Warning: Mini Rant Ahead
I have a confession to make. I really don’t like grocery shopping. I used to enjoy it when I was a big, overweight girl, and bought all the processed cookies, cakes, chips, frozen meals (not diet) and more. I never looked at the nutritional information and scorned people who did. “Who cares?” I’d think. I thought it was fun to pick up the brightly colored packages and put them in my cart anticipating what everyone at home would think when I pulled out the fun boxes from the bags. Not to mention how much I was looking forward to eating all that food myself. It was fun. Or so I thought.
Money aside for a moment, I don’t really love to go grocery shopping anymore. I make a good list, stick to it, and prepare most of my food from scratch, but the actual shopping annoys me. I’m tired of seeing claims on foods that are misleading at best and untrue at worst. Have you noticed that almost every single item on the grocery store shelf screams 0% Trans Fat? Here’s a secret for you – a lot of those foods never contained trans fat in the first place. And some of those foods may not have any “trans fat” but they are loaded with other unhealthy fats. This annoys me a lot.
I also get annoyed with the whole sugar cereal thing. I mean, please, why do children need to eat dye laden cereals when there are healthier alternatives that are tasty? Not to mention better for you. We only buy boring cereals, but that’s what my kids are used to now. I have to confess that in the olden days I had been known to buy Oreo cereal, Reese’s chocolate puff cereal, and Fruity Pebbles. I honestly didn’t think about it. They all had vitamins and were fortified with other stuff. So they were pretty good right? No. The nutrition may have been ramped up, but the sweet tooth habit those cereals developed in my older kids was hard to break.
I also get annoyed by misleading packaging. Boxes that contain less product then they used to, but where the box size is the same or bigger. Think crackers. Think diapers. Think family sized cereal boxes.
Another pet peeve of mine is when stores advertise NEW LOW PRICE . For example this soup that I sometimes buy used to be 1.29 cents a can. The next week I went in and the sign said, “NEW LOW PRICE” The new price? 2 for $3.00. Now, my degree is in Finance, but even for the mathematically challenged, $1.50 is more not less than $1.29. To add insult to injury, they had just stuck the new label on top of the old one. How do I know? Because I peeled it back to show my daughters this deception. If only I had had my new Blackberry phone with me – I would have totally taken a picture of it.
And if you can stand one more of my many pet peeves, organic foods that are so outrageously more expensive than the non-organic. Why should one 6 oz. container of greek yogurt be $1.99 whereas six 6 oz. containers of Yoplait yogurt be the same price? Someone please explain this to me.
Well, I don’t often rant on my blog. But, today was grocery shopping day and I came home in my usual annoyed mood. Do you have any grocery store/food packaging pet peeves? Diane
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Just like you I go in with a list and TRY my best to stick to it. The one place I tend to get extras is in the produce dept. If there is a sale I get whatever fresh items they have or the opposite. I am NOT spending $3.99 a pound on grapes when last week they were 89cents! They can rot there! I prefer to go to the local produce stand that gets fresh stuff locally and they have great prices too!
I am also not a crowd person…so I cringe at the thought of a Sat or Sun shopping trip. YIKES! lol
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One of my huge pet peeves is the refined cereals with “made with whole grains” or “each serving contains 10 grams of whole grains” and there is nary a gram of fiber to be found.
I can hear your annoyed and I honestly don’t blame you.I am over the false advertising myself…I do my shopping knowing what I want now and only buy the foods I feel are the better choices for Hubby and I…
I warn my youngest daughter against these things as well as she is 23 and gets fooled very quickly but the false advertising.
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Just came across your blog and read your weight loss story! Congrats to you and your wonderful journey.
I totally agree with the annoyance of false marketing. So frustrating!
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Its very similar here in the UK. I dont konw how similar the British and US labelling and pricing regulations are. I dont think the ‘new low price’ issue you mentioned could happen here.
