Chocolate destroyed: Edeka director denounces Lindt – they reject the accusation

Created: 12/29/2022, 12:05 p.m

By: Kim Hornickel

The manager of several Edeka markets in the Hersfeld-Rotenburg district accuses the Lindt company of deliberately destroying chocolate.

She denies the allegations.

Bad Hersfeld – Lindt representatives destroyed chocolate in six of its 16 grocery stores shortly before Christmas, explains Ehrenfried Schorn, who runs the Edeka store on Schlosserstrasse in Bad Hersfeld.

Because Schorn is also a member of the management of Thorsten Hellwig Edeka consumer markets, which operates numerous shops in the region, he knows that the brutal behavior of the Lindt representatives is not an isolated case.

And a short time later he had the evidence in his hands.

"My store manager at Hohe Luft came to me and showed me the goods," says Schorn.

A representative used pens and knives to carve deep grooves into the actually still edible chocolate in the market on the Hohe Luft – because the best-before date (MDH) would have expired at the end of January.

In Bad Hersfeld, a Lindt employee destroys chocolate just before it expires

Schorn suspects that Lindt destroyed the chocolate in order to prevent it from being resold at a reduced price.

"Normally we reduced the chocolate that was about to expire, gave it away to employees or donated it to the Tafel," but that was no longer possible after the slit campaign.

This is what the damaged chocolate bars look like.

© Edeka-Markt Hohe Luft/Private

Schorn worries that the hygienic conditions are too uncertain.

"Who knows where the knife was before." He is shocked by the food waste of the Lindt representatives.

"I was so angry, first it started with the chocolate bars and then they went to the pralines.

The rep just ripped open the bags that she couldn't slit open.”

Edeka manager in Bad Hersfeld outraged by Lindt's food waste

Like all store managers, Schorn is routinely compensated for the goods destroyed, but the waste annoys him so much that he makes the case public.

The Edeka manager turns to the media and the story of the indiscriminate food waste goes viral.

In the meantime, he has even been contacted by a consulting company that conducts research on sustainability on behalf of the federal government.

Schorn explains, sends evidence and is upset, but his efforts have already had an effect.

Although the Lindt company did not contact Schorn directly, on its website Lindt comments on "reports on the destruction of goods by Lindt & Sprüngli employees that are close to the expiry of the best-before date (MHD)".

Lindt speaks of an isolated case of destroyed chocolate in Bad Hersfeld

The company rejects the blame in principle and emphasizes that destroying intact food violates the company's philosophy.

"Food destruction is far from our company and is not common practice," writes the company and speaks of an isolated case.

The company "discussed the case with the employee" and "sensitized all employees to the important sustainability issue" in order "to be able to rule out this practice in the future".

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Ehrenfried Schorn cannot gain anything from the statement, he has known from the incidents in his six stores that it was not an isolated case and he draws attention to another critical point.

"The chocolate will probably be sold in the Lindt outlets in the future," says Schorn.

Waste in Bad Hersfeld: Lindt wants to transport expired chocolate across the country in the future

Until now, goods that were about to expire were marked with a felt-tip pen – this was the actual procedure used by the Lindt representatives – and thus made unsaleable, but the goods remained on site.

"If this chocolate is sorted out in the future and taken to the outlets across the country in the summer, will it still taste good?" Schorn has his doubts.

But first of all, it is important to him that such a waste of food does not occur again.

"I have never experienced something like that.

That's bold.

If I had noticed that right away, I would have kicked out the representatives," says Edeka manager Schorn resolutely.

(Kim Hornickel)