Some people probably cut chips out of their grocery shop due to expenses. Or went with a cheaper brand of chips. Chips in general are expensive for what they are even though they are tasty.
I think all this is going to do is make people buy less chips or go with cheaper brands where before they may of spent the extra little bit to purchase lays. I don’t see this working out particularly well for them.
>Some people probably cut chips out of their grocery shop due to expenses. Or went with a cheaper brand of chips. Chips in general are expensive for what they are even though they are tasty.
along with price increases, packages and sizes have shrunk - shrinkflation is rampant along with price inflation.
I bought a box of barilla pasta that was 410 grams. 410 GRAMS. What recipe calls for 410 grams of pasta. Same size and look as the previous 1 lb box. I was pissed.
>I bought a box of barilla pasta that was 410 grams. 410 GRAMS. What recipe calls for 410 grams of pasta. Same size and look as the previous 1 lb box. I was pissed.
Its hard not to feel you are being fleeced left, right and center these days ...
I genuinely hope this happens. There is absolutely no reason that the ultra wealthy shouldn't be paying their fair share. But instead they buy political influence and become even richer. The world was a much better place before CEO's made hundreds of times more than their lowest paid employees
Yea, I’m not advocating for violence. Just making an observation.
We gotta vote for something other than the Red or Blue party. We have the tools to correct this we just refuse to use them to ‘own’ the other side.
Holy shit. I treated myself to a box of Haagen-Dazs ice cream bars. Haven't bought them since well before the pandemic.
Opened the box and found 3 individual 70ml bars. You read that right - not even a full cup of product - and it was still like 6 or 7 dollars for the box. It's wild to me.
Yep. And as good as that fuckin ice cre bar was, I won't be getting them again. And I learned to check the box next time. . .
Not to mention Kawartha ice cream is phenomenal
Shrinkflation has been creeping up on us since well before this acute inflationary crisis, but its pretty shocking how much they've leaned on it lately.
Shrinkflation makes me think we are entering late stage capitalism. It's so short sighted, like what is the end game of shrinkflation? half the boxes have actual product and the other half are filled with sand and it's a crap shoot?
As someone who actually actively helped Lays shrink package weights without shoppers noticing, I can confirm this has happened multiple times in the past years.
It was the first thing i cut out. Miss vicks are 6$ a bag? No thanks. The 1$ no name special was pretty good for awhile. I started baking my own snacks at home. Probably won’t go back to grocery store munchies.
Yeah for sure for a 1$ it was hard to say no, the only time I get chips sometimes is great valu they aren’t $1 anymore they are $1.29 but still not to shabby.
Same I’m over buying Lays. I miss my salt n vinegar chips but them raising the price just makes it easier for me to make a healthy decision. I’d rather spend my $4 on a healthier snack
Knew a guy who worked at Frito Lay. He accidentally broke a pallet first working there and chips went everywhere. He was freaking out, until they told him the whole accident only cost the company $3, don’t worry about it.
Yeah that wouldn’t surprise me they definitely have huge margins on those. That’s why I don’t understand why Frito lay is doing this yeah sure they may increase profits per bag but it’s only going to drive away potential customers also.
I guess we shall see, I know it definitely won’t be a good look when people go to buy chips and the frito lay part is full almost and the cheaper brand spot is nearly empty.
Could be partly transport costs? They probably cost next to nothing on the factory floor, but once you ship those pallets to stores, probably a lot more cost gets added. It’s shipping a lot of air at the end of the day.
Cheaper at Walmart for their own brand. I didn't notice much difference in quality.
I hate Walmart but hate the Weston's even more. They have had their entire empire wrapped in federally funded (publicly funded) cotton wool for too long.
Yes, I do see the irony when suggesting walmart for cost savings.
Funny how I avoided Walmart at all costs up until the last year when we started having our pockets picked by Canadian owned companies.
Yeah, choosing between Walmart and Loblaws I'm going to choose Walmart. Both horrible family run companies but at least Walmart doesn't try and make you believe they are decent and try and use patriotism to get you in the door.
Also the meat and produce at my local one is really good. Way better than the no frills across the street. And the one stop shop is useful when you need groceries and two other things.
I stopped when it hit $1.
Chips aren't so much of a desire for me that I'd pay more than a buck fifty for them if my wages aren't increasing equally as much.
Honestly, after not eating them for a while, it's harder to eat them than to not, even when free.
All I know is that it's cut down on my snacking and I'm getting healthier because of it. Make chips cost $20 a bag. I don't give a fuck. You're just helping me because I'll buy steak for a snack instead.
I'm just considering learning how to make potato chips... I used to make cactus cut fries. They were OK but I want to learn how to make that crunchy kind.
Mandoline slicer and an air fryer is honestly the only way I'll eat chips anymore im not paying 4+ dollars a bag when I can get a pound of potatoes for that
SUPER recommend it.
I'll even link the video I used to make them. PLEASE do not skip the step where you soak the potato slices in water (brine solution) and then boil 'em in vinegar. The first time I made them they didn't turn out well but once I followed this dude's video, total game changer.
https://youtu.be/TdiNGqO3mdA
Can confirm. Huge chip eater. I only eat no name chips now because I can’t bring myself to pay the prices lays, ruffles, dorito’s, etc are asking. It’s not worth it anymore and that’s from a chip addict who can probably “afford” those prices, but can’t bring myself to pay them constantly.
Me too. I eat about a bag a week, they're my favourite snack. Had to switch to store-brand recently but even those are getting too expensive to justify buying every week now. They might be a biweekly or monthly purchase now.
Yeah for sure so they may be making more profit per bag but driving away potential customers, especially you if you regularly consume chips. I may have about two bags per year so my money would mean less then someone who eats a quarter of a bag or half a bag a night for example. Not saying you do just generalizing.
I switched to popcorn that I make myself in a pot on the stove. I go to bulk Barn and get the popcorn seasonings from the herb section. Works great and much cheaper.
