Supermarkets discussion

[londonbridge]

This household don't take them back, has been five across the road at worst. Morrisons do seem to collect them when I Tell inform them. I have pushed a pair back myself. We must be over one kilometre away. Our trolley folds up but like you say it is another piece of clutter (actually by the back door storing veg !).

This leads me to another anecdote from my trolley boy days, we kept getting calls from the same customer saying there was a trolley in his next door neighbours back garden. We would go round to collect it, every time we’d knock on the door and the guy would let us through to get it but he insisted it wasn’t him bringing them home and that someone was dumping them in his garden. It transpired that the two neighbours weren’t on speaking terms after a row and the first one was taking his shopping home then throwing the trolley over the fence into the neighbours garden before ringing up and reporting it in a bid to get his neighbour into trouble.

 

[takno]

This leads me to another anecdote from my trolley boy days, we kept getting calls from the same customer saying there was a trolley in his next door neighbours back garden. We would go round to collect it, every time we’d knock on the door and the guy would let us through to get it but he insisted it wasn’t him bringing them home and that someone was dumping them in his garden. It transpired that the two neighbours weren’t on speaking terms after a row and the first one was taking his shopping home then throwing the trolley over the fence into the neighbours garden before ringing up and reporting it in a bid to get his neighbour into trouble.

When I worked at an Iceland we lost 60 of our 100 trolleys within the first couple of months, completely disappearing without a trace and in spite of our trips around the town looking for them. After we received replacements, equipped now with pound-coin locks we lost another 30 or so in a month. Then one day we got a call from a bemused car park worker at a car park across the town centre to report that he'd found some of our trolleys. We promptly dispatched somebody over to get them back, at which point he reported that almost all the missing trolleys were there, neatly stacked.

We never did figure out whether this was some attempt by a competitor to cause us trouble, or somebody who thought he might be able to ransom them or something.

 

[Peter Sarf]

My grand parents did shopping more regularly and generally walked. These days you'll hear people insist they need a car and laugh if you suggest going on foot, or taking a bus.. or even cycling. My grand parents had their own shopping bag on wheels, which now seems only to be a thing for shoplifters (who line them so as not to trigger door sensors).

I prefer to do a bigger shop less often, but of late I've been finding myself doing smaller shops every couple of days - although the cold weather is making me consider a big shop this weekend again. But it's not like I couldn't do a smaller shop still, and there are opportunities to get fresher fruit and veg when not trying to keep it for a long time, as well as check marked down products and other offers.

This reminds me. In some countries I have visited the food is still bought fresh from very local markets. When I say fresh I mean very fresh - the chickens and fish will be live in the market. Furthermore the food made from the fresh produce taste so much better. It is depressing when I come back to the UK.

When I worked at an Iceland we lost 60 of our 100 trolleys within the first couple of months, completely disappearing without a trace and in spite of our trips around the town looking for them. After we received replacements, equipped now with pound-coin locks we lost another 30 or so in a month. Then one day we got a call from a bemused car park worker at a car park across the town centre to report that he'd found some of our trolleys. We promptly dispatched somebody over to get them back, at which point he reported that almost all the missing trolleys were there, neatly stacked.

We never did figure out whether this was some attempt by a competitor to cause us trouble, or somebody who thought he might be able to ransom them or something.

It could even have been a kind soul collecting them before you got to them and leaving them in one, albeit obscure, place.

 

[takno]

It could even have been a kind soul collecting them before you got to them and leaving them in one, albeit obscure, place.

It was a car park we checked at least once a week

 

[DannyMich2018]

I worked for Safeway in 2004 (Grantham store) which a few months later was sold to Sainsbury's (already had a Morrisons in town). Every few days one of my car park colleagues checked the nearby side streets and river side for stray trolleys. I remember myself fishing one out of there on a cold January afternoon with some help from a member of the public!! Happy days

 

[Harpo]

This reminds me. In some countries I have visited the food is still bought fresh from very local markets. When I say fresh I mean very fresh - the chickens and fish will be live in the market. Furthermore the food made from the fresh produce taste so much better. It is depressing when I come back to the UK.

