Hugh's War on Waste

[Deleted User]

I must admit RAINY neither have I and don't intend to ever again but then I don't think I am the biggest loss to any of the big supermarkets because we produce so much of our own home grown . I use the supermarkets for things I can't easily make like tea and washing powder and loo rolls but even then we bulk buy most things of that ilk from a wholesaler and have enough storage room to be able to do so. I'd rather use a farm outlet any day and we are very lucky to have a local and really good farm butchery, a really good farm shop that sells mainly locally grown produce, an egg farm that also rears its own beef and goat for meat and a local windmill that mills the best bread making flour I've ever come across. These things are more expensive than supermarket goods but I'd rather use the pension to give us good nourishing food and make it myself than buy cheap and full of chemicals and additive foods from the supermarkets, personal choice and one I'm happy to make.

Towser

I think the programme was not well thought out, in terms of the clothing. It could have gone into greater detail as it did for the food.

I think individuals who manage these food and clothing systems should manage the whole inter company systems better to be more ethical. It can be more of a problem dealing with it though that is why it difficult to change.

So I think Hugh is putting pressure on the customer who votes with it's feet. Once people realise what is going on they will put pressure on the managers to change the systems of this wholesale waste.

Once managers are frugal with wholesale waste it may affect the price too.

It's to do with economies of scale. I am sure there is some waste on farms too it just looks worse when it is wholesale waste. You would have to look at the percentages of waste of all the different types of outlet.

LaineyT

Agree with you entirely MrsLW, we also do try to support the local producers and ok yes, am lucky that we live in a very agricultural part of the country where such produce is readily available.
Have no doubt that the ugly veg was deliberately set out at the same price as the pretty stuff and can't help thinking that someone, somewhere is missing a business opportunity here? To open a produce chain on the similar lines as the no frills airlines and sell off this discarded produce at lower price. Am sure that there would be a good market from the more frugal folk of this country who don't care what there veg look like as they know full well that it tastes just as good as the aesthetically pleasing stuff?

[Deleted User]

Now that LAINEY is an absolutely inspired idea.....let's hope someone entrepreneurial is reading these posts, I'd shop there any day of the week!

fuddle

I think Morrisons came across in a very poor way last night. I don't think the two guys that were talking particularly cared, they were there because they really ought to be, the experiment was set up to fail as far as I could see and the passive aggressive demeanour of those guys was telling.

What I took great exception to was the consumer being categorised in the way that they were. How rude actually. I think those two guys were hell bent on winning the point that they forgot that the consumer would be watching.

The worst thing a supermarket can do, in my opinion, is categorise consumers as a whole. I have a mind of my own, have my own ethics, morals, judgements and needs. As a consumer I felt that the speakers for that supermarket insulted my intelligence.

Whatever you think of Hugh, his piece to camera after he had backed them into a corner was cool in my opinion. They half heartedly shook hands, had a bit of a wry smile and nervous giggle. Their body language looked awkward. Although a broadcaster, he's no politician, not experienced in sales pitches or taking on people paid who are salaried to speak for a brand. I think he's done well and judged public feeling more accurately than those that claim to be experts in consumer thinking!

Dasa

fuddle wrote: »

I think Morrisons came across in a very poor way last night. I don't think the two guys that were talking particularly cared, they were there because they really ought to be, the experiment was set up to fail as far as I could see and the passive aggressive demeanour of those guys was telling.

What I took great exception to was the consumer being categorised in the way that they were. How rude actually. I think those two guys were hell bent on winning the point that they forgot that the consumer would be watching.

The worst thing a supermarket can do, in my opinion, is categorise consumers as a whole. I have a mind of my own, have my own ethics, morals, judgements and needs. As a consumer I felt that the speakers for that supermarket insulted my intelligence.

Whatever you think of Hugh, his piece to camera after he had backed them into a corner was cool in my opinion. They half heartedly shook hands, had a bit of a wry smile and nervous giggle. Their body language looked awkward. Although a broadcaster, he's no politician, not experienced in sales pitches or taking on people paid who are salaried to speak for a brand. I think he's done well and judged public feeling more accurately than those that claim to be experts in consumer thinking!

Yea I think they did too. It was obvious what they were doing and they underestimate their customers, a bit like politicians, detached from the real world. I'm fed up with some of the comments about Hugh being rich,jealous or what!! He is doing a great service to the community, can only poor people do that??

mumps

I wonder if he is going to look at Marks and Sparks, I used to work for them as a teenager, there was very little waste. Staff would queue up at night to buy the food going out of date e.g. biscuits that only had a couple of days to go being sold for maybe a tenth of the normal price. Stuff that didn't sell would go to a local church that had homeless men sleeping in the church or the church hall.
Meat and veg obviously had a much shorter shelf life so there was stuff most days.

I'm not sure what happened with any waste clothing but we used to have loads of odd shoes and slippers, don't know how so many ended up as odd pairs but we used to send them to the local orthopaedic hospital where they were used, I assume people maybe needed one shoe larger after ops or something.

This was near 50 years ago so it might have changed. Hope not.

moneyistooshorttomention

LaineyT wrote: »

Have no doubt that the ugly veg was deliberately set out at the same price as the pretty stuff and can't help thinking that someone, somewhere is missing a business opportunity here? To open a produce chain on the similar lines as the no frills airlines and sell off this discarded produce at lower price. Am sure that there would be a good market from the more frugal folk of this country who don't care what there veg look like as they know full well that it tastes just as good as the aesthetically pleasing stuff?

Its true that this does look like a business opportunity going wanting.

A woman has started up a 25p (yep...twenty-five pence:eek:) shop somewhere recently its been reported and this sort of produce would fit in well with something like that I would have thought.

However, even a "market stall" set up one day a week in a shopping centre and people know they can come along and hand over 50p (for instance) and a supermarket bag (or equivalent) to the stallholder and it gets filled with "whatever it is" that there is a surplus of wonky veg. or fruit of this week. Bit of a lucky dip - but for 50p for a few pounds worth of food then I would have thought it could work.

The one thing I am wondering is whether these supermarkets have got some clause or other in the agreements they make with farmers that precludes them selling any of the stock the supermarkets don't want to any other customer. But, even if that is the case, I think a way round any such clause could probably be found.

mumps

I don't know if it is a general thing but the farm shops where I live are very expensive. I don't expect the farmer to sell me things for the price he sells to supermarkets but I don't see why it is so much more expensive than the supermarket can sell it for and they are obviously making a profit and have transport costs etc. I buy free range eggs but they are probably 80p dearer than the free range eggs in Sainsburys. I just can't justify the prices he charges for meat.

MallyGirl

mumps wrote: »

I don't know if it is a general thing but the farm shops where I live are very expensive. I don't expect the farmer to sell me things for the price he sells to supermarkets but I don't see why it is so much more expensive than the supermarket can sell it for and they are obviously making a profit and have transport costs etc. I buy free range eggs but they are probably 80p dearer than the free range eggs in Sainsburys. I just can't justify the prices he charges for meat.

same here - I would love to buy from local suppliers but the prices just prevent it