"You cannot know the real world of supermarkets operating in the City" concludes a report by the City Audit on the work of the Directorate General of Inspection and Control of Government Control Agency (AGC, for its acronym in Spanish) in the verification of so-called Foodstuffs supermarkets during 2013.

According to the Auditor General of the City of Buenos Aires (AGCBA, for its acronym in Spanish), the main problem is "the lack of a regulatory framework that defines clear differences between supermarkets and other retailers of food products with an area larger than 200 m2."

This difficulty is demonstrated in the records because, until December 2013, "local authorized or pending authorization, only 195 were self-services". Against this must be taken into account that this item should include much of what are commonly called 'Chinese supermarkets'. For its part, the Trades food retailers were 22,688.

The auditors explained that the main difference between the two establishments is that the first "requires greater demands for habilitation, whether constructive or space for loading and unloading, fractioning food," among others. Added to this it is that the establishments are not obliged to operate under one of these modalities.

This situation plus the lack of communication of the Directorate General Habilitation and Permits on applications started, authorizing operation makes "no reliable local universe of potential to be examined". Consequently, "it becomes more difficult to make an inspection plan, detect clandestine facilities and review of the activity in general."

As if something were missing, the report adds that "in recent years in the city increased the number of supermarkets" but such a situation "is not reflected in official records."

The Directorate General of Inspection conducted 71 inspections at 42 local authorized or pending application, which represents 21% of all supermarkets. The result, 30 inspections with irregularities, with 15 closed premises, five preventive closures and one had violated the closure.

In nine local irregularities for which records were worked were found, however, AGCBA found that "never again to verify whether or not they had remedied the shortcomings found."

The Staff

On manning of inspectors assigned the audit concluded that there was "insufficient for the quantity and diversity of activities of audits under their orbit." In addition to supermarkets and services in question Assistant Manager Operational analyzes parlors, beauty salons, funeral services, car washes and sawmills, among others.

By 2013 a total of 17,000 inspections by 48 agents were expected.