An alcohol importer and distributor in New Zealand has been fined for trying to sell products without legitimate bottle labels. Importer Golden Grand Trading and distributor Mayajaal Holdings were sentenced in Auckland District Court in April following a prosecution by New Zealand Food Safety. Golden Grand Trading pleaded guilty to three charges under the Food Act 2014, including being an unregistered importer, and Mayajaal Holdings pled guilty to one charge.
Golden Grand Trading was fined NZ $142,000 (U.S. $87,000) and Mayajaal Holdings $102,000 ($62,500).
Both companies were ordered to share costs of $36,000 ($22,000) for disposal of the alcohol. Cheaper bottles Lot codes are laser-etched onto the glass bottle or printed on the label. They ensure traceability during a product recall and reassure consumers that the contents are genuine.
The offending, between 2016 and 2019, included both companies possessing for sale or selling non-compliant alcohol involving some 5,534 bottles of imported spirits that had either no lot codes or stickers with a code that was not genuine. Investigators seized all liquor from their distribution warehouse. Another 30 bottles were recalled, seven were found at a liquor store, and two other bottles from an online purchase were also seized.
A sample of the liquor was tested, and it was found that the product was genuine. “Label integrity matters, and when businesses try to get around the rules, they are at best-deceiving consumers, and at worst .
