Tesco puts security tags on blocks of Cathedral City cheddar cheese
A branch of Tesco has been forced to put security tags on blocks of cheddar cheese to deter shoplifters.
The supermarket, in Derby, has wrapped packets of Cathedral City mature cheddar – which it sells at £5.95 – in netting, with a tag that only shop assistants can remove.
Shoplifting is at record levels in Britain, with 50 offences recorded by police every hour in England and Wales, up 30 per cent in a year.
Shoppers in Derby reacted to the anti-theft measures with dismay. Ian Spittle, 76, said he was not surprised they were necessary, adding: “All we hear on the news is violence, theft and anger, and it all builds up.
“We now live in a society where blocks of cheese need to be wrapped in anti-theft material. I remember when they [supermarkets] started putting anti-theft devices on steaks after lockdown. I thought that was silly, but this is just ridiculous.”
Janet Woodrow, 63, said she had “become numb” to the extent of shoplifting, adding: “I don’t know what would be worse, to be honest, the crime of stealing or the crime of selling a block of cheese for nearly six quid.
“Sadly, it’s just the world we live in, as silly as it seems, I’ve become numb to it now. We’ll be fighting over Freddos soon.”
Last year, a Tesco branch in West Ruislip. west London, put security tags on rotisserie chickens, while a store on Tower Bridge Road, in the south-east of the capital, was reported to be keeping sausages and bacon in a locked fridge.
In April, a Tesco in Theydon Bois, Essex, put security tags on shopping baskets.
In February, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) said retailers were spending £1.2 billion on security measures – including CCTV, security guards and body-worn cameras – to prevent shoplifting. Thatwas up by nearly £500 million from £722 million the previous year.
The BRC said the total cost of crime to retailers stood at £3.3 billion – double the previous year.
Tesco declined to comment. It is understood that individual shop managers are responsible for deciding which items have security measures.