September 4, 2016
As I recall, June 4th marked the last day of school and then, after a too short summer, September 4th was the day we all trudged back to our lessons. Summer was well delineated in the Rockies by warmer days and then like clockwork as September rolled in, you could feel the fall in the air. Smelling the crisp smell of leaves turning golden and the black black night sky and lots of stars.. Like it or not. Back to school. I sometimes long for the simplicity of those times.
//
Yesterday was an eye opener for me. I've reported that it is my considered opinion that Rite Aid and Thrifty Ice Cream are cheating by failing to have a full sixteen ounces of ice cream in their one pint carton. To confirm my suspicions, I went to the Rite Aid store at Sunset and Fairfax in Hollywood yesterday and asked the woman who sells the frozen yogurt they have there to weigh a 'pint' of the Thrifty ice cream they sell there. Her scales were calculated to sell the yogurt, so it wasn't easy. Finally, she told me that the 'pint' weighed about three pounds! I asked her if she thought the pint of ice cream actually weight three pounds and she shrugged. I called for the manager.
Carlos had a little acne and a cheesy mustache. If he was 22, I'd have been surprised. He was cordial and listened patiently to my pitch that there wasn't a full pint of ice cream in the Thrifty (the store brand) pints. I quizzed him a little and found that his math was spotty at best when asking how many ounces in a pound and how many ounces in a quart. I guess third grade weights and measures may not be a requirement to be a Rite Aid Manager. They finally got the scales calculated to the point where we thought that the actual weight of the pint of Thrifty ice cream weighed about six ounces! It was difficult to get Carlos to understand that his store may be engaged in an illegal practice. He denied responsibility for the ice cream. Maybe I should get in touch with corporate, he suggested! We did agree that six ounces was not sixteen! (side note: Watching an episode of Dobie Gillis as I write. Dobie and Maynard are in a life boat labled SS. San CARLOS. )
Just before leaving, I grabbed a pint of Ben and Jerry's which felt to my educated heft (I used to sell candy by the ounce) that it was, at least, closer to a full pint/pound of ice cream. I had the yogurt woman weigh it and it came to NINE OUNCES by her scales. I took the Ben and Jerry's and the Thrifty cartons to Carlos. He took one in each hand and I asked him which was heavier. He agreed that the B and Js was heavier! I had him read the carton for how much product was in each one. Each carton read 'One Pint' which neither probably did.
The point of all of my railing is that a few weeks ago I bought a pint of Thrifty ice cream and it seemed like it was a full pound. It was dense and creamy and tasted great. The one I bought Friday night tasted okay, but the texture was wrong and it was melting faster that anything.
I've posted chapter and verse from the Feds regarding proper labeling and have asked the consumer advocates at NBC4 here in LA to look into this. With all the other shady practices that are going on, like bags of coffee which we always assumed were one pound are now the same price but around twelve ounces there's something wrong. I've mentioned Dreyer's Ice Cream that subtly changed its packaging and is charging the same price for a quart and a half that they used to charge for a half gallon. Toilet paper manufacturers are enlarging their cardboard cores and narrowing the width of its product. Same price less product.
Consumers, I'm guessing, for the most part won't rise up with torches and pitchforks to right this wrong. I understand that inflation and the times call for changes. I just want the great product that I remember and if it costs more, that's part of the deal.
It was a surprise that the MANAGER of the Rite Aid didn't really know third grade math and had no real response besides understanding that one "pint" of ice cream obviously weighed more than another "pint" of another brand comparison.
If the FDA has standards to protect consumers from what appears to be fraud (unless old Geoff Hayden is right that ice cream is not milk), then I hope that something gets done. We'll see if Channel Four responds. I encourage anyone with a minute to spare the next time in the super market, to weigh some of your favorite ice cream to see if the product is actually the weight it is supposed to be. Or... if Geoff is right, that ice cream is NOT milk, which comes in quarts that weigh 32 ounces, etc.. then, I'll admit to being wrong. But, I won't like it.
Onward!!
September 4, 2016
michael sheehan
Nice to see clouds today!!!
ReplyDelete