A Coles grocery store in Melbourne has come under fire for what many have perceived to be a “racist” sign.
The sign is located at the beginning of an aisle and lists the words “Cat food”, “Dog food” and “Asian” on separate lines beneath one another.
A photo of the sign that was posted to Reddit drew in hundreds of comments, with users questioning why Asian food was sectioned together with pet food, with many user’s labelling the grocery store “racist”.
“How are these even related?” Commented one user.
“Three-quarters of the supermarkets I’ve been in have the same layout, weird this sneak in?” another added.
However, some other users believed that the suggestions of racism were unfounded.
“It’s an assumption to play racist card – more than likely it’s probably just oversight,” one user said.
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The signage has since been corrected, keeping the two variations of pet food on one sign and creating a new one that simply reads, ‘Asian Groceries’.
A Coles spokesperson has told news.com.au that each Coles store has varying layouts. They also said that the aforementioned Melbourne store has a break halfway down the aisle known as“split aisles with signs at each end to make it easier for customers to navigate”.
“So, while the signage appears to show pet food and Asian food located next to each other, they are actually in very separate sections,” the spokesperson explained.
They added, “While we would typically aim to ensure special ranges, such as Asian or other international foods, are located within the grocery section. In some smaller stores or where aisles are split, they may be found in a different area.”
Another commented, “People really do need to get a life, when a supermarket is undergoing change, everything is where it should not be, they simply have to use available space”.
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