Also check to see if they have shrunk? No more pound of coffee, some can veggies etc have 8 oz etc. If you are following a receipe, you have to open 2 cans to get the right amount.
Peanut butter, check ounces also. Paper goods the same way.

I'm shopping less and less at Walmart. I don't like the switch to all store brand products. I hope if this is the end result, they'll get the message.

I guess we shop different stores. I still see name brands in all of these stores when I've been there. Store brands are of course becoming more and more popular and stores will stock what sells. Generics are coming back into fashion and with the economic situation we've had for nearly a decade, it's only common sense that people start being a little less brand loyal. This also means more advertising, including print and electronic media commercials toward the big brands.

Keep in mind the stores haven't had the opportunity to get store brands in their name quite so easily since there's a volume requirement to fill the order, stock the order, ship it and they of course are then liable for spoilage, returns and the like. They don't have the guaranteed sales by the name brands. It takes quite a commitment to private label your own brand and in order to hope for success you have to push it hard.

People read articles and unfortunately, all too often read too much into them. Often the authors of these articles don't know many facts of which they speak and try to make a speculation without foundation. So be careful of believing everything you read and keep the salt shaker handy. Of course some will be true but just use common sense.

I love most of the store brands at the Target grocery store.

I think WM is cutting off its nose to spite its face. They've redesigned the floor plans in so many stores now with a lot of confusion. socks with underwear and a few aisles over in dresses more underwear (for example) I'v noticed at the 4 nearby stores more and more GV brands names on the shelves. I finally found some Canada Dry GingerAle at one store today the others are just not carrying it anymore.

I was in a WM market today and couldn't find the usual selection of frozen fruit. I don't mind generics, but they just didn't have a variety in any brand. The prices really aren't any cheaper than what I'm finding at the local grocery store. In fact, I've found several things cheaper at the local grocery store.

Our evening news just said tht WM just announced it will be lowering grocery prices over the next six weeks. I was just telling DH that they raised their price on Tropicana OJ from 2.66 to 2.98.

Here's a link to an article about WM lowering prices.

Here is a link that might be useful: Wal-Mart to slash grocery prices

Our WalMarts here are no bargain at all for groceries. There specials are okay but often just competitive with other stores. They also run out of the item quickly. I don't shop there for groceries.

I had 3 brands of canned tomatoes in my cupboard and compared the sodium levels. Great Value (Walmart) had the highest sodium.

WalMart is dropping their prices in Western Canada because Loblaws (a huge Cdn company) is going in there, I heard.
But they're not lowering their prices in the rest of Canada, even though Loblaws is here.

Anymore since Walmart does not have a nice fabric department I seldom go in to shop for groceries. I do just about all of my shopping at Meijer. I think they have a nicer selection of fresh produce and the prices seem close to Walmart's. They are across the highway from each other where I shop.

Sue

About 20 years ago we used to go to Port Huron in Detroit for little weekend holidays. That was our first experience at the large superstore type shopping.

They had a huge Meijer there, where we were just amazed that a store would sell groceries and clothing together. Now it's commonplace. That was before WalMart, Best Buy and Costco came here to Canada. (It was Pace, then in Port Huron).

We liked Target for pricing, and that hasn't come here yet. It was rumoured that it was buying out Zellers a couple years ago, but it hasn't happened.

I wish we had a WM super store - I have tried their brands and have not found anything to complain about, Their Broccoli cheese rice is to die for! Their sliced cheese is wonderful and their frozen pizza allows me to serve it instead of ordering pizza - the kids like it!!! I always try store brands everywhere - I don't liked it all, but I try them all at least once - sure helps with the ever shrinking budget. Yep, I wish we had a WM super store.

I'm always willing to give store brands a try. After all most are made by the same companies that manufacture the name brands. I just don't like it when I find a store brand I like and they switch vendors.

My Walmart and Targets have a lot of their own products just like some grocery chains do but there are still name brand products on the shelves. In fact I sometimes find really good products I can't get elsewhere.

What I would like is to se less redundancy in products. I don't need four different formulas of Campbell's Chicken Rice Soup (regular,low-fat,;low-sodium,natural. I don't need 6 different formulas of Sara Lee white bread. It makes for less variety. I can't find a loaf of good rye bread because the shelves are packed with fake whole grain and wood pulp bread products.

I never shop Walmart, just don't like the way they treat employees. I shop my local stores, watch specials like a hawk. Buy generics of non-food items, but I'm pretty brand-loyal when it comes to food. My store has a row of bulk items. I'll buy three packs of kleenex, large packages of laundry detergent,etc.

When I read that WalMart is lowering its prices in April, my first thought was 'Hmmm, wonder if that's why mine has been raising so many prices in the last few months'? Raise the prices, then advertise a big price reduction??

Shirley

Superstores go way back. California's first was Gemco which I think started in 1959. It was owned by Lucky Stores and it was really one stop shopping. They had a gas station,a jewelry departments,a drugstore,clothing,home and garden and groceries. You could shop for your groceries and they would hold them for you in the cold room until you were done with your other shopping. They liquidated in 1986 and Target took over most of their buildings.

Wildchild, I had forgotten about Gemco and didn't know it was owned by Lucky.

I was just told, by someone in the business, that the Albertson's grocery stores will eventually be called Lucky Stores again.

I have been buying the Sav-On Equaline brand of acetaminophen which is the same formula but much cheaper than the Tylenol I used to get.

They took out our Albertson's and replace it with a Western Family store. Now we have 2 WF stores, a Wally World, and a Smith's. I mutter under my breath every time I have to go into WM, I'm not keen on Smith's, it's way too crowded, and the only reason I still go to the old Albertson's, now WF, is for the employees I've gotten to know and who know me by name. If I had my druthers, I'd drive a "fur piece" and do my shopping at the only Albertson's available in my area, but 2 hours is a loooong drive for groceries. The only reason I set foot in WM is dog food, it is cheaper by far than all of the other stores. If I find it on sale somewhere else, I stock up so I don't have to go to WM!! Our local WM has finally taken out all those center aisle kiosks that bottlenecked traffic. They were such a pain. It got to the point I would park my buggy, walk to where I needed to go and pick up product and walk back to my buggy and then check out. I swear they rearrange the store at night and move the shelves closer together so you can't pass 2 shopping carts side by side. And don't even get me started on the shoppers who leave their buggies in the MIDDLE of the aisle and disappear, or block the entire aisle while they talk to someone they just saw. Sorry, ranting got out of hand, what was the question again?

LOL@ Pawsitive's last line.

Paw, my DH lived in NC and Texas for a number of years, and he really liked Albertson's. Do you live in TX?

jasdip-
Not now, I grew up in Houston and they did have Albertson's there for a while, but closed them all down. I live in the desert southwest now. I'm still a Texan tho, just can't take the Texas outta the gal!