOPA Boss, the Monitoring and Enforcement team of the Agency visited the Cynosure supermarket on Monday, 12th September 2022, during a routine monitoring exercise where some items displayed were noticed to have expired.
The team therefore, directed the management of the supermarket to remove the identified products from the shelf, but the supermarket failed to comply with the directive after a revisit by the team a few days later.
The management of the Cynosure supermarket was later issued with a letter of invitation before the eventual sealing of the supermarket on Friday, October 14, 2022.
He said the team, therefore, directed the management of the supermarket to remove the identified products from the shelf, but the outlet failed to comply with the directive after a revisit by the gang a few days later.
This led to the issuance of an invitation letter to the management of Cynosure and the eventual sealing of the supermarket on Friday, October 14, 2022, due to failure to comply.
Similarly, the LASCOPA Monitoring and Enforcement team also issued a non-compliance order to Valuepoint Supermarket, situated on the same street, over the display of expired products.
“The exercise is to serve as a deterrent to other supermarkets and sales outlets that are in the habit of trampling on the rights of consumers, some of whom are often ignorant or in a hurry to check the expiration date of products that they want to buy”, he added.
While charging consumers not to hesitate to report any supermarket or shops within the state where such products are sold, Solebo enjoined residents to always ensure to check the information contained on the label of items about to be purchased.