Dodgy Wonka bars seized in town store
Monday, 15th April 2013.
BOGUS golden tickets have been found in fake Wonka bars in stores in Haverhill.
Following intelligence received from BBC Fake Britain, Suffolk Trading Standards officers have seized several boxes of the fake Wonka bars, in both Haverhill and Ipswich, which were claiming to have five prize-winning golden tickets up for grabs.
According to the Trading Standards Institute, every bar seized so far across the country has been found to contain a ticket, but no information on how or where consumers can claim their prize, which is illegal.
The illicit Wonka bars contravene a number of labelling requirements and fall well below the standard to be called 'milk chocolate'.
Suffolk County Council says counterfeiting of food products can have serious implications, with the loss of important hygiene and traceability safeguards.
Nestlé, who own the Willy Wonka trademark, say they have no official Willy Wonka competitions operating in Britain and are not selling any Wonka-branded products.
Trading standards officer Tristram Singh said: “We are very concerned about the sale of these suspect chocolate bars - not only do they mislead the public with the promise of a non-existent prize, but they are poor quality, and breach food labelling laws.
“We understand it can be tempting to purchase cheap deals but consumers should be aware of the wider implications.”
Fake Wonka bars are easy to spot, as no genuine Wonka bars have been made since 2010. The bars have no name and address on them, and do not display the Nestlé trademark.
Members of the public can report sales of counterfeit goods to Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 08454 040506.
Following intelligence received from BBC Fake Britain, Suffolk Trading Standards officers have seized several boxes of the fake Wonka bars, in both Haverhill and Ipswich, which were claiming to have five prize-winning golden tickets up for grabs.
According to the Trading Standards Institute, every bar seized so far across the country has been found to contain a ticket, but no information on how or where consumers can claim their prize, which is illegal.
The illicit Wonka bars contravene a number of labelling requirements and fall well below the standard to be called 'milk chocolate'.
Suffolk County Council says counterfeiting of food products can have serious implications, with the loss of important hygiene and traceability safeguards.
Nestlé, who own the Willy Wonka trademark, say they have no official Willy Wonka competitions operating in Britain and are not selling any Wonka-branded products.
Trading standards officer Tristram Singh said: “We are very concerned about the sale of these suspect chocolate bars - not only do they mislead the public with the promise of a non-existent prize, but they are poor quality, and breach food labelling laws.
“We understand it can be tempting to purchase cheap deals but consumers should be aware of the wider implications.”
Fake Wonka bars are easy to spot, as no genuine Wonka bars have been made since 2010. The bars have no name and address on them, and do not display the Nestlé trademark.
Members of the public can report sales of counterfeit goods to Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 08454 040506.
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