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0 pointsNickC252mo ago0 comments

I own and run a CPG beverage company.

This is a good start. A start. The folks at the top, including RFK Jr. are still captured by big industry.

We need to get off of corn syrup, artificial ingredients, and harmful preservatives.

That said, food deserts still exist, and real whole food is expensive, especially in a time of dire economic stress. I thought that's what subsidies were for, but apparently they are for enriching Big Food / Big Ag executives, their lobbyists, and their bought-and-paid-for congresscritters.

We also need to realize we've been duped for generations into liking things that are overly sweet. Sweet is fine, but we don't need to add stevia or sugar to everything. One of my biggest walls of resistance that I see regularly with my own products is that people have been conditioned to expect that everything in my vertical is super sweet. Just last week I had a parent complain at a sampling that my drink wasn't as sweet as Prime, and thus it's shit. Prime has over an ounce of added sugar in its bottles. I'm marketing to an entirely different set of consumer, too. I offered her a million USD in cash if I could name 10 ingredients on a Prime bottle, and she'd tell me what the ingredient was for, why it helped her son, and the natural origin of the ingredient. She accepted, couldn't get past 1, and then told me that it didn't matter - her son liked what he liked and that's what she was going to buy. We've spoiled generations of people into accepting super sweet things with no idea of why something is or isn't sweet.

One thing I also do is that (i have the luxury of time to do this, which I recognize is something not everyone has) if i want something really sweet and it's not a fruit, I generally make it myself. If I am having a birthday party, I'll make the cake myself. If my nephew wants to leave christmas cookies out for Santa, I'll make them myself. If I want ice cream, I have an ice cream machine and I'll make it myself.

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zahlman2mo ago

> That said, food deserts still exist, and real whole food is expensive, especially in a time of dire economic stress.

I can still routinely get potatoes in season at 20c/lb, carrots in season at 40c/lb, bananas at 60c/lb, dried legumes at $1/lb or not much more, frozen ground meat in the ballpark of $3/lb, eggs for less than $4/dz (almost as much protein as a pound of fatty meat), boneless skinless chicken breast under $5/lb, butter and cheddar cheese at right about $5/lb, 2% milk at $1.25/L (skim milk powder is a bit more economical if you don't want the milk fat)...

In less healthy options, white flour at 45c/lb, polished white rice less than $1/lb (sometimes as low as 70c), rolled oats at $1.50/lb (though I'm leery about the glyphosate), select dried fruits in the ballpark of $3/lb, bacon at $3.60/lb...

all $CAD, by the way. I converted weights but not currency. Last time I looked at American food prices, you guys had way cheaper meat than us after currency conversion.

> One thing I also do is that (i have the luxury of time to do this, which I recognize is something not everyone has) if i want something really sweet and it's not a fruit, I generally make it myself. If I am having a birthday party, I'll make the cake myself. If my nephew wants to leave christmas cookies out for Santa, I'll make them myself. If I want ice cream, I have an ice cream machine and I'll make it myself.

... Generic sandwich cookies and tea biscuits under $2/lb (though they used to be considerably cheaper)....

I absolutely agree with you about the sweet cravings, though.

NickC25OP2mo ago

Sounds like you like pretty close to or in an urban/metro area.

Food deserts still exist all over the US. And likely in Canada, too - you're less likely to have the same options in Toronto, Vancouver or Montreal as opposed to say, Nunavut or Yukon.

The issue here is that you specified in-season. The problem with food at scale is that humans are impatient, and want what they want regardless of season. We don't have seasonality in this day and age in the US outside of small things like pumpkins or gourds. Fruits are expected to be available year round.

Your food standards are WAY higher than ours (I say this jealously). Your government gives a fuck about its population. Ours does not.

zahlman2mo ago

You can get these things year-round here in Toronto, of course, they just tend to go on sale at specific times of year for reasons of supply and demand. But that's specific things like the root vegetables; things imported from the tropics have much more stable prices of course. And really, I'm happy to prep and freeze stuff, and to choose different produce seasonally.

The concept of a "food desert" is wild to me. I routinely walk 3km each way to get groceries and think nothing of it. One of the best ways to make sure I get exercise.

Do American Wal-Mart locations in small towns charge higher prices than ones in major cities in the same state? I think that might actually be illegal here. Certainly the grocery store flyers are for at least the entire province.

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0 pointsNickC252mo ago0 comments

I own and run a CPG beverage company.

This is a good start. A start. The folks at the top, including RFK Jr. are still captured by big industry.

We need to get off of corn syrup, artificial ingredients, and harmful preservatives.

0 comments

zahlman2mo ago

> That said, food deserts still exist, and real whole food is expensive, especially in a time of dire economic stress.

all $CAD, by the way. I converted weights but not currency. Last time I looked at American food prices, you guys had way cheaper meat than us after currency conversion.

... Generic sandwich cookies and tea biscuits under $2/lb (though they used to be considerably cheaper)....

I absolutely agree with you about the sweet cravings, though.

NickC25OP2mo ago

Sounds like you like pretty close to or in an urban/metro area.

Food deserts still exist all over the US. And likely in Canada, too - you're less likely to have the same options in Toronto, Vancouver or Montreal as opposed to say, Nunavut or Yukon.

Your food standards are WAY higher than ours (I say this jealously). Your government gives a fuck about its population. Ours does not.

zahlman2mo ago

The concept of a "food desert" is wild to me. I routinely walk 3km each way to get groceries and think nothing of it. One of the best ways to make sure I get exercise.

1 more reply

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse