Alex Carson
The Supermarket
Everyone needs to go to the supermarket regularly if they are going to keep their fridge and cupboards stocked. Unfortunately, grocery stores use manipulation, and sneaky tactics, and they lie. Here are 20 dark secrets workers didn’t want you to know about the food at the grocery store. What you learn could change your attitude toward shopping forever.
The Apples Could Be Old
If you go to the grocery store for a Granny Smith, Red Delicious, or any other type of apple that you love, the apples that you buy could be old. Under the right conditions, apples can be stored for up to 12 months. Therefore, the apples that you are buying could have been picked the season before. If you want to be sure that you are getting fresh apples, you may want to go apple picking yourself.
The Shopping Carts Are Filthy
If you are going to buy more than just a few things at the supermarket, you will need to use a shopping cart. Before using it, you may want to wipe it down thoroughly because they are filthy. People are holding the handles all day and leaving germs behind. Children are just the right height to sneeze all over the handle. Finally, many supermarkets use shopping carts to bring garbage from one area to another. Today, many supermarkets keep antibacterial wipes by the door. The next time you go shopping, you should use the wipes on your carriage.
Rebranding Meat
Recycling is the responsible thing to do, and it is good for the environment. However, supermarkets are famous for recycling items that shouldn’t be recycled. If meat on the supermarket shelf is about to expire, the supermarket butchers will be told to blend it into ground meat or turn it into sausage.
If the chicken is about to spoil, the skin will start to turn green. The supermarket will simply remove the skin, and sell it as skinless chicken.
The Baked Goods Were Previously Frozen
Have you ever wondered how the small bakery staff is able to make various types of bread, bagels, cakes, and other baked goods? What you may not know is that everything in the supermarket bakery isn’t fresh. A lot of it comes in frozen, and the bakery staff simply defrosts it and heats it up. Even the baked goods that are made in the supermarket are made with pre-made dough that comes in frozen. There aren’t too many things in the bakery that are made fresh daily.
The Checkout Belt Is Filthy
Some people don’t bag their fresh produce at the supermarket. This is a big mistake because the checkout belt is filthy. People put their hands on the belt all day long. If there is juice leaking from your meat packages, it can leave salmonella and e-Coli all over the belt. A cashier at a major supermarket agrees that the checkout belt is filthy, and she says that on busy days, the belts never get wiped down because there is no time. The next time you go shopping, be sure to bag your produce and use hand sanitizer after you checkout.
Supermarkets Are Infested With Rodents
Rodents try to find a place to live where the food is plentiful. Where they find more food than in the supermarket? The back room of a supermarket is often infested with rodents, and many shelf stockers admit that they have seen many rodents chewing on boxes and bags of food. Unfortunately, it isn’t just the backroom where the rodents search for food. They can easily hide between the food on the shelves and chew through the bags and boxes with their sharp teeth. If you look hard enough, you may even be able to find some droppings. This is enough to make anyone want to avoid the supermarket.
The Salad Bar
Supermarkets often have salad bars that look better than those in restaurants. If you usually bring home a salad from the supermarket, you may want to think twice. According to employees at some of the biggest supermarket chains, the store manager often tells the employees to lie about the freshness of the food in the salad bar. The food can remain there for up to seven days before being replaced. It is easier to make your own salad at home, primarily since the supermarket often uses the prepackaged ingredients that they sell in the store.
The Supermarket Brand Is The Same As the Leading Brands
Some people will avoid buying the supermarket brand because they worry that it won’t be as good as the leading brand. This is a mistake. The supermarket brand is often almost identical to the name brand. In some cases, the supermarket brand and the leading brand are made in the same factory. The supermarkets just tweak the recipe a tiny bit, and you may not even know the difference.
Grocery Stores Are Wasteful
Grocery stores waste more food than you think. Plenty of food goes into the dumpster even before the expiration date. One supermarket worker says that it was his job to dump out over 80 gallons of milk at a time, that had not yet expired. According to the law, they aren’t allowed to donate the milk or give it away to their employees. The employee whose job it was to dump out the milk says that he hated the job because he felt guilty afterward. He knew families who were struggling to get by and could have used that milk. Instead, he had to pour it down the drain.
The Music Has a Purpose
Supermarkets have a satellite radio station that pumps through the PA system. The music selected by the station is classics and current music. The music that they choose isn’t heavy; it is more relaxing. This music is chosen intentionally to relax shoppers and make them move slower. The slower a shopper moves, the longer they look at products. This results in a person buying more than they planned. The next time you are in a supermarket rocking out to the music, don’t forget, they are trying to reel you in with it.
Your Kids Are Targeted
While the parents control the grocery budget, they buy the things that their kids want. Supermarkets understand this, and they have set up the store so that kids can see what they want, and beg their parents to buy it. Candy is kept at the register so that kids can spot it while waiting in line with their parents. The cereal aisle is also a trap. The sweet cereals that are loaded in sugar are often placed on the lower shelves so that children can see them best. Your local supermarket is setting you up for your child to get their way.
Expired Items
Supermarket employees aren’t as diligent as they should be when it comes to taking expired items off the shelves. Many employees will put the new product in the front of the shelf, and they won’t rotate the old items out the way they are supposed to. This can result in you buying expired food and bringing it home to your family. If you purchase anything with an expiration date, check it yourself. You can’t trust that the supermarket staff has done it correctly.
Your Ice Cream May Have Already Melted
If you buy ice cream, don’t bother racing home to keep it from melting. It has probably melted and then refrozen several times before you buy it. Rather than getting in an accident trying to rush home, just freeze the ice cream again as the supermarket does.
The Employees May Not Be Willing To Help
If you are looking for a product but the shelf if empty, you can ask an employee to check in the back. Unfortunately, the employee may not really be helping. Some use the extra few minutes to take an unscheduled break. Others will check the back room, but the product is too hard to reach, they will tell you that they are out. While many employees do this, some will actually try to help, but it doesn’t happen often.
Unwanted Items Are Often Thrown Away
It is not uncommon for a shopper to decide that they don’t want an item when they get to the register. The shopper may not be able to afford the item when the total is tallied, or a child could have put the item in the carriage without their parents knowing. If it is a frozen item, there is a good chance that it will get thrown out. The cashier won’t have the time to run back to the aisle to put it back, and it melts. When this happens, it often goes in the trash.
Essentials Are Placed In the Back For a Reason
Have you ever noticed that essentials like milk and bread are located in the back of the store? This isn’t a coincidence. The supermarkets do this for a reason. They believe that if you have to go to the back to get what you need, you will be tempted by the things that you see while heading there, and you will spend more money.
The Garbage Isn’t Separated
You may work hard to recycle at home, but unfortunately, most supermarkets don’t work as hard. According to many employees, trash, paper, plastic, and cardboard are often placed in the same trash bins.
Deli Workers Don’t Always Wash Their Hands
According to supermarket employees, many deli workers don’t wash their hands, and they don’t change their gloves regularly. If you need meat or cheese, you are better off going with the pre-packaged type.
The Motorized Carts Are Often Peed In
If you are thinking about using a motorized cart in the supermarket, you might want to think twice. According to supermarket employees, the people who use those carts often pee in them. Since the seats are only wiped down and not deep cleaned, using one is pretty gross.
Spiders and Scorpions
If you are afraid of spiders, don’t ever reach into a banana box. These are breeding grounds for spiders. Also, grape boxes tend to contain scorpions. It is best to look carefully before grabbing your fruit.
