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Whole Foods Fined For Overcharging Californians
Muchos Mangos. Mucho dinero. (Photo by howard-f via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr)
The ‘Whole Foods, whole paycheck’ joke is a lot funnier now that the grocery chain will have to pay nearly $800,000 in penalties for overcharging California customers. Investigators spent a year looking for pricing inaccuracies, a release from Adam Radinsky of the Santa Monica City Attorney’s Office says, and eventually determined that Whole Foods charged more than advertised for several items in many different ways.
Here’s how:
Whole Foods is now required to select to “state coordinators” and one employee for each store who will oversee pricing throughout California and make sure it’s accurate. They also must pay $630,000 in civil penalties, $100,000 to a “statewide weights and measures enforcement trust fund,” and $68,394 to cover the cost of the investigation. Total, that’s $798,394.
There are 74 Whole Food stores in the entire state, and the court injunction applies to every one of them. It will also last for five years.
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Radinksy said he hopes this will “serve as a wake-up call” to other stores to make sure their “per-pound charges are accurate.” “Consumers have a right to accurate pricing, and the right to pay for only what they bought."
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But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
We’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission.
Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.
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