Coles selling under size fish.

[linc87]

Hey guys,

Thought I would share an experience I have had this afternoon doing the groceries at Coles.

When at the deli I noticed they had whole red emperor on sale. One in particular caught my eye, as it was particularly small.

After requesting to talk to the deli manager (who was I available) I got to speak to a young lady who was 2nd in charge. I informed the lady that I believed this fish was undersize. To which she informed me there was no way they could be under size as they get their fish from the department of fisheries. After asking what the legal size was told her and she attempted to convince me that the fish was of size 'but maybe only just'. I then requested that the please confirm the measurement and if it is undersize, please remove from the display as it is illegal to sell if it is too small.

I left them to their devices as I continued my shopping. when we were done i told the wife I was just going to check what they had done. To my surprise the fish was still on display so I asked the same young lady what they measured the fish at. She replied '56cm' so I requested that they please demonstrate the measurement for me as it certainly did not appear that long. After having to go and find a tape measure she returned and measured to fish confirming the size was actually 43cm (12cm short of legal).

I Again informed the young lady that the selling of undersize fish is illegal and can attract significant fines and requested they remove the fish from display. I reiterated this point to the store manager who defended the young lady as she "probably would not have the suspbject knowledge to know the legal size of the fish they sell".

I will be contacting Coles separately on this but wondered if anyone else had had a similar experience?

Also just curious, I searched online but cannot find how much an organisation can be fined for selling undersize fish. Can anyone confirm?

Pic of the fish I question below

[elops]

Could have come from anywhere, no size limit in NT and 410mm in WA

[Old Scaley]

May have come from somewhere other than Qld. Maybe WA, where limit is 410cm?

[Egg Beaater]

Could have bitten off more fish than you can chew there as as the others said, if the fish is sourced from a State or Country within their parameters its not illegal to sell it in another State.

Best be checking your facts before firing off an email to Coles which could backfire on you as they have much more money to commence a court case against you than you have to defend yourself.

[benno573]

Always check where the fish is sourced from first. Most shops sell "undersized" fish based on Qld size limits as they source a lot of their fish from farms (eg barra), overseas or interstate. While I don't love it, it is within the laws.

I also highly doubt that an organization the size of Coles would leave themselves open to prosecution by selling fish they were not entitled to be selling.

[STKE]

My First job was working in a Fisho. Loved it, worked there for years. (don't ever say that when you're fishing or you're on filleting duties)

The Majority of Snapper. Be it Red, Crimson, Moses, Saddletail are caught in WA. Coles, Woolies, IGA do not pop down to the local markets to pick up their fish most of it is supplied by major wholesales such as supafin.

I probably wouldn't have bailed up the Deli Manager with-out knowing the facts first. But also the response form the deli manager was a bit uneducated. But there is a difference between a DELI manager and a SEAFOOD manager.