Eating through the grocery store

The most I have ever done was open up a bottle of soda while IN THE CHECKOUT LINE to wet my throat or kill a cough. I always tell the cashier I am buying it and have them ring it up first to be safe. It strikes me as poor judgement as to what she did, but also that the store really did over react.

This was on yahoo news and the comments shocked me. So many people thought the store "Safeway" was wrong and should be sued, boycotted, etc..
I personally think that eating while grocery shopping is not only wrong, but a little gross. Touching all the products in the store, then your sandwich? Besides, how do two people eating sandwiches, both forget to pay for them at the checkout? It sounds like this was a common scam for them. No, it won't change the deficit, but the fact remains, they stole.
I really think that people today do not take responsibility or accountability for what they do.

I won't buy grapes without first tasting them...

The most I've done is have a bottled beverage while shopping, I always pay for it and never had a problem.

I always grab one or two of those little cheese squares and eat them on my way to the register. No I don't pay for them.

I have been known to sneak a few slices of deli meat or cheese from the bag that has already been priced up when I'm shopping on an empty stomach, which is usually the bigger mistake.

I read this article the other day before there were many comments on it, and I was curious if I would be in the minority.
I can not fault the store. If their policy is we prosecute all shoplifters, then you follow your own rules. There was nothing stopping those people from paying first.
However, I am surprised that when the police showed up they didn't talk to the store & the customers and try to resolve it, just because of the little girl being there.
It's a sad story, but no one to blame but the people who stole, whether is was intentional or not.

I think it's a fairly common form of theft. Once you start looking for the signs, you can find evidence. Boxes of fried chicken and chicken wings seem to be a frequent choice for store-eaters. They put it in the cart, then go into a tall aisle (like the cereal canyon) and eat a few off the top, then put the rest of the box on a shelf.

I'm with SensorG in that I won't buy grapes that I haven't tasted. I prefer being able to taste all fruits before I buy, as you can't really tell how they will taste just by looking at them. I love that The Andersons puts out lots of fruit samples, but I can hardly stand being in their produce section because of mold (The Andersons on Talmadge).

Beyond that, I can't imagine eating anything else that isn't specifically being offered as a bona fide sample.

Not sure why but I couldn't do it unless it was paid for. I think maybe once or twice, I went OK's route and had a drink but only while in line.

Agree with SenorG too, while I haven't done it I do wonder if stores have a modest policy about being ok with people sampling produce in prep for buying it. Makes logical sense, and seems common place whenever I would go to the Erie Street market on the weekends with their wonderful produce during the summer.

How, under any circumstances, unless offered as a free sample, does anyone feel it is their right to "sample" anything they haven't paid for. It is clearly theft to help yourself to anything you haven't paid for. If you are unhappy with anything you have purchased from any grocery sore, they will refund your money. Pay for your grapes, taste them, if unsatisfied, ask for a refund. Stores are not obligated, and it is not your right, to "sample" anything. Theft is theft, and I support prosecution of thieves, I don't wish to pay more for my groceries to make up for theft and your perceived right to "sample" before you buy. Helping yourself to deli meat, soda or anything, before you have paid for it is THEFT. I can't imagine why anyone feels that they are entitled to consume anything in a store that they haven't paid for. That any store is obligated to to offer you that privileged. No store does. Every business has a bottom line target/goal. Theft is a given factor,prices/markup are calculated with that in mind, meaning all of their customers share in the cost of that factor for every purchase. Those that control theft/shrink the best, can offer the lowest prices to all. If you want more free sampling, go where it is offered, you and the rest of their customers will bear the cost. Nothing is totally free, someone paid for it, and in a retail store, you the final consumer, pay for all expenses and provide the required profit margin. I support the prosecution of criminals. Theft is a crime. You might say that your sampling is victim-less. Really? Every customer of that establishment is your victim. They paid for your "free" sample.

I've never eaten anything in a grocery store without paying for it first. At least, not in my adult life. I've seen mothers feed their kids a banana or something along that line when the child suddenly discovers that their stomach is saying howdy to their backbone and it's three days until dinner time. I have no problem with feeding a hungry child, and I've never seen a store that does.

Adults can wait until they make to the good side of the cash register before they start chowing down, although I'd make an exception for water or pop.

I've always wondered what would happen if someone in a long line pulled a cold one off their six pack of Bud and started the weekend a little early. I wonder if it would start a trend... I'd be tempted, I know that.

INeedCoffee, I've asked at three stores over the years about tasting a grape prior to purchase, and all three times was told it was ok. For the record, they were the Foodtown in Lambertville, the Kroger in Sylvania and Schorling's on Bancroft. That being a non-issue appears to be the norm. At least in my experience.

Actually, until you attempt to pass all points of purchase without paying, you have have not stolen anything. At least, that is the standard that is employed by the courts in this area. So, in theory, you should be okay to munch if you are suddenly starving while shopping. Of course, that would not be the case where you eat something that must be weighed to properly calculate the price. Plus, just because the courts use a certain standard does not mean you won't be subject to arrest. You may eventually be off the hook, but that is cold comfort while you are stuck in the back of a police car.

The only time I ever ate anything in a store (at least that I can recall) was when my blood sugar got really low once (yes, I have glucose level issues; currently I am in the "borderline diabetic" range, but I am definitely on the Diabetes Express if I don't get this extra 20 pounds off and keep it off)). I was at a Rite Aid when the dizziness started, and I was pretty sure I was in the 50-60 mg/dL range where you are marching toward PassOutVille. I grabbed a couple of packs of Reses Peanut Butter Cups, walked to the register, and told the cashier that I needed to get some sugar in me, and that I would be paying for the candy I was stuffing in my mouth.

Beyond that, I am in the camp that questions the legal, sanitatary, and tackiness aspects of store-chowing. I have witnessed people pigging out in the store, and it kind of disgusts me. I have also seen empty packaging around the grocery store, and it reminds me of the detritus one sees with rodents: hastily-clawed through wrappers tossed aside after devouring some ill-gotten gains.

Anyway, Jane's Addiction also came to mind when I read through this thread:

I have never seen wrappers discarded or excessive eating at the stores where I shop. Chicken wing containers discarded in the aisles? Gross! Is this being seen at stores that border bad areas, or all across the area?

When my kids were toddlers and seemed to need a little something to prevent a meltdown before we were done, I may have pulled a slice of salami out of the deli bag a few times. (Already weighed & priced at the deli, so I was still paying the full amount at the register.) That was when the kids were really little. Now that they are school aged, I'd just tell them they'd have to wait until we left the store.

That is why you move to the berbs mom2 - ooops wrong thread.

http://www.kmov.com/news/off-beat/Man-charged-for-taking-drinking-beer-in-Walmart-125398763.html

I've opened packages at the store while shopping, knowing I was going to pay for it in the checkout line. Usually deli stuff (like mom2 says, already weighed and priced), or a package of crackers. But I always pay for them.

My mom will eat stuff sometimes in the store, she too is diabetic. I see nothing wrong with something like that for that reason as long as you pay for it. Eating a meal while shopping is a little much. Taste the grapes before you buy? No Thanks, I always at least rinse off the grapes before eating them, nasty.