# Name Brands vs. Store Brands



## FraidKnot (Nov 18, 2006)

I know some people who would never stoop to buying a store brand over a name brand, regardless of their financial situation and the price.  I find this rather funny.

For example, if you're buying canned beans, does it really make any difference if they are Bush's Best or the store brand?  Chances are, they came from the same place.  If I'm buying canned tomato sauce because good fresh tomatoes aren't available I've found no difference between the store brand and the name brand.  Same thing with dried pasta.  Same thing with frozen vegetables.  The only difference I've ever found is name brands have a nationally (in the U.S., at least) advertised name on them.  They generally cost more unless they are on sale and you have a double-coupon.  

Things like toilet paper and paper towels aren't food-related so I'm not talking about those items.

How say you?  Are you a name brand only shopper or do you buy store brands?

Fraidy


----------



## htc (Nov 18, 2006)

For the most part, I don't care. But, I have found occassions where I may not like a particular generic brand as much as I do a big brand name or another generic brand. For me, I'll try it, but if I don't like it I won't buy it again. For example, ketchup. I find that I don't like the Del Monte brand. But some store brands are ok. For my Asian sauces and canned foods, I'm very picky.  I buy the brands I like over and over. Not often do I try a new brand.

Oh, I saw a show America's Test Kitchen, they did a taste test on tomato sauce and to some, I guess they can tell the difference. It was a blind test.


----------



## FraidKnot (Nov 18, 2006)

Well of course if you tried it and don't care for it, don't buy it again.  But do you know anyone who won't even try?  I do.


----------



## Barb L. (Nov 18, 2006)

I usually buy store brand vegetables, except for a few, like frozen corn.  Some are better than others.  I season them up anyway - butter s/p !


----------



## boufa06 (Nov 18, 2006)

Personally, I prefer the store brands.  Where I live, they are of very good quality and significantly cheaper (often as much as 50%) than name brands.  My only exception is tomato paste for which I prefer a name brand because it is less sour than the rest.  I am often amazed that people go for name brands at ridiculous prices.  I know that this is purely because of the "stooping down" effect that has epidemic proportions here.

As an indication of anti-stooping down mentality, consider the following:

A few years back, a new (but well-established in Germany as well as other EU countries) supermarket chain opened in this country.  Their products are excellent, most of them coming from Germany, and their prices unbeatable most likely due to the large volume deals they are able to secure.  After suffering from very little acceptance locally, they found the ultimate solution to reach respectability, ie. raise their prices by 30%.  This finally put them firmly into the local map!!!


----------



## Gretchen (Nov 18, 2006)

The chances are good that the store brand is canned by the "big" brand anyway. I buy what is on sale for what I need.  
I love to find things like Muir Glen tomatoes on sale, but will rarely buy them full price.
Store brand tuna may not be as good.


----------



## FraidKnot (Nov 18, 2006)

It's funny, isn't it, how many people view buying a less expensive brand of something means they are "stooping down" (that's what I call it, anyway). Like one is lowering oneself by saving some money. I don't understand it.

Example here: John and I were working at the Stone Arch art show about - gosh, has it been almost 4 years ago? We got done setting up for the show and went to a restaurant across the street from the park to have something to eat. We ordered the mushroom-swiss burger (delicious, I might add!). It was a $15 hamburger with fries. I happened to comment on my way out that it was tasty but was a really expensive burger. A woman (dressed to the nines) overheard me and said something snide, like "Well of course, you get what you pay for." Heh, it was a burger and fries. Not McD's but nothing spectacular.

So okay, I'm a smart-a** I'm pretty darned sure she wasn't going to walk across the street and spend $10,000 on one of John's paintings. So I said over my shoulder, "Yeah, and if you're an idiot you get overcharged every time."  

That same show, the next day, we were invited by one of his repeat patrons for dinner. She has several of his works hanging in her condo and we were invited to have drinks after the show. We had cheese and crackers and sliced baguette on her gated 2nd floor terrace entrance which overlooks the Mississippi River. She then suddenly wheeled a grill out of nowhere and asked "Who wants cheese on their burgers?" Then she promptly announced one of her guests was the grill master and had him grill hamburger! So we had cheeseburgers , cooked to order, some sort of potato dish prepared by one of her guests (not fries!) more wine and lots of laughter. We talked about her Disney print of Mickey; apparently her ex's father did it. Cool!  She had Mickey and Minnie Mouse salt & pepper shakers on her dining room table.  