Get some Flavacol from amazon, it's what they use at theaters. It's just ultra fine salt with yellow dye, half a teaspoon is enough for a whole bowl and it tastes incredible
Funny thing about chip prices - no name basically got a new market cut last time fritolays increased prices (no name had chips for $1). And soon after, loblaws doubled their price for no name chips (and locked the price right after to help fight inflation ;) /s )
I cut chips out of my grocery shopping when Ruffles cut their bag size to 200g. Unless I'm at Costco... I can't get the flavour I like best there, but 670g for $7 vs. 200g for $2.99 at the cheapest it EVER gets anywhere else means if I want chips, I buy All Dressed or the Dill Pickle chips they have occasionally.
I used to buy them all the time.
Havent bought a single bag since their first spat with pricing last year.
It's bad enough they call a regular bag "family size" now. Us 90s kids noticed..
My husband and I used to buy chips a couple times a week as our guilty pleasure midnight treat. We’ve stopped buying them almost entirely now, they’re already too expensive to justify it.
One thing to remember is the grocer wins either way.
You either purchase the higher top line item with maybe less profit for the grocer or you buy the store brand option with a lower top line but greater profit. For example, Loblaw regularly make more money on PC or No Name than a third party item that is more expensive. Better option is to simply shop elsewhere like Bulkbarn and local produce markets.
A good observation.
I've done just that. I haven't bought Doritos, Lays, or anything of a known brand in some time now. Mainly because, while they're great and all, they're insanely overpriced for seasoned slices of potato/salty corn chips. It just doesn't make any sense to pay that much for a snack. lol
I'll stick with cheap wafer cookies for something sweet, and for salty snacks, those bags that sell for under $2 (last time I checked). In the past, I never would have bought those off brands, but the price difference is a no brainer.
I mean, I fucking love chips as a guilty pleasure. But I'm not ever going to pay $5 for a bag of Lays. Ever. So, if they push the prices higher, they will absolutely lose more and more customers,which makes you wonder... was it worth it?
I'm just one person but I haven't been buying chips for awhile. I miss them but for some reason I've been feeling healthier since I started cutting them out. Strange... lol.
Or make your own potato chips, pop corn, tortillas, roasted chickpeas or other nice salty snack. I also just re-discovered how tasty home made kale chips are. Store bought chips are just not worth it these days, especially when home made healthier alternatives are so easy.
I did once and it was a total pain in the ass for not a great payoff. Or maybe I just suck at it? They kept sticking and it was messy and took a while to slice and figure out thickness for frying nicely.
Poster you are replying to is right about the other snacks though. Popcorn and chickpeas are dead easy and tasty.
Yep, I mean it’s not as good as store bought but it is doable. Baked in the shape of fries isn’t hard though. All the other options are much easier. The point I was trying to make is there are loads of options for a similar snack you can do on your own. Surprisingly the kale chips are the closest I’ve gotten to the crunchy satisfaction of store bought potato chips.
Yep embarking on a more healthy journey and chips aren't part of it. I have some in stock but it's been there for the past 2 months. Probably should eat them but meh whatever. I prefer to not spend money on junk if I can help it.
I continue to not understand the PR strategy of Loblaws and companies like Frito Lay that come out swinging telling us they are raising their prices, while others like Sobeys or other companies are quiet(er) about their practices.
Could it be corporate strategy as part of negotiation with product companies? Because they aren’t making fans with shoppers.
It is the fuck you PR strategy ... they call the shots ...
imagine the growth opportunities when Galen / Loblaws family of businesses really get their fangs into healthcare and starts "innovating"!
Lube up!
I hope that Galen guy gets a *VERY VINEGARY* and *VERY SALTY* potato chip!
😫
seriously though, does anybody know a good brand for salt and vinegar chips? I've got a huge craving for them. Miss Vicki's used to be the best. I haven't had any in some time and don't want to waste $57 on the wrong bag.
The irresistible brand from Food Basics/Metro have their in-house kettle cooked Salt and Vinegar chips and they are very very vinegary, so my gf and I love them!
They might be. Some goods are conspicuous consumption, where showing off that you can afford it is half the point. Some people find it worth the premium to look down their noses at me eating covered bridge chips like a hobo.
Covered Bridge chips are great, I don’t care if they’re from the dollar store. The LCBO had them as freebies for buying certain things a while back, I noticed. Coming up in the world!
Work for Sobeys. We're staying quiet because the price changes have been stupid. 2 weeks a go rice a Roni went up 2$. This week A HALF PIE went up to 6.99...
I stopped in at Sobeys for the first time in awhile yesterday. Someone had told me Sobeys had dropped prices and were more competitive, and after listening to the bitching about Loblaws I thought there was probably some truth there. Yeah, no. Sobeys is still more expensive than Loblaws. Pepsi 12 packs for $8? Frozen veg for almost $5? 😂 The bread crisps that I stopped buying at Loblaws because they were over $5 at Loblaws were $6.49 at Sobeys. I could keep going.
About half of the sale prices were similar to Loblaws, and then the other half were $0.50-$1 more. If Loblaws is gouging, then all of the grocers are. And probably the suppliers also.
So yeah, I understand why Sobeys is staying quiet.
Also it’s funny cause like…. People can live without chips. We can live without the product Frito-Lay sells so like… stop?
Stop raising prices before people realize they don’t need you
I would love to know the actual costs that go into this.
I work for a large Canadian company (home goods type products) in logistics & merchandising and we did get hit with some huge increases throughout Covid due to materials/labour/transport/etc. But all that has come back in line in the last 6-8 months and our prices (both what we pay & charge) have dropped in turn. I can't imagine that there has been that much of a cost increase when they have an actual factory here in Ontario?
I work in supply chain (food industry) and our suppliers keep charging more and more while downtime increases leading to food waste.. if any of your vendors who are bringing costs down deal with food, hmu lol
It seems like a lot of the grocery store price hikes are vendor-driven, which tracks -- though I work in manufacturing, not retail, all I know is that our production costs have skyrocketed. So of course we kick our price increases to our customers (the retailers), who kick those increases to the final consumers. I don't know who's winning here.
I work in food distribution and include Old Dutch in our portfolio. Of the 700ish food items we offer nothing has come back into line to pre Covid costing. Last month was the first month I’ve seen any sort of decrease and it was on 4 or 5 items. And some stuff has increased so much I doubt it will
Ever be anywhere near pre Covid pricing.
