news N.B. grocery store imposes new rules on cloth bags after rise in shoplifting

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N.B. grocery store imposes new rules on cloth bags after rise in shoplifting



2 hours, 42 minutes ago





The Fredericton Direct Charge Co-op grocery store is imposing new rules on customers' use of cloth bags following a spike in shoplifting.


Sheldon Palk, the grocery store's manager, said the switch to more environmentally friendly bags is having one unintended consequence: a rise in theft.

So cashiers must now check customers' cloth bags before they check out their groceries.

Palk said two people were arrested last week after they were caught trying to steal by hiding items in cloth bags.

From discussions with people we have caught, and discussions with the police, this has become a new way that people are using to shoplift throughout the Fredericton area."

Some major Canadian grocery chains, such as Sobeys and Loblaws, have recently brought in fees for plastic bags as a way to get people to bring their own reusable bags. However, the Co-op has been promoting its reusable bags for years.

But the newer cloth bags are larger and stiffer, and that is making it harder to detect if something is already in the bag that hasn't been paid for.

Evelyn Farrell, a cashier at the Fredericton grocery store, said it is easy for people to walk away with stolen products if sales clerks do not take a quick glance through the cloth bags.

"They hang them on the back of their cart, their shopping carts, and they say that they're empty. And so, if you don't check them, that's when they can take things out of the store with them," she said.

Palk said Co-op can make rules on inspecting bags going in or out of the store because it is owned by its members. He said larger stores may have more problems enforcing a similar rule unless they can justify their suspicions.

With larger stores now actively promoting the use of cloth bags, Palk said he has some advice for them.

My suggestion for every retailer is to review their policies. We don't want to make it easy for someone who wants to shoplift, Palk said.

And we hope that this new policy will act as a real deterrent.