Cheap veg this week

I shopped on Thurs and bought the 15p swede, potatoes and carrots, all of which I needed and buy every week.

Or a soup kitchen?

How is deciding that he is more likely to be 'taking advantage' being charitable? It really is the opposite, surely?

If these were in a box with a notice saying 'take these if you are hungry and cannot afford full price' then yes - anyone taking them who had money to pay for more expensive ones would be taking advantage. But they are on public sale at that price, so there is no advantage being taken, other than possibly over the farmers or suppliers, who should be protected by law from the supermarkets' greed.

It is not customers who are being greedy, IMO. It is the likes of Tesco (and the others) who take full advantage of the lack of regulation over business practices and are encouraged to put profit and shareholders over decency.

Some people will always be greedy. There was a man in Aldi this week putting about 12 bags of the 15p potatoes in his trolley. I try to be charitable and think he may be buying them for family members. More likely he runs a restaurant or something and was taking advantage.

Germanshepherdsmum

I apologise if my post has offended you, Doodledog. There is a difference between needing to buy at these prices because you are poor, and taking advantage by buying a trolleyful to stick in your fridge.

I not only know of my father in law’s truly soul destroying experience with supermarket buyers, in my working life I have been hit with the suicides of two local farmers and that experience will never leave me.

Fair enough. There are always many sides to a story.

Doodledog

Good grief! On threads about benefits we are told that it is just fecklessness that prevents people from making means for 30p out of bargains fruit and veg available from handy local markets (handy if you live in a trendy area or city centre).

When supermarkets which are likely to be on bus routes or near housing estates have similarly cheap vegetables, however, those buying them are 'greedy' and responsible for suicide rates in farmers!

As for 'needing to pay so little', how many people add a bit extra to their food bill because they consider themselves overpaid or that the price of fish is too low this week?

If fresh food is cheap, isn't that better than Turkey Twizzlers on BOGOF - people complain about that, too, as there are those who can't help looking down on everyone else. Let people choose their own shopping and who knows? There might be a bit left over at the end of the week that they can put towards a 'massive telly' or a 'latest iPhone'?

I was very tempted to pay £15 taxi fares to buy those cheap veg, since our lidl is too far away from where the second bus would drop me

I apologise if my post has offended you, Doodledog. There is a difference between needing to buy at these prices because you are poor, and taking advantage by buying a trolleyful to stick in your fridge.

I not only know of my father in law’s truly soul destroying experience with supermarket buyers, in my working life I have been hit with the suicides of two local farmers and that experience will never leave me.

I don't think it was you Cal. It was the jump to 'suicides of farmers' and 'greed' making people buy vegetables that annoyed me. That and the question of who 'can afford' to pay more, as though that logic is applied to other expenditure. People are criticised for extravagance when it comes to paying more than they 'can afford' for things like tech, but somehow that's different?

I know it's often the producers who lose - both farmers and food manufacturers who are threatened with losing contracts if they don't produce at a loss. (Mr D has worked in the food industry). That is wrong, and I think it should be stopped. I suggested government subsidy of fruit and veg on another thread, and was told I was naive and unrealistic, however - ironically by people who preached on the same thread about how easy it used to be when women 'could cook' and always had a pan of soup on the go. Presumably made out of cheap vegetables.

My point is that it must be better to feed a family on fresh veg than the usual cheap food (which also attracts brickbats), yet still people are criticised for their choices.

Are people really going to over-buy fresh fruit and veg? It goes off. You could fill the freezer with chopped veg or soup, which used to be called good housekeeping, make chutney or wine (although spring onion wine might be grim) but there aren't many other options other than to eat it while its fresh. What's greedy about that?

Exactly, Callistemon. My late father in law was a farmer who sold vegetables to supermarkets. The near frenzy about the availability of cheap vegetables makes me feel ill because I know how he suffered.

Kate1949

The reality is that if you are struggling to feed your family, the farmers are the last thing you would be thinking of.

Well, if they don't ever think of farmers, where does anyone think the food is going to come from?

So much food is wasted, there is plenty to feed all, it just needs some thought put into redistribution and stopping waste.

If fresh food is cheap, isn't that better than Turkey Twizzlers on BOGOF

Not so cheap to put British farmers out of business.
It is a balance, as with most things.