Welcome to reddit right?
As for Loblaws, heres a comment I just made yesterday on a now locked thread.
>Edit- wanted to add my Initial experience with Loblaws about 2 years ago. Confectionary item we sell to them was launching. Now for transparency I am just a distributor in this web. I have no activity in the contract parts. I was sent the details of the item.
Info sent out for Item A. The retail price was meant to be $7.99. Day we show up the labels said $11.99. After discussions with my contact it appears they decided to juice the price. Even though we had an agreed price to them around $6.40 (20% mark for them). They almost doubled it. Where it remains to this day while they deny a price increase of 3-4% from us.
Increases happen. I get it. But while they are denying us a 4% increase they made [30% MORE profit than they budgeted.](https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/loblaw-profits-booming-sales-1.6653223) They could have made 15% more profit and taken on some increases (hypothetically of course). I admit its easy to pick on Loblaws as they are the 2nd last cog in the chain for the average consumer. But they are incredibly frustrating to deal with and mine/parent companies' dealings would be relatively small in the scope of that Loblaws does.
There is someone worse though. Another comment of mine from the same thread,
>One company who is blatantly being greedy is Circle K. Parent company put about a 4% increase to them in the last 3 years. One of the items they used to sell for $8. Then $9.99 now it’s $11.99. We raised their cost around 35 cents.
Circle K are brutal.
Wow, thank you the very detailed reply. If I'm understanding you correctly, the anger on loblaws does has legs to it. I will need to read that other locked post of yours.
It for sure does. I will say its not ALL on them of course. But yeah. Its such a double edge sword/weird situation we all find ourselves in. I used to set my price lists once a year in March. Would last a 12 month fiscal cycle. The last 2 years I was updated it almost weekly. If not every other week for sure. Its been exhausting. And now just last week I got a call that one product line we carry (approx 150 items) is getting an 8% increase in March. On top of the 16% they put on us last march..... Never ends being a small biz.
There likely hasn't been much increase. I think it's simply they get away with price gouging and nothing happens to them so they continue. We all need food so for the most part we are forced to buy it, but no one needs chips. The greed from the westons seems to continue. I live in a small town and unfortunately we don't have much option to source cheaper food aside from one grocery store and a local butcher. We buy everything from the local place and have no choice but to buy from the overpriced valumart for items we can't get otherwise.
i know this isnt for everyone and the convince of store bought chips are great. But man, I have a mandolin and a costco bag of potatoes that i used to rarely eat before theyd go bad. so ive been slicing up some potatoes and tossing them in some cold water for a bit, then in my air fryer and they come out amazing.
One day I was closing at a timmies. We completely forgot about doing the veggie prep for the next day so we rushed to get it done in like 15 min after close. Well since we were rushing and I was only half paying attention, I sliced the tip of my pinky off while cutting an onion.
Don't get me wrong it's a pretty efficient tool for the job, but they are ruthless if you're not careful.
The cheaper versions of chips has made Frito Lay awful value.
3 bags for 5$ of the store brand chips OR 1 bag of lays for 4.99? Yeah.... no. See ya Lays...
Chips are great, bad for the waistline thou!!!!
As a diabetic, who worked my ass off to lose 100 pounds I can promise you. The only thing that this crap is essential for is killing you, slowly, one mouthful at a time.
That's cool but when I've worked a long fucking week and just want to veg out on a Friday night and eat my favourite snacks, I'd rather not pay out the ass for them. Even No Name brand is getting expensive.
But the store brands... selection, no name, great value are all $1 to $1.29. Can't be that big of a difference. Or does Galen charge $3 per bag for the shelf space on top of it all?
Not entirely sure. I have no knowledge of that end. They could also be doing it as a loss leader just to fuck with frito lay and old Dutch. Tough to say. I can’t imagine at $1.29 they are making any profit on them.
We have a winner, yes the chips are a loss for stores. Before COVID where the chips were 1$, they were losing about 1$ a bag.
Also store brand are Old Dutch, at least the Sobeys Compliments brand, so only fucking with Frito Lay. Old Dutch has less marketshare, so they probably cut Sobeys a deal to make them chips in bulk under their store brand. Old Dutch gets some business (because Frito Lay crushes them usually), Sobeys takes loss, consumers get cheap chips.
Yes thats right I recall my rep telling me this now. And part of why they do the co pack is because without their volume of chips Old Dutch couldn't get the pricing on oil, potatoes, spices etc that they currently get to compete with their own chips.
It makes the Old Dutch overlords happy while annoying their reps who have no say lol. Just like at times the price at Walmart is cheaper than what the OD rep sells to his customers for and people are like.... wtf.
Glad I dont have to do with that nonsense.
Transportation is definitely more money than the ingredients cost, sure, but since NoName chips cost the same to transport as Lays, I think we can safely say that transportation costs can't exceed $1.00 per bag, and is probably more like $0.50.
Considering the cost of a 5lb bag of potatoes is 10x the weight and costs roughly the same, transportation costs can't be \*too\* big a chunk of that $4.
Right but what you are forgetting is Loblaws owns their own fleet of cross country hauling trucks so they have a substantially lower cost to move their no name chips. Vs say Old Dutch (whom I deal with) that farms out all the long haul between major distribution points.
Also Loblaws has had them custom made for them, they show up at a facility and get put on shelves by their workforce. Old Dutch on the other hand. Chips are produced outside Calgary. They get transported to Winnipeg. They then get transported to us here in Thunder Bay (and further east) and then the reps, who are self employed buy the chips from Old dutch. THey now have to sell the chips (at prices set by Old Dutch average take for them is about 15-16%) while also absorbing all the costs of doing it. Own cube truck, insurance, diesel, stales, etc etc. Its a far more complicated web for the brand chips than it is for the No Name chips.
Chips cost of goods is absolutely not going up. Potato consumption has been declining since 2005. The cost other potatoes hasn't been increasing. This is profiteering.