Meat and fish here invariably means small amounts cling filmed to a tray in a fridge. As for fresh fish, expect farmed salmon plus cod and haddock.

Its an absolute joy to visit markets and supermarkets in Europe but Britain has perhaps chosen its own lowest common denominator in food choices.

 

[GusB]

Meat and fish here invariably means small amounts cling filmed to a tray in a fridge. As for fresh fish, expect farmed salmon plus cod and haddock.

Its an absolute joy to visit markets and supermarkets in Europe but Britain has perhaps chosen its own lowest common denominator in food choices.

I worked for Safeway in the mid 90s and they had just got rid of the in-store meat and fish counters. In one of the stores, a former Norco, the car park attendant had been a time-served butcher for many years and took a much lower-paid position to avoid redundancy. It was a shame to see that expertise go to waste.

The smaller Tesco store near me clung on to its fish counter until quite recently, as did Asda, but everything comes in pre-packed these days. I'm lucky enough to be able to access independent butchers, including here in the village, but the fishmonger in town closed a while back. It's not impossible to get fresh fish; the remaining traders tend to send vans from further afield, but it's on certain days and the times often aren't convenient. It's a sad state of affairs when you live on a coastline that's dotted with fishing villages!

 

[AM9]

I worked for Safeway in the mid 90s and they had just got rid of the in-store meat and fish counters. In one of the stores, a former Norco, the car park attendant had been a time-served butcher for many years and took a much lower-paid position to avoid redundancy. It was a shame to see that expertise go to waste.

The smaller Tesco store near me clung on to its fish counter until quite recently, as did Asda, but everything comes in pre-packed these days. I'm lucky enough to be able to access independent butchers, including here in the village, but the fishmonger in town closed a while back. It's not impossible to get fresh fish; the remaining traders tend to send vans from further afield, but it's on certain days and the times often aren't convenient. It's a sad state of affairs when you live on a coastline that's dotted with fishing villages!

Fresh fish, meat and deli here at Waitrose, fish and meat usually cut as requested. At least that isn't pre-packed only. Seems that the big three have done away with service counters with little complaint from their customers. It's true that the large continental supermarkets haven't descended to what seems like an American practice. I've never been in one but I would expect Booths to have retained their service counters. I think that Wholefoods is the only US chain that has any respect for its customers' wishes there.

 

[takno]

Fresh fish, meat and deli here at Waitrose, fish and meat usually cut as requested. At least that isn't pre-packed only. Seems that the big three have done away with service counters with little complaint from their customers. It's true that the large continental supermarkets haven't descended to what seems like an American practice. I've never been in one but I would expect Booths to have retained their service counters. I think that Wholefoods is the only US chain that has any respect for its customers' wishes there.

I think the supermarkets are largely respecting their customers wishes, and probably even more so in the US. Most people don't have the time, equipment, money or the skills to make a decent meal out of fresh fish, let alone the taste for it. In any case when they do want a fresh fish meal they're better off going to a restaurant.

Having the expensive specialist end of supermarket chains retain the expensive specialist counters seems to be exactly the right approach.

 

[Peter Sarf]

Fresh fish, meat and deli here at Waitrose, fish and meat usually cut as requested. At least that isn't pre-packed only. Seems that the big three have done away with service counters with little complaint from their customers. It's true that the large continental supermarkets haven't descended to what seems like an American practice. I've never been in one but I would expect Booths to have retained their service counters. I think that Wholefoods is the only US chain that has any respect for its customers' wishes there.

Having wandered parts of Europe I am inclined to agree the UK is more akin to US practice regarding fresh food. I agree it is down to time and inclination. It is a bit like people say they do not have time to walk somewhere so drive instead BUT they do have to make time to go to the gym. In practice I suspect they set up the gym membership plus direct debit then never go or never have time to cancel the direct debit.

