Re: Groceries
 

Just never liked the texture or taste of them in any form. They were very common growing up, so it wasn't a lack of never trying them for me, avocado in some form is very common in So. California. I can tolerate them, just not a food I would say I enjoy.

Re: Groceries
 

My husband tries to buy me one every winter...but I’m not sure that I’d know what to do with it? Last winter, which left three weeks ago, I really didn’t want my pots of herbs to die, the Rosemary and Parsley made it all the way through to Spring, in bigs pots in the sitting room window. This year I have bought one of those ‘raised bed’ deep planters to try some vegetables - we have such a very short season though and it presently ‘feels’ like 38 and we have an extreme heat warning. It isn’t ideal going from frozen to oven conditions.

I love an avocado, I most often just halve it and stick a good oil and vinegar in the hole...yum...

Re: Groceries
 

Well that was a weird one today. MIL shopped Walmart via instacart today. Higher spend than usual mostly because it included a load of stuff for her cat
We don't usually get the store receipt - I imagine the shopper is discouraged from passing it on since the customer can then see how much less the item ws in store compared to what they paid to Instacart.

But today it was in one of the bags. The store receipt for all the items bought, including taxes, showed a cost of $153.92.
Our receipt, the amount MIL actually paid, minus the tip and service charge, was $145.91.

Even allowing the service charge going to instacart they are still short by around $5. I'm assuming the $153.92 is charged to Instacart, as opposed to the shopper paying it and then only getting $145 back plus the tip. Js?

Re: Groceries
 

They don't show the shopper doing the pick the total cost of the order, when they offer orders to pick and deliver the app shows the total payment including tip, the estimated distance and how many items and units the order contains. At check out its normal process, everything is scanned and bagged, and use the instacart credit card to pay.

The receipt isn't supposed to be included in the bag though.

Example based on a real order being offered at the moment.

Earnings Estimate:
$10.47 ($8.47 instacart payment + $2 tip)
3 items/42 units
3.5 km distance store to delivery.


It would be nice though is all banks in Canada participated in the instant cash out, our bank doesn't so we only get paid once a week. (CIBC, BMO, TD, Scotia & RBC are the only banks) every credit union and other bank in Canada including subsidiary banks of these can't participate in the instant cash out option which sucks.

Re: Groceries
 

So at least in this case the shopper doesn't lose out.
Thought not. :lol:

So all things being equal, if there was a a small order - half a dozen items - costing about $70 and a $10 tip and a bigger or fiddly order but only $5 tip you wouldn't necessarily know that one might be more advantageous to you than the other.

And you don't see who an order is for and instantly remember they are a good tipper?

Re: Groceries
 

Don't get to see who the order is for until you accept, and don't get the final address until done and swipe ready to deliver. At the offer screen they provide very basic info, total distance to drive, how many items/units, the store name and location, the map will show you a rough area of where the delivery is. Once you accept they give you the products to buy and name of the person, but before accepting you have very basic info once done shopping and paid for you get the delivery address and instructions.

We tend to take the orders that have the best guaranteed pay, the amount instacart pays, even if there is one with a bigger tip and at least in Vancouver are semi common for people to offer a big tip to get better speed, and then change it, so rather take the guaranteed pay and lower tip, but for the most part people tip very little, most orders are $0-$3 range which is probably why instacart has to offer relatively decent guarantees, often it averages to about $1 per item picked on bigger orders.

The stores are not currently restricting how many can go in at once like they were, but when they were Super Store would let Instacart shoppers skip the line, Wal-Mart does as well now but they changed that policy last week, but our local store has no line anymore.

Re: Groceries
 

Is Ocado coming to Canada ? https://ca.indeed.com/UK-jobs-in-Quebec-Province

Re: Groceries
 

Went to Wal-Mart today, they pulled out 6 cashier lanes and putting in more self check out's, and only had 1 actual lane open with a cashier, seems they are going fully self check out from the looks of it. Canadian Tire we go to already has a year or 2 back, everyone self check outs now.

I like self check out as its generally faster, but the loss of more low skill jobs is never good.

Re: Groceries
 

They came to my house last night (finally) and the guy didn't even wear a mask !

Re: Groceries
 

Yeah, they're all going to go aren't they. To be honest, I'm surprised the transition is taking this long. It must 20 years since self checkouts were first introduced.

UBI. Yang is spot on about that.

Re: Groceries
 

I was using self check out in 2000 at some grocery stores in the US, but then around 2003 they vanished, a few years later came back, some chains kept them and some again vanished, but this time around things seem permanent, but of course over 20 years the technology has changed a lot.

