ALDI for Callan - again!!

Sky King

The high stock turnover with low quantities on the floor for perishibles such as meat and fish means you almost *never* get out-of-date stuff, however this also means that the dates tend to be shorter as they have no need to 'stock up' with huge quantities and long dates - if you get me. (This is nothing more than my opinion based on my own observation).

foxcoverteddy

A fair analysis of the situation, though some of the short dates are a pain if you try to shop for the week, one problem is the putting of newer dated stock in front of old stock, it is a terrible habit but some supermarkets stoop to mixing long and short dates
I know it isn't a perfect world and mistakes happen, but it is far from funny if you are a tight budget, it is like net oranges sometimes there is one which has to all intent and purposes gone off, do you squeeze every one?
Soft fruit can go quickly so I always look underneath for signs of mould,. I am sorry I cannot afford to waste money.
Cabaal mentioned bread, most supermarkets tend to leave the shelving to the delivery man, look for mixed dates some are very good at recycling stale loaves.
Laugh at this one, don't matter where you buy the grocery, look on jars use within 3 days of opening or 4 weeks etc, a good tip write the date on the bottle you opened it, then you won't find a collection of opened jars in the fridge and sit there thinking how long is it since I opened that.
A lot of dairy products carry the same message, and another one refrigerate after opening, often in very small writing. Good night Foxy

foxcoverteddy

I know the entrance and exit was imposed on Aldi, however traffic volumes are such does it really matter, apart from signs saying that "no Exit" etc and I guess possible legal implications arising from mis-use.
There is space to widen both the entrance and exit.
The entrance and exit at supervalu can be at times a disaster, due to inconsiderate parking and the fact the entrance was badly conceived and some using the car park as a short cut.
It is becoming obvious supervalu has some difficulties, the revamp of the interior has not really worked, despite being a regular shopper I find it a nightmare finding some things, and I now agree the aisles are a disaster, a shop should be convenient for customers, they are too narrow and when stocking is taking place even worse.
We need supervalu, really need it, Aldi is fine but we still need Supervalu, we do not at this stage need any further supermarkets, however if Callan was too grow, we would need something akin to the much aligned Dunnes Store.
I mention Dunnes as a passing, there are quite a few bargains on groceries and provided one got the full Dunnes there are many items which are unobtainable at the moment in callan.
Initially Supervalu really needs to invest in callan, they need to ask why are shoppers going to Aldi or drifting to Carrick or Loughboy, despite recession we are still moving forward.
Home delivery is popular many stores now operate the facility using purpose built vans with ability to carry frozen/cold foods.
I ask how does our Callan store operate "Home Delivery".
Have a super day Foxy

Dan Jaman

foxcoverteddy wrote: »

Home delivery is popular many stores now operate the facility using purpose built vans with ability to carry frozen/cold foods.
I ask how does our Callan store operate "Home Delivery".

Callan SV has been doing home delivery for well over a decade, but there's a delivery radius of 3 miles/5km (last time I enquired). Not sure if there's a minimum spend, either.

Cabaal

Dan Jaman wrote: »

Callan SV has been doing home delivery for well over a decade, but there's a delivery radius of 3 miles/5km (last time I enquired). Not sure if there's a minimum spend, either.

Thats pretty limited, though fair enough if that radius is a free delivery (when over a certain spend),

They may want to think about further delivery's though, Superquinn will come out as far as Callan and have done for years and years (yes now all the same company but wasn't until pretty recently)

foxcoverteddy

Many posts ago someone told us that due to the lack of staff there would be queue's in Aldi, well the more popular it becomes the lack of staff becomes apparent, Supervalu queues are self induced by local gossip, having to get cigarette's and Lotto tickets etc.
Now, I find it interesting, where my food originates from, the use of Irish names on some products I presume is to cover that the contents might just not be Irish, I try to buy Irish wherever possible, unfortunately Irish is in my way of looking at things is produced in the Republic.
Irish jobs etc does not extend to the six counties they have their own system, it's not prejudice, I want to support our workers, our firms, first, if we do not produce it then as needs must I buy other countries imports.
I wondered if anyone has shopped in Aldi in Scotland or the UK, do they use different names on foods, localised for the area, would sauages rolls be Mc someones, and the yogurts from Scottish or UK suppliers?
I have never shopped in either Aldi or Lidl in the UK so it is an area I have no knowledge.
Looks like being a nice day, Foxy

