Tesco bans bulk buying of vegetable oil in Ireland as price of ...

Tag : Vegetable Cooking Oil

The supermarket and petrol supplier which introduced the ban acrossIreland a year ago, is extending its ban to two small towns inWaterford which, it claims, should not be exempt.
The move comes as increasing numbers of consumers are bulk-buyingthe vegetable oil to top up their car tanks as the price of petrolsoars.
Residents of Lisduggan and Ardkeen will now be limited to buyingnine litres of vegetable oil at a time.
One litre of vegetable oil in Tesco will set them back around€1, compared with €1.30 for a litre of petrol at thepumps outside.
The ban extension has angered consumer groups which claim customersshould retain the choice to purchase what they want.
"We strongly oppose this move by Tesco. By limiting the numberof items a customer can buy, Tesco are indirectly introducing pricecontrol, which is banned in Ireland," says Dermot Jewell, CEOof the Consumers Association of Ireland.
A Tesco spokesman defended their decision, claiming a ban on bulkpurchases ensures that all customers get equal access to offers.