"supermarket" news and stories

The New York Times seems to think so. Indeed, many grocery stores in urban areas are closing up shop, and all that's left is a big open lot and a smattering of mom and pop convenience stores left in their wake. But despite the name, convenience stores aren't always, well, that convenient, especially when you're in need of fresh fruit and veggies, low-fat snacks and fresh poultry or seafood.

A study by New York's Department of City Planning estimated that over 750,000 New Yorkers live five blocks or more from a supermarket. And when that's the case, most people opt to drive or cab it to the store, especially if they have lots of shopping to do or little ones in tow. And at the end of a long work day, many people just don't have the energy - or the time - to stroll down to the grocery. (The study also found that there is enough need for 100 additional supermarkets across the city).

So what's a hungry person to do? Most people simply go without fresh produce and other things that are carried by larger supermarkets. Others are currently shopping at a store, but worry about it closing, because the only other option is miles away.

What about you? Did you or someone you know ever have trouble getting to a decent grocery store, especially if you live in a populated urban area?

Awesome: the idea behind bulk food. Cheaper, more control over the quantity, easy.

Not-so-awesome: the collection and storing of bulk food. Most supermarkets provide plastic bags, which are not only bad for the environment, but are messy to store, can break or leak easily, and typically result in a pile of unusable crumbs.

But a friend of mine has come up with an easy solution that I'm jealous I didn't think of first: she bought a few of these Droppar storage jars (at left) from IKEA (although any small metal or glass jar with a lid would do), and brought them to her local Whole Foods store. The cashier first weighed the jar itself, which she wrote on a piece of tape and placed on the jar lid.

Each time my friend buys in bulk, she simply brings her jar with her, writes the checkout code on a sticker which she keeps on the jar, and brings it to the cashier, who subtracts the weight of the jar and charges her for just the food. Easy, environmentally-friendly, and easy to store when she gets home. (Another idea? Just wash out peanut butter or pasta sauce jars, place stickers on the sides, and reuse those).

Warning: this should work at Whole Foods and Wild Oats, or other similarly-minded food stores, but I don't know if other stores would agree - you'd have to call your local supermarket out find out.

OK, so it's December 24th, and you completely forgot to buy a gift for your Aunt Loretta or your girlfriend's sister, who you weren't really thinking of buying anything for but you just found out that she's buying something for you so now you feel like you have to get something for her but all of the stores are closing and the only thing open is the local supermarket. What can you do?

Luckily, even supermarkets can yield some Christmas gifts you wouldn't be ashamed of giving to someone. Here are a few suggestions.

Yikes.

Officials are investigating 51 cases of salmonella (in 17 different states) that have been reported from customers who have bought Veggie Booty snacks. The company has decided to recall all lots and sizes of the snack food. And yes that includes all codes and expiration dates. The company name is Robert's American Gourmet.

This is a pretty big recall, since this is something that is probably sold in the store where you shop. Customers are urged to throw away the food if you have it in your home and call the company to get your money back.

You ever get in one of the modes where you eat the same snack for days and days and weeks?

That is what's happening with me right now with Planters Chocolate-Covered Cashews. They come in cans now (the bags vanished several months ago). They're big cashews, and the chocolate is delicious too. I have no scientific proof to back this up, but it seems to me that when companies cover their nuts with chocolate, they seem to use bigger nuts. It's especially noticable with whole cashews. Maybe they just seem bigger because they are covered with chocolate, I'm not sure. I just know I'm going through whole cans in one sitting while watching television or reading.