For people who appreciate fresh food then they can spend out on a restaurant meal. Not that all restaurants are the same - there is a (theoretical) difference between a cheap restaurant and an expensive restaurant.

Looking at what people have in their trolley at my local Morrisons.
There are those with ingredients - fresh or pre packed.
There are those with ready made meals. cakes/sweets and booze not too rarely.
I am a mixture of the two - I describe myself as ex batchelor able to fly a microwave but cooking proper meals to eat over Friday to Monday. Meanwhile my missus who drives my out of the kitchen is a COOK.

I wonder if since Covid19 more home working has affected what (how much) people buy in supermarkets. Quite likely more eating from home means more from the supermarket. Correspondingly less eating in a staff canteen or other eatery in the area of employment even sandwiches. The decline of meal outlets in working areas indicates more sales of food likely in residential areas - that is supermarkets for ingredients and possibly restaurants/cafes but more likely meal deliveries rather than restaurants/cafes.

So will supermarkets suffer a change as the post Covid19 working from home culture evolves (gets watered down) ?.

 

[takno]

I wonder if since Covid19 more home working has affected what (how much) people buy in supermarkets. Quite likely more eating from home means more from the supermarket. Correspondingly less eating in a staff canteen or other eatery in the area of employment even sandwiches. The decline of meal outlets in working areas indicates more sales of food likely in residential areas - that is supermarkets for ingredients and possibly restaurants/cafes but more likely meal deliveries rather than restaurants/cafes.

So will supermarkets suffer a change as the post Covid19 working from home culture evolves (gets watered down) ?.

A surprising proportion of the work from home market switched to buying their meal deals or microwave ready meals from their local Tesco Local rather than the town centre one, and there haven't been many offices with decent canteens for years. I'd say the supermarkets will be about evens on the whole thing, although the coffee shops and sandwich shops which have set up in the suburbs might struggle

 

[route101]

I do enjoy the big supermarkets in France, much more dairy but no much in the way of ready meals.

 

[AM9]

I do enjoy the big supermarkets in France, much more dairy but no much in the way of ready meals.

That's a result of the lack of US cultural influence that's prevalent across mainland Europe but increasingly dominating the UK.

 

[takno]

That's a result of the lack of US cultural influence that's prevalent across mainland Europe but increasingly dominating the UK.

It really isn't. We're light years ahead of the US on pre-pack sandwiches thanks to M&S and British Rail. We have better ready meals than virtually anywhere including the US (although Sweden's putting in a good effort). Our meat and dairy sections, while prepacked owe much more to a European and uniquely British heritage than to the US.

We are a large market with our own tastes and habits, serviced by our own supermarket chains selling our own products. Where products are available or produced internationally they are overwhelmingly likely to be sold across Europe rather than across the US. This is somewhat inevitable because they are easier to transport, and we still have much closer food and vetinary standards.

 

[gg1]

It really isn't. We're light years ahead of the US on pre-pack sandwiches thanks to M&S and British Rail. We have better ready meals than virtually anywhere including the US (although Sweden's putting in a good effort).

That's one of the things I noticed when we went to the states last year. We did a lot of driving and found the options at supermarkets and petrol stations for food you could eat on the go were far more limited than in Britain. Lots of crisps, chocolate, sweets, pastries (usually of the sickly sweet variety) and jerky but not much beyond that, pre-packed sandwiches were a rare sight and things like pasties or pies were non existent.

 

[Peter Sarf]

That's a result of the lack of US cultural influence that's prevalent across mainland Europe but increasingly dominating the UK.

I am inclined to agree with you.

It really isn't. We're light years ahead of the US on pre-pack sandwiches thanks to M&S and British Rail. We have better ready meals than virtually anywhere including the US (although Sweden's putting in a good effort). Our meat and dairy sections, while prepacked owe much more to a European and uniquely British heritage than to the US.