But so much for snobbery. The rich eat cheeseburgers, too.  And appreciate Disney characters.

Fraidy


----------



## thumpershere2 (Nov 18, 2006)

Whats ever on sale. Or the cheaper brand unless I know that that brand isn't very good.


----------



## Katie H (Nov 18, 2006)

I usually buy whatever is least expensive.  I'm a bargain shopper and use coupons whenever I can, so I can frequently get very good deals.  Since all companies have to follow at least the minimum FDA requirements, I have no problem with store brands.

One difference between name brands and store brands is, obviously, cost in advertising.  Print and TV ads don't come cheap.  Quality is another issue.  Canned green beans, for example, will be more uniform in size in a name brand.  In off/store brands, the cans might contain beans of many sizes and cuts.  Doesn't bother me.

Since I'm rarely influenced by advertising, I see no need to pay for it.  I'd rather have two cans of what I view as a quite acceptable product than one that has a "name."


----------



## Michael in FtW (Nov 18, 2006)

I don't care what brand something is if it is good quality! A name brand doesn't mean something is better than some off-brand ... it just means it's usually going to cost more because of their advertising costs. I generally find less expensive brands are just as good as more expensive "name" brands.

And, as has been noted - sometimes a dozen different brands come out of the same processing plant with a dozen or more different labels. Remember the recent e-coli spinach scare? And, there was something on TV a few weeks ago one of the Discovery channels I think, on "How It's Made" or some other not FoodNetwork show, that showed a plant that processed canned vegetables and put them into the warehouse until they got an order ... and then they ran them through the labeling process for the brand to fit the order.

I have never noticed any real difference in frozen vegetables. 

I do notice a bigger difference in canned tomatoes and tomato sauces, but not so much between US brands. Depending on what I am making (Italian sauces mainly) I will splurge and make the extra trip to a store that carries Muir Glen or San Marsano brands - but I did find an odd brand of San Marsano tomatoes, don't remember the name but I remember what the can looked like, that was 1/2 the price and I thought a little sweeter (less acidic). But a lot of the differences in tomatoes comes not from processing as much as from the type of tomato, soil conditions, climate, and growing season. Kind of like grapes for wine and olives for oil.


----------



## Robo410 (Nov 18, 2006)

generally speaking, name brands are grade A produce, and store brands are grade B ...smaller, perhaps more broken whatever... sometimes this makes a difference in what I'm cooking, often it doesn't.  

Other times the differnece is in the packing juices...I want tomatoes canned with basil not sugar for most recipes I'm making so I have to read the ingredients.


----------



## JoAnn L. (Nov 18, 2006)

The only brand name we absolutely have to buy is "Heinz" catsup. This family will not use anything else. Once they gave my brother-in-law a whole case for Christmas as a joke. He said that it was the best gift he ever had.


----------



## sparrowgrass (Nov 18, 2006)

I don't buy store brand pasta/noodles--I have never found any that didn't cook up gummy.

I don't buy any canned veggies, so can't comment on those, but I do buy store brand flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, powdered and canned milk, and can't tell any difference from name brands.


----------



## Claire (Nov 19, 2006)

I have moved around a lot, and I tend to buy the generic store brand once.  If it is great (Publix whole green beans are great, we've been known to buy a case of them and bring them back when we visit the south), great.  If it is bad (for example, green beans that are stringy or have too much of the vine left on them, other beans that are mushy, stuff that is to salty), then I just don't buy them again.  But I'm a child of my parents:  I try the cheapest option first.  When it doesn't work, I just don't do it again.  We aren't buying diamonds here.  When I was a kid in the military, we used to have what we called "GI Brand" food.  It was cans that the label had been torn off and sold to the commissary at cut-rate prices.  Sometimes it was a winner (the time Mom got tiny, then expensive, LaSoeur peas for next to nothing), and sometimes a loser (the time she picked up a case of frozen fried chicken cutlets that tasted so bad ... we still ate them.  Mom finally hit on grinding them through a meat grinder, adding miracle whip, pickles, and onions and making chicken salad sandwiches.  Nothing went to waste in those days.


