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Susan Biddlecomb's avatar

I can’t even shop at supermarkets (or big box stores like Costco). As I walk through the aisles in stores like that I feel the products reaching out and trying to grab me. “Buy me buy me buy me.”

I only shop at my small local organic market. Expensive? Yes. Limited products? Yes. But the produce is always good and I can walk through the 6 short aisles without feeling harassed.

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Charlie Brown's avatar

Yes I know full well that "grab me" feeling

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Perzen Patel's avatar

I’ve stopped buying produce from the supermarket as it often tastes of nothing. Read somewhere that is because most of it is harvested when raw so that it’s “perfectly ripe” by the time it lands in the shop. Yet fruit only gets most of its flavour when left on the tree for the max amount of time..

Also the equally sized and same colour fruit and veg creep me out. Where’s the giant cauliflower or weird looking potato I can use to make a potato head with?

As a busy mum who hates packing school lunches I often shop I the frozen aisle. Made the mistake of reading the ingredients on the nuggets I’ve been buying only to discover that my chicken nuggets only have 50% chicken in them 🥹😤🤷‍♀️

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Charlie Brown's avatar

Ah yes, I've been there with accidentally reading ingredient lists! I agree on the sameness of the fruit and vegetables. I want the weird, misshapen stuff too

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Julie Dee's avatar

I agree. I am lucky enough to have a small organic fruit and veg shop, three or four bakeries and a market in my small town. Use them or lose them. I make sure I do. The Portuguese attitude sounds wonderful.

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Charlie Brown's avatar

It really is!

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Shire Jansen's avatar

Seriously mind boggling. I shopped this morning at a larger market (usually I shop Trader Joe's) and was appalled at the lack of stock and visibly poor quality of what little produce was out, I live in an agricultural hub, made no sense whatsoever!

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Charlie Brown's avatar

I can well imagine!

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Emily GreenPurpleFireDragon's avatar

Reduced to actual differences (in cultivars/varieties of plants, types of bacteria/mold

in cheese, rather than brands and the like), smaller shops with low- and unprocessed foods could well offer more variety than the usual supermarkets.

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Sheryl O'Connell's avatar

Excellent piece.

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