“Underfilling” – Shaking bags like a deceptive package: Manner convicted

The procedure concerned the filling quantity or the air content of packaging. The Mozart slices had already been assessed by the Commercial Court of Vienna as “misleading misleading packaging”: on the one hand, the packaging was only about 50 percent filled with Mozart slices, on the other hand, Manner filled similar products in an identical shaker bag with more content. The “Original Neapolitaner” slices and the “Hazelnut Mignon” slices therefore contain 400 grams, while the “Mozart Mignon” customers received only 300 grams.

“Underfillment relevant to competition law”
The Higher Regional Court of Vienna had to decide on the appeal at second instance. In accordance with the earlier judgment of the Supreme Court on misleading packaging, the court ruled that empty packaging of 40 to 50 percent can be misleading, the VKI reported that there had previously been “a competitive underfilling”.

The statement of the net filling quantity of 300 grams on the front of the packaging cannot change this. Unlike product categories such as sugar, this “gives no particular idea of ​​the actual filling amount that goes with it.” The argument that a higher degree of filling was not possible due to the packaging technique was rejected by the court with reference to the “Original Neapolitaner” and the “Hazelnut Mignon” slices.

No discernible reason for difference in filling
In court, there was no identifiable reason for the different filling levels – except that the “Mozart” slices made from almonds and hazelnuts were more expensive to produce. In addition, the environmental idea is underlined – buyers should not expect a blatant mismatch between content and packaging in times when plastic waste must be saved,” says VKI lawyer Barbara Bauer.