Going food shopping is something that we do so often, we hardly ever question it. But, there are tons of “secrets” about grocery stores that are disgusting as hell. Don’t believe us? Recently, Reddit users who have worked at grocery shops shared some of the “dark secrets” they know about. Basically, grocery store managers and owners don’t really give a f**k if we’re eating rotten food or if they’re charging us more for less.
1.
I worked at a chain grocery store years ago. We had this awful smell down one particular isle. The manager never wanted to investigate and would just say something must have spilled. She even went as far to have us hang air fresheners on the shelves to mask the smell. Several years later the store underwent a remodel where isles were moved. They found a giant rats nest under the shelving unit of this particular isle. It was one of the most disgusting things ever. Once they cleaned it out the smell finally resolved.
2.
My buddy works at one and he says it’s crazy how often giant spiders come out of banana boxes
3.
The only thing that washes a shopping cart is rain. We do haul trash bags in them.
4.
Apples can be stored in proper conditions for close to a year and still be sold at the supermarket.
So that apple you’re buying in May is most likely from sometime the year prior.
5.
Stores often play nostalgic music in hopes it will make customers think of better times. Think about that next time you visit a store and leave buying more than you intended.
6.
There is a reason why things are in specific places in most stores. Like fresh produce right when you walk in, or dairy all the way in the back corner of the store. Ever wonder why sugary kids cereals are on the bottom shelves? Its so kids see them.
7.
Oftentimes, the various waste bins are all just mixed togetherbecause the janitor sure as hell isn’t digging out that bottle you threw in the compost. Everything just goes in the dumpster.
8.
The motorized carts get peed in a lot and they don’t get cleaned. We run a cloth over it, but not like deep-cleaned.
9.
Today’s skin-on chicken breasts are tomorrow’s skinless chicken breasts, because they start to turn green if not sold quickly.
10.
One thing that I always hated was stocking the milk. When the milk gets delivered, every gallon is covered in milk from other open gallons inthe stacks. The smell is terrible, and they’re never rinsed off.
11.
The ice cream and frozen food has probably completely melted or thawed multiple times from sitting on a dolly in the backroom.
12.
Be careful with grocery store delis. I had so many nasty coworkers who didn’t wash their hands or change gloves all day — if they wore gloves at all.
13.
Products often expire on the shelf and go unnoticed for a long time due to certain staff putting new product in front of old products, and this applies to all departments. Always check dates when buying something to avoid buying something that went bad months ago.
14.
Whenever a grocery store is collecting money for a charity, they’re never doing it out of the good of their heart. (I’m a part time cashier at my local grocery store) My manager routinely tells us to ask for donations and to make sure the customers are aware we’re collecting money for x foundation. A few months ago, I overheard her complaining that we weren’t hitting our monthly quota for donations. They are basically using customer donations as a tax write off.
15.
The stuff in the front of shelves and display cabinets are almost always the oldest stuff. The store wants to get rid of them by their sell by date.
16.
The belt near the cashier that you put your items on is so so so dirty.
I do not work at a grocery store but I witnessed a teenager wipe down the belt with a paper towel and it came up completely black. He showed it off to his co worker who then panicked because obviously the customers aren’t supposed to see that.
17.
The fresh food on sale? It’s old.
18.
If a customer asks me if I have an item in the back and it’s at the bottom of a pallet, I just say we don’t have it.
19.
My brother used to be work at a major supermarket retailer and he always said I should never buy those pre-cooked chickens. He said they were bacteria time bombs waiting to explode.
20.
So many snakes. Fruits and veggies come in with them all the time.
21.
Actually fresh cuts of meat are a darker reddish-purple color. Most of the “fresh” meat you see in the store has been gassed with carbon monoxide to “pink it up.” That’s the color the public has come to expect to see with meat, but it isn’t based at all on actual freshness.
22.
Everything “baked fresh” in the bakeries is shipped and defrosted on site. Real fresh, huh?
h/t: Reddit