Grocery Store Gruesomeness

The other day I went to my local grocery store and bought store-made prepackaged ham salad on sale for $3.49 per pound. It had a use by date of November 23rd which is today. Well today I went back to the store for a few more things and I noticed that there were about two dozen containers of this ham salad and each one had an orange "reduced" sticker and a new label with a NEW use by date of November 26th! They just put the new stickers on top of the old ones!! I could plainly see the old stickers!!

Just thinking about it is enough to make me hurl.

The 'best if used by date' is not a drop dead date for food spoilage or safety, but more of a guide line that indicates the item will be be of better quality until that date. You can read more about open dating on grocery items here.

camprn wrote:The 'best if used by date' is not a drop dead date for food spoilage or safety, but more of a guide line that indicates the item will be be of better quality until that date. You can read more about open dating on grocery items here.

Working around food a good bit of my life made me aware of food spoilage\ and safety, but what I find horrifying is that the store changed the expiration date on that ham salad. Not that I am condoning this one but but if they were going to do that sort of thing, they should've at least put a new lid on and not just covered up the old label.

I would've been suspicious anyhow because they had a lot of that prepackaged ham salad one day with the date of the 23rd and the next day, it would've been dated the 26th??

I've noticed one store, in the midwest, that does not remove out dated items as quickly as they should. I pointed it out to a cashier and she said that yes it was out dated. I told her there were many other items on that shelf that were outdated, they were over a year past their use by date and she said nothing. So, the next week, I go back to the store and look again. There are still out dated items on the shelf. I tell a manager. This got action, but not till I pointed it out to this some one that was in true upper management and some one I made a point to tell, that I was watching the store and concerned for it's image. I even wrote a letter to corporate, which got me no where, as they are an employee owned store, so they referred it right back to the store manager I talked too. I have nothing against small business, I'm all for it, but if they can't think about us either-what we (the consumer, the person paying for it all) really wants and are asking for-then, bottom line, they can't have my money.

A few weeks ago I met a friend of mine for lunch. Afterwards we went to the grocery store next to the restaurant. I needed some things and so did he. Anyway, while walking around, he found a couple of outdated things(cookies I believe) and he took them up to the customer service desk, dropped them there, and told the woman that they were outdated. I'd be willing to bet that they went right back on the shelf.

I don't have anything against purchasing outdated stuff. A box of cereal, a soda, etc is different. Fresh meat like ham salad?? YUCK! If that stuff is still at the store on Saturday the 26th, I'm going to do something about it......maybe report them to the deparment of health or something.