Packaging can cost an arm and a leg
January 7th, 2010 | by mbhunter |OK, maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration, especially when I’m about to talk about ketchup.
I went grocery shopping with my wife last night, and in the condiment section, shockingly, I found various brands of ketchup. The store brand came in a number of sizes. Here are two of them:
- 20 ounces for $1.79
- 24 ounces on sale for 10/$10.00, otherwise known as $1.00
Sure, the 24-ounce size was on sale, but it was still cheaper to buy the 24-ounce size even without the sale. The more expensive 20-ounce bottle was an “easy-squeeze” bottle: the opening is on the bottom rather than the top, and has an extra valve that supposedly makes getting the ketchup out easier. (I haven’t found it to be any easier than the non-easy-squeeze version, but that’s me.)
The fancy packaging raises the cost of the food. It’s the same deal with all of the 100-calorie serving packages: crackers, cookies, trail mix, even soda.
That’s why I have big containers of food at work. I buy oatmeal by the six pounds at Costco for $1 per pound. Dried soybeans in the 39-ounce size. Dried cranberries and raisins in the big bags. You name it. I can control the portions either by putting them in plastic bags, or by just having the big container at work and scooping out a serving (it’s 1/4 cup or some multiple fairly often).
Paying more for food and less for packaging is a good idea. Tell your friends!
2 Responses to “Packaging can cost an arm and a leg”
By NCN on Jan 7, 2010 | Reply
This is definitely true for other foods – boxed cereals, boxed sugar, even the type of container certain cleaners come in. It always pays to carry a calculator – or use the one that’s on your cell phone – and calculate actual per item cost.
By LeanLifeCoach on Jan 7, 2010 | Reply
You want to see really scary? Take a look at the list I made of product prices converted to dollars per gallon!
http://eliminatethemuda.com/2009/08/a-different-perspective-on-pricing/
$180 for cold medicine by the gallon
$1,132 for Tide to Go by the gallon
$4,003 for printer ink by the gallon