Most of them? Generics are frequently the same thing from the same manufacturer with cheaper packaging and no/very little marketing. There are very few things I’ve ever tried that were noticeably better in the name brand.
I was going to say everything. I mean its not everything but if you don’t know its always best to give them a try if the price difference is good and if you don’t like it then thats one of the few things not to get. Especially now. generics used to be pretty meh but man now they are sometimes better. Oh man dominicks had this store brand chunky peanut butter that I have not been able to find an equal to since they closed.
Sometimes store brands/generics have lower meat content for example, if you buy, say, meat balls or fish products. While other products are literally the same just with another logo. Always check the ingredients (at least in my country they give a lot of information)
oh I always compare the ingredients just like price per unit. Im one of those folks who forgets to mention things like this so thanks.
As long as your not a former roommate of mine. He would calculate price per slice of bread and buy the cheapest. He would do this for everything and would take hours shopping…
Im not that bad but I do sorta consider it a puzzle game. Sorta a “fun” math activity to keep my brain active like doing suduko. Honestly I don’t see a point at price per slice as you would just get really thinly sliced bread. Should be per ounce. Honestly bread is one of those things I spring for the xspenciv stuff in the bakery section or I will do one of the fancy brownberry type with oats and nuts or potato.
I understand where you come but I do sympathize with him(he had 4 kids from 2 mother’s so money was always tight). He took FOREVER shopping though.
One time we went shopping together, I got all my food, checked out, drove home, put all my food away, took a shower, watched a show on Netflix, drove back to the store and he said “almost done, 10 more minutes”…
ouch. don’t tell you friend but the opening montage of idiocracy comes to mind.
Unless it’s Kroger, never buy Kroger brand.
Eh, Oreo’s are better than hydrox, at least the chocolate ones.
As far as I know Hydrox isn’t a generic, it was the original brand. Oreo was an imitation and came later, but store brands/generic even later
You are 100% correct. This commenter seems to have confused “generic” with “competition”.
That’s a placebo affect. Most generics are stuff that don’t meet the standards of the name brand, but is still fine to sell. Kind of a form of downcycling.
I don’t know that placebo is the right word (or if you just pulled that info out of your ass) but even if it was, if people consume the generic and just feel like it was the same, then who cares? It’s not like people are buying Kirkland chemotherapy, it’s some cookies or lotion or whatever, and our feelings about those things are totally subjective anyway.
And even with medicine - not sure about cancer treatments, but headaches cured fine with generic ibuprofen vs more expensive Nurofen™ or similar
There’s way WAY too many generic and store brands for them all to just be QC rejects.
They’re not. I have celiac, and I’ve learned from reading labels that they often have completely different ingredients/manufacturing conditions.
They’re not QC rejects, but they’re also not the same thing repackaged.
It depends, especially with medication it’s the same thing due to regulations.
My provider claims generics can have different fillers and such. The active ingredients have to be the same, though.
If I really wanted to be sure, I’d ask a pharmacist.
Yeah that’s my understanding too but it’s like preferring McDonald’s over McBurger because they get the bag from a different distributor
Usually it is just cheaper ingredients but made in the same factory, and branded with a different label.
I love your username btw
See, this is what people say, but now that I’ve been reading labels I don’t believe it.
For example, I cannot eat Kellogg’s Rice Krispies, but some off brands are made with a different formula that doesn’t include gluten and is manufactured in a safe environment.
Conversely, I can eat Cheerios, but not most store brands, Lucky Charms but not most store brands, etc.
And that’s just cereal! Even drugs vary wildly. Sure, the active ingredients are the same, but the other contents can really vary.
Some foods have similar ingredients, but are either manufactured on shared equipment with wheat and dairy, or not.
I now believe that most store brands are made in a unique environment. I’m open to being convinced otherwise, but if you need more examples, I can check my cupboard and tell you all kinds of things!
It’s more common that they’re made by factories during what otherwise would be their downtime, like a production run wedged in at night.
Maybe there are a few examples of this, but in general this is just a blatant lie.
Any drugs. If you’re not familiar with medications, just look at the active ingredients. They’re most likely the same or very similar dosages.
Also, sleep aids are usually just diphenhydramine, aka Benadryl.
Vitamins and health supplements too. My mom works at a pretty big brand name one of them and they literally package the exact same stuff for a generic brand that’s half the price.
Potato.
I told Latvian cousin to buy store brand potato. He laugh, I laugh. There is no store.
Is this like a Borat joke? Why Latvia? Latvia isn’t underdeveloped or something.
Why Latvia? Is Joke?
No comrade, is meme.
Latvian no like meme, cannot eat.
Why buy potato with name?
Potato already have name: Potato.
I once buy brand name potato.
I kid, I am poor and store no have potato.