My peeve is the ‘basics’ or value ranges that are cheap – but are nutritionally appalling compared with other brands (including the stores own brand)
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One of my personal favorites (HA !) is the 10 for 10.00 merchandising in our region. Most of the things can be found for 89 cents or less before they are put “on special”. The transfat thing is no different then what happened in the 80’s and everything was labeled “Cholesterol free”. Even apples. I like grocery shopping because I keep getting stopped in the produce department and asked what you are supposed to do with different veggies . Being big and having a cart full of produce seems to indicate that you know how to cook to total strangers. It never fails to amuse me !
I had to applaud when they came out with Sponge Bob baby carrots a while pack ( sadly they are no more).How’s about Transformers Spinach or Pokemon pomegranates ? Dora The Explorer steel cut oats perhaps ???
Diane´s last blog ..Saturday weigh in
You can rant about the zero trans fat, but it’s going to save millions of people. That’s a known fact. It’s for a good cause. NO fat is as dangerous as trans fat was.
That said, I hear you on everything else. My only rant is nutritional labeling in size -6 font. i.e., too small to read without a magnifying glass. LOL
That, and the insensitive bores who take more than 15 items to the 15 items or less check-out lines. LOL
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I never like grocery shopping. I make a list and run through the store and go home as soon as possible. I only go once a week. I’d rather spend my time on other things to do.
But the false marketing is everywhere the same, in Holland it isn’t any different and the healthy stuff is more expensive here too.
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I don’t normally comment on other commentators comments, but Sunny, I have to question, how is misleading shoppers by saying “zero trans fat” (misleading because it never had trans fat to begin with) going to save millions of people? I agree trans fat is bad, I just don’t agree with misleading people into thinking you have removed something that was never there. I also question the “millions” number. There are so many other food factors that come into play, such as sugar, that the “millions” number is likely not factual. Sorry for the hijacked comment thread Diane.
As far as pet peeves at the story – I have many. The misleading pricing is one of them. Just last night I saw something which was marked down to a new lower price. They were 100% accurate, it was marked down 1 penny. 1 penny! I did get a picture of that.
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I love when you rant!!!!! You go there Diane!!!! All that stuff ticks me off to no end too!!!!!!!!!!!! ALL OF IT! And yes, that one week it is a lower price & next week all of a sudden a deal but it really is higher than last week.. on top of the labeling & sugar & … OMG, Diane, now you have me in a rant! I need my kickboxing class!
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You have hit on one of my biggest pet peeves too! I hate when I go to the store and they mislead people with the prices and sale! Seriously, how dumb do they thing we are???! Great post!
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I hate grocery shopping, too. It is a necessary evil, I suppose. And the thing about the “zero trans fat” labels is that companies are legally allowed to put that even if there is .5 g of trans fat. So in fact some of those “zero trans fat” foods actually have trans fat.
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I can relate, Diane. When I lived in the Northeast in medical school time was at a premium. I had to budget three hours for g. shopping! The lines were so long, and everyone had the carts pilled up to the sky! If I bought frozen stuff, it was thawed by the time I reached the checkout!
Now in Florida, where I live, most of the time, shopping is not nearly as difficult. I’m a pretty savvy shopper, and whether I am wearing it or not, I think the store managers see “Fear This” on me like a flashing sign, lol!
I do have some buddies at the checkout, however, and THEY are very nice. One day I brought some flowers and when they went through the checkout, this older woman who was doing it and who I really like, asked,”Do you want to carry these?” I said no thank you, because they are for you!!” I wanted to thank her for making shopping something that, at least when leaving, was a pleasure
Food’s getting crappier and people are getting fatter, and nobody seems to be able to make the connection. I was in Costco this morning (bad idea), and watched this older gentleman exclaim to his wife “Look at this jumbo pan of sticky buns… it’s only five dollars!” It boggles the mind…
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I get annoyed with all the foods that have the “fake sugars” in them, like aspartame. I tried to buy healthy foods with those non-sugar alternatives, and had a hard time finding any. There’s only 2 kinds of gum, I’ve found that doesn’t have aspartame in it- Dentyne and Cinnamon trident. Most of the yogurt’s have the aspartame in them, but if you get the ones that aren’t low fat, they’re loaded with sugar!
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I think that sugar is one of the biggest causes of people becoming bigger and bigger. Top that off with the addictive way sugar (and it’s variants) work – and it’s sad that we promote these cereals to kids – setting them up at an early age for dealing with problems later on.
