It’s been going on for a long time. But there’s an easy fix for the problem. COSTCO (and most other retailers) have implemented it. Now, social media ‘watchdogs’ are pointing fingers at folks who ‘optimize’ food packages…
The prime target for ‘picky’ shoppers appears to be bakery boxes used to package ‘baked in store’ croissants, rolls and other goods. It seems some shoppers – bent on getting the perfect half-dozen of whatever they’re buying – are swapping individual items into and out of multiple packages.
Not the worst part
But that’s not the worst aspect of this ‘cheating’ trend. Social media critics are particularly upset that the swappers are using their bare hands. And that issue extends to items that are racked and binned in bulk, for shoppers to box or bag ‘self serve’.
The trigger for the current tsunami of online outrage was a post by an outraged onliner who witnes-sed – not for the first time – ‘disgusting’ fellow shoppers, swapping criossantes around from box to box in COSTCO’s bakery aisle. Whether the aim was to get a perfect half dozen all the same size, or to get all the biggest pastries wasn’t the issue.
How mad was she?
Well… The initial poster was SO upset about this ‘optimization’ and ‘rearranging’ of pastries that she penned a mammoth 10-line, 200-word rant about it on Reddit.
“Never seen something so nasty in my life. And yes they were not wearing gloves or using protective tongs or anything…”
One commenter called for the ultimate punishment: “I think people should get their memberships revoked for messing with the food, abusing the return policy or leaving food around when they de-cide they don’t want it.”
Another spotlighted the magnitude of this and associated issues: “I went with my kids yesterday and we saw 6 (SIX!!!) instances where people left refrigerated items [just lying] around the store. [One] of the 6 [was] opened food.”
A third stressed: “PLEASE tell staff when you see that happening. They need to pull that off the floor. Even if they don’t confront the customers for their s**t behavior.”
A fourth observed: “[N]orovirus cases are skyrocketing and it’s contagious for up to two weeks after symptoms [appear].”
And a fifth summed up the situation in two well-chosen words: “People suck.”
Some suggestions
Other commenters offered parallel observations including:
“[I]s this how people get all macadamia nut cookies in their packs.?”
“This is why I only take boxes from the back, where people are unlikely to have touched.”
Some commenters discussed a cheap – but apparently ineffective -solution to the problem:
“It wouldn’t be hard for Costco to have a sticker type seal on the packages to make sure they aren’t/weren’t tampered with,” one suggested.
“They do have a sticker. The price/ingredient sticker goes from the top half to the bottom half sealing the package,” another replied.
(For the record… If you Google ‘Costco Crossants clamshell’, you’ll get back photos showing properly sealed packages and others not labelled-over the front lip (see photo, above left). Let’s give the shoppers being called out the benefit of the doubt, and assume they did not open sealed packages. All the worse if they did…)
My take
Experienced shoppers will know this kind of thing goes on all the time. And not just at COSTCO. It’s been going on for years. Unfortunately, it’s impossible to know whether the box you choose has been manhandled by some heedless boor. Even the ones from the back row might have been ‘examined’.
There’s no excuse for that kind of inconsiderate, potentially dangerous behaviour.
And it was high time somebody called out the offenders – as well as store staff who routinely turn a blind eye to the situation!
~ Maggie J.