Fruit&Veg price war 2014 - [Mod Note in OP]

andersat2

witnessmenow wrote: »

Guys,

This is a bargain alert forum. While I agree this is an interesting topic and should be discussed, there are forums that are better suited to the discussion that is taking place. Maybe farming and forestry? After hours maybe!?

Please stay on topic, this thread is about fruit and vegetables, not about farmers.

Here we go again!
Seems, that from tomorrow (Wednesday), Tesco will sell pineapples, lemons, limes and onions for 19 cents

Big Nelly

Cant wait to sit down to my Christmas dinner of Turkey, ham, stuffing, roast spuds and Pineapple....

With some lemon and lime gravy

Kovu

Big Nelly wrote: »

Cant wait to sit down to my Christmas dinner of Turkey, ham, stuffing, roast spuds and Pineapple....

With some lemon and lime gravy

Will it match up to my pineapple fritters, onion rings & vodka on the rocks with lemon & lime wedges

JONJO THE MISER

Great news, someone said it was not going to happen this year.
Hope these are just the opening shots.

Access

Come on 5 cents carrots!

hfallada

JONJO THE MISER wrote: »

Great news, someone said it was not going to happen this year.

I think Aldi agreed not to do super low prices again, as farmers were basically bullied into selling their veg below cost. Fresh Produce is a unique product in economics due to the supply constraint. Which in lay mans terms means, if prices quadrupled tomorrow, supply should quadruple. But it takes a long period of time for agricultural products to be produced. Which means if buyers are buying potatoes for 10 cents per kg and it costs 50 cent per kg to produce. You cant wait 3 months for prices to rise to sell your potatoes at a higher price. You have no choice but to sell your potatoes now, as they will go off in a fews, at 10 cent per kg.

micraX

Jesus I hope it doesn't happen again, it's a total night mare for vegetable producers, work so hard all year and with a stroke of a pen all your produce is sold for next to nothing

ecomac

micraX wrote: »

Jesus I hope it doesn't happen again, it's a total night mare for vegetable producers, work so hard all year and with a stroke of a pen all your produce is sold for next to nothing

You're right. I'm especially concerned about Irish lemon and pineapple producers.

micraX

ecomac wrote: »

You're right. I'm especially concerned about Irish lemon and pineapple producers.

I said vegetable, they are fruits. But if tho is just the start of it it am very worried.

nicolaed1

ecomac wrote: »

You're right. I'm especially concerned about Irish lemon and pineapple producers.

Irish limes-the best!

man_no_plan

Heard a guy on the radio at weekend. Basically if sprouts are sold for tiny prices this year nobody will grow them next year.

Race to the bottom with the multiples. I know lemons etc are not Irish grown but the grower gets shafted every time.

Padraig Mor

hfallada wrote: »

I think Aldi agreed not to do super low prices again, as farmers were basically bullied into selling their veg below cost.

Aldi and Lidl agree a price for the year with the supplier which remains constant. If they sell below cost, they take the hit themselves, not the supplier (may not be the case for other retailers). However, the nation's professional poor mouths, farmers, took offence at consumers getting exceptional value and seem to have waged war against it via the Dept of Agriculture.

micraX

Padraig Mor wrote: »

Aldi and Lidl agree a price for the year with the supplier which remains constant. If they sell below cost, they take the hit themselves, not the supplier (may not be the case for other retailers). However, the nation's professional poor mouths, farmers, took offence at consumers getting exceptional value and seem to have waged war against it via the Dept of Agriculture.

They said that last year too, iverk, Aldi's. Facilitator said on the news that they where taking the cut yet I know for a fact growers where getting phone calls and in the space of 3 days the price they were getting less than halved.

Cats.Whiskers

I bought too much last year and I'm embarrassed to say a good bit went in the brown bin.

Fruits and.vegetables at the 49 to 69 cent mark would be better and in my case less waistful. I doubt I was the only one who was buying just because they were cheap.

I did.buy a pineapple and satsumas this Sunday in dunnes for 49 cent each.

Today I bought a melon and some sprouts for one euro in supervalu, they had about 8 items at 2 for 1 euro

Padraig Mor

micraX wrote: »

They said that last year too, iverk, Aldi's. Facilitator said on the news that they where taking the cut yet I know for a fact growers where getting phone calls and in the space of 3 days the price they were getting less than halved.

If it's a fact, you'll have no problem finding a link I presume? I've heard of Dunnes doing similar, but not the Germans.

micraX

Padraig Mor wrote: »

If it's a fact, you'll have no problem finding a link I presume? I've heard of Dunnes doing similar, but not the Germans.

I don't have a link as vegetable growers don't speak out about things like that because if they do they lose all their orders.

Engine No.9

Weren't Lidl's carrots last Christmas sourced in Holland?

corsav6

micraX wrote: »

I don't have a link as vegetable growers don't speak out about things like that because if they do they lose all their orders.

Can i ask where you get your info?
I assumed the growers got full price as Aldi stated that they took the hit. Are they telling lies?

vicwatson

Bought brussel sprouts today in Aldi for 49c from HOLLAND

Bring on the 2cent ones, consumer needs bargains

Troy McClure

man_no_plan wrote: »

Heard a guy on the radio at weekend. Basically if sprouts are sold for tiny prices this year nobody will grow them next year.

Race to the bottom with the multiples. I know lemons etc are not Irish grown but the grower gets shafted every time.

Most people are too greedy to care who picks up the tab for this nonsense. If the supermarkets asked staff to work for half their pay, so they could get more hours work in, to pay for a reduction in product prices, we would have an immediate lock down! Rightfully so.

For some reason its ok to squeeze the livelihood of these producers from here or from abroad (some much poorer countries sometimes).
If the supermarkets want to sell loss leaders, fair enough, but they mostly expected the supplier to sell to them for free basically. Rats in sewers comes to mind. Pitch the poor against the poor. Shameful.

bladespin

More sprouts, less sprouting rubbish please.

JONJO THE MISER

Well there is no way in hell im paying a euro for a bag of carrots when i had them for 5c last year.

Troy McClure

A bit of education goes a long way.. or should I say would have went a long way.

Odyssey 2005

JONJO THE MISER wrote: »

Well there is no way in hell im paying a euro for a bag of carrots when i had them for 5c last year.

Miser by name and nature.:D

TireeTerror

My horse gets very excited at this time of year 6cent carrots bring him so much joy!

vicwatson

TireeTerror wrote: »

My horse gets very excited at this time of year 6cent carrots bring him so much joy!

Merry Christmas horse

Glenbhoy

corsav6 wrote: »

Can i ask where you get your info?
I assumed the growers got full price as Aldi stated that they took the hit. Are they telling lies?

Their suppliers may have, suppliers subject to market prices would have been left in a different position, they wouldn't have been able to get rid of their stock at cost prices given the glut of virtually free, competing produce available.

iguana

But,....... but........ the 1914 Christmas Truce!!!

RobbingBandit

Even at 2c I still say no way to snots, I mean sprouts.

thebullkf

andersat2 wrote: »

Here we go again!
Seems, that from tomorrow (Wednesday), Tesco will sell pineapples, lemons, limes and onions for 19 cents

If tesco were reasonable and fair and equitable to begin with they wouldnt have to scramble like they are now.

Tesco will soon enough depart the Irish marketplace

doc11

It's not aldi, tesco etc producers that are getting shafted it the others that supply different chains, if aldi are selling 19c carrotts no one will go to supervalue or spar to buy them and their suppliers suffer as the chains won't subsidize them in the same way and rather put pressure on the suppliers cost price undermining the market.

micraX

corsav6 wrote: »

Can i ask where you get your info?
I assumed the growers got full price as Aldi stated that they took the hit. Are they telling lies?

I'm a small vegetable farmer, but I know most of the growers who supply the major supermarkets. And I've been to many meetings and talk to them and they say what happened last Christmas. And they said their prices where slashed, and I know Aldi said they where taking the hit, but they were not.

micraX

vicwatson wrote: »

Bought brussel sprouts today in Aldi for 49c from HOLLAND

Bring on the 2cent ones, consumer needs bargains

That's because Aldi only gave out the sprout contract in September, but if an Irish grower was planning a program of sprouts for them it would have had to be planted in May/June.
I know one grower planted a few acres more than needed in hoping to get this contract, he got it, but he doesn't have enough to fill it fully so that's why when a special is on they have to import to top up the stock.

Qualitymark

I don't see any chat about this over in the Farming and Forestry forum - http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=845&order=desc

In relation to supermarkets selling very cheap carrots, sprouts, etc from Holland, don't you see that this removes the market for Irish sprouts, carrots, etc?

As for pineapples, they're grown under shocking conditions, with people in the Philippines paid as little as €4.50 per day to grow them http://www.fairfood.org/2014/10/bitter-life/

tharmor

Does Irish farmers grow anything apart from potatoes ?? most items are from spain greece etc...

micraX

Qualitymark wrote: »

I don't see any chat about this over in the Farming and Forestry forum - http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=845&order=desc

In relation to supermarkets selling very cheap carrots, sprouts, etc from Holland, don't you see that this removes the market for Irish sprouts, carrots, etc?

As for pineapples, they're grown under shocking conditions, with people in the Philippines paid as little as €4.50 per day to grow them http://www.fairfood.org/2014/10/bitter-life/

All them lads in that forum talk about is cattle, milk and sheep, very little arable farming talk, and even less horticulture.

Streetwalker

micraX wrote: »

Jesus I hope it doesn't happen again, it's a total night mare for vegetable producers, work so hard all year and with a stroke of a pen all your produce is sold for next to nothing

It's comments like this that are the reason we don't see enough competition in the market place all over this island. If the producers don't like it find another line of work. Farmers have been creaming it in for years on the back of fixed pricing and now they don't like it that the consumer is seeing value for money.

micraX

tharmor wrote: »

Does Irish farmers grow anything apart from potatoes ?? most items are from spain greece etc...

