By Rita Jane Gabbett on 9/2/2011

The Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development (MDARD) announced it has fined Pilgrim’s Pride $7,000 for shorting consumers buying their Pilgrim’s Pride Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast Singles.

 A consent agreement issued to Pilgrim’s Pride with fines and restitution also set a probationary period of two years.

MDARD’s Consumer Protection Division received a consumer complaint on July 6, 2011 alleging that the Pilgrim’s Pride Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast Singles they had purchased at a local Sam’s Club was short-weight, meaning the package contained less than it was labeled and led to a consumer over-charge of 28 cents.

On July 6, purchases at two Sam’s Club locations were conducted; both purchases were found to be short-weight. On July 7, 2011, an MDARD inspection at Sam’s Club tested 34 packages, all of which weighed less than the quantity represented. The average negative error was 0.099 lb. and the average overcharge to customers was 27 cents per container.

An internal inquiry at Pilgrim’s Pride revealed an error had been made on the tare weight for the packages starting in March 2011. In Michigan, consumers cannot be charged for tare weight (weight of the packaging). The investigation determined that 22,437 packages had been sold in Michigan from March to July.

“While 27 cents may not seem like a lot of money, combine it with the number of consumers who purchased the product and the length of time, and it really adds up to a plentiful sum of money consumers had overpaid,” said Craig VanBuren, Consumer Protection Section Director, in a statement. “The Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation was cooperative throughout our investigation, has agreed to the settlement terms, and the case has been closed. Follow-up inspections have determined the problem has been corrected and appropriate controls are in place.”