Sealed container test for sales tax: undoable fastenings on polythene bags do not make dressed chicken taxable.

A package is a sealed container only if its contents cannot be accessed without breaking the container or its fastening; a closure that can be undone by straightening, opening, or removing a staple, crimp, wire, or rubber-band fastening does not meet that test. The Court explained that a sealed container is not limited to a hermetically sealed package, but it must still be closed in a manner that prevents access without breaking the fastening. On that reasoning, dressed chicken sold in polythene bags closed by such fastenings was not sold in sealed containers and was therefore exempt from sales tax.

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Issues: Whether dressed chicken sold in polythene bags closed by stapling, crimping with wire, or a rubber band is sold in a sealed container so as to attract sales tax.

Analysis: The governing test is whether the contents can be accessed without breaking the container or the fastening. A sealed container is not confined to a hermetically sealed package, but it must be closed in a manner that access to the contents is impossible without breaking the fastening. Undoing a staple, crimp, or similar closure without breaking anything is not the same as breaking the fastening. Where the fastening can be removed by straightening or opening it without tearing or rupturing the container, the package does not answer the description of a sealed container.

Conclusion: The dressed chicken was not sold in sealed containers and was therefore exempt from sales tax.

Ratio Decidendi: A package is a sealed container only when access to its contents is impossible without breaking the container or its fastening; a closure that can be undone without breaking anything does not satisfy that test.

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