And the new low price?? Wow!! That is sad that they just put a new price over the top.
Lance´s last blog ..The Upside of Life (And Holiday Celebration!)
LOVE your blog! I am the same way…I loathe the grocery store for many of the same reasons.
I don’t blame you! Claims on food items are outrageous.
I don’t enjoy grocery shopping very much, but since I have started to plan meals, it has gotten a bit better. I make a list based on what’s in season in our area (we are spoiled as we are in CA), try to stick to it (easier done when I’m by myself), and, if I have time, shop in a few different stores to get the best deals. I also do most of my produce shopping at Farmers’ Markets and buy from a few “true” farmers whom I have gotten to know over the years.
Here are my pet peeves – 1) changing the packaging size instead of raising prices – which makes it hard to use those older recipes. I make hummus from a recipe that calls for a 19 ounce can of garbanzo beans – but the cans are now 15.5 ounces. So making the recipe has turned into a math problem. 2) unrealistic serving sizes – like half a cup of cereal. I know portion sizes have crept up to an unhealthy level but I don’t think anyone would consider a half cup of cereal a real serving. 3) varying sizes of packaging for things like coffee beans (2 oz., 8 oz., 12 oz., 16 oz. plus varying unit prices (per ounce for some and per pound for others). Just because I’m trying to watch my budget doesn’t mean I want to stand in the aisle with a calculator.
But despite all these irritations, I love to cook and love to shop for food. The bulk of what I buy and eat is produce and we have such a fabulous variety of produce available in my area now that I think it’s great fun. Sometimes I stop at an Asian market that carries a huge assortment of interesting produce, particularly greens and herbs (and eggplants in every shape and color). If something looks interesting I’ll hang around until someone buys some of it and then ask what they do with it. Then I’ll buy some and give it a try.
I really hate it when I try to compare prices are some things are labeled “per unit” and some “per ounce” and some “per box” etc. How are we supposed to figure it all out anyway?!
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Let me tell you that I agree with everything you said. Pricing is HUGE for me right now, and as much as I hated it Wal Mart was the cheapest and we had been going there for a while….notice I said WAS — last weekend, we went, and a gallon of milk which was 2.68 the very weekend before was now 3.98 – HUH?? All of the baking stuff went up, just in time for those of us who had last minute things to grab for things for the holidays. I was livid. We went to Super Target today, I got all of my groceries, finished my shopping for Christmas for hubby, plus got several health and beauty items and still made it out just under 110.00. Much better. Whew, sorry to vent on your vent! : )
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I share many of the same frustrations. Since I shop only for myself, I have the option of changing plans when certain marketing or pricing strategies annoy me.
My biggest peeve these days is how long it takes me to shop. Having to read the labels and then compare the products from the “health food section” to their counterparts in the “regular food” aisles is exhausting. And all too often the supposed “health food” is only marginally better, if at all.
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I am right there with you on the labeling crud. It is complete and udder BS what labeling can get away with! Our general population is not educated enough in nutrition to know anything other than what they read, which is FALSE! Oye, maybe I shouldn’t have even started myself : )
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I enjoy grocery shopping when I am not rushing etc but the same things peeve me.
I seldom make a list but most days just walk around the circumference of the store and only go down the other isles if there is something specific I need – I am trying to challenge myself to cook things with what I have on hand.
We must shop at the same store cause we are often having those 10 for 10 sales!!
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Everything you said PLUS: specials that are sold out or not stocked yet, meat int he “fresh” meat case that has obviously been frozen, and poor quality fruit at high quality prices. There, I feel better now. Thanks.
Deb
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Labelling is a huge issue on this side of the pond too
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8421326.stm
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I have this exact same feeling about health food store and food coops. there are a LOT of things carried at these stores or these sections in regular grocery stores that are actally NON-food packaged to look like REAL FOOD. I shop at the food coop for KEY things (not for my regular, total grocery shopping) and I use the same technique that I use at the regular grocery – outside aisles and then keeping my eyes WIDE open and reading labels on everything – even there.
