P&G to Pay Penalties for Misleading Packaging

Procter and Gamble (P&G) have been ordered to pay a penalty of $850,000 to settle a case that has been filed by prosecutors in consumer protection action.

The lawsuit had been filed in the District Attorney’s Offices of Fresno, Shasta, Yolo, and Riverside Counties.

The Reasons for the Lawsuit
The details in the lawsuit claim that P&G used larger bulk packaging for some of its products than was needed, in what some people see to mislead consumers. According to a decision reported by the DA’s office a few weeks ago, the product packaging of the company’s Olay skin care products contained unnecessary “slack fill’ which violates Californian Law.

According to a statement given by Deputy DA Jonathan Raven, ‘slack fill’ is the use of oversized packages to make that package look as if it contains more quantities of the internal product than it does. This practice is considered unlawful by the Californian Court of Law and as a result, the company was issued with a lawsuit.

P&G has agreed to pay the penalties against it but does not admit to any kind of wrongdoing.

P&G’s Olay Products Accused of “Slack Fill” Packaging
After the lawsuit was filed, Proctor and Gamble conducted a review of all its products to check for any instances of oversized packaging. At the same time, the company also promised to change the packaging of its Olay products.

For the agreed penalty paid by P&G, each of the four DA’s offices will receive $194,000 in civil penalties and $12,000 for costs that in turn will be used to fund other consumer cases and recall investigations.

District Attorney of Yolo County, Jeff Reisig, said that he takes pride in the fact that their office remains highly vigilant and careful about consumer protection. he added how they take close note of the fact that customers in any way are not misled by false representations or advertisements. In his statement, he emphasised how he, along with his entire department, was happy about the fact that Procter and Gamble had decided to change its packaging for its Olay skin care products.

Slack Filling Cosmetic Bottles
Product packaging comes in many shapes and sizes and is an important part of any brand’s success. Normally most packaging is used to fit around the intended internal product but occasionally companies are accused of something called a slack filling.

The slack filling is defined as the difference in the volume of an actual product to the volume of the packaging that holds it. This type of filling is often used where the product is sold on weight, such as grains or cereals, but has been seen in other product types such as cosmetics packaging.

This type of packaging style can have benefits in that it might protect fragile items better, but it can also be used to mislead consumers. Instances of this have been seen in the P&G case but also food products such as potato chips.

The act of slack filling is not something that is received well by the potential customer unless the reason for it is specified in advance or obvious to those that consume it. If the explanation of space in packaging is not clarified it can leave consumers thinking that they have got less than what they paid for, which is not good for customer retention.

Proctor & Gamble – A Company Overview
P&G is one of the world’s largest consumer goods companies with ownership of some of the best-known brands in the world. The company was established in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble and at present-day employs well over 100,000 people around the world.

The company has its headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio, and sells products in over 180 countries.

P&G is a very innovative company with a product portfolio in many different product categories and including brand names such as Gillette, Oral-B, Olay, and Ariel. In addition to products, the company is also a well-known provider of packaging solutions in both food and non-food markets.

Proctor & Gamble is a world leader in working sustainability ensuring its manufacturing processes and products are as eco-friendly as possible.

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