We are a large market with our own tastes and habits, serviced by our own supermarket chains selling our own products. Where products are available or produced internationally they are overwhelmingly likely to be sold across Europe rather than across the US. This is somewhat inevitable because they are easier to transport, and we still have much closer food and vetinary standards.

Perhaps true of pick up and eat food.

But the ready meals to take home and microwave segment I feel the UK is closer to the US than Europe. Even the prepacked meat etc.

 

[takno]

But the ready meals to take home and microwave segment I feel the UK is closer to the US than Europe. Even the prepacked meat etc.

It's one of those areas where people assume that we are following the US because the US was ahead of the curve for a few years in the 80s and 90s. There is a gourmet segment in the US, but to a large extent they've struggled to move beyond garbage frozen TV dinners.

By contrast we have a pretty large industry dedicated to innovating in the ready meal space covering chilled, ambient and frozen. This segment isn't looking to the US for ideas, and indeed they are light years ahead of the US on innovation. The rest of Europe is hugely variable, reflecting cultural norms around the fresh preparation of food, and access to kitchens and microwaves.

This is one of the reasons why it's frustrating to see ready meals demonized as the worst kind of ultra-processed foods The typical ones in the UK vary between not terrible and really pretty healthy, and are generally much better than anything I tend to make at home.

 

[ScotsRail]

A surprising proportion of the work from home market switched to buying their meal deals or microwave ready meals from their local Tesco Local rather than the town centre one, and there haven't been many offices with decent canteens for years. I'd say the supermarkets will be about evens on the whole thing, although the coffee shops and sandwich shops which have set up in the suburbs might struggle

The last time I worked somewhere that had a staff canteen was 1994!

And even then that was a lone canteen in an industrial estate in Aberdeen - people from other buildings used to come in for lunch, since then nowhere I've worked has had food facilities beyond a microwave, toaster and kettle.

 

[jon81uk]

That's one of the things I noticed when we went to the states last year. We did a lot of driving and found the options at supermarkets and petrol stations for food you could eat on the go were far more limited than in Britain. Lots of crisps, chocolate, sweets, pastries (usually of the sickly sweet variety) and jerky but not much beyond that, pre-packed sandwiches were a rare sight and things like pasties or pies were non existent.

Generally the US focuses on sandwiches being made to order in a deli or fast food restaurant. So if driving you'd stop at a fast food restaurant for a quick meal (or a diner) and if in a city then its more likely a deli or bodega for a sandwich. Their focus is more on humans serving you instead of buying pre-packed

 

[GatwickDepress]

The last time I worked somewhere that had a staff canteen was 1994!

And even then that was a lone canteen in an industrial estate in Aberdeen - people from other buildings used to come in for lunch, since then nowhere I've worked has had food facilities beyond a microwave, toaster and kettle.

I worked at a Tesco which had a proper staff canteen until 2017, when head office began closing them down - some stores had staffing outsourced instead, but even those had all gone by 2019.

Funny thing is, Tesco had spent 20k renewing the kitchen just a few months before and the whole thing was just left to rot behind a temporary partition. As far as I know, it's still like that.

 

[Bald Rick]

It's one of those areas where people assume that we are following the US because the US was ahead of the curve for a few years in the 80s and 90s. There is a gourmet segment in the US, but to a large extent they've struggled to move beyond garbage frozen TV dinners.

By contrast we have a pretty large industry dedicated to innovating in the ready meal space covering chilled, ambient and frozen. This segment isn't looking to the US for ideas, and indeed they are light years ahead of the US on innovation. The rest of Europe is hugely variable, reflecting cultural norms around the fresh preparation of food, and access to kitchens and microwaves.

This is one of the reasons why it's frustrating to see ready meals demonized as the worst kind of ultra-processed foods The typical ones in the UK vary between not terrible and really pretty healthy, and are generally much better than anything I tend to make at home.

I agree with this.

French hypermarkets are amazing, but… very French. Some might say “well, obviously”, but if you look at what we can get in UK supermarkets in terms of ingredients (as well as ready meals), it is far more diverse.

