Recession diet

Shopper Report, The,  May, 2008  

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One of our shoppers asks:

* "Between health care insurance costs, prescription costs, gas, and now food, just how am I supposed to manage?"

Three cheers for pasta and peanut butter. In their heightened search for value, shoppers tell us that they are looking harder at sales, coupons, store brands, thrift shops, shopping miles, pasta, and peanut butter. They are discovering or remembering that pasta is cheap and convenient, as well as healthy and almost infinitely adaptable.

* "The coolest thing about pasta is that you can cook enough for a few meals at once. It stays fresh in the refrigerator for days. You can just throw in some veggies or leftovers and have a second meal."

They are learning that peanut butter is fun for adults as well as kids, and that store brands can be special bargains. This comment suggests that it may cut into sales of sandwich meats and cheeses.

* "We got into peanut butter for snacks and sandwiches by accident when one of our neighbors mentioned that Wal-Mart's Great Value brand of Chunky was terrific, and we tried it. It's cheap protein, tastes great, and we like it better than Smucker's or Skippy."

Consumers talk about Wal-Mart for drugs as well as peanut butter.

* "Health care wise, I have asked our doctors to give us generic drugs that are on Wal-Mart's list whenever possible. This saves us a ton of money."

It's like turning back the calendar to the 1970s. More consumers are trying to plan ahead and make more lists and fewer shopping trips. Some consumers are hoarding products that they think will go up further. One of our shoppers told us to check out the hoarding cartoon in the 4/27/08 NY Times.

* "A woman putting food items under the mattress is shown under the heading 'With rising food costs comes a new investment strategy.' My husband, who keeps bars of silver as a safety net, is adding extra ketchup, syrups, and canned corn to his bars of silver and emergency bottles of water."

Accustomed to buying whatever they wanted, some consumers who thought of themselves as financially comfortable are annoyed at feeling the need to be careful.

* "I thought I was past having to think about what I spent at the supermarket, but with this recession, I'm doing it all over again. I'll still buy good stuff, but I'll wait until I have enough of a list to make a trip to the store. Gas is expensive. So is last minute shopping for tonight's dinner. I'll buy ahead as long as stuff won't expire before I can use it."

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