In my outer suburban area of Melbourne the Coles Shell station is usually $0.01 higher than the other local servos at any time, the first to raise prices and the last to lower them even if only by hours. The cycles for all of them are also less predictable - most of us could once upon a time buy petrol on the cheapest day or near to it because it was predictable. Now the cycles are longer and unpredictable and the first period is a slow drop, often a few tenths of a cent per day, then it is a quick drop for a few days followed by âbang up it goesâ again; most of us will have to buy a least some petrol mid-cycle at the higher end of the price spectrum. That plus the historic spread between 91-98 used to be $$0.10-0.12 but has blown out to $0.16-0.17 as more vehicles need 95-98. All the headline prices are for 91 and 95-98 goes under the public radar. They know how to make their dollars.
Very noble sentiments, but to me as a pensioner the price premium is prohibitive. The notion of organic is fine but it is more suited to the affluent
yes Bart, the high price of organic foods etc is a problem, but people need to get their priorities right. I am always seeing people happily fork out hundreds of dollars for the latest iphone or a pair of designer shoes, yet they only buy the cheapest foods they can. You are what you eat and eating foods that are laced with chemicals is making us sick. On the other side, it is very annoying that a farmer who sprays his crops with chemical pesticides has no obligation to tell anyone what chemical, what dose and how often he sprayed. An organic farmer has to pay to be certified to guarantee to the consumer that the product is indeed chemical free.That is why organic products cost more. It makes no sense to me that the chemical user does not have to pay for a label on his product telling us what is in it so we can make informed choices.
I donât know what the cost of certification is but canât imagine it to be either dearer than the substances acquired by the non- organic supplier or costly enough to justify up to 300% dearer product prices. The words rip off come to mind.
One thing I donât understand is that the organic food producers should have considerable cost savings from not having to buy and then disperse all those chemicals.
So shouldnât organic food be cheaper than the regularly produced food we see in shops?
Organic producers can have much lower yield because they are not using powerful pesticides.
as I said, it is a matter of priorities, and you are what you eat. Everything has mark ups, clothing particularly. I would rather pay more for organic certified food and wear my threadbare clothes around, knowing I am eating healthy food that wonât kill me.
There are many costs involved in being organic certified, such as sourcing organic certified products that can be used to minimize pests and diseases. Organic certification means that every part of the process is organic, not just on the farm.
But the really high prices are put on by the supermarkets, not the farmers. It is the supermarkets who are ripping us off
I am suspicious about the claimed specials advertised weekly. With only my memory to guide me, the claimed half price specials, lead me to thinking were the claimed original prices genuine,
I have no desire to denigrate your belief in the virtues of organic food. Thatâs your scene. I donât know where you are based but my experiences at the Sth Melbourne, Prahran, Dandenong and Preston markets lead me to believe that over pricing is not limited to the supermarkets whom I agree leave a lot to be desired.
My major concerns with the organic offerings are firstly its appearance/freshness (compared to the other offerings), the somewhat unhygienic ways it is often displayed and the one you know about, the price.
I have bought organic veg when the quality and price is right (which is not often). That makes me a sinner I suppose and I wonder now, as an afterthought, whether I will last the few years left to receive the Queens telegram.
I wish you equal or better luck.
Actually, lower organic production is more to do with not using more effective synthetic fertilisers. Organic farmers do use pesticides, and they are just as poisonous to pests (or they wouldnât work), just the more ânaturalâ versions that are not always less toxic to us. There is limited scientific evidence that organic food is better for you. I do prefer to purchase fruit and veg from local producers though. The quicker it gets to me, the fresher it is. Hence I would buy seasonal produce from a local greengrocer the day he goes to the market in preference to organic food from a supermarket.
I donât think Coles ignores product requests, @gypsysnail; that seems to be an unfounded accusation. It is more likely that their customer base is thousands of people who have different product preferences to you.
unfortunately no Aldi yet in Launceston TAS
The costs of certification are very high and take many years to attain.
No allergy happens in Europe. I canât have wheat or full cream milk here, but I have no probs with it over there. Why? Australiaâs big businesses have allowed for cheap rubbish to substitute the real stuff - never mind saving money, it is still affordable to use the real thing. I have become sicker over the years thanks to the rubbish in Coles and Woolies so now I grow my own food. Other thing I must point out is, how come 7 years ago cranberry juice went off quickly and same with long-life milk, but now they last for months? Tell me there isnât more chemicals in those? I found the cranberry to be less effective these days for the things people say Cranberry juice is good forâŠ
I agree with everything you said except for your mention of âcleanâ restaurants. There are numerous instances of food poisoning across Australia every year and most are tracked back to bad hygiene practices by the restaurant owner/staff. I have long failed to understand why the public health inspections done on our behalf, are not publicly displayed in the front window of every cafe/ restaurant/mobile eatery etc. This is routine in AmericaâŠwhy not here?
None whatsoever, in fact.
âPublishingâ in windows is not pervasive all across the US but is a local-state thing. Some states here at least make inspection reports public while others like Victoria are more concerned with the businesses than the diners, and inspection reports are confidential.
The pollies fear adverse publicity could affect the business even though they might have got caught out just once and corrected everything quickly, so no publicity until they become habitual or very serious offenders and taken to court. Our political parties generally take the position that we are here mainly to deliver business profits [and fund pollie pay and entitlements], and here we are. The other aspect is that inspections cost, and our governments are not into spending our dollars for our good unless they have no alternative.
Eateries should be expected to do it right all the time and I am with you that inspections should be fully in the public record. I for one do not care if a serious breach is once off and rectified or every day, if I am the one ill from food poisoning.
