Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
Apr 7th 2015, 6:59 pm
#91
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
I remember back in the UK some beef would be labelled "matured for 21 days" - as if that was a good thing. Well I suppose it is better than a couple of weeks, but not a patch on South America where beef is hung for 6 weeks or more. I appreciate there may not be the room, thus cost would go up, if it were done that long in the UK/US.
Apr 7th 2015, 7:34 pm
#93
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
I was talking about hanging properly for extended times, not just hung in the back of the truck on the way to the store! I remember back in the UK some beef would be labelled "matured for 21 days" - as if that was a good thing. Well I suppose it is better than a couple of weeks, but not a patch on South America where beef is hung for 6 weeks or more. I appreciate there may not be the room, thus cost would go up, if it were done that long in the UK/US.
I remember back in the UK some beef would be labelled "matured for 21 days" - as if that was a good thing. Well I suppose it is better than a couple of weeks, but not a patch on South America where beef is hung for 6 weeks or more. I appreciate there may not be the room, thus cost would go up, if it were done that long in the UK/US.Since Mrs P discovered the wonders of dry aging it is not unusual to see a steak in our fridge balanced on its edge or attached bone for 7-10 days while it drys out a little.
Last edited by Pulaski; Apr 7th 2015 at 8:39 pm.
Apr 7th 2015, 8:23 pm
#94
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
And for that, I was referring to the beef served IN South America from South American farms! Having said that, a good restaurant in Manchester (UK) used to be Gaucho Grill. I can't find figures on how long they age their beef but I thought it was in the order of 6-8 weeks - and yes, quite probably hanging while on the boat.
Apr 7th 2015, 9:05 pm
#95
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
You don't know Sally very well do you? 
..... Yes, she is saying that the quality and selection in the UK is better, comparable to a farmers market in LA. I am inclined to agree with her, especially on the choice of apples, which are limited in choice, and none are as good as British eating apples - there is nothing like a Cox's orange pippin, nor for that matter like a Bramley cooking apple. 
..... Yes, she is saying that the quality and selection in the UK is better, comparable to a farmers market in LA. I am inclined to agree with her, especially on the choice of apples, which are limited in choice, and none are as good as British eating apples - there is nothing like a Cox's orange pippin, nor for that matter like a Bramley cooking apple. At the same time, some types of apples in North America won't produce well in the UK.
Apr 7th 2015, 9:06 pm
#97
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
I find milk to be expensive here, hadnt actually realised until i read this post and peoples comments! I live in Florida, so fish is pretty ok priced, but nothing compared to Paris, way cheaper there. I can't really comment on prices of food in the UK as I haven't lived there in many years, I lived in Vienna, Austria for a long time prior to moving to America. But on a European level, things here seem about the same in general. We also shop in Aldi, great products, great prices.
I find wine here fairly expensive, but not outrageously. Definitely cheaper than in Canada where i lived for a year, Quebec, crazy prices! But since i have lived most of my life in Vienna, and some of it in Paris, obviously its majorly cheaper there. But you CAN get good wines here for a reasonable price. Cheese seems to be fairly expensive, but not overly expensive. Meat is about the same as what i paid in Europe. I dont much like the look and colour of the chicken here, so i tend to buy organic, and its affordable if you shop around.
We go to our local market, a quaint place thats built in a barn, its really nice, and they have what they have, and its all priced very reasonably. I would say we pay typically about 25 dollars for a weeks supply of fresh veg etc, which isnt bad. I'm just glad we have that, and also can support the local farmers. They also have rolled salted butter, which is a god-send for me, being british and all that And full fat yoghurt, cant stand anything fat-free which is all they sell in the supermarkets here, but hopefully they will figure it out, that fat free is filled with sugar to make people think it tastes the same. Oooops sorry, got on a bit of a rant here with the fat-free stuff LOL
Still on the hunt for a proper pork roast with a thick layer of fat on it, not to be found as of now, but shall not give up!
I find wine here fairly expensive, but not outrageously. Definitely cheaper than in Canada where i lived for a year, Quebec, crazy prices! But since i have lived most of my life in Vienna, and some of it in Paris, obviously its majorly cheaper there. But you CAN get good wines here for a reasonable price. Cheese seems to be fairly expensive, but not overly expensive. Meat is about the same as what i paid in Europe. I dont much like the look and colour of the chicken here, so i tend to buy organic, and its affordable if you shop around.