Captain Havoc

If the first three digits on the barcode are 539 then it's made by an Irish registered company.

foxcoverteddy

The question of home delivery, I might be wrong but you have to do the shop, it is not online like Superquinn, and you cannot include frozen foods as now I stand to be corrected delivery is by taxi, the supervalu van disappeared many moons ago.
Does the integration of the two stores mean we will get the choice of online shopping?
Can't see Aldi getting into this one, but you can never tell.

foxcoverteddy

We have been beaten by technology, just bombed through the fridge, some of the bar codes have gone from Aldi food, the strip is still there but the code numbers gone, Supervalu have the 509 bar code.
Interesting as to why one store has and the other hasn't, though all the dairy and meat products carry the Irish Food code's.
I know we have Irish cheese which has been to the UK for wrapping or so I was informed, somehow that doesn't really ring true.
A great deal of dairy produce seems to go through Adams of Leek in Staffordshire, perhaps there is a clue.
A baffled Foxy?

foxcoverteddy

It would seem Cabaal has opened a can of worms regarding bar codes, we have Aldi telling us on the television we can save money changing to Aldi.
Yes we have seen the difference in Callan between Aldi and supervalu.
There is a but, where does Aldi source their products from, with Dairy and Meat we are protected by the EU coding which tells one the last point of the process. However what about the products without a code, Cabaal rightly told us the barcode starting 509 indicted origination from an Irish source.
Aldi have done away with barcode numbers, haven't checked Lidl, so one has no indication of the source of the product.
Very few items in Aldi give an indication of origination, so is Aldi selling food cheap or is it cheap food?
I personally think it important that one should know where a shop is sourcing it's food from, are third world countries being exploited? Are the manufacturing processes up to the same standard one would expect from an Irish company.
Some places will indicate on a till receipt total of Irish products purchased, Supervalu do for one. Usually it is only a small percentage of the total.
I think one would be in for a nasty shock checking barcodes, I have done a quick look in our store cupboard, there are Chinese products with UK codes, we have tinned corned beef with authenticating Brazilian codes whilst one company has a UK barcode and so it goes on.
I can't use an electrician without a certificate, perhaps rightly so but the food store can sell whatever crap without any problem.
It does not make sense.
Have a good day, Foxy

V

Dan Jaman

foxcoverteddy wrote: »

I can't use an electrician without a certificate,

So RECI and others would have you believe.

foxcoverteddy

Well it is back to the drawing board, with Aldi having Barcode numbers removed from most of the stock, Supervalu using a British Barcode on many of their items and Lidl using a German code.
However irrespective of the BarCode apparently it is no help whatsoever in establishing the origins of the contents.
The only way we can tell is by the EU Dairy/Meat code on items, also Fish is covered.
Some items do carry produce of such and such country, but this information is not normally shown on the discounters items, we are none the wiser in what conditions our food is being processed, do they compare with Irish safety of food requirements?
However do be careful on cold cabinet food, an Irish name does not guarantee Irish content, check the code, IE for Ireland and UK for Britain, FR for France and NL for Holland or the Netherlands.
Have a super day, Foxy

Cabaal

foxcoverteddy wrote: »

It would seem Cabaal has opened a can of worms regarding bar codes,<SNIP>
Cabaal rightly told us the barcode starting 509 indicted origination from an Irish source.

in all honesty, what posts are you reading?

I never said anything about barcode codes.

foxcoverteddy

sincere apology it was Captain Havoc who gave us the info on 539 codes, in this instance Cabbal has been found innocent, thanks anyway regards Foxy

foxcoverteddy

I am wondering why our Aldi is allowed to use Barcodes that do not give some indication as to the country of the producer.
I realise that the Barcoding does not tell you where the contents come from but it does give an indication as to the country that the food originated from.
One suspects like Lidl the bulk of the products come from Germany, at least we can tell where dairy, meat and fish are sourced from.
You might just wonder what this is all about, okay silly thing Donegal Catch Cod fish fingers, Irish no, owned by Green Isle foods and have come from Germany, we have done the Supervalu Blackwater Yogurts which are of course not Irish, Czech, the last time I looked even the Dairy origination code had disappeared from the jars.
Our food stores are inspected for safety factors, making sure the pricing is correctly shown, what a pity no one is checking what is being sold.
I want to be able to buy Irish produced food where possible I do not want a supermarket trying to cut corners and hood-wink one into believing we are buying Irish when they know it isn't.
Irish bread should be made in Ireland, not Northern Ireland, we need to protect our bakers, the same as the mass of cakes are they Irish Republic made or are we being sold produce from another country.
Apparently there is a considerable amount of meat imported into Ireland where does it go? Rather like Pork comes into Ireland is usually sold as Irish because it was finished here.
I must pop into Dunnes and see what they are doing.
Have a nice day, I will be trying to get rid of Wasp's in the garden, Foxy

foxcoverteddy

yesterday's bombshell announcement that some of Aldi's beef products were 100% not beef, they had no idea it wasn't beef, so what else is being sold in our supermarkets which is not what it says it is, forget Aldi, there are other supermarkets who may not be telling us the truth.
Aldi have at least come clean on the matter, I see Lasagne was mentioned as one of the products, well Supervalu sell a Lasagne which is not made in Ireland, in fact I think it comes from Czech Republic, a lack of news suggests that this product was not contaminated?
I have been campaigning against the lack of information being given to shoppers on where products are coming from and even more the content.
No offence to anyone but I do not want Chinese tinned strawberries, yes there was a time supervalu were selling these, and we are one of the best strawberry producers, and they sell f...... Chinese.
Ask the staff in either Aldi or Supervalu about the origination of products and see what answers you get.
Retail training is non existent, I read somewhere home-baking was banned at a market, tell you what it would have been a dam site purer than what is being fed to us.
Stopping for breakfast, I do hope my eggs come from real chickens, be back later.

foxcoverteddy

I enjoy a nice piece of toast with breakfast, now here is another anomaly "Fresh Bread", how fresh is wrapped bread? Some advertise fresh daily, it might well be true in an exaggerated sense, which does not guarantee the bread you buy is baked today or even yesterday, as long as they can prove they bake everyday it would be a legal statement.
Supervalu's own bread says fresh baked, but when? Aldi who knows?
In days of old before the advent of wrapped bread, it was fresh every morning, one could actually get hot bread, not that it was good for you but it was fantastic.
Now at the end of the day it would be sold off with the remaining cakes or next morning you could buy "Stale bread" at a fraction of the price.
Now when have you seen stale bread for sale? Cakes seem to have an indefinite sell by date, actually we got some burger buns that had a sell by date of October, they actually got binned, what the hell was in them for the sell be date to be that long.
Isn't some of the problems being experienced is what manufacturers are stashing into produce to prolong it's shelf life.
Both Aldi and supervalue are the same in this respect, why we are on the subject I could in my youth go down the market and buy broken biscuits, do you see them now, no, so what happens to them?
I suppose it is some consolation Aldi doesn't have unwrapped bread after the checkout operator at supervalu handling my rolls, my fault I should have refused to accept them.
After the horsemeat thing how on earth doe an ordinary shopper know whether or not the meat being sold comes from a Hereford Bull or some obscure breed, we rely on the meat industry and the supermarket.
Unfortunately most super market workers/management have got the slightest notion as to what they sell.
The so called Food Safety authority appears unable to control the situation, yes they can go round street markets and pick holes in this and that, something the public really does not need protecting from, street traders are normally experts.
Have you seen the hand washing gel in Supervalu and aldi? Guess I might have missed it, the AIB has some to wash your hands before you enter, but they don't sell food, ha ha ha.
See they are thinking of getting rid of 1 and 2 cent coins, past their sell by date these days.
Well have a nice day and weekend, Foxy

foxcoverteddy

Just caught part of a TV add by the food safety authority, FSA for short, relating to sell by dates. From what I gathered there is concern shopper's are not being sufficiently aware of out of date food.
Both our supermarkets can be irresponsible in this respect, however another article on the same subject stated shoppers should ignore the "Display until date".
According to the writer it just tells the supermarket when to remove from the shelf, take no chance, I looked at some cakes in Aldi sell by October I think it was the 13th; that is more than a month ahead, what goes into these cakes for them to remain fresh?
Beware soft fruit, some of it does not carry a sell by date, turn it upside down and look for any indication of mold: remember it is your money.
Enjoy the game and may the best team win.
Foxy

Sky King

foxcoverteddy wrote: »

what goes into these cakes for them to remain fresh?

