You don’t have to show a proof of purchase to claim $15 in a class action lawsuit against Kellogg. Just be someone who bought Kellog’s Rice Krispies or Cocoa Krispies between June 1, 2009 and March, 1 2010. [More]
supermarkets
Gizmo Eliminates Supermarket Checkout Lines, Lets Shoppers Scan Their Own Stuff
By 5.27.11
In the future, there might be no checkout clerks at the supermarket. WSJ reports on how a device at Stop & Shops and Giant supermarkets in the northeast is eliminating checkout lanes and increasing store sales. It’s a “ScanIt!” and it’s a handheld device that shoppers use to scan their own groceries as they put them in their shopping cart. When they want to pay, they just plug it into self checkout station at the end and settle the bill. [More]
Grocery Shrink Ray Hits Odwalla, Reducing From 15 To 12 oz
By 5.20.11
Myron Reducto is at it again, turning his Grocery Shrink Ray Gun on Odwalla juice, zapping it down to 12 oz from 15. The price is the same Odwalla has lowered the suggested retail price for the bottles, but some retailers have opted to keep the price the same. Like other food packagers, Odwalla is combining the shrinkage with a packaging redesign that it hopes will get more press. In this case, they are simultaneously rolling out bottles that are made from 100% plant based HDPE plastic. [More]
Snake Oil In The Grocery Aisle
By 5.16.11
One of the biggest trends in food marketing are so-called “functional foods.” These days it’s not enough that food imparts nutrition and makes you not hungry, it has to perform jumping jacks. Yogurt for your digestive system, milk for your brain, and crisped rice cereal for your immune system. Food packagers don’t outright say that they cure or prevent disease, they can get away with using words like “supports” and “promotes” to make their claims, as long as there’s a little bit of believable science to back it up. But are they really about health, or hype? NYT investigates. [More]
Walmart Tests Out Its Own Version Of Fresh Direct
By 4.28.11
Walmart is testing out “Walmart to Go,” an online grocery delivery service similar to Fresh Direct. As the nation’s hugest grocer, Walmart brings some big guns to the table, the most important of which is the price gun. [More]
Is Walmart Or Target Cheaper?
By 4.25.11
Ok, so the official studies are telling us that Target is now actually beating Walmart on price, but is it for real? Rob Cockerham decided to put the superstores to the test. He shopped for the identical shopping list and compared the final tally. Who won? [More]
Is Sugar Killing Us?
By 4.25.11
Is a packet of sugar a sweet dose of death? A big article in the New York Times Magazine recently explored how sugar might be a secret scourge destroying our health. And for the purposes of this discussion, there is no distinction between regular sugar and HFCS – for these researchers it’s all toxic. Why? [More]
SnackWell's Ups Snack Pack Calorie Count From 100 To 150
By 4.22.11
SnackWell’s, the nonfat low-cal line of snack food introduced in 1992 but hasn’t advertised in the past five years, is increasing the size of some of its new snack-packs higher than the previously holy 100 calorie level. Some new varieties, like the “fudge drizzled caramel popcorn” are 130 calories. Pouches of Fudge Crème Brownie Bites tip the scales at 150 calories. A benchmark has been breached, people. [More]
Lawsuit: Campbell's "Regular" And "25% Less Sodium" Tomato Soup Both Contain 480mg Of Sodium
By 4.18.11
Here’s a trick question: How much sodium does Campbell’s “25% less sodium” tomato soup contain compared to regular Campbell’s tomato soup? Would you believe that both contain 480 mg? And that the first one costs more? Four NJ housewives couldn’t, and a federal judge has ruled that their lawsuit against Campbell’s over what they call misleading labels can proceed. [More]
Is Aldi Just Trader Joe's Without The Marketing Budget?
By 3.30.11
The New York Times has an interesting look at Aldi, the German-owned discount chain that’s anything but a superstore — it features a small selection of private label products aimed at the consumer who doesn’t really care what supposedly “choosy Moms choose.” [More]
How To Game The Salad Bar At Whole Foods
By 3.25.11
Is your salad bar ripping you off? The New York Times Magazine investigated and found that ingredients at the salad bar, like cucumber, were 70% more expensive at the salad bar than if you had bought them from elsewhere in the store. So how do you get the best deal when you’re forking lettuce down your gullet? For one, go for the baby spinach and mesclun to get the best value, ladle on the cost-effective sun-dried tomatoes and go nuts on the toppings. These little guys will take a far bigger premium from your wallet off the shelf than from the lettuce trough. [More]
The Secret Economy Behind Free Food Samples
By 2.15.11
The next time you see free food samples at the local supermarket, take a closer look at what’s being served and how it’s presented. You could be on the receiving end of an elaborate and expensive offering cooked up by a clever retailer — or may be getting leftovers that are about to hit their expiration date. [More]
Duracell Battery Pack Comes With Free Glue Stick. But Why?
By 2.8.11
Here’s an interesting cross-promo. Reader Ally spotted a pack of Duracells at her lokcal Hannaford that came with a FREE glue stick. It wasn’t something that the store had shrinkwrapped together, but the glue stick was actually in the package itself. What’s the marketing strategy here? Maybe because they’re both supplies you put in your desk drawer. Maybe the glue makes the electrons stick together better. Inquiring minds want to know. [More]
Kraft Store Machine Makes Menu Recommendations By Scanning Your Face
By 1.21.11
Kraft showed off a concept device as this week’s National Retail Federation Show that scans your face to determine your gender and age group and makes a corresponding menu recommendation. It’s called the “Meal Planning Solution.” Freaky deaky. No doubt that if this thing ever actually hits stores, it won’t be long before someone makes a video demonstrating how it’s racist. Just see what happened to HP’s webcam, and the Kinect… [More]
Fungus Threatens To Make The Bananas You Eat Extinct
By 1.5.11
Do you like to eat bananas? Better get your fill in. A horrible fungus called “Tropical Race Four” is threatening to kill off the one variety that everyone eats, the Cavendish. [More]
Math Problems: How Much Percent Off Is This?
By 1.3.11
Reader Nathan spotted these confusing sale signs at a Belk and can’t figure out how much off he’s supposed to get. Can you? [More]
Hot Pockets Is Now Its Own Food Group
By 12.28.10 — Updated: 10.22.14
Reader Chris spotted this sign in a Keli’s supermarket yesterday where they have the usual aisle signs that say “frozen foods,” desserts,” and “vegetables,” but it appears that “Hot Pockets” is now its own type of food group. We don’t blame them, we’re not exactly sure in what category you would classify a Hot Pocket either. [More]
What Is The Most Efficient Checkout Line?
By 12.22.10
This quick video shows how the research by a 19th century German telephone engineer gave us the best checkout line system. As popularized by banks and Whole Foods, that’s the one where one line feeds all the checkout counters instead of people queuing for individual registers. It also goes into why the other lane always seems to be moving faster. It’s not just your perception; in a strange paradox, it is just mathematically more likely that the line you are in is more likely to be moving slower than the others. [More]
