Chicken is one of South Africa’s meats of choice for the dinner table, but consumers might have noticed the numbers ticking up on their receipts.
Chicken is becoming too expensive for the nation’s low-income earners, leaving them with dangerously few options for sources of protein.
With the cost of chicken feed, energy, and transport increasing, fast food chains and retail stores have already put some prices up, but lucky TikTok user Keenan Olivier earlier this week scored himself a Woolworths 24-portion bulk pack chicken priced at 8 cents and ended up getting it free of charge.
Olivier was at a Woolworths Food in Tyger Valley when he spotted the very low-priced chicken pack, and there and then he decided to go pay for it.
After the cashier scanned the item, Olivier pulled out a 20-cent coin to pay, to which the shocked cashier responded: “What’s happening here?”
As the clip continues, he details how the payment went.
“Yes, mense! I just paid 8 cents for a 24-pack of chicken at Woolies as you can see on the slip. Just wanna remind you guys that the customer is always right.
“That pack of chicken was actually worth over R200 at Woolies so they messed up and put an 8 cents sign on it so I just paid with my 8 cents.
“I literally gave them 20 cents and I paid it and they gave me 20 cents back because nowadays nobody operates with cents any more,” said Olivier.
@keenanolivier021
The video, which has amassed over a million views since the time of publication, got people laughing and others sharing their own similar situations with retail shops.
One user wrote: “My aunt bought shoes at Woolies and the price was R5. She was so happy we went to celebrate at the restaurant.”
A second user wrote: “I worked in retail and the rule is the customer pays the price they see on the product even if it’s wrong.”
“You sir are my new hero”, commented a third.