The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has accepted a court-enforceable undertaking from Cadbury Schweppes Pty Ltd about labelling of The Natural Confectionery Company range of confectionery products.
Cadbury Schweppes, which is part of the worldwide Cadbury Schweppes group of companies, acquired Sunrise Confectioners (Aust) Pty Ltd in April 2003. Sunrise distributed TNCC products in packaging that stated: The company has been in the same family for four generations and is 100% Australian owned.
Whilst TNCC packaging now reflects Cadbury Schweppes's ownership, since the acquisition certain TNCC confectionery products were sold, and remain available for sale in some retail outlets, in packaging bearing the former ownership representation.
"The ACCC views false claims about Australian ownership very seriously", ACCC Chairman, Mr Graeme Samuel, warned. "Companies must be diligent in acquisitions or takeovers to ensure representations made reflect changes in company ownership so as to not reap any undue benefit from inaccurate ownership claims".
In response to the ACCC's concerns, Cadbury Schweppes has undertaken to:
- ensure that none of the remaining stocks of finished TNCC products in the old packaging is sold or distributed
- notify consumers throughout Australia by means of a consumer notice and apology to be published in Australia's daily newspapers that Cadbury Schweppes acquired TNCC with effect from 28 April 2003
- offer a full refund (redeemable by way of a store voucher) to all consumers who purchased TNCC products, from that date, in the old packaging from a retail outlet in reliance on the ownership representations and
- refrain from making any future representation to the effect that Cadbury Schweppes is 100 per cent Australian owned.