I do wish the self check outs here where like what Wal-Mart uses by moms house, with the conveyor belt and nice large area to stage and bag vs the little tiny ones here where its like enough to put 2 bags of stuff in the staging area, but at least Wal-Mart turned off the scale so its honor system really, and you can take the bag off and put in the cart to make room for next round without the machine yelling at you, please place items in the bagging area. Wal-Mart has made their machines sound like slot machines at my local store, guess its better then the annoying sounds other stores use.

I get self check out and automation creates higher skilled tech jobs, but we can't all be skilled tech workers, some of us simply do not have what it takes, and as lower skill jobs vanish and replaced by higher skilled jobs, its making some unemployable, so governments need to work something out, this whole everyone can just retrain into higher skilled jobs theory some push around isn't a viable options, not everyone has the abilities for these higher skill jobs.

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Did you let him in? :lol:

Re: Groceries
 

Wal-Mart finally had salt and pepper chicken wings in stock, they have been out every time I have gone looking for them for the past month, finally the freezer was full, seems maybe they are getting stock again more regularly or at least meeting demand now.

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This might be a record.

I was going to do an Instacart/Wholesale Club shop tomorrow but MIL discovered her coffee cream was about to run out so I brought it forward to today selecting the delivery within two hours option - no additional charge.

Online order completed 10.41, all items ordered were delivered (100% correct) to my door 11.17am. 36 minutes total. :thumbsup:

Re: Groceries
 

Same guy as last week and the receipt was in the bag again.

12 separate items. Most of them 50c to $1.50 cheaper on the receipt than the Instacart price. Coffee pods $3 more on Instacart but still an excellent price compared to Superstore for the same pack.

But there was one item that cost me $12.15 and is $20 on the receipt. Difference in the two totals is a mere 10c. :blink:

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Wow, your costs for delivery are really good. We pay Euro9.50 no matter how much we order. It used to be over 150 Euros free, recently changed to the higher price.

Re: Groceries
 

Its normal if we don't get at least 4 items that we ordered. Some of the fresh vegetables and fruit have been pretty badly selected. Yesterday they gave us a beautiful cabbage though. It makes a difference getting something good.
Our receipts are always put in the bag.

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My post wasn't about delivery prices here in Perth Western Australia, it was just some Canada info that JSmith was wondering about.

A 'normal' grocery delivery from the two major supermarkets here costs AUD$12, which is 7.3 euros on today's exchange rate. Grocery orders of over AUD$200 are delivered free. There's a new service funded by the Australian government that's free for older people, people with a disability, carers, and anyone who feels too anxious to do their shopping themselves. It's staffed by trained community support workers and trained volunteers, they do your shopping for you and will deliver it in the way you specify, eg leave at your door, bring inside, or even bring inside and put it all away if that's what you want. There's quite a bit on the website about the hygiene practices followed, they seem very thorough. It's very popular, with the added benefit that is provides jobs for people who have lost their jobs in the not for profit sector.

Re: Groceries
 

I discovered something about IC at least for here and the items I checked.

Wal-Mart the prices in IC are basically the same as in store, and even show the same sale prices.

Super Store the prices are inflated on many items, something that is 69 cents in store is listed as 1.15 on IC.

Seems best to order from IC using Wal-Mart at least for my 2 stores and comparison.


So 11 items on Wal-Mart before delivery fee and tip = $38.38

The same items at Super Store- $49.23 before tip and delivery fee.

So does seems the prices on IC for Super Store are higher vs Wal-Mart at least between the 2 stores I compared.

Re: Groceries
 

Yes, just lately instacart has had some of the same flyer prices for Walmart. But only some. It's still a fair bit more unless you restrict yourself to reductions.

Direct from IGA, though, 90% of flyer prices are the same on line. I can save with them even though the delivery charge is higher than Instacart.:thumbup:

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I didn't ! Normally they ask where shall I put them (groceries) but this was a drop at the doorway kind of deal. And there was a leaking bottle which created extra aggro and discussion.

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It doesn't create enough of them, especially in the long run. And as you say, there is an unskilled segment of the workforce. Perhaps something that will come out of this pandemic is a realisation that work needs to be re-designed.

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I hope your customers are generous tippers :)

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Today's Walmart flyer has Cherries on offer. So does Instacart for Walmart. But...

Walmart flyer - $2.46 lb. It says save 2.51 lb, so that should be $4.97 lb.
Instacart price for Walmart is $5.95, down from $14.44 lb. :eek:

Re: Groceries
 

This year, for the first time, we are attempting to raise our own chickens and lambs for food. In light of the increases in the cost of such items at grocery stores, it appears that it may actually be cost effective to do so.

