Tesco: Misrepresentation of meat product

Halloway

rollerteam wrote: »

Are you employed by Tesco to defend their deceitful policies?
Descriptions on packages should be clear and honest. Aldi states on its egg boxes that they are produced by caged hens; while I do not agree with Aldi's policy of selling such a product I do applaud their honesty.

There was nothing in your original post which indicated that Tesco had done anything deceitful, although I take Mr Brooker's later point that the rearing time might be extremely short.

The point I was making with my hilarious shredded wheat/nana gag was that the nature of marketing and packaging is to mislead, divert and oversell. I don't see any reason to pick out and pick on Tesco in that respect. If you believe Lindt Chocolate's adverts, all their chocolate is made in copper pans by avuncular toque-wearing Austrians, when in fact it's probably made by scientists in a refinery somewhere on the outskirts of Graz.

I do care about animal welfare and let me tell you that the worst of Tesco's pork is reared and raised in conditions which are a hell of a lot better than those you will find in other parts of Europe. But, as Mr Brooker rightly says, if you really cared about animals you wouldn't eat them at all. I care about animal welfare but not enough to stop eating them. I may be a hypocrite but at least I am honest, which is all that seems to matter to you, at least when it comes to chickens.

The next time I am in Tesco I shall look out for a packet of your calumnious pork to see if it really is the Jeffrey Archer of pork packaging. If it is genuinely telling porkies then I shall report back to that effect.

Halloway

rollerteam wrote: »

If Russell Brand can succeed with no talent...

Well there's something we can agree on at least.

smartpicture

Actually I agree with the OP. I don't care about animal welfare enough to let it change my eating habits, but if I saw this meat in Tescos I would take it to mean that they lived their lives outdoors before they appeared on my plate. And that is clearly not true, not just a small marketing sleight-of-hand, I would consider that they were lying to me. If I cared enough about it, which I don't. But I think the OP is within his rights to complain to Tescos about this.

Butlers1982

This is a serious issue.

In your eyes.

Halloway

smartpicture wrote: »

Actually I agree with the OP. I don't care about animal welfare enough to let it change my eating habits, but if I saw this meat in Tescos I would take it to mean that they lived their lives outdoors before they appeared on my plate. And that is clearly not true, not just a small marketing sleight-of-hand, I would consider that they were lying to me. If I cared enough about it, which I don't. But I think the OP is within his rights to complain to Tescos about this.

So what you are saying is that the picture on the packaging of any product may not use any fiction or imagination in anything that it portrays?

That's Bernard Matthew's Turkey Dinosaurs for the can then.

rollerteam

Thank you. I clearly misunderstood your attitude.

mustrum_ridcully

rollerteam wrote: »

Are you employed by Tesco to defend their deceitful policies?
Descriptions on packages should be clear and honest. Aldi states on its egg boxes that they are produced by caged hens; while I do not agree with Aldi's policy of selling such a product I do applaud their honesty.

What Halloway says is they are operating within the letter of law, but not perhaps the spirit.

Tesco's (et al.) operate on the ignorance of the general public. I know what the term rearing/reared means but on first glance would assume it means free range. To quote the OED: Reared (2.) Brought up to a certain stage of growth.

As I've told friends of mine these companies don't tell you 2+2=5, but they let you make assumptions so that at first glance you think 2+2=5, it's only when you think about it you realise wait a mo 2+2=4.

lorena

I don't understand the point. If you eat meat you obviously don't care enough about the animals not to eat them so why does it matter? Maybe the picture is misleading but I don't think it merits a full blown complaint.

rollerteam

lorena wrote: »

I don't understand the point. If you eat meat you obviously don't care enough about the animals not to eat them so why does it matter? Maybe the picture is misleading but I don't think it merits a full blown complaint.

All humans are omnivores. If you want to put your health at definite risk by not eating meat then that is your choice; I hope the compensatory supplements you should be taking work!
I am compassionate in that I expect animals to be raised in as near natural conditions as possible before they are humanely slaughtered for human consumption.
So, in your eyes it is OK to be misleading and one should not make too much fuss about it!
Not long ago animals were being fed recycled meat; a practice that led to CJD. People are still dying, and will continue to die, because of that criminal practice.
And what about your veggie food! Are you content to eat produce that has been sprayed with harmful chemicals; and would you feel only slightly annoyed because the product had been falsely labelled?
We should all be able to choose the quality of the food that we eat- meat or vegetables. It makes me extremely annoyed when some faceless profiteer dupes me into buying a product that I would not buy if I knew the truth about its provenance.

lorena

"your veggie food" interesting... I do eat a lot of meat and I am not interested in animal rights so think more carefully before you make assumptions. I'm making the point that I don't understand why people care so much about animal welfare when they eat meat