----------



## Claire (Nov 19, 2006)

I, too, am an advocate of name brand pasta.  When you live in the south, Creamettes seem to hold up best.  Otherwise I like Barilla.  To be honest with you, there isn't that much difference between brands when cooking them up the first time.  But with it just being the two of us, I tend to make a ton of pasta then eat it leftover a lot.  Barilla seems to hold up best to reheating.  I haven't had luck with store brands of pasta.  But Mom just sent Hubby a new pasta machine, so there is more home-made in my future!  Once upon a time we never bought store brand, but our pasta machines either died or were failures in recent years.  I'm happy we're back on the home-made track!


----------



## Gretchen (Nov 19, 2006)

When talking pasta as Claire is, I DO buy deCecco lasagna noodles--nice and thin. BUT when we were lucky enough to have a Hannaford's for a short time, their store brand lasagna was as good or better!!  Just a word for you New Englanders!!


----------



## Constance (Nov 19, 2006)

It depends on what I'm buying, and whether it's a store brand or some generic off brand. Someone mentioned spaghetti sauce...I tried an inexpensive generic brand (Three Sisters) just once, and it was terrible. I've bought generic green beans that had stems and pieces with bug bites on them...definately the scraps swept up off the floor.
On the other hand, some of the store brands and lesser known brands are just as good as the famous ones. You just have to experiment and find the ones you like. Allen's and Libby vegetables are quite good. Best Choice and Kroger brands are right up there with the best. 
But Bush's really does have the best Chili Beans and baked beans. I always buy Brook's catsup for the table, while the store brand is fine for making BBQ sauce. Generic pasta is fine for slumgullion, but I use Barilla for pasta that is lightly dressed. 
Flour is flour, and sugar is sugar...so I buy the cheap brands. 
Packaged lunchmeats and sausages are one place I don't experiment much. On the other hand, a Hyde Park turkey is just as good as a Butterball, IMO. 

What it comes down to, is that I save where I can without sacrificing flavor and nutrition.


----------



## Shunka (Nov 19, 2006)

Like everyone else on here; I will buy the store brand unless I have tried it before and found it too lacking. There are a few things (mayo is one) that I only buy brand-name as the others just weren't anywhere near as good.


----------



## sattie (Nov 19, 2006)

Well... I must be a bottom dweller!!!    I will buy off brands as opposed to name brands.  Heck, try it, if you don't like it, then never buy it again.  I tried a store brand of garlic toast... boy that was nasty!!!!  

I don't mind stooping to save a dollar.


----------



## college_cook (Nov 19, 2006)

It depends on what I'm buying.  For 95% of things, I'll get the store brand not only is it cheaper, but I still have my employee discount card from when I worked at Marsh and get an additional 10% off on Marsh brand items.

There are things that I, and I hink most people would be particular about.  Olive oil, for example.  I don't buy Marsh brand Olive oil.  The cheapest Olive oil I usuakly get is Bertolli or another name brand I currently can't remember the name of.  But for things like flour, sugar, canned items, it is as someone mentioned- the supermarket brands are produced, canned, and labeled in the same factories as the name brand product, generally speaking.


----------



## Uncle Bob (Nov 24, 2006)

Having worked for 30 plus years in the retail food business...I say it all depends on the store you are in...some store brands are excellent...some are garbage...some store brand items may be good while a different item in the same store is junk. I did not work for the Kroger Company but have found their Kroger brand items to be very good quality....at times better than national brands and obviously less expensive.


----------



## skilletlicker (Nov 24, 2006)

This is an entertaining thread.  I'm not against store brands but certain items seem to vary greatly brand to brand.  
*Extra virgin olive oil* - The variation in taste among brands is as wide as among beers.
*Beer* - See above.
*Canned tomatoes* - I only buy whole canned tomatoes and some brands like Red Gold are much firmer so work better for me when I want to retain the texture of the fruit, like a fresh salsa or a quick saute, for instance.
*Flour* - As a thickener it doesn't matter but for bread I want King Arthur and for biscuits, White Lily.  I am more confident in the type of wheat the flour is milled from, the protein percentage and the consistancy of results.

