“Why Would You?”: Customer’s Complaint Leads to Retail Store Pulling Product off the Shelves
- A South African customer ordered a readily marinated pack of chicken and was very disappointed with what they found
- When the chicken and sauce were weighed separately, the numbers told a very different story from what was printed on the packaging
- South Africans flooded the comments with warnings, frustration and a tip about pre-marinated meat
Source: UGC
X user @cooklet shared pictures on 20 February 2026 that had South Africans talking. The post showed a Ready to Braai Smokey Stuffed Chicken ordered through Checkers Sixty60 that looked nothing like what the packaging suggested. @cooklet was disappointed with the item and separated the chicken from the sauce and weighed each one separately. The chicken, including its stuffing, came in at 246 grams. The sauce weighed 264 grams. The packaging stated in fine print that the product contained 62% chicken.
The disappointed customer took to X to vent, stating,
"Why would you rip people off like this? I think it might also be illegal for you to not stipulate that more than 50% of the stated weight is liquid marinade."
@cooklet also pointed out to the store the Foodstuffs, Cosmetics and Disinfectants Act 54 of 1972. The retail chain replied publicly, asking for the expiry date, batch details, till slip and contact number on the very same post.
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What the law says about labels?
South African food labelling regulations include something called Quantitative Ingredient Declaration, or QUID, which falls under Regulation 26 of the Regulations Relating to the Labelling and Advertising of Foodstuffs. These rules require that when an ingredient is used in the name of a product, like "chicken" in a chicken meal, its percentage must be clearly shown on the label.
That percentage must show the ingredient's weight at the time it was made, not after the sauce or marinade is added. As shared by BusinessTech, following the complaint going public, Shoprite Holdings confirmed the product had been pulled from shelves. An internal investigation by their supplier found an error at the manufacturing facility, where smaller chicken portions were accidentally packed into some units.
Shoprite said the mistake did not affect every pack in the batch. This meant that the exact number of affected units could not be confirmed. The company said that steps have been put in place to ensure this doesn't happen again.
View the X post below:
SA unhappy with the chicken product
The photos sparked strong reactions, with many people sharing their own thoughts on supermarket practices after X user @cooklet shared photos of the product and how much it weighed:
@Thapelo24 asked:
"Why would you buy such a thing in the first place?"
@cooklet replied:
"It's not that deep - I ordered off Sixty60 and the description sounded good, so I had no idea until it actually arrived. Expectation vs reality..."
@Tricycle65 warned:
"As a life rule. NEVER buy pre-marinated meat from any shop ever, especially if it was prepared in the store. It is how they get rid of all the old, out-of-date meat. Take the old meat off the shelf, add marinade, then repack with a fresh date code."
@cooklet admitted:
"No disagreement on that - lesson well-learned."
@Nematurd said:
"Thank you for posting this. What supermarkets are doing is despicable. Shrinkflation is a global issue and will get worse unless more people speak up."
Source: Twitter
More food stories that had SA talking
- A South African woman buying "chicken" from a Bangkok street food stall had a moment that sent her spooked.
- University students used their allowance to feed homeless people and sort clothing donations.
- A student who could not afford meals after NSFAS delays shared an epic moment when someone knocked on their door.
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Source: Briefly News