Yes, at this time of the year imported broccoli, lettuce, scallions, tomatoes, peppers ect
What SHOULD be Irish in shops at the minute is your root crops
carrots, parsnips, turnips, celerica
Winter greens
Cabbage, cauliflowers, sprouts, kale, leeks
Coming to the end of celery.
Protected crops
Little gem and butter head lettuce, pak choi
And from storage
Potatoes and onions
Edit: beetroot aswell
Roughly all that should be Irish in most shops at the minute

micraX

Streetwalker wrote: »

It's comments like this that are the reason we don't see enough competition in the market place all over this island. If the producers don't like it find another line of work. Farmers have been creaming it in for years on the back of fixed pricing and now they don't like it that the consumer is seeing value for money.

Market gardener haven't been creaming anything. And its not price fixing we are after, it's just a fair price. They have fair trade bananas why can't that be rolled out to everything?

Qualitymark

Fair Trade started as a hippy thing in the 1970s, long before it became the huge thing it is now. Nothing stopping Irish farmers starting the same thing here.

vicwatson

Qualitymark wrote: »

I don't see any chat about this over in the Farming and Forestry forum - http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=845&order=desc

In relation to supermarkets selling very cheap carrots, sprouts, etc from Holland, don't you see that this removes the market for Irish sprouts, carrots, etc?

As for pineapples, they're grown under shocking conditions, with people in the Philippines paid as little as €4.50 per day to grow them http://www.fairfood.org/2014/10/bitter-life/

My last pineapple that I bought was from Costa Rica, never saw a Phillippine pineapple in Aldi

Qualitymark

vicwatson wrote: »

My last pineapple that I bought was from Costa Rica, never saw a Phillippine pineapple in Aldi

Alas…

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2006/nov/19/food.foodanddrink

Costa Rica's pineapple harvest is taking a bitter toll on workers' health

Streetwalker

micraX wrote: »

Market gardener haven't been creaming anything. And its not price fixing we are after, it's just a fair price. They have fair trade bananas why can't that be rolled out to everything?

If you can't make a living out of it find other work. If the guy working in a factory can't make a living on 8.65 an hour he needs to find other work. That is life.

Padraig Mor

doc11 wrote: »

It's not aldi, tesco etc producers that are getting shafted it the others that supply different chains, if aldi are selling 19c carrotts no one will go to supervalue or spar to buy them and their suppliers suffer as the chains won't subsidize them in the same way and rather put pressure on the suppliers cost price undermining the market.

So no retailer should have a sale on any item ever, lest a competitor's supplier gets the hump?

micraX wrote:

its not price fixing we are after, it's just a fair price

It is, though.

Qualitymark

Streetwalker wrote: »

If you can't make a living out of it find other work. If the guy working in a factory can't make a living on 8.65 an hour he needs to find other work. That is life.

it is indeed. And you, Streetwalker, will be the loser when Irish food isn't available and the big shops suddenly change their pricing policy.

corsav6

micraX wrote: »

Yes, at this time of the year imported broccoli, lettuce, scallions, tomatoes, peppers ect
What SHOULD be Irish in shops at the minute is your root crops
carrots, parsnips, turnips, celerica
Winter greens
Cabbage, cauliflowers, sprouts, kale, leeks
Coming to the end of celery.
Protected crops
Little gem and butter head lettuce, pak choi
And from storage
Potatoes and onions
Edit: beetroot aswell
Roughly all that should be Irish in most shops at the minute

We buy most of our veg from the local fruit and veg shop. He buys locally where he can apart from bananas and other things that wouldn't be grown here.
We do pick up some 5c carrots in Lidl but only for feeding the horses when we bring the kids for a walk.
In fairness to consumers, and not going against the veg farmers but we do live in Rip off Ireland. We get shafted on so many products that when deals like 5c veg appear you can't be surprised when people go crazy buying.

micraX

Padraig Mor wrote: »

So no retailer should have a sale on any item ever, lest a competitor's supplier gets the hump?


It is, though.

It isn't, if a product is plentiful a lower price is expected if a product is not a higher price is, just like it used to be, it was fair

micraX

Streetwalker wrote: »

If you can't make a living out of it find other work. If the guy working in a factory can't make a living on 8.65 an hour he needs to find other work. That is life.

What about everyone employed on farms? They would have to find new work too. It's not just one farmer, it's a business that's providing jobs

bladespin

micraX wrote:

What about everyone employed on farms? They would have to find new work too. It's not just one farmer, it's a business that's providing jobs

In fairness that's no different from any other business, if it can't sustain itself.

Qualitymark

bladespin wrote: »

In fairness that's no different from any other business, if it can't sustain itself.

But if a business is driven out by unfair competition…?

reunion

Can we keep it on topic? I saw this thread yesterday with 2 posts, came back today expecting 4 pages worth of amazing deals instead it's a debate about how pricing works in the fruit and veg industry! Life's tough someone gets shafted, either the customer with high prices, or someone in the chain from the farm to the shop. I'm on this forum not to be shafted with prices and the last bargain I see on this thread is page 2.

If people want to debate the ethics of cheap fruit and veg, I suggest using the Christmas Vegetable Price War thread that has started, otherwise bargain's only.