On the other hand some items seem like commodities and brand is irrelevant.

*Soybean or corn oil* - As far as I can tell, there is no difference between the cheapest generic and the most widely advertised and recognized brands.  If I'm wrong, please explain.
*Table Sugar* - Bakers sugar and confectioners are different but I couldn't tell the difference between brands of regular sugar.
*Peanut butter *- Can't distinguish store brand from regular Jiff or Skippy.

The more I learn about cooking the more I'm aware of differences between various brands and the differences become more important.  Also I buy fewer and fewer branded items as more and more is made from "scratch."


----------



## Corinne (Nov 24, 2006)

skilletlicker said:
			
		

> This is an entertaining thread.  I'm not against store brands but certain items seem to vary greatly brand to brand.
> *Beer* - See above.



Speaking of beer - I heard from someone who visited the Coors Brewery that Coors Light is the same as Keystone Light - just different cans. That's the only kind of beer I drink & I can't tell them apart. The difference in price between the 2 for a 30-pack? Around $7 or $8.


----------



## FraidKnot (Nov 24, 2006)

Corinne said:
			
		

> Speaking of beer - I heard from someone who visited the Coors Brewery that Coors Light is the same as Keystone Light - just different cans. That's the only kind of beer I drink & I can't tell them apart. The difference in price between the 2 for a 30-pack? Around $7 or $8.


 
You're exactly right.  Keystone Light is produced at the same brewery and is their less expensive version of the same product 

Back around 1989 or 1990 Coors, which was previously only brewed beer in Colorado using "spring water", gave the approval to use Memphis artesian well water and assumed ownership of a defunct brewery.  At one time the brewery brewed Schlitz and then Stroh's before falling into Coors' hands.  It's still going strong.

I have several friends who work at the Memphis brewery so I know about it from the inside   One good friend, who has since sadly passed away, didn't drink beer so he'd give me his free case.  Good man, that guy!    I'd sip beer while he sipped whiskey.

Fraidy <--raising a glass to Ralph


----------



## AllenOK (Nov 25, 2006)

With five kids, we have to live on a budget.  We usually buy store brands on pasta, canned/frozen veggies, canned beans, butter, etc.  I will buy name-brand on a couple things, mainly, cream of mushroom soup (Campbell's), and Spaghetti Sauce (Ragu Garden-Style Super Chunky Mushroom).  I just do not like the taste of any other brand/style of spaghetti sauce, and the consistency of store-brand cream of mushroom just doesn't do it for me.

I've also noticed a marked difference in taste between name-brand and store-brand soda, with the exception of orange-flavored soda.  Wal-Mart "Orangette" soda tastes just like any other orange-flavored soda, and only costs about fifty cents a 2-Liter.


----------



## jabbur (Nov 25, 2006)

I refuse to buy FoodLion brand cheeses. They never seem to really melt and their cream cheese is lumpy even after running it through a food processor for cheesecake.  I stick to Velveeta for mac and cheese.  Kroger brand stuff is good.  I will go for store brand if it is something I'm going to be using in a recipe but if it's something to stand alone (spagehtti sauce, tomato soup) I'll go with name brand.


----------



## kleenex (Nov 25, 2006)

I do not buy a lot of store brand food items.  The snack food items I have had so far fail to live up to quality of brand names.

Do buy store brand frozen vegtables and they are good.

Store brand pasta for me is that bad imo.


----------



## bandonjan (Dec 24, 2006)

I will buy the store brand for some things, its as everyone
says, taste it, you don't like it move on. Some store
brand items I like the flavor of over the name brand. 
Some pickles, and a generic "red sauce" for 89 cents
that tastes better than a name brand for $1.79. Sweetened
condensed milk for 97 cents as opposed to $2.29 or more
for the well known brand.  Cream cheese can be slightly
gummier in a store brand, but works for most things quite
well.  As for the mayo...... well it does have to be the name
brand.


