European commissioner says firms ‘misled’ consumers by wrapping worse versions of well-known goods in same packaging
• Are brands in the east lower quality than in the west?
Multinational food and drink companies have “cheated and misled” shoppers in eastern Europe for years by selling them inferior versions of well-known brands, according to the European commission’s most senior official responsible for justice and consumers.
In an outspoken attack on the corporate giants she claims have been flagrantly breaking the law, the Czech commissioner, Věra Jourová, told the Guardian: “We say for the first time clearly: this is unfair commercial practice. In many cases, yes, I am convinced [the law has been broken] because there is manifest cheating.”