However, after purchasing 4 lambs, my OH has decided that she now wishes to purchase a few more with the plan to keep a couple of them to breed next year. I believe that this may turn into another plan to keep animals that may not earn their keep. Time will tell.

Here's a piccie:
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/british...3596f32d79.jpg

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Keep your eye on the dark one :lol:

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Just don't let your OH name them. She will never, ever allow you to kill Baaa-abra Anne or Licorice.

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Have you named them 'chopsie' 'mintsos' 'legolam' and 'scragend stu' ?

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They are Whitney, Beyonce, Dolly and Madge.

The women in my household are not very imaginative!

We have goats arriving soon too. I don't believe they are to be eaten. "Weed control" is the reason given.

I believe it is so that more of this sort of thing can happen:

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/british...bed014a263.jpg

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Last week tips made up 12% of our earnings, the rest being paid by IC.

Compared to American's, Canadian's are less generous when it comes to tipping I find in general. In the US IC seems the majority of the payment is from tips, where in Canada its from IC,


Not sure how popular it will be in Kelowna, may not be as viable there, less people so likely less orders in general, its been hard this week even getting orders to shop, so few offered, and the few that are, well they are 30+ km away to the store which is too far away.

Its really feast or famine, one week can make $300 before expenses, and the next week barely make $50, but I am sure they have algorithms that decide all this, its certainly not random what shops your offered.



As for the sheep and goat pictures, I love goats. We had one when I was growing up as a pet, a pygmy goat so stayed smaller, best kept the grass nice and short, and trees and shrubs too, basically a 4 legged eating lawn mowing machine that also fertilizes...ha ha

We also had a goose and duck, who hung out with the goat, and I called them the 3 amigos.

The goose was mean, outlived them all.

The duck was supposed to be food as my aunt raised ducks to eat, but this one was all black with a white speck on its chest that looked like a heart, I managed to convince my parents to let me have it as a pet.

Our house was on a little over 1/2 acre, right next to my aunt whose house was on 1.5 acres so a fair amount of land.


Downside to urban living and apartment living is you become 100% reliant on grocery stores, which are lets say becoming fairly expense these days, if prices keep going up, well the prices of nutritional food, might get to a point where chips and candy and frozen TV dinners are the way to go, junky food never seems to increase much in price.

If you take $50 into Wal-Mart and stick with meat, vegetables and fruit you might get 2 or 3 days of meals, stick with chips, candy and frozen dinners and you will eat like a king.

Re: Groceries
 

IC has cherries at my Wal-Mart for $4.74 per pound, apparently a savings of $14.53 according to IC and regular price is listed as $19.27/lb

1.96/lb in the Wal-Mart flyer which says a savings of $2.01 per pound.

Have not seen any cherries in the store though, so don't seem available in all stores yet.

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Great photo ! That sheep looks quite heavy !

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If I deduct the delivery costs of my IGA order that arrived today, the price of everything was $69.31. My receipt shows the normal price of everything bought would be $137.45. A saving of $68.14.

I hadn't planned another order yet but having seen the flyer and what they were knocking off some of the prices this week I went for it.

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maybe people are eating up their pandemic stockpiles instead of shopping?

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You may well be right on that score. A good sound plan though. Here in NZ one can also buy into a 'cattle beast' or multiples thereof. One pays a % share for husbandry, feed etc and come the time one gets a % of the meat.

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People who sell meat may be gross!
But those who sell fruits and vegetables are grocer!

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https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/british...f97c3b8065.jpg

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for chicken learn to butcher a whole chicken into meat portions, way cheaper per lb to buy whole than chicken portions

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That depends whether you want all parts, particularly breast and wings.

Round these parts, the lowest priced whole chicken is $1.99 lb. Exceptionally $1.88. The leg/thigh portions are available for less more often.

I just got a pack of five out the freezer that I bought from IGA a couple of weeks ago for 99c lb. The pack cost $5.19 and weighs just over 5.2lbs

I buy frozen chicken breasts in a box from Wholesale Club (not a club :lol:)

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I don't like drumsticks or thigh meat, never have, the color puts me off...I like the chicken breast, same with turkey only like the light colored meat without bone.

Here its almost always slightly cheaper to buy a cooked chicken, the kind you buy hot from the deli section, would think it would cost more since its cooked, and packaged, but nope a raw whole chicken does.

The frozen chicken not sold by the pound here, its just something like 2kg bag for X price, the unfrozen is sold by pound, although some stores like Wal-Mart seem to be going to a flat price, $12 for 4 chicken breasts for example.