Preservatives

Dan Jaman

foxcoverteddy wrote:

what goes into these cakes for them to remain fresh?

Sky King wrote: »

Preservatives

Enough preservatives to make you the envy of every Pharaoh in history.

Dozen Wicked Words

Not sure any of this is relevant to aldi in Callan, what the world needs now is a "Foxy says" thread. Who needs paragraphs with words as learned as foxys.

foxcoverteddy

Yes, Dozen Wicked Words, I am of the same opinion regarding this thread, we now have our Aldi, shoppers in Callan have a reasonable choice of where to buy the weekly groceries.
It in my opinion would be true to say that neither supermarket is perfect, I find the need to go into Kilkenny or Clonmel from time to time, perhaps a Lidl might be the answer or a Dunnes come to that.
But: at this time Aldi for Callan has served it's purpose.
Personally I have enjoyed the thread; writing has been terrific fun, Phil had no idea what he had started.
So for once and for all this is my final post, it is a bit early but have a lovely Christmas and a happy new year, and thank you for reading the post's.
It is not good-bye as there are other threads, till we meet again.
Foxy

foxcoverteddy

Hi everyone, yes its me back again, what has happened Kerwicks gone, Ray Hackett closed and Johnny Butler no longer, Carrolls in Mill Street closed and rumour has it major changes at Westcourt, some say Chadwicks old site is going to become something else. We have a new estate agent, but lost Mr Fennelly. At least we have Mr Keogh still and both our supermarkets are thriving, we have a turkish barber and of course Sharon, in truth we have no need to go to Kilkenny, forgot even the Credit Union is with us, the An Post is a bank on its own, service with a smile. I guess that is what makes Callan great, people are friendly a cheery hello a smile works wonders. Aldi and Supervalu compliement each other, though Aldi has trouble with its checkouts, but minor in the one to ten. So hope you have all kept well, enjoy the summer rai n.
Regards to everyone Foxy

Phil MaCrackin

Wow!?! changes at Westcourt? Hadnt heard anything about that!
Yes Heaton Buckleys site (old mart yard) is opening as Bretts Hardware (Mullinahone) Its great news!

foxcoverteddy

Hi phil yes that is who we heard, again competition, the Westcourt rumour relates to the bacon factory, hope its untrue, they are a major employer,try my spies for info. Thanks

Captain Havoc

Welcome back foxy

Phil MaCrackin

Yeah the bacon factory rumour is circling for a long time now, it surfaced again just before the local elections.... hard to know if theres truth in it...

foxcoverteddy

Appreciated, hope i find you in good health, will keep in touch, foxy

foxcoverteddy

Hi, travelling around I realise for its size Callan has so much going for it, we have two supermarkets, Aldi and Supervalu, two convenience stores Glynns Daybreak and Callan Co op, we have three banks plus an post and st canices credit union, in addition we have a craft baker Mr Keogh and a craft butcher John Dooley, if you include Westcourt Premier Foods, O Briens mens shop, two barbers and two ladies hairdressers, in addition there are two chinese restaurants, two chippers and a kebab shop, three chemists one herbalist, five or six pubs, two estate agents, two garages, in fact we really do not need to go to Kilkenny, Carrick or Thomastown, may be Clonmel from time to time,, we are really blessed with the facilities we have, yes we have lost some shops on the way but mostly expected, if you drive parking is a dream compared with everywhere else, not a problem for the Jag. I left out the jewel in the crown, Ballykeefe Amphitheatre what a brilliant venue, i guess we can rope in Morgans distillery, ballycallan garden centre and our own local egg man for those really fresh eggs buy them at Supervalue, its never ending fresh fish on sale Friday morning, let you into a secret Supervalu will get al ost any fresh fish to order from Sardines to Shark, being away made me realise Callan may not be the most glamourus of small towns but probably unique for its size. Enjoy the weekend and God Bless Foxy

Odyssey 2005

And a partridge in a pear tree !!
Three banks ?
John Dooley ?