----------



## StirBlue (Dec 24, 2006)

If it's moving (selling) it's fresh and people like it so buy it.  If it looks crummy in the package (like some store brand chips) it will taste crummy on your plate.  Some store brand veggies and tuna are at least 1/4 can of brine.  Some store brand sour cream taste like blender cottage cheese.  Store brand precooked bacon is a rip-off.  Gotta love store brand orange juice.


----------



## Half Baked (Dec 24, 2006)

FraidKnot said:
			
		

> Well of course if you tried it and don't care for it, don't buy it again. But do you know anyone who won't even try? I do.


 
I know people who won't try it.    Frozen veggies are the same to me.  I don't care for canned veggies at all, no matter what brand.

Heck, I'll try anything once to try to save a $ but won't go back it it doesn't meet my expectations.


----------



## LoveCookin (Dec 25, 2006)

I have seen many variations of store brands being worse and occasionally better. I remember hearing, in Home Ec. (many moons ago) that the big chain stores got their goods from the same place. There sure is a discernible difference at times.


----------



## Andy M. (Dec 25, 2006)

Brand name companies may do the canning or freezing for store brands but there is no reason to believe they use the same quality of produce in doing so.


----------



## StirBlue (Dec 26, 2006)

Raisin Bran Flakes is a good example of brand name quality and store brand volume.


----------



## LoveCookin (Dec 26, 2006)

Yeah, there is the occasional store brand that is quite good on a regular basis.

I try to check with friends if I want to try a particular store brand. Sam's Club brand items (applesauce, raisin cereal) is better, IMHO.


----------



## Quadlex (Feb 19, 2007)

Over here in Australia, the big supermarkets are just starting to ramp up their "Own Brand" strategy to include everything.  They used to have cheap, generic products, and are now branding everything with either "Woolworths Selects" or "You'll Love Coles".

I shop at Coles because I used to work there, and the "You'll Love Coles" are at times better then store brand, and certainly when you look at price.

I buy Barilla pasta because my boyfriend prefers it (And I've noticed that when it's Al Dente, it actually feels Al Dente... It's still strong, whereas some of the others are coming apart or are too tough still), but it's the same price as most of the others.  Imported Italian canned tomatoes are also almost as cheap as home brand, and have less bitterness... I suspect the seeds are removed before crushing with the La Gina tomatoes.

I also splash out for Olive Oil (I like something with a fragrance and flavour), Soy Sauce (the cheaper varieties are too high on salty and low on flavour) and Balsamic Vinegar, but everything else I'll take as cheap as I can... Being a student hurts the pocketbook, but I'm trying to keep it from hurting the palate.


----------



## Half Baked (Feb 19, 2007)

Well, I think it's safe to assume that Peter Pan makes Great Value peanut butter.

Wonder what else ConAgra made in that facility?


----------



## Poutine (Feb 19, 2007)

Some things I actually prefer the store brand  and some items i prefer the  "name" brand (i.e. Heinz ketchup).
I think that people are misguided if they think money always buys quality - sometimes it just buys more advertising.


----------



## Mel! (Feb 20, 2007)

Hello Fraidknot

I always buy store brands. 
I think how well they taste, depends on my cooking, rather than the brand name, of the ingredients.

Mel


----------



## BrazenAmateur (Feb 23, 2007)

I go almost exclusively to one supermarket (Giant Food), and I have found the majority of their store brand items to be very good indeed.

In many cases, they're the best option for that particular item.  

Regardless, I like to try everything.  When I see a new brand (including store brands) that I haven't tried, I try it.  Sometimes it's better and sometimes it's worse, but nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Giant seems somewhat unique in that they put a *lot* of effort into the packaging and advertising of their own store brands, and they generally have the quality to back it up.


Another store brand that has *never* failed to impress me is Whole Foods' "365" line of products.  Everything from the chocolate soy milk to the Goat Cheese Pizza to the sliced almonds is fantastic, usually better than most of the other brands they sell (except the real knockouts, like "Amy's")


----------



## Vegas Girl (Mar 2, 2007)

Pasta:  Barilla preferred, but off brands are OK if it's a great sale.

Ketchup:  Must be Heinz or Hunts.

Peanut Butter:  Jif preferred, Peter Pan OK, off brands absolutely NOT.

