Great 'disguised Own Brand' Hunt.

beans

grex80 wrote: »

Who actually cares? The 3rd world are their own worst enemy. I'll buy what I want from who I want when I want. If it wasn't the big bad companies that kill them it'd be something else. Plus if they actually stopped reproducing like rabbits the land they live on might actually be able to support them. jeez.

How selfish! How simplistic!

Only a complete fool could say such completely foolish things!

rogue_element

I could probably tell you all the suppliers for M&S as they have them all listed on the computer. Or someone could write to them and ask for the list, Im sure they would tell you. The supplier code is on the back near where it says the Marks and Spencer "address" - it is a 4 digit number, may sometimes have an a or a b after it.

OldSutt

One thing I have found is to look at the size of the packaging when comparing the Mainstream brand with the supermarket's own brand, then look at the format of the figures on the best-before box.

I would bet cash money that if the box is the same size and the batch/lot number and BB date are of the same format and in the same location on the packaging, then the supermarket brand is made in the same factory and on the same machine as the mainstream brand (unless of course the supermarket had actually bought exactly the same manufacturing machinery, which is unlikely!)

I found that Tesco Red Box tea had exactly the same batch number/BBE dateformat as Ty-phoo (before they went to soft packaging).

ajtrader100

I once worked for Geest, a vegetable processing plant in Lincs, during some time off between studies.

All the coleslaw from ASDA right price up to M & S special was made in the same factory I worked in, the only difference in product was the amount of each vegetable in each of the coleslaws but only by a couple of percent, so that they could say there was a difference between all the products.

Trust me, they are all very much the same!!

efaitch

I know that this might be a bit late, but: I work for Allied Bakeries - whose brands include Kingsmill, Allinson, Burgen and Sunblest.

We also make "private label brands", but the branded products have different recipes to the own brand labels.

Yes, own label bread in a certain range (ie. value) will be made from the same recipe, but NOT the other ranges - so, premium bread will have it's own recipe although it may be made for more than one supermarket/brand.

Different types/quality of flours are used for each differing product etc.

So, the own label brands may taste as good as the premium brands, they are made in the same factory, but are different recipes.

efaitch

lali-dee wrote: »

My friend use to work for a bakery place where they packed loaf's of bread for supermarkets, she said all the bread was the same but they'd just stick different supermarket name packaging around it. She also said if you ever see a loaf of bread with a white tag around the top then don't buy it as it was probably packaged for one company and then re-packaged for a different company so it's not as fresh.

Just posted that yes, all bread in the same range is of the same recipe (own label). Must be a different bakery, but if we re-code, then there are strict rules on what is acceptable and we don't use a white tie, it's always the same colour. But different types of bread that we make do have different coloured neck ties.

Flossie_whatsit

I have worked in food manufacturing for 16 years and as other people have stated various companies make for various own labels - some customers may get their crisps for example made by more than one manufacturer (someone mentioned earlier about golden wonder but I know KP also made for same supermarkets) so it can be difficult to work out who makes for who. For this reason I think the advice to try different "grades" till you find the ones you like is sound but also check the labels - sometimes its merely proportions of cheaper to expensive ingredients that make the price difference, sometimes its the number of preservatives within a product - retailers like M&S are trying to cleanse their products of preservatives and as a result prices may go up as the manufacturer has to source unique ingredients where they lose economies of scale and also improve their hygiene routines to get round the lack of preservatives or alter the shelf life of a product all of which add cost. What I'm trying to say in a long winded way is that there is usually a reason for the price difference but it may not necessarily make for a better tasting product.

Finally - over the counter drugs are the same - aspirin is aspirin whether it costs 10p per pack or £2.00 - again check labels for active ingredients and you'll find that own label are usually the better buy and don't be afraid to ask the pharmacist to let you check the labels of items they keep behind the counter so you can make the best choice.

Here endeth my lesson!

Doushka

IamBroke wrote: »

So I have read a few posts on here saying that either clinique or clarins make the cosmetics and skincare at M & S. Can anyone confirm this?!

I spend a fortune on both clinique and clarins so would be grateful for a cheaper brand!!

well, its definitely not Clinique, unless things have changed a lot in the last few years.

Clinique is part of the Estee Lauder Group Companies - Estee Lauder, Clinique, Stila, Bobbi Brown, MAC, Origins, Prescriptives, Creme de la Mer etc etc etc - nothing cheap there unfortunately, but staff perks (discounts etc) used to be fantastic, got me into lots of bad habits that cost me a fortune after I left :rotfl:

savetospend

A couple of years ago, Asda own brand vodka was supplied by Glen's (formerly Grants) vodka. Again, as lots of ppl have mentioned, whether the quality is any different I do not know, but hey, vodka's vodka. However, I am unsure if Glen's are still the supplier.

muggles

OK from what I can tell, nobody's mentioned cars here. Soooo, here goes.
Seat Leons are VW Golfs, which are closely related to the Audi A3 and the Audi TT. The Leon is cheaper, so buy that one and get a better spec for your money. Incidentally, the TT is available with a choice of either a 2.0 197BHP TFSI engine and two wheel drive, or a 3.2 247BHP V6 with four wheel drive. As is the VW Golf. This is not a coincidence. Price difference between the TT and the Golf? Five grand.
Ford Mondeos and Jaguar X-types are the same, but taking the top of each range as an example, the Mondeo 3.0 V6 ST220 is six grand cheaper than the Jaguar 3.0 V6 (which granted develops a whole eight more horsepower on the books, but Ford are well-known for understading the power of their engines, so they're probably the same in reality). I believe Mazda6's are also pretty much the same mechanically.
I think I'm right in saying that Ford TDCi engines are the same as Peugeot HDi engines when you take the branding off.
The Toyota Aygo, Citroen C1 and Peugeot 107 are in fact the same car, but have slightly different options and are priced differently.
The Masterati MC12 is a Ferrari Enzo.
The Vauxhall VX220 is a Lotus Elise.
The Ford Focus and Volvo S40 sit on the same chassis. As, I believe, does the Volvo C30.
The Citroen Berlingo, Renault Kangoo and Peugeot Partner are all the same. They haven't even bothered to change the styling (or what they seem to think passes for styling), it's just the badges that are different. The same goes for the Vauxhall Vivaro/Renault Trafic/Nissan Primastar.

There are others but I'm getting bored of this now, feel free to add to it