When supermarkets which are likely to be on bus routes or near housing estates have similarly cheap vegetables, however, those buying them are 'greedy' and responsible for suicide rates in farmers!

If you're implying I said that you are very wrong.

It is supermarkets, which are making good profits, which should bear the cost of these 'loss leaders'.

All too often, supermarkets force farmers to dispose of perfectly good food which they reject abpnd when there is a special deal like this, supermarkets force farmers to bear the loss.
Many just can't continue like this.

Supermarkets helping hard-up customers?? They're not going to take a loss, it is all too often the producers who lose money.

Good grief! On threads about benefits we are told that it is just fecklessness that prevents people from making means for 30p out of bargains fruit and veg available from handy local markets (handy if you live in a trendy area or city centre).

When supermarkets which are likely to be on bus routes or near housing estates have similarly cheap vegetables, however, those buying them are 'greedy' and responsible for suicide rates in farmers!

As for 'needing to pay so little', how many people add a bit extra to their food bill because they consider themselves overpaid or that the price of fish is too low this week?

If fresh food is cheap, isn't that better than Turkey Twizzlers on BOGOF - people complain about that, too, as there are those who can't help looking down on everyone else. Let people choose their own shopping and who knows? There might be a bit left over at the end of the week that they can put towards a 'massive telly' or a 'latest iPhone'?

Yes in Lidl 75%off so 15p...and a male pushing a trolley load of carrots stacked high. was struggling to push trolley ! I wanted to say ...you have a lot of rabbits[ grin] and take a pic but thought that would be rude...maybe he was buying for a food bank or very large family ?

The reality is that if you are struggling to feed your family, the farmers are the last thing you would be thinking of.

food not good

Food bank although food bank was an appropriate Freudian auto correct

**Germanshepherdsmum

^^Some of those will come from the UK - no wonder farming has such a high suicide rate. How many people actually need to pay so little for their food, as opposed to being plain greedy?^^

A very sweeping, judgemental & unnecessarily harsh comment to make. I run a good bank in our parish and I can assure you these people aren’t greedy just very grateful

It’s only greedy if ppl buy 5 plus of each item etc. it’s Easter weekend lots of families have a roast dinner. I got mine from Sainsburys the same veggie I buy every week for my home made soup etc. I’d love to buy from local farmers but none nearby me but I did used to buy from one for over 20yrs

We have a busy foodbank in our town.
Leftover food is left outside in stacked crates even when it's closed.
This is unsold food from Supermarkets and free for anyone to take.
Today there were piles of wrapped rolls, sourdough bread from M&S, overipe bananas, turnips, carrots and potatoes.
These are not popular and are often left until someone disposes of them.

Inside the foodbank is a community fridge. This has mainly ready-made salads on or just beyond their best before date.
I use it occasionally to save the food from landfill.
I can afford to buy food but I don't feel bad about taking this.

I will continue to buy cheap vegetables ony when they are reduced because they are coming up to the end of their saleable dates.

If something is is suddenly cheap, someone is suffering to pay for it.

fancythat

Though may be bad news for British Farmers?

I do hope not and hope the supermarkets are bearing the cost.

No Farmers No Food.

This explains how the system works.
news.sky.com/story/farmers-say-industry-on-its-knees-as-they-call-for-supermarkets-to-be-fairer-when-buying-produce-13038688
There are usually long-standing contracts, the price isn’t negotiated on a week by week basis. The supermarkets pay too little per contract, which of course is wrong, but that’s another issue. I live in a farming community, and I’m assured that contract prices drop in a glut season, but the supermarkets don’t change them for one week only.

The supermarkets don’t actually pay the farmers any less for the vegetables sold this week than they normally do (which isn’t enough, but that’s another story).

What is the evidence for this, everything I have ever read says that the farmers are forced to accept loss making prices for the vegetables sold in promotions. It is always the supplier who bears the cost of low prices. Never the supermarket.

I buy pretty much the same veggies most weeks if it’s 15p or £1 a packet, if I need it I buy it but I never buy more than I need.

Germanshepherdsmum

Some of those will come from the UK - no wonder farming has such a high suicide rate. How many people actually need to pay so little for their food, as opposed to being plain greedy?

What an aggressive comment, I was shopping and picked up these veg as I would every week, maybe I’m not so greedy as I didn’t get the spring onions or carrots as didn’t need them this week, I did put two boxes of teabags in the food bank, does that make it alright with you?