I prefer name brands of snacks, i.e. potato chips, corn chips.  The store brands seem too salty.  Prefer Helluva Good dips to store brands.

Ice cream:  Pierre's, Friendly's, certain flavors of Breyers.  Tried Turkey Hill a couple times.  It was delicious!  I would never buy generic or the chain's lowest budget brand.  I can't stand cheap flavorless ice cream.

Boxed macaroni & cheese:  Must be Kraft.  The others have no flavor.

Orange Juice:  Florida's Natural or Tropicana preferred.


----------



## jpmcgrew (Mar 2, 2007)

I guess you just hafto try out the different brands to see what works.I found out in Texas when I was buying canned black beans it seemed to me the the Bush brand had alot less beans than the Goya brand.


----------



## bushy (Mar 6, 2007)

My experience (hey, _somebody's_ got to evaluate the if-it-takes-more-than-2-minutes-to-prepare-forget-it) products: 

Products involving fats (any kind) or sweeteners (almost any kinds) are where the brand-v-generic comes home to roost.

Examples:
Canned nuts - Planter's are the only ones I'll buy. The house brands are too dry - and the Walgreen's brand should not be mentioned in polite society.

Ice Cream - I don't need the "super-premium" ones, but one (either Albertson's or Safeway, don't remember) has a super-economy product that tasted as if it had more artificial emulsifiers than butterfat - the first time I ever threw out ice cream.

I once decided that the outrageous price of Smucker's ice cream toppings  could not possibly be justified, so I tried Smart and Final's pineapple topping. That was a mistake I'll make exactly once, but I still suspect the Smucker's price is outrageous.

Interestingly (or not), the  triviality of stick pretzels is another  - being from the midwest, I used Nabisco, which are rare  in SF - even the SF natives asked where I got them - they are/were that much better.

And the less said about "Farmer John" breakfast meats, the better.

Booze is another - rotgut is fine for mixed drinks, but, if I'm drinking it neat (straight), I'm going to go for the high-priced spread.

Since american beers are generally dreadful, splitting hairs seems futile 

And one I would have preferred to not have had the opportunity to learn:
My car was stolen and recovered. The thief had actually gotten fairly well moved in - clothes, groceries, such stuff. Among the groceries I got out of the deal were 2 cans of orange juice and a few cans of beans in tomato sauce. These are marked "not for sale - for use by community or tribal food assistance programs". I haven't tried the beans, but the OJ is about as bad as I can imagine it could be and still be approved for human consumption - even the cheapest fresh oranges are sweeter than this stuff.

Do we need to mention Banquet brand frozen dinners?

so yes, go for the cheapest stuff that works, but pay attention when it comes to items using expensive additives  -  sweeteners, oils, booze.


----------



## Vegas Girl (Mar 6, 2007)

I haven't tried anything from Banquet that I liked.


----------



## LadyCook61 (Feb 4, 2008)

I buy store brands for  certain items and also if it is cheaper than the name brand.  Some foods I would not buy store brand , I can't remember what they were  but it was awful tasting.


----------



## LadyCook61 (Feb 4, 2008)

jpmcgrew said:


> I guess you just hafto try out the different brands to see what works.I found out in Texas when I was buying canned black beans it seemed to me the the Bush brand had alot less beans than the Goya brand.


 
I buy the ShopRite brand when on sale , all kinds of beans, black bean, kidney, cannelli, pinto etc.


----------



## babetoo (Feb 23, 2008)

*good, bad and indifferent lol*

i try a house brand and it must measure up. if a brand name is on sale and so cheaper, i will buy that. 

peanut butter is jif, syrup is log cabin. 

i never buy store ice cream . ben and jerry or hagadaus. i am worth it.

store , sugar , flour etc. is just fine.

mostly brand names in frozen vegs. they just taste better.  since i only feed myself they are fine by me price wise. 

babe


----------



## Fisher's Mom (Feb 23, 2008)

I always try house brands after reading a Consumer Reports article that indicated in blind taste tests, consumers pick house brands more often that name brands. Lots of times, they are as good or better. But there are some things that the name brands are substantially better.


----------



## LadyCook61 (Feb 26, 2008)

Sometimes I find the house brand or store brand cost more than name brands.


----------