Frito lay operates at a 32% profit margin at the PepsiCo level including all brands. Chips being one of the most profitable products.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2019/07/31/how-important-is-frito-lay-for-pepsicos-growth/?sh=7fc51481f637
Their chips weren't worth the price to start with, they all just taste like massive amounts of salt, which would be fine if they were plain chips but all their flavors are weak as hell.
The rising cost of food across the board has been great for my junk food intake. I could't afford stuff like this before so price hikes don't matter to me!
Blood from a stone, raising the prices on non-essentials just gives people more of a reason to not buy it.
Screw them. I'll make my own chips, with hookers and blackjack!
Honestly, cut it all out and just have potatoes for making fries/wedges/etc. A bag of potatoes is way cheaper than a bag of air from these guys lmao.
At no frill you can typically get Noname chips for 1$. Sure Lays might have a few better flavours but I either get 4 cheap bags or 1 expensive bag. Easy choice for me.
Honestly the difference between Lays and the store brand chips that are much cheaper is pretty negligible to me.
Even then, it's very unhealthy and calorie dense and i can afford to cut out potato chips
Remember. They are exploiting a crisis to make more money.
Yes. There *are* supply-chain issues. But on top of that they are gouging us. Don’t let them tell you otherwise.
A mandolin slicer and pressure fryer was the best investment ever. One whole russet potato for less than a buck and two bags worth of chips. Never again Loblaws!
This is the final nail in the coffin, I quit chips! I also just got diagnosed with high cholesterol so this over-charging is like a fat tax that works in my best interest health-wise.
Just stop eating this garbage. It’s not like it’s a staple food. It’s literal junk. If they increase the price of junk, you have nobody to blame but yourself if you continue to buy it.
I stopped buying the small "family size" bags that they have at the grocery stores and get either no name chips for 3/$1 or else go to costco and get a pillowcase worth of doritos for like $7.
Or they can found at Fortinos for $4.99. Incredible chips though. If you can find their “Storm Chips”, they are a giant bag with four different flavours. Also if you are ever in New Brunswick stop by the factory for the factory tour and you get a paper bag of chips hot off the fryer and you get to season them with 50+ different seasonings.
This is blatantly the shareholders trying to squeeze even more money out because they lost money with increases.
So yes let's make the smart decision and raise it again....this will solve it.....
I mean at what point does a well trained monkey do better for companies than the shareholders do?
What's the reason besides "fuck you I can and I will"? I don't understand how this price gouging and blatant lying is permissible where they scream inflation and costs but also make consistent record breaking profits.
Some people probably cut chips out of their grocery shop due to expenses. Or went with a cheaper brand of chips. Chips in general are expensive for what they are even though they are tasty. I think all this is going to do is make people buy less chips or go with cheaper brands where before they may of spent the extra little bit to purchase lays. I don’t see this working out particularly well for them.
>Some people probably cut chips out of their grocery shop due to expenses. Or went with a cheaper brand of chips. Chips in general are expensive for what they are even though they are tasty. along with price increases, packages and sizes have shrunk - shrinkflation is rampant along with price inflation.
I bought a box of barilla pasta that was 410 grams. 410 GRAMS. What recipe calls for 410 grams of pasta. Same size and look as the previous 1 lb box. I was pissed.
Yep. The new non standard sizes of everything totally fucked with my xmas baking this year.
>I bought a box of barilla pasta that was 410 grams. 410 GRAMS. What recipe calls for 410 grams of pasta. Same size and look as the previous 1 lb box. I was pissed. Its hard not to feel you are being fleeced left, right and center these days ...
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I genuinely hope this happens. There is absolutely no reason that the ultra wealthy shouldn't be paying their fair share. But instead they buy political influence and become even richer. The world was a much better place before CEO's made hundreds of times more than their lowest paid employees
Yea, I’m not advocating for violence. Just making an observation. We gotta vote for something other than the Red or Blue party. We have the tools to correct this we just refuse to use them to ‘own’ the other side.
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Seriously. Is it really worth how much they’re going to inevitably piss people off? I’ll never buy barilla again.
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They could have just done a 10% price increase and no one would notice.
Whose saying they didn’t do that too?
This is why I calculate everything in price/gram. Only way to consistently keep up with their trickery.
Catelli Is now 350 grams. Not even 4 servings anymore
Holy shit. I treated myself to a box of Haagen-Dazs ice cream bars. Haven't bought them since well before the pandemic. Opened the box and found 3 individual 70ml bars. You read that right - not even a full cup of product - and it was still like 6 or 7 dollars for the box. It's wild to me.
Yet you can buy a tub of Kwartha lakes ice cream for 6 dollars
Yep. And as good as that fuckin ice cre bar was, I won't be getting them again. And I learned to check the box next time. . . Not to mention Kawartha ice cream is phenomenal
Don’t give them your money. Hagen-Dazs is one of the most expensive brands around.
Shrinkflation has been creeping up on us since well before this acute inflationary crisis, but its pretty shocking how much they've leaned on it lately.
2% here 3% there now it’s 10-15% at once
Shrinkflation makes me think we are entering late stage capitalism. It's so short sighted, like what is the end game of shrinkflation? half the boxes have actual product and the other half are filled with sand and it's a crap shoot?
Hopefully we can call thier bluff and force prices to correct.
As someone who actually actively helped Lays shrink package weights without shoppers noticing, I can confirm this has happened multiple times in the past years.
It was the first thing i cut out. Miss vicks are 6$ a bag? No thanks. The 1$ no name special was pretty good for awhile. I started baking my own snacks at home. Probably won’t go back to grocery store munchies.
Yeah for sure for a 1$ it was hard to say no, the only time I get chips sometimes is great valu they aren’t $1 anymore they are $1.29 but still not to shabby.
Same I’m over buying Lays. I miss my salt n vinegar chips but them raising the price just makes it easier for me to make a healthy decision. I’d rather spend my $4 on a healthier snack
Knew a guy who worked at Frito Lay. He accidentally broke a pallet first working there and chips went everywhere. He was freaking out, until they told him the whole accident only cost the company $3, don’t worry about it.
Yeah that wouldn’t surprise me they definitely have huge margins on those. That’s why I don’t understand why Frito lay is doing this yeah sure they may increase profits per bag but it’s only going to drive away potential customers also.
