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Is it just me? ---

(53 Posts)
chicken Tue 25-Apr-17 16:45:46

-- or do other people tell shops when they find out of date food? I went shopping this morning. In Lidl's I picked up a dog-chub and found it was a bag of squishy sludge, gone rotten after having been punctured. Then in Waitrose I found several cartons of milk well past their sell-by date. In both cases I quietly told a member of staff---and in both cases the response was just a dismissive shrug! I thought I might have been saving them from a reprimand or worse if they had a spot check from food inspectors, and surely it wouldn't have hurt them to say "Thank you for telling us". I don't think I'll bother in future, just let them face the consequences. What do you think?

grannylyn65 Tue 25-Apr-17 16:50:07

What on earth is a dog chub??

Yes, have been known to point items out !

aggie Tue 25-Apr-17 16:52:16

Sorry you felt miffed , I don't tell staff quietly , I go to customer services and complain

Ana Tue 25-Apr-17 16:52:33

I did the same a couple of years ago in Tesco when I found a whole shelf of yoghurts was out of date. The assistant did say 'Thanks' but didn't look at all bothered.

I should also add that the same Tesco store had been prosecuted twice before for selling out of date produce. They don't seem to care.

Cherrytree59 Tue 25-Apr-17 16:55:18

Yes t'other day Home Bargains
out of date cake
So none of MIL favourite dry cake that day.

chicken Tue 25-Apr-17 17:05:08

grannylyn65---"What is a dog-chub?" It's a large sausage shaped tube of dog food like pate, encased in plastic. Smells revolting at the best of times!

Luckygirl Tue 25-Apr-17 17:19:44

That sounds absolutely disgusting! Another good reason not to have a dog! grin

chicken Tue 25-Apr-17 17:25:01

OH gets me to buy it so that he can feed the visiting fox. I tell him that he's a silly old fool for encouraging vermin but there's no fool like an old fool!

Teetime Tue 25-Apr-17 17:49:24

I am surprised at Waitrose. I usually shop in Sainsbury and M & S and have never found anything out of date.

Cherrytree59 Tue 25-Apr-17 18:40:20

Chicken's DH feeding a fox??shock

petra Tue 25-Apr-17 20:45:03

I wish my OH would let me feed the fox in our garden.

rosesarered Tue 25-Apr-17 21:26:59

I have found out of date food items in all supermarkets.I rootle about at the back of the shelves for a better date.

PRINTMISS Wed 26-Apr-17 08:42:31

One of the drawbacks of shopping on line, is that you are unable to buy the 'newest' stock. Staff are obviously trained to get rid of the old stuff first. (not out of date)

TerriBull Wed 26-Apr-17 08:51:49

shock not Waitrose! I usually buy 2 litre milks either at Sainsbury or Waitrose and the dates tend to be possibly a week hence, but will make sure to check carefully in future.

annsixty Wed 26-Apr-17 09:06:40

I always take the offending article to customer services and tell them they are lucky I am telling them instead of Trading Standards so that they can train staff better instead of being prosecuted. I am sure they think "silly old biddy" but they always say thankyou.
This does not happen at Aldi as they have no customer service desk, one of the drawbacks of shopping there.

Venus Wed 26-Apr-17 10:15:53

I always feed our fox, especially now that he has cubs to look aftet.

radicalnan Wed 26-Apr-17 10:24:56

Please don't feed the foxes........they are getting bigger and braver and attacking pets in gardens.

I love them but we are being terrorised by a large dog fox in the garden attacking our westie...........

They can feed themselves and not become too tame if left to their own devices and probably best as they keep vermin down that way.

quizqueen Wed 26-Apr-17 10:30:37

Instead of telling the staff at the supermarket, why not ring the Trading Standards/local council food hygiene office people direct and tell them that you have spoken previously to the supermarket who didn't seem to care. Tell them which item it is and ask if they can send someone straight away to check it out.

Personally, I have never found food out of date in a supermarket and my local Tesco sells that day's dated stuff at great reductions and, if their fridges/freezers have a fault, they throw the whole lot out and won't let anyone buy the products inside even if it's still in date!

Re the fox comment - foxes are living creatures and are indigenous to the UK and have as much right to live on this planet in an area of their choice as you and I do.

inishowen Wed 26-Apr-17 10:32:52

I accidently bought two bags of tomatoes in Tesco that were really rotten. It was only when they were opened I saw that they were blue and slimy. I should have taken them back but it would have been a car journey and not worth the trouble.The use by date on them was the day I opened them.

annodomini Wed 26-Apr-17 10:34:31

I wouldn't feed a fox as they are quite capable of foraging for themselves. My former neighbour used to keep chickens at the end of the garden and it was no surprise when a fox created mayhem. My DS has had the same experience with his chickens though he has now devised a (hopefully) fox-proof chicken run. I must,however, admit to leaving peanuts for the badger that has a nightly route through my garden.

damewithaname Wed 26-Apr-17 10:39:21

You have foxes coming to your gardens. Word, I would have permanent paranoia to let the kids play outside.

Jan51 Wed 26-Apr-17 10:55:37

I found some out of date packs of cooked chicken on the shelf in Tesco. I told a member of staff who thanked me and asked me to show him, he followed me back to the shelf and removed them immediately.

michellehargreaves Wed 26-Apr-17 10:56:37

I'm picking up on the second part of this discussion. The foxes! I hate them with a passion. They live everywhere here in SW London and gardening life is a nightmare. They dig up the lawn and plants, leave revolting, smelly calling cards everywhere, and destroy sleep by screeching , (one can only describe the sound as someone disembowelling small children) and last week one of them bit my neighbour when she intervened in a skirmish between her cat and the fox.

No prizes for guessing that we don't feed them. ?

nannymoocow Wed 26-Apr-17 10:57:10

On line shopping would normally give you the longest date in store at the time it was picked as pickers are trained to look for best date available.
There will always be out of date products that have 'slipped through the net' when dates are checked. Unless you employ robots! It is physically impossible to check every item on the shelves everyday. New stock is normally filled at the back, but as we all know, customers rummaging around disturbs products. When you find out of date products it may seem outrageous to you but for staff it is an everyday occurrence. It does make a difference how staff respond though and a thank you doesn't cost a lot.

milkflake Wed 26-Apr-17 11:21:32

I would tell them, I found pre-packed cold meat in Morrisons that had been punctured and was rotten. Someone with limited sight could have picked it up. I did get a thank you.
In M&S I picked up a loaf and could see it was mouldy as were all the others of the same type, well within date. I told a member of staff and the next minute 2 staff with a trolley took it all off the shelves.
In the local co-op a few weeks ago the assistant told me some pancakes were out of date ( I hadn't noticed) I thanked her for telling me and she said she hadn't noticed but the till wouldn't allow out of date food to be put through.