One microcosm is the wine aisle. In the large French hypermarkets there is a fantastic array of all types of French wine, with low-mid range stuff (£8-£15 a bottle here) about half the price there. But anything non-French will be tucked in a corner under “vins d’étrangèrs”. You might see a bottle of Campo Viejo, some Oyster Bay, and a token Zinfandel as that’s what the French think the yanks think is good wine. Compare to our wine aisles.

Personally, I like the French hypermarkets for a change (especially the wine and bakery sections), but I’d quickly miss lots of things if I had to shop there every week.

 

[Harpo]

Personally, I like the French hypermarkets for a change (especially the wine and bakery sections), but I’d quickly miss lots of things if I had to shop there every week.

I think i would too because, ultimately, indulging properly in that fabulous array of fish, seafood, cheese, wine, pastries and Trianon (personal weakness) over a lengthy stay costs a fortune!

 

[jfollows]

I agree with this.

French hypermarkets are amazing, but… very French. Some might say “well, obviously”, but if you look at what we can get in UK supermarkets in terms of ingredients (as well as ready meals), it is far more diverse.

One microcosm is the wine aisle. In the large French hypermarkets there is a fantastic array of all types of French wine, with low-mid range stuff (£8-£15 a bottle here) about half the price there. But anything non-French will be tucked in a corner under “vins d’étrangèrs”. You might see a bottle of Campo Viejo, some Oyster Bay, and a token Zinfandel as that’s what the French think the yanks think is good wine. Compare to our wine aisles.

Personally, I like the French hypermarkets for a change (especially the wine and bakery sections), but I’d quickly miss lots of things if I had to shop there every week.

The other thing with French hypermarkets is that they seem to think 1 checkout per 1000 customers is the correct ratio, I have left my shopping in the queue in disgust on more than one occasion.

My local Sainsbury tries to rustle up more checkout staff if there are queues, the French don’t seem to give a toss!

 

[deltic]

I'm getting more and more fed up with my local Sainsbury having one price displayed on the shelf and the bar code showing a different one. Have complained to store managers a couple of times but it still occurs on a regular basis

 

[Bald Rick]

I'm getting more and more fed up with my local Sainsbury having one price displayed on the shelf and the bar code showing a different one. Have complained to store managers a couple of times but it still occurs on a regular basis

I have that, sort of, but in my favour. My Sainsbury’s keeps giving me free Broccoli. The self scan sticker from the self weigh machine will just not scan (it works for all other fruit and veg I buy), and more often than not says ‘bar code not recognised’. At the self scan check out I always mention it, and the assistant always says “it’s yours, just take it”.

I wish it did the same with the Chablis 1er Cru!

 

[TheGuy77]

Iceland are now selling mince pies for 10p.

 

[takno]

Iceland are now selling mince pies for 10p.View attachment 172727

And there's me paid 30p a pack for the Tesco ones a couple of weeks ago like a chump. I'm planning a second cheaper christmas some time next month if the weather's getting me down.

 

[route101]

I noticed in Germany, self checkouts are rarer apart from Rewe to go shops. In France I thought the pre packed sandwiches were long life and inferior to UK ones. In some places such as Portugal it was very hard to find a cold drink in a fridge. I have noticed that in a few places in Europe! Do they prefer room temp pop?

 

[philthetube]

I'm getting more and more fed up with my local Sainsbury having one price displayed on the shelf and the bar code showing a different one. Have complained to store managers a couple of times but it still occurs on a regular basis

Asda used to give you the product if that happened, no idea if they do not.

A report to trading standards should stop this.

 

[Tester]

Asda used to give you the product if that happened, no idea if they do not.

A report to trading standards should stop this.

That used to be a thing generally, then quietly disappeared a while back.

Interestingly full refund and keep the product remains normal in Australia - under a code of practice from the introduction of scanning. Unsurprisingly it is a rare occurrence!