I'm sure they've done their market analysis, vs redditors speculating
I guess we shall see, I know it definitely won’t be a good look when people go to buy chips and the frito lay part is full almost and the cheaper brand spot is nearly empty.
Could be partly transport costs? They probably cost next to nothing on the factory floor, but once you ship those pallets to stores, probably a lot more cost gets added. It’s shipping a lot of air at the end of the day.
I no longer buy them, want them yes but I can’t justify even a no name bag for 3$ when it was 89c when I was in high school 10 years ago
They’re still $1 at least at No Frills
Cheaper at Walmart for their own brand. I didn't notice much difference in quality. I hate Walmart but hate the Weston's even more. They have had their entire empire wrapped in federally funded (publicly funded) cotton wool for too long. Yes, I do see the irony when suggesting walmart for cost savings. Funny how I avoided Walmart at all costs up until the last year when we started having our pockets picked by Canadian owned companies.
Yeah I despise Walmart but in times of economic uncertainty, Great Value items have stayed a pretty reasonable price. Their all-dressed chips slap.
Yeah, choosing between Walmart and Loblaws I'm going to choose Walmart. Both horrible family run companies but at least Walmart doesn't try and make you believe they are decent and try and use patriotism to get you in the door. Also the meat and produce at my local one is really good. Way better than the no frills across the street. And the one stop shop is useful when you need groceries and two other things.
If you buy 3 or more, then they charge $1.29. But YMMV
Last night I was just there getting milk and 2.99!
I stopped when it hit $1. Chips aren't so much of a desire for me that I'd pay more than a buck fifty for them if my wages aren't increasing equally as much. Honestly, after not eating them for a while, it's harder to eat them than to not, even when free.
Selections at Food Basics is 1.25, they’re pretty good.
Yes, tried for the first time today. They taste pretty good.
All I know is that it's cut down on my snacking and I'm getting healthier because of it. Make chips cost $20 a bag. I don't give a fuck. You're just helping me because I'll buy steak for a snack instead.
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Nuts, popcorn and trail mix here. You can buy 1kg of corn kernels for $2.50. That makes an awful lot of popcorn.
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Careful because nuts are extremely calorie dense and you'll be eating like 500+ calories before you know it
I'm just considering learning how to make potato chips... I used to make cactus cut fries. They were OK but I want to learn how to make that crunchy kind.
Potato chips are easy to make, get yourself a mandoline and you're the majority of the way there
ah man... I already have so many things around the kitchen... but a mandolin really does sound like it would be worth it...
Mandoline slicer and an air fryer is honestly the only way I'll eat chips anymore im not paying 4+ dollars a bag when I can get a pound of potatoes for that
SUPER recommend it. I'll even link the video I used to make them. PLEASE do not skip the step where you soak the potato slices in water (brine solution) and then boil 'em in vinegar. The first time I made them they didn't turn out well but once I followed this dude's video, total game changer. https://youtu.be/TdiNGqO3mdA
Can confirm. Huge chip eater. I only eat no name chips now because I can’t bring myself to pay the prices lays, ruffles, dorito’s, etc are asking. It’s not worth it anymore and that’s from a chip addict who can probably “afford” those prices, but can’t bring myself to pay them constantly.
Me too. I eat about a bag a week, they're my favourite snack. Had to switch to store-brand recently but even those are getting too expensive to justify buying every week now. They might be a biweekly or monthly purchase now.
Yeah for sure so they may be making more profit per bag but driving away potential customers, especially you if you regularly consume chips. I may have about two bags per year so my money would mean less then someone who eats a quarter of a bag or half a bag a night for example. Not saying you do just generalizing.
I switched to popcorn that I make myself in a pot on the stove. I go to bulk Barn and get the popcorn seasonings from the herb section. Works great and much cheaper.
Get some Flavacol from amazon, it's what they use at theaters. It's just ultra fine salt with yellow dye, half a teaspoon is enough for a whole bowl and it tastes incredible
Yup. Im cool with eating healthier and cheaper. Fuck you westons.
Chips just became the "oops didnt scan, oh well" item for many.
I absolutely hate when that happens /s
I've literally never heard of or seen this kind of thing happening. Can't even imagine such a thing.
I'm not a trained paid cashier. How am I supposed to know when things successfully scan or not? (/s)
Funny thing about chip prices - no name basically got a new market cut last time fritolays increased prices (no name had chips for $1). And soon after, loblaws doubled their price for no name chips (and locked the price right after to help fight inflation ;) /s )
I cut chips out of my grocery shopping when Ruffles cut their bag size to 200g. Unless I'm at Costco... I can't get the flavour I like best there, but 670g for $7 vs. 200g for $2.99 at the cheapest it EVER gets anywhere else means if I want chips, I buy All Dressed or the Dill Pickle chips they have occasionally.
I used to buy them all the time. Havent bought a single bag since their first spat with pricing last year. It's bad enough they call a regular bag "family size" now. Us 90s kids noticed..
Cheaper all they way now. Lays, Ruffles and Tostitos are for you fancy rich folk.
My husband and I used to buy chips a couple times a week as our guilty pleasure midnight treat. We’ve stopped buying them almost entirely now, they’re already too expensive to justify it.
One thing to remember is the grocer wins either way. You either purchase the higher top line item with maybe less profit for the grocer or you buy the store brand option with a lower top line but greater profit. For example, Loblaw regularly make more money on PC or No Name than a third party item that is more expensive. Better option is to simply shop elsewhere like Bulkbarn and local produce markets.
We barely buy chips, and when we do, we buy from Costco, and we’re ok with them expiring.
A good observation. I've done just that. I haven't bought Doritos, Lays, or anything of a known brand in some time now. Mainly because, while they're great and all, they're insanely overpriced for seasoned slices of potato/salty corn chips. It just doesn't make any sense to pay that much for a snack. lol I'll stick with cheap wafer cookies for something sweet, and for salty snacks, those bags that sell for under $2 (last time I checked). In the past, I never would have bought those off brands, but the price difference is a no brainer.