I show my kids LOT of things like you mentioned – I go at it from the attitude that the marketing people are trying to trick us – and we have to be really clever to catch them at it.
Cereal is one of my biggest annoyances (lack of protein, cereal that is really no different than a cookie).
Whole foods that have been processed and now have additives (canned beans and veggies and fruit).
We developed our master grocery list (and use it at home to check to see what we have and what needs restocked) and that has helped (me) greatly. It also means that other people (husband, kids) can do the shopping without me. Doesn’t happen often, but it does happen.
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I just found your blog from the Endurance Isn’t Only Physical blog and I’m glad I did!
You look great BTW…
I agree with you on the food misrepresentation. The one that really gets me is how all of the junk cereals now say “Whole Grains”. What is the deal with that? Everything is either “whole grains” or “0% trans fats”. Drives me crazy!
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Amen, Amen, Amen!! Our government should really do some work on the labeling issues.
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I hate to shop so my husband does most of it. I end up with some things I’d never buy but it beats doing it.
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My pet peeve is junk food that claims to be healthy because it’s organic. I go into the organic/health food section of my grocery store and it’s chock full of packaged cookies, soups and pastas all labelled to look healthy because they’re organic. Umm… junk food is still still junk food even when it’s organic. And it’s still mega processed!
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I’m not a fan or grocery shopping either. It is a pain reading all the labels and all.
The worst is the cereal aisle. You can hardly find a cereal with less than 12 grams of sugar per 3/4 cup serving. My son loves cereal and I can tell you that his serving size is a whole lot bigger than 3/4 of a cup.
If I win the lottery some day, having a personal chef and shopper would be at the top of my list!
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Diane, did you see that you won over at Endurance Isn’t Only Physical! How exciting! CONGRATS & you deserve it!
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I agree with you! The misleading info makes me crazy! The worst thing about the grocery store is shopping when I am hungry! I buy stuff I would never buy if I didn’t have the munchies. I try to never shop hungry.
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Ugh. I hate grocery shopping for oh so many reasons, many of which you just wrote about so I won’t repeat them. It’s just so unfair how misleading and expensive everything is.
Mary :: A Merry Life´s last blog ..Weekly Weigh In: Small Steps
The “new low prices” gets to me too, but I have to say that I don’t mind grocery shopping. I’ve always enjoyed planning meals and buying what I need to make those meals happen. (I cook from scratch mostly also.)
I do find myself getting saddened when I see overweight people buying tons and tons of food now. Though I also take a minute to thank the Lord I’m doing something about my weight and gaining control over my prior bad eating habits.
Go ahead and rant, Diane, it’s your blog and there’s no better place to do it than right here.
We don’t mind.
Shopping for my crew is a given. I enjoy getting out and by myself, because that is so rare. I make sure I’m not hungry because I can end up with the craziest stuff in my cart. I always have a list also. I went yesterday afternoon and there were a bajillion people at WalMart. My only complaint? Has to do with children and babies. I hate hearing little babies just crying so hard and their parents just ignore them. Don’t pick them up or anything. And I hate seeing the little ones in a dirty blanket sleeper with dirty faces and snarled hair. I just want to shake their parents. When I see a woman with a little baby I like to go up and tell them how cute their baby is and that their baby looks so happy. Moms need to hear that!
Good post as always Diane!
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I am an advertisers dream, and so I can NOT go shopping. I see shiny packages and I want it all. This is still a major struggle for me, so I lessen it by not shopping. I know this is a luxury not everyone has, but Dan knows it’s a weakness for me and for the sake of my diet (and our budget) he does that for me. It does annoy me to see all the false or misleading claims.
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Except for the occasional can of olives, packaged seaweed or organic frozen berries, I rarely buy packaged foods. I’m all about the fresh, local, org produce and bulk items. I guess my biggest pet peeve would be the sugar content, soy and canola oil in a lot of the package foods – even in so-called health food stores.
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Some days when I leave the grocery store I feel as if my head is going to explode! I don’t like shopping either…
I don’t buy packaged food, but there is still plenty of things in the supermarket that annoys me. These people have no integrity!
Hanlie´s last blog ..The role of food in our lives
Great article… you answered some of my questions, thanks a bunch!