Getting milked in the San Francisco area

[chaud-froid]

article from San Francisco Gate

A gallon of milk costs 29 percent more in the Bay Area than it does, on average, across the country, a consumer group reports.

It adds up to a big bill for a common, and sometimes necessary, purchase. "Our survey shows that big grocery supermarkets are gouging consumers and earning huge profits from this important family grocery staple,'' said Elisa Odabashian, senior policy analyst for Consumers Union's West Coast office in San Francisco.

The report  found the average price for a gallon of milk was $4.71, or 29 percent higher than the $3.66 average price reported by the U. S. Department of Agriculture in a survey of 29 major U.S. cities outside California.

Weird report. I rarely buy milk, but decided to look at the prices while visiting Whole Foods on 4th Street in San Francisco this evening. A gallon of whole milk was $3.39 to $3.79 depending on brand. The specialty milks were more, but NOTHING was $4.71 per gallon (unless you bought in in pint sizes). I think the report is bogus.

[tanabutler]

My half-gallon of organic milk at Safeway, when it's on sale, is $3.00.

[Squeat Mungry]

Okay, I can't believe I actually registered at safeway.com for you people, but here's the skinny at my local (very local, as in right across the street) Safeway:

Safeway Lucerne Brand Whole Milk: $4.29/gallon.

Dairy Glen Whole Milk with Safeway loyalty card: $2.65/gallon, but it looks like you have to buy two gallons for $5.29.

Horizon Organic Whole Milk: $6.29/gallon (same for 1% low fat or 2% reduced fat).

Tomorrow I'll stop in at my two local non-chain groceries and see what they're charging.

[jschyun]

Okay, I can't believe I actually registered at safeway.com for you people,

You do it for the love, dude. the love.

[Squeat Mungry]

Further fascinating finds in the field of milk prices:

Bi-Rite (Local Independent):

Clover Whole Milk: $4.59 gallon

Straus Organic WM: $3.99 1/2 gallon

Golden Produce (Local Independent):

Clover Whole Milk: $2.39 1/2 gallon

Clover Organic WM: $3.59 1/2 gallon

Safeway (Safeway):*

Safeway Lucerne Whole Milk $2.39 1/2 gallon

Horizon Organic WM $3.99 1/2 gallon

Safeway Select Org WM $3.39 1/2 gallon

George's Market (Corner Liquor Store):

Berkeley Farms Whole Milk $2.85 quart

* I went back to Safeway's website to get 1/2 gallon prices for purposes of comparison, but I didn't physically go back to Bi-Rite because by the time I realized I'd need 1/2 gallon prices, I figured I had already spent enough time running around looking at milk prices on a Friday evening when I should be at home drinking a cocktail!

So, there you have it. I don't see huge differences for the most part. Not sure what any of it proves except that you're stupid if you buy milk at a liquor store.

Cheers,

Squeat

Edited July 31, 2004 by Squeat Mungry (log)

[Gifted Gourmet]

Thank you for verifying the actual prices which your intensive and exhausting research dug up for us!

So was the article in the SF Gate completely over the top in its claims??

[Squeat Mungry]

Well, as far as paying more for milk in the Bay Area, I'm willing to believe it, though few have chimed in with prices from other areas. We pay more for so many things, though, that it's not hard to believe.

As far as much lower prices being available at local groceries than at large chains, that doesn't seem to be true for my particular neighborhood. (Though I forgot to check the Mexican and Asian groceries -- I'll try to do that this weekend sometime.) Don't know about other neighborhoods, though. In my "research" the biggest discrepancy was within Safeway itself, where you could pay either $2.65 or $6.29 for a gallon of milk! (Although if you wanted a gallon of organic from Bi-Rite, you would have to pay $8.00, because you would have to buy 2 1/2-gallons.)

Cheers,

Squeat

[Gary Soup]

As far as much lower prices being available at local groceries than at large chains, that doesn't seem to be true for my particular neighborhood. (Though I forgot to check the Mexican and Asian groceries -- I'll try to do that this weekend sometime.)

I buy it by the quart, as I only use it on my Cheerios on weekday mornings. A quart of non-fat is $0.99 in Chinatown (or at TJ's) versus $1.19 at Safeway.

Anyway, I consider us lucky now because two three decades ago the price was controlled by the producers (thanks to the infamous "milk lobby") and discounting was illegal.

[chromedome]

This has been rather interesting for me, up here in Alberta.

Back in the early 80's, when the Mulroney government introduced the widely-detested GST (Goods and Services Tax), many Canadians began shopping across the border for items such as milk, gasoline, and cigarettes. As a (then) retail-store manager in a border community, I felt the pinch myself, and so did the other merchants.

At that time, in the heart of dairy country (British Columbia's Fraser Valley) I paid approximately double the price of American consumers a few minutes south in Washington state (this is my unsupported memory of those days, so take with a grain of salt, but it was close).

Today, in Edmonton, I'm paying anywhere from $3.26-$4.99 CDN for a 4-litre jug of milk; the low being at Safeway or Walmart and the high being at my neighbouring convenience store. At places like the drugstore up the road, or the local IGA, the price seems to usually be $3.99.

To provide context for the mental-math challenged, $3.26 CDN equals roughly $2.80 US, depending on the exchange rate. A four-litre jug is somewhat larger than a US gallon, but slightly less than an Imperial gallon.

[pim]

I got it, and as can be seen from my nom de plume, I too, sometimes have trouble making up my mind.

perhaps you should call yourself "tiède"?

[tanabutler]

Please don't make me Google, Pim. Translation for us bumpkins?

[Gifted Gourmet]

tiède (adj) - lukewarm, tepid, mild

[Squeat Mungry]

What a disaster. See my other putative contributions.

Edited August 2, 2004 by Squeat Mungry (log)