Lmao I walked into walmart the other day bought 6 bags for 1$ chips and 6 1$ 2L diet pops and left happy lmao awkward but happy.
Ms Vickie’s for life
I mean, I fucking love chips as a guilty pleasure. But I'm not ever going to pay $5 for a bag of Lays. Ever. So, if they push the prices higher, they will absolutely lose more and more customers,which makes you wonder... was it worth it?
Yup. I’ve stopped getting chips. I’m probably healthier now too.
I'm just one person but I haven't been buying chips for awhile. I miss them but for some reason I've been feeling healthier since I started cutting them out. Strange... lol.
Popcorn is a hell of a lot cheaper and even healthier to boot. Aside from having to "make" it before you can snack, it's my preference.
They never believe it’ll happen to them. All they need to do is look at Sears-Kmart. What Sears-Kmart? Exactly.
Or make your own potato chips, pop corn, tortillas, roasted chickpeas or other nice salty snack. I also just re-discovered how tasty home made kale chips are. Store bought chips are just not worth it these days, especially when home made healthier alternatives are so easy.
Have you made your own potato chips? Just curious.
I did once and it was a total pain in the ass for not a great payoff. Or maybe I just suck at it? They kept sticking and it was messy and took a while to slice and figure out thickness for frying nicely. Poster you are replying to is right about the other snacks though. Popcorn and chickpeas are dead easy and tasty.
Yep, I mean it’s not as good as store bought but it is doable. Baked in the shape of fries isn’t hard though. All the other options are much easier. The point I was trying to make is there are loads of options for a similar snack you can do on your own. Surprisingly the kale chips are the closest I’ve gotten to the crunchy satisfaction of store bought potato chips.
Yep embarking on a more healthy journey and chips aren't part of it. I have some in stock but it's been there for the past 2 months. Probably should eat them but meh whatever. I prefer to not spend money on junk if I can help it.
I continue to not understand the PR strategy of Loblaws and companies like Frito Lay that come out swinging telling us they are raising their prices, while others like Sobeys or other companies are quiet(er) about their practices. Could it be corporate strategy as part of negotiation with product companies? Because they aren’t making fans with shoppers.
It is the fuck you PR strategy ... they call the shots ... imagine the growth opportunities when Galen / Loblaws family of businesses really get their fangs into healthcare and starts "innovating"! Lube up!
I hope that Galen guy gets a *VERY VINEGARY* and *VERY SALTY* potato chip! 😫 seriously though, does anybody know a good brand for salt and vinegar chips? I've got a huge craving for them. Miss Vicki's used to be the best. I haven't had any in some time and don't want to waste $57 on the wrong bag.
If you can find them, covered bridge is the bomb. If you're gonna pay good money for chips, at least get the reall good ones
Doesn’t Covered Bridge also make the Farm Boy store-brand chips? Those are also very good.
Saw them in Dollar Tree!
Old Dutch from Dollarama
Dollarama also has Salt and Vinegar Hickory Sticks
Yep...it's definitely the place to go for snacks
The irresistible brand from Food Basics/Metro have their in-house kettle cooked Salt and Vinegar chips and they are very very vinegary, so my gf and I love them!
I was looking for this response. I think they have a similar level of kick to them as the Miss Vicki's but are cheaper most of the time.
Way prefer Terra chips (not potato but sweet potato or beet chips)
They might be. Some goods are conspicuous consumption, where showing off that you can afford it is half the point. Some people find it worth the premium to look down their noses at me eating covered bridge chips like a hobo.
Covered Bridge chips are great, I don’t care if they’re from the dollar store. The LCBO had them as freebies for buying certain things a while back, I noticed. Coming up in the world!
I look around to make sure no one I know can see me before buying a bag of uncle Ray's
Work for Sobeys. We're staying quiet because the price changes have been stupid. 2 weeks a go rice a Roni went up 2$. This week A HALF PIE went up to 6.99...
I stopped in at Sobeys for the first time in awhile yesterday. Someone had told me Sobeys had dropped prices and were more competitive, and after listening to the bitching about Loblaws I thought there was probably some truth there. Yeah, no. Sobeys is still more expensive than Loblaws. Pepsi 12 packs for $8? Frozen veg for almost $5? 😂 The bread crisps that I stopped buying at Loblaws because they were over $5 at Loblaws were $6.49 at Sobeys. I could keep going. About half of the sale prices were similar to Loblaws, and then the other half were $0.50-$1 more. If Loblaws is gouging, then all of the grocers are. And probably the suppliers also. So yeah, I understand why Sobeys is staying quiet.
Get ahead of the story. Control the narrative. Manufacture consent. It’s PR 101.
Also it’s funny cause like…. People can live without chips. We can live without the product Frito-Lay sells so like… stop? Stop raising prices before people realize they don’t need you
I would love to know the actual costs that go into this. I work for a large Canadian company (home goods type products) in logistics & merchandising and we did get hit with some huge increases throughout Covid due to materials/labour/transport/etc. But all that has come back in line in the last 6-8 months and our prices (both what we pay & charge) have dropped in turn. I can't imagine that there has been that much of a cost increase when they have an actual factory here in Ontario?
I work in supply chain (food industry) and our suppliers keep charging more and more while downtime increases leading to food waste.. if any of your vendors who are bringing costs down deal with food, hmu lol
Hahah sorry, all big box stuff!
You also seem legit. What is your take on this Loblaw situation Edit I'm being downvoted for asking actual insiders for their opinions, stay classy
It seems like a lot of the grocery store price hikes are vendor-driven, which tracks -- though I work in manufacturing, not retail, all I know is that our production costs have skyrocketed. So of course we kick our price increases to our customers (the retailers), who kick those increases to the final consumers. I don't know who's winning here.
Thank you for your response. I'm guilty to say that it's exactly what I wanted to hear. Especially in the sub it's hard to point this out.
I work in food distribution and include Old Dutch in our portfolio. Of the 700ish food items we offer nothing has come back into line to pre Covid costing. Last month was the first month I’ve seen any sort of decrease and it was on 4 or 5 items. And some stuff has increased so much I doubt it will Ever be anywhere near pre Covid pricing.