What is store, comrade?
The store by me has their own brand of pop-tart that’s got more icing and filling as well as being half the cost. They don’t have as many flavors, but they’re not shrinkflated to the point of being a sad cookie. Shout out to Meijer toaster pastries.
Really as long as they are labeled correctly and not like dairy treat vs ice cream it’s probably fine
labeled correctly and not like dairy treat vs ice cream
I mean, that is labeled correctly…
Something to do with milk fat percentages. And since it’s (relatively) expensive, once you go cheap enough they stop using it and legally can’t call it ice cream. There’s not enough cream to meet the legal definition
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Yeah, for me just about any consumable I buy store brand for. They’re pretty much equal the name brand (if not sometimes better). There are some exceptions, but as long as they’re the same product, they’re probably produced in the same factory even.
Recently I’ve been buying the grocery store brand cereals. They’re half the price and I honestly find them tastier and made with better ingredients. Kellogg’s quality has gone down the drain and it’s really noticeable when you switch over.
Birthday/Christmas cards
Nobody in this generation buys those. I’d guess nobody younger than boomers has a significant percentage buying them regularly.
I’m a zoomer and I both buy and love receiving those.
I guess you need to define “fine”. Most things are fine to buy but some name brand items are, in my opinion, worth spending more on.
For example, for me it’s certain condiments and spices. Red pepper flakes by a name brand such as McCormick just taste better and have a more potent flavor. Buying a generic brand is just “fine” - it gives a good kick to food - but it doesn’t nearly taste the same or is as flavorful as the name brand. In my opinion!
Lol, just a FYI about McCormick they also produce the generic spices on the exact same lines with the exact same spices as their own brand.
I worked on the ground pepper line, the ONLY difference between McCormick and the black white 4oz cans was the amount that was considered “acceptable”. Brand name was kicked off it was under filled below 3.75 while generic cans could be 3.5 oz and still considered acceptable.
Honestly, i’ve always approached this question the reverse of how it’s posed here. Pretty much every store brand whatever is just fine.
But, picking a few fancier versions of things as exceptions is nice sometimes.Lately for me, Kingdom aged organic cheddar and Kerrygold butter have been my indulgences. I don’t eat much dairy, so they last me a long time. They’re loaded with flavor. And, it’s just nice to have a few things that feel special.
Most things but I just wouldn’t buy processed food branded or unbranded.
In Canada, No Name Brand. All the products are in non eye-catching packaging, and are quite cheap. They are quite popular with the college and university housing crowds.
Store brand frozen vegetables and canned vegetables are fine, however I’ve found that there’s a huge difference in quality where canned beans are concerned. Generic refried beans are just awful, as are generic baked beans.
Green beans, also. Mostly, it’s the texture and how good a job was done removing all the stems.
Refried beans are one of those items that need to be a very specific brand (la costeña obviously). Other bean brands are ok but nothing ever comes close.
Breakfast cereal 100%
I’d go out of my way to buy Malt-o-Meal cereals even if they weren’t cheaper. Marshmallow Mateys 4 Lyfe!
I don’t recommend the generic for mini wheats though. I tried it, and as someone who always seeks the store brand for stuff I was not impressed.
I actually like the generic mini wheats better. I much prefer the generic cinnamon toasts too. The name brands taste weird to me now, like they have too much iron in them or something. Tastes metallic to me.
With the mini wheats, there are also a few different styles, mostly in how finely shredded the fibers (or whatever) are, how they’re compressed, what the size is, and the thickness of the frosting. Like, the Post is barely the same cereal as the Kellogg’s, and the store brands play around with the ratios too. It’s really a matter of preference.
I like store brand oat loops more than Cheerios. I feel like they are less powdery.
Frozen vegetables. They all grew out of the same earth, possibly even at the same farm. The only difference is the packaging.
Except frozen peas
Good quality frozen peas are heavenly, most store brand bags taste like nothing and are somehow dry even if cooked in water
The packaging can make a big difference though so make sure to use extra care with some no name stuff. The food inside will get freezer burned way quicker with a lot of the shittier no name packaging.
It’s fine to buy , but tastes differ A LOT. try it with same veggie frozen and fresh, you can taste the difference right away
The comment is comparing generic to brand-name frozen vegetables, not frozen to fresh vegetables
Hard to say. Gotta check the labels because I’ve noticed a lot of the store brand items (especially at Walmart) have known carcinogens in the ingredients.
To be fair, so do a lot of name brands.
You’re right. I was just referring to items where the generic version did but the name brand version didn’t.
Do you mean stuff like preservatives, artificial colors, or things called out on Prop. 65 warnings? The one I’ve seen for the latter is acrylamide, which is formed naturally from cooking things. It’s odd how it’s labeled on some products and not others.