We go to our local market, a quaint place thats built in a barn, its really nice, and they have what they have, and its all priced very reasonably. I would say we pay typically about 25 dollars for a weeks supply of fresh veg etc, which isnt bad. I'm just glad we have that, and also can support the local farmers. They also have rolled salted butter, which is a god-send for me, being british and all that
And full fat yoghurt, cant stand anything fat-free which is all they sell in the supermarkets here, but hopefully they will figure it out, that fat free is filled with sugar to make people think it tastes the same. Oooops sorry, got on a bit of a rant here with the fat-free stuff LOL Still on the hunt for a proper pork roast with a thick layer of fat on it, not to be found as of now, but shall not give up!
Price of Quebec vs Western Canada for some products can be 2-3 more out west, especially in BC.
Apr 7th 2015, 9:11 pm
#98
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
wow didnt know that Jsmth321. It was bad enough in Montreal after a looooong day at school, going to the SAQ, christ the wines were so expensive, I was used to a pretty decent wine in Vienna costing about 4 euros, not what we found in Montreal, 10 dollars minimum. Oh well, there are pro's and con's everywhere i guess.
Apr 7th 2015, 9:12 pm
#99
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
Whatever the discrepancy in food prices may currently be - given the 4 year extreme drought in California (with no end in sight), plus the fact that 50% of of the country's vegetables, fruits and nuts are grown there - it's hard to imagine that food prices in the US won't eventually be negatively impacted.
In an attempt to adjust to this calamitous situation, California farmers have been re-balancing their agricultural portfolios and increasing the fallowing of their land.
Those farmers are sometimes paying 10% more for water than before this drought. They are also drilling into and depleting the groundwater at an alarming rate.
None of this augers well.
In an attempt to adjust to this calamitous situation, California farmers have been re-balancing their agricultural portfolios and increasing the fallowing of their land.
Those farmers are sometimes paying 10% more for water than before this drought. They are also drilling into and depleting the groundwater at an alarming rate.
None of this augers well.
Prices have already gone up here, we got hit with a double whammy, stronger USD against the CAD and higher prices due to the water issue in California.
I potentially see future winters limited as to the types of fruit and veggies one can obtain, but maybe Canadians will need to revert back to a meat based diet in the future with vegetables and fruit being a summer thing....?
Apr 7th 2015, 9:14 pm
#100
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
wow didnt know that Jsmth321. It was bad enough in Montreal after a looooong day at school, going to the SAQ, christ the wines were so expensive, I was used to a pretty decent wine in Vienna costing about 4 euros, not what we found in Montreal, 10 dollars minimum. Oh well, there are pro's and con's everywhere i guess.
I know you can get wine in BC for 10-12 dollars but the quality could be questionable, the better stuff seems to run in the 20-30 range.
12 pack of Coors beer will run you 20-25 which is what most of the major big name beer brands run. (In BC)
Apr 7th 2015, 9:27 pm
#101
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
I forgot about sweets (ie candy). I like the Rowntree's Randoms and yes you can get them here but the US ones are all jellies, whereas the UK ones have other types of sweet in the bag. And, as my sister just brought over, I see there are different varieties of Randoms too - I have a bag of sweet and sour in front of me. Randoms aside there just seems to be more choice of sweets in the UK.
Oh and crisps. Salt and vinegar, salt and black pepper, cheese and onion, bacon, paprika (Pringles)... all hard to get in the US.
Oh and crisps. Salt and vinegar, salt and black pepper, cheese and onion, bacon, paprika (Pringles)... all hard to get in the US.
Apr 7th 2015, 9:44 pm
#103
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
They do an interesting Wasabi Ginger flavour at the moment, presumably temporary for the "do us a flavour" campaign. But I've only seen those once.
Bear in mind the majority of SoCal supermarkets are tiny compared to Tesco/Sainsbury etc so they can't carry so much variety. [Edit] Just measured on Google Earth our old Asda, just the food section, and it's 70m by 95m. Compare to our local Stater Bros which is average size for around here (and LA County) and that's 70m by 45m - ie about half the size. That includes warehousing. Random Publix supermarket in Orlando, FL: about the same as the Asda.
Last edited by GeoffM; Apr 7th 2015 at 9:56 pm.
Apr 7th 2015, 10:23 pm
#104
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
Booze in Canada is terribly priced overall, some provinces are better then others though, Quebec has typically the lowest booze prices as well.
I know you can get wine in BC for 10-12 dollars but the quality could be questionable, the better stuff seems to run in the 20-30 range.
12 pack of Coors beer will run you 20-25 which is what most of the major big name beer brands run. (In BC)
I know you can get wine in BC for 10-12 dollars but the quality could be questionable, the better stuff seems to run in the 20-30 range.
12 pack of Coors beer will run you 20-25 which is what most of the major big name beer brands run. (In BC)
Apr 7th 2015, 11:01 pm
#105
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Re: Are groceries more expensive in the US than the UK?
