Hello supermarket, we’re really not happy about this (part 2)
Caterpillars in the sushi, all the pastries on special except your favorite, or an absurdly long queue at the checkout – there’s plenty to get annoyed about at the supermarket. That was clear from all the reactions on Facebook! We’ve lined up the highs and lows for you.
Let’s start with the prices. Everything is getting more expensive. Lilian and Jenny notice that every day, for example: a tub of butter going from 1.23 to 1.69 euros, ‘as if it’s nothing’, and bread from 1.39 to 1.69. Claudia also sees prices changing rapidly. Example: ‘I bought vanilla coffee pods at Jumbo for 2.69, wanted to buy another box last week, and suddenly that same box was 3.09.’ Ridiculous, writes Hellen. ‘The supermarkets made enormous profits during the coronavirus pandemic. They should actually reward us, the consumers, by charging reasonable prices for everything. This is simply absurd!!!’
Free, or not
Also pay attention to those special offers. See your shampoo on sale: 5.99 for two bottles, and of course you snap it up. But Huberike discovered that the same shampoo had also been discounted at the supermarket next door: three bottles for six euros. Ouch, that hurts. Nic warns her: nothing is free. A cynical lesson, but true nonetheless.
Weigh that meat
Are those prices actually correct? Not according to Ron: ‘Try weighing the meat you buy,’ he advises. ‘It’s never bloody right, always too little.’ Jolanda notices that the price on the shelf and the price on the receipt differ. ‘The shelf said 2.45 for the coffee pods. On the receipt: 3.77. So pay attention, at Jumbo too!’
A stroke of luck: if that happens to you at Jumbo, you get the product to take home for free. Silvana sometimes notices discrepancies when she does her shopping with the self-scanner. ‘Prices for some products are lower than they actually are.’ And Monique offers this tip: ‘Vegetables sold individually are sometimes cheaper if you weigh them.’ A small mystery, because can you actually weigh vegetables that are priced per piece?
Plastic included
Sometimes people do get something extra at the supermarket, but not something they’re happy about. Corinne found a hard piece of blue plastic in a bag of baby potatoes. And: ‘Leaking packages you only notice once you get home, a loaf of bread that smells bad with unfermented, sticky pieces inside.’ Not nice. Martha’s daughter found a piece of plastic in a bag of raw endive. ‘Luckily, my two-year-old granddaughter didn’t,’ she writes. And Alie asks: what did you find with your pizza, Melissa? ‘Baking paper,’ is the answer.
This checkout is closing
Marion had a strange experience at her favorite supermarket. The customer in front of her pays, and then: ‘She puts up the red sign saying I’ve been instructed to close and there are plenty of checkouts open. I was always taught that you should still help the last customer, and I said that, but no, I’ve been instructed to close.’ Gerrit takes a firm stand in such a situation: ‘I walk away and leave the full cart there, and then I want to speak to the manager.’ Or: ‘I made a scene, let’s see what happens,’ he writes. An idea for next time, says Marion, but this time she didn’t have time for any hassle.
No major worries
Bianca puts all the supermarket misery into perspective in a nutshell: ‘If these were the only worries in my life, I’d sign up for them (…). Just pay attention, done.’ Stay strong, Bianca.