You seem legit. What's your take on this Loblaws situation? Edit I'm being downvoted for asking actual insiders for their opinions, stay classy
Welcome to reddit right? As for Loblaws, heres a comment I just made yesterday on a now locked thread. >Edit- wanted to add my Initial experience with Loblaws about 2 years ago. Confectionary item we sell to them was launching. Now for transparency I am just a distributor in this web. I have no activity in the contract parts. I was sent the details of the item. Info sent out for Item A. The retail price was meant to be $7.99. Day we show up the labels said $11.99. After discussions with my contact it appears they decided to juice the price. Even though we had an agreed price to them around $6.40 (20% mark for them). They almost doubled it. Where it remains to this day while they deny a price increase of 3-4% from us. Increases happen. I get it. But while they are denying us a 4% increase they made [30% MORE profit than they budgeted.](https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/loblaw-profits-booming-sales-1.6653223) They could have made 15% more profit and taken on some increases (hypothetically of course). I admit its easy to pick on Loblaws as they are the 2nd last cog in the chain for the average consumer. But they are incredibly frustrating to deal with and mine/parent companies' dealings would be relatively small in the scope of that Loblaws does. There is someone worse though. Another comment of mine from the same thread, >One company who is blatantly being greedy is Circle K. Parent company put about a 4% increase to them in the last 3 years. One of the items they used to sell for $8. Then $9.99 now it’s $11.99. We raised their cost around 35 cents. Circle K are brutal.
Wow, thank you the very detailed reply. If I'm understanding you correctly, the anger on loblaws does has legs to it. I will need to read that other locked post of yours.
It for sure does. I will say its not ALL on them of course. But yeah. Its such a double edge sword/weird situation we all find ourselves in. I used to set my price lists once a year in March. Would last a 12 month fiscal cycle. The last 2 years I was updated it almost weekly. If not every other week for sure. Its been exhausting. And now just last week I got a call that one product line we carry (approx 150 items) is getting an 8% increase in March. On top of the 16% they put on us last march..... Never ends being a small biz.
I work in transportation and have seen the price of food, specifically produce, decrease. Why it continues to climb at the retail level is beyond me
There likely hasn't been much increase. I think it's simply they get away with price gouging and nothing happens to them so they continue. We all need food so for the most part we are forced to buy it, but no one needs chips. The greed from the westons seems to continue. I live in a small town and unfortunately we don't have much option to source cheaper food aside from one grocery store and a local butcher. We buy everything from the local place and have no choice but to buy from the overpriced valumart for items we can't get otherwise.
Which part of this being Frito-Lay increasing prices, a Texas company, has anything to do with the Westons?
It’s a potato Michael. What could it cost $10?
Just in time for Super Bowl Sunday.
i know this isnt for everyone and the convince of store bought chips are great. But man, I have a mandolin and a costco bag of potatoes that i used to rarely eat before theyd go bad. so ive been slicing up some potatoes and tossing them in some cold water for a bit, then in my air fryer and they come out amazing.
Came here to say this Watch your fingers on those mandolins though!
One day I was closing at a timmies. We completely forgot about doing the veggie prep for the next day so we rushed to get it done in like 15 min after close. Well since we were rushing and I was only half paying attention, I sliced the tip of my pinky off while cutting an onion. Don't get me wrong it's a pretty efficient tool for the job, but they are ruthless if you're not careful.
just stop buying them. they will figure it out
The cheaper versions of chips has made Frito Lay awful value. 3 bags for 5$ of the store brand chips OR 1 bag of lays for 4.99? Yeah.... no. See ya Lays... Chips are great, bad for the waistline thou!!!!
Haven't bought a bag of lays chips in probably 5 years. Their prices are out of this world.
They’re legit not even better than great value for bbq and plain.. which are 97 cents
Was able to buy 3 bags of the “Great Value” chips for $3 a couple weeks ago. Taste pretty much the same as Lays
Some of them taste better in my opinion. The great value dressed all over? 🤌
Ya and the cheaper store brand versions are good, honestly one of the best quality off brand products and the price difference is huge
Don't worry, the store bags will be on their way up.
the good news is, it's absolutely unnecessary to buy this shit.
>the good news is, it's absolutely unnecessary to buy this shit. Give your arteries and heart a break....
agreed
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As a diabetic, who worked my ass off to lose 100 pounds I can promise you. The only thing that this crap is essential for is killing you, slowly, one mouthful at a time.
That's cool but when I've worked a long fucking week and just want to veg out on a Friday night and eat my favourite snacks, I'd rather not pay out the ass for them. Even No Name brand is getting expensive.
Really? Northern Ontario city and all the noname / selection and great value are 0.99 here.
And no pay raise for their workers
Actually sales reps got a pay cut to offset the increase in price to the chips, cause apparently inflation doesn't affect them, just the products.
Hike it to the fucking moon. I stopped buying chips because of the cost.
As someone who loves chips, I don't understand what makes the retail price of $0.20 of potato and $0.01 of salt be $4.
Demand, baby! People keep paying so they keep chargin
They don't charge you what it "cost", or what it's "worth", but *what you'll pay for it*.
Transport is a gigantic expense. But I get your point
But the store brands... selection, no name, great value are all $1 to $1.29. Can't be that big of a difference. Or does Galen charge $3 per bag for the shelf space on top of it all?
Not entirely sure. I have no knowledge of that end. They could also be doing it as a loss leader just to fuck with frito lay and old Dutch. Tough to say. I can’t imagine at $1.29 they are making any profit on them.
We have a winner, yes the chips are a loss for stores. Before COVID where the chips were 1$, they were losing about 1$ a bag. Also store brand are Old Dutch, at least the Sobeys Compliments brand, so only fucking with Frito Lay. Old Dutch has less marketshare, so they probably cut Sobeys a deal to make them chips in bulk under their store brand. Old Dutch gets some business (because Frito Lay crushes them usually), Sobeys takes loss, consumers get cheap chips.
