RIYADH: A factory producing substandard mattresses and pillows in Jeddah was sealed and total of 10,000 such goods were confiscated from a warehouse. Simultaneously, a truck that was distributing these items in Yanbu was impounded.

During an inspection of the factory, officers of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MCI) found an unlicensed warehouse where 10,000 mattresses made from used sponges and fabrics from waste were stored.

An official from the MCI said the mattresses were to be sold at the local market as newly produced goods. “By forging popular trade marks, the errant traders were trying to cheat consumers. The warehouse was shut down by the MCI, and those responsible have been summoned for investigation,” the official said.

The detection originally was made in Yanbu by MCI inspectors when they spotted a container carrying a large quantity of mattresses and pillows that were being distributed for sale in the coastal city.

The raids came within MCI inspection rounds, implemented by the ministry on warehouses and commercial institutions, to verify their regular operations, to ensure the absence of fraud and manipulation practices on consumers, and to eradicate the supply of counterfeit and substandard products to the local market.

The MCI emphasized that it will not hesitate in imposing legal penalties on offenders and those involved in fraud, which puts the health and safety of consumers at risk.

It called on consumers to lodged complaints or observations through the toll free number 1900, or through the application of a commercial notification.