When is a teaspoon not a teaspoon? When it’s “drug paraphernalia”, The Grocer discovered this week.

The Grocer’s own senior reporter Elinor Zuke was shocked when an age verification alert was triggered by a £1.19 pack of six Basics teaspoons at a self-scan checkout in The Grocer’s local Sainsbury’s store in West Green, Crawley.

When she asked why the purchase had to be verified, she was told the spoons “could be used as drug paraphernalia”.

“I couldn’t understand what the problem was - when the supervisor said it was because they could be used as drug paraphernalia I was completely shocked,” Zuke said.

“I would imagine the vast majority of spoons sold by Sainsbury’s are used for nothing more nefarious than stirring a cup of tea. Having to prove I was over 18 to buy them seemed total madness.”

Sainsbury’s apologised for the incident. “The self-scan system recognised the spoon’s SKU as one for a knife,” said a spokeswoman. This had now been rectified.

“We’re very sorry for any confusion caused,” she added. “Our Think 25 policy is designed to ensure age-related products are sold safely.”

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