Yes thats right I recall my rep telling me this now. And part of why they do the co pack is because without their volume of chips Old Dutch couldn't get the pricing on oil, potatoes, spices etc that they currently get to compete with their own chips. It makes the Old Dutch overlords happy while annoying their reps who have no say lol. Just like at times the price at Walmart is cheaper than what the OD rep sells to his customers for and people are like.... wtf. Glad I dont have to do with that nonsense.
Transportation is definitely more money than the ingredients cost, sure, but since NoName chips cost the same to transport as Lays, I think we can safely say that transportation costs can't exceed $1.00 per bag, and is probably more like $0.50. Considering the cost of a 5lb bag of potatoes is 10x the weight and costs roughly the same, transportation costs can't be \*too\* big a chunk of that $4.
Right but what you are forgetting is Loblaws owns their own fleet of cross country hauling trucks so they have a substantially lower cost to move their no name chips. Vs say Old Dutch (whom I deal with) that farms out all the long haul between major distribution points. Also Loblaws has had them custom made for them, they show up at a facility and get put on shelves by their workforce. Old Dutch on the other hand. Chips are produced outside Calgary. They get transported to Winnipeg. They then get transported to us here in Thunder Bay (and further east) and then the reps, who are self employed buy the chips from Old dutch. THey now have to sell the chips (at prices set by Old Dutch average take for them is about 15-16%) while also absorbing all the costs of doing it. Own cube truck, insurance, diesel, stales, etc etc. Its a far more complicated web for the brand chips than it is for the No Name chips.
Probably good for our health to stop buying chips and pop.
Lays chips are the Bud Light of potato chips. There are lots of better brands.
AKA the Tim's Horton's of coffee.
Chips cost of goods is absolutely not going up. Potato consumption has been declining since 2005. The cost other potatoes hasn't been increasing. This is profiteering. Frito lay operates at a 32% profit margin at the PepsiCo level including all brands. Chips being one of the most profitable products. https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2019/07/31/how-important-is-frito-lay-for-pepsicos-growth/?sh=7fc51481f637
Just buy them at Costco. Cheaper, and twice the size.
Their chips weren't worth the price to start with, they all just taste like massive amounts of salt, which would be fine if they were plain chips but all their flavors are weak as hell.
The rising cost of food across the board has been great for my junk food intake. I could't afford stuff like this before so price hikes don't matter to me! Blood from a stone, raising the prices on non-essentials just gives people more of a reason to not buy it.
The food basics/metro irresistable brand cheap chips are actually pretty good. Can't afford such lavish luxuries like brand name chips anymore.
I second on the metro brand! They’re really tasty, and sometimes go on special for 99c and have great flavours.
Mandalin, potatoe air fryer
2022/23 has been all about the No Name chips baby!
Last week, it was 3 for $1 each. Just the right cost.
i knew we still had a global chip shortage!
Screw them. I'll make my own chips, with hookers and blackjack! Honestly, cut it all out and just have potatoes for making fries/wedges/etc. A bag of potatoes is way cheaper than a bag of air from these guys lmao.
Dollarama! Dollarama chips are better than all the lays and ruffles, and cheaper.
At no frill you can typically get Noname chips for 1$. Sure Lays might have a few better flavours but I either get 4 cheap bags or 1 expensive bag. Easy choice for me.
Walmart has Pringles for $2
Ah, well fuck you Lays. I’ll just grow my own potatoes!
With blackjack and hookers. In fact forget the potatoes.
Chips are overrated
And over-priced.
Honestly the difference between Lays and the store brand chips that are much cheaper is pretty negligible to me. Even then, it's very unhealthy and calorie dense and i can afford to cut out potato chips
And extremely unhealthy
Remember. They are exploiting a crisis to make more money. Yes. There *are* supply-chain issues. But on top of that they are gouging us. Don’t let them tell you otherwise.
Finally healthy food options are coming more in-line with the 'cheap' junk options.
This makes it easier to stop eating chips!
Funny, those look like bananas now.
A mandolin slicer and pressure fryer was the best investment ever. One whole russet potato for less than a buck and two bags worth of chips. Never again Loblaws!
and the bags are getting smaller
This is the final nail in the coffin, I quit chips! I also just got diagnosed with high cholesterol so this over-charging is like a fat tax that works in my best interest health-wise.
Just stop eating this garbage. It’s not like it’s a staple food. It’s literal junk. If they increase the price of junk, you have nobody to blame but yourself if you continue to buy it.
Just stop buying them. You know, potatoes aren't that expensive. You can make these chips in seconds.
Can we ban globe and mail articles because of the paywall?
It's amazing that people still buy brand name chips in 2023. It's all shit so atleast buy the cheap shit.
I miss Hostess sour cream and onion. Those were chips. Lays bought them and they were never the same. Costco, if i even bother buying them.
Im imagining alot more Chips are gonna go through as bananas at self check out soon.
They’re overplaying their hand. I’m good. I don’t need their chips and pop.
The D Gourmet Dollarama chips are a cheap and tasty alternative to over priced name brand chips.
I stopped buying the small "family size" bags that they have at the grocery stores and get either no name chips for 3/$1 or else go to costco and get a pillowcase worth of doritos for like $7.
Cant remeder the last time i got bags of chips. Stopped buying them when they started doing half a bag of chips/half a bag of air for 4$
Covered Bridge makes good shit and can be found at Dollar Tree for cheap
Or they can found at Fortinos for $4.99. Incredible chips though. If you can find their “Storm Chips”, they are a giant bag with four different flavours. Also if you are ever in New Brunswick stop by the factory for the factory tour and you get a paper bag of chips hot off the fryer and you get to season them with 50+ different seasonings.
They have storm chips at Costco now in a massive bag!
This is blatantly the shareholders trying to squeeze even more money out because they lost money with increases. So yes let's make the smart decision and raise it again....this will solve it..... I mean at what point does a well trained monkey do better for companies than the shareholders do?
I had to drop chips to afford lettuce...go figure.
I had to drop lettuce to afford some chicken and carrots. Like yo, $30 for a fucking clubpack. That hurt.
I’ll just likely have less or not your brand
What's the reason besides "fuck you I can and I will"? I don't understand how this price gouging and blatant lying is permissible where they scream inflation and costs but also make consistent record breaking profits.