Anybody here eat food from the scratch-and-dent grocery?
Anybody here ever heard of the scratch-and-dent grocery?
If not, head over to MSN Money to read my latest Living With Less column. “Save with scratch-and-dent food” explains how salvage stores work and offers tips on buying from discount grocers and the dented-can bin, too. [Edited to add: Since MSN Money changed platforms, the pieces that I wrote are no longer available through conventional channels.]
Maybe the idea skeeves you right out: Eeeewwww, old food! But plenty of it isn’t old.
Some of it’s an “overrun” product, i.e., the manufacturer has more stock than orders. Some are discontinued or seasonal items, or products that didn’t do well in a particular region. If a manufacturer changes a label or packaging, the existing stock gets dumped at discount prices.
Some of it is damaged in a cosmetic way. I saw a torn bag of Huggies diapers (it still appeared to be completely full) for $2.50. I’ve bought dented canned food from supermarkets for as little as a quarter apiece, and recently scored eight boxes of Royal pudding mix (with sell-by dates in 2011 and 2012) for 9 cents each at a Walgreens clearance bin.
And yeah, some of it’s “old” – but there’s no universally accepted food-dating system in the United States. If a product says “Best by October 2010,” it doesn’t mean that on Nov. 1 it isn’t fit to eat. The column contains links to the U.S. Department of Agriculture that explain this, and also to tell you how much damage is too much damage.
The piece also links to a state-by-state list of salvage grocers. There’s no true salvage market close to me me – wish there were! – but I do sometimes visit a discount place called the Grocery Outlet. You can get quite a few organic items there, and another shopper told me that the gourmet cheese selection is outstanding.
You can also get Häagen-Dazs ice cream for $1.49 a pint. Ask me how I know.
I used to live near a scratch and dent store and there were some great bargains there. The local grocery store has a markdown basket here but they only discount items a few cents. I do better with the sale items matched with coupons .
We don’t have any scratch and dent places aruond here, but our grocery store has a small area they put damaged items. They stopped doin git for several years, but I’m happy that thi smonth they brought it back. This past week I got nearly 20 dented cans of assorted veggies for 29 cents each, boxes of ereal for 99 cents and my best score, a $30 face cream for $5!!
no scratch and dent near us, but we have a 99c Store which seems to have almost everything, even fruits and veggies. Usually always cheaper than the regular retail supermarkets, and most of the time cheaper than the discount supermarkets.
just be careful when buying a dented can that it is not swollen. swollen cans means food inside has gone bad. and if so, you could get very sick.
@Male: That’s why the article has links to the USDA — they offer very specific safety info.
I’ve been buying scratch and dent stuff for years. Sparta, Michigan, a little town I grew up, had a salvage grocery, Andy’s Groceries. (It’s since closed, darn it.) Ironically, I could find luxury items like hearts of palm and artichoke hearts on almost every trip there, at generally 69-89 cents (!!!) per can. (Hearts of palm, which I got hooked on after a trip to Brazil, goes for $5 a can at our local King Soopers.)
You do have to be careful, of course. And it’s not a bad idea to buy one item and sample it before purchasing a boatload of stuff. But even Fussy Older Daughter was converted when we found her favorite Bedhead Shampoo at literally dimes on the dollar. I love salvage stores…just wish they were closer to my home in Colorado!
I admit it, I’ve never heard of scratch and dent grocery stores. When I get to Houston I’m going to look for one. I buy stuff like this at the regular grocery all the time because I don’t think anyone else will. Why I think that’s my job is a mystery!
@SimplyForties: Use the state-by-state link in the article, but keep in mind that there may be S&D stores in your area that aren’t on the list. Check the Yellow Pages, ask around, put it out on the Internet.
Are you moving to Houston, or just staying there for a while?
Love this article — we (Los Angeles) don’t have a Scratch’n’Dent per se, but we have 99 cents and Big Lots, both of which offer a grab bag of orphaned foodstuffs, in addition to other stuffs. My best Big Lots buy — perfectly wonderful cotton Hanes undies 3 pair for a DOLLAR — Yup, practically disposable knickers! While I have rarely seen prices matching some of those mentioned in your articles (9 cent pudding — yowzah!), we’ve been lucky to find all sorts of goodies, including high end bubbly right in our very own Ralphs market on the clearance rack. Chandon pink champagne for $6.89 and even, one day, Mumm’s – the very Cadillac of fancy pants booze. The clerks were extolling the Mumm’s but i was foolishly resisting purchase. Within 24 hours, I came to my senses and ran back but they were gone — I still have pangs of un-buyer’s remorse over that last one. Because they make great gifts. Ahem.
Other more prosaic purchases include dozens of pump bottles of Antibacterial hand cleanser for 69 cents (Special Ed teacher — we guzzle this stuff); 3-packs of Scotch tape for 79 cents, and various bread items for way cheaper. And I think it was you, Donna, who introduced the concept of “Used meat” in a very early column. I’m a believer! My clearance meat section has tons of great deals.
Oh, and thanks for the specifics on dented cans. I always have this fear of botulism and tend to skip them. It’ good to know the exact parameters for dented can safety. Great stuff, DF!
I am just catching up on your blog and was sorry to hear your reason for being in New Jersey — hope you and your family are doing okay. How wonderful that you can be there, as you mentioned in your fabulous article on true riches. It really struck a chord. Take care!
@Priskill: Thanks for your kind words. Welcome back!
We had one here many years ago. Sadly, it went out of business. Not everything was well-priced, however.
Big Lots is my main source of grocery savings now. Lots of organic there on occasion.
hahaha ‘eewwww’ you got that right.. but hey, since you’ve explained it so well, scratch-and-dent groceries are maybe not bad at all.. 🙂
Interesting post. My mother always insisted that it’s not safe to buy food in dented cans. Never did figure out why, though: if the can’s not leaking and it doesn’t look like the lid is bulging, it should be OK. Shouldn’t it?
The USDA links in the column explain when it is and isn’t safe. Mostly it is.