I just went to do a little food shopping, happened to see the
sugar ... all 5 lb bags except for the no name brand, that was 4.
Never heard of a 4lb bag of sugar before today. Not paying
attention.

nancy

On Mon 01 May 2006 11:10:24a, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Nancy Young?

I just went to do a little food shopping, happened to see the
sugar ... all 5 lb bags except for the no name brand, that was 4.
Never heard of a 4lb bag of sugar before today. Not paying
attention.

If it makes a difference to anyone, you should also look to see if it is
"pure cane sugar". Beet sugar is also a greater share of the sugar for sale
now.

--
Wayne Boatwright Õ¿Õ¬
________________________________________

Okay, okay, I take it back! UnScrew you!

"Steve Wertz" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 30 Apr 2006 20:32:20 GMT, Peter A wrote:

In article ,
ost says...
You can blame the HFCS lobby for that. Not only Kraft, but many
candy makers have moved to Canada (LifeSavers, ie), putting
Americans out of work all to fatten the politicians pockets.
Somebody gimme a gun... I *HATE* politicians.

Don't be ridiculous. If a company moves it's to fatten their own
pockets. If you want to fume at anyone for plants moving out of the US
then at least figure out who is really to blame - greedy corporations.

WHat astounding business logic. I want my business to just break
even, too. Screw the shareholders.

Fact is, they woulnd't have had to move if the price of sugar
wasn't drastically lower in Canada because of the HFCS lobbies.

-sw

It's contagious. Look at the original post in the thread. The OP's a
finalist in the stupid conclusion olympics.

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"hob" wrote in message
...
I was walking through the store yesterday, and I noticed that the "5
pound"
bags of sugar (of all producers) were now all 4 pounds.. (and the price
PER
BAG was also up from last year, fwiw).
Since I almost always buy by the "unit", e.g., can, bag, box, etc.
rather
than by the weight, I don't really pay close attention to the "unit's"
weight

I realize there has been a lot of "downsizing" of the quantity without
any commensurate lowering of price (a lot of candy bars put out in new
displays in the past few weeks, e.g., ), but when did the "old
standards"
like sugar make that change?

(FWIW 2 - It also looks like the price per pound of sugar is up almost
100%
over last year.)


It hasn't been downsized. They make 3 sizes currently:

4-lb. bag
4-lb. New Plastic Canister
5-lb. bag

The 5 lb bags from C&H and Crystal, offered for an eternity at the local
upscale bigmart, have been replaced on the shelf by 4 lb bags of C&H and
Crystal.

No 5 lb bags offered.

(ONTOH, I almost always buy "fine" baker's sugar in the carton, so for me
it's more a curiosity than anything else)


The unit price *has* gone up some, but that's due to freight more than any
other factor.

"hob" wrote in message
...

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"hob" wrote in message
...
I was walking through the store yesterday, and I noticed that the "5
pound"
bags of sugar (of all producers) were now all 4 pounds.. (and the price
PER
BAG was also up from last year, fwiw).
Since I almost always buy by the "unit", e.g., can, bag, box, etc.
rather
than by the weight, I don't really pay close attention to the "unit's"
weight

I realize there has been a lot of "downsizing" of the quantity
without
any commensurate lowering of price (a lot of candy bars put out in new
displays in the past few weeks, e.g., ), but when did the "old
standards"
like sugar make that change?

(FWIW 2 - It also looks like the price per pound of sugar is up almost
100%
over last year.)


It hasn't been downsized. They make 3 sizes currently:

4-lb. bag
4-lb. New Plastic Canister
5-lb. bag

The 5 lb bags from C&H and Crystal, offered for an eternity at the local
upscale bigmart, have been replaced on the shelf by 4 lb bags of C&H and
Crystal.

No 5 lb bags offered.

C&H makes 4, 5 & 10 lb bags. Nothing has been downsized. The decision to
carry only the 4 lb bag was made by your supermarket's buying department,
for any of a number of reasons. What store do you shop at?

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"hob" wrote in message
...

(FWIW 2 - It also looks like the price per pound of sugar is up almost
100%
over last year.)


The wholesale price has done no such thing. What do you mean by "looks
like"??? What were you looking at when you came up with your 100% figure?


I paid $.99 for 5 lb bag of sugar on sale late last fall and the 4 lb bags
are $1.69 on sale a few days ago.
( First, 5 lb just fills my canister and I never buy 10 lb bags, and
second, I made candy for a group around Christmas that took five pounds of
sugar and I needed to submit the costs.)

that's .20 a lb then vs .42 a lb now.

Ok, so it's up 110%. Close enough.

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"hob" wrote in message
...

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"hob" wrote in message
...
I was walking through the store yesterday, and I noticed that the "5
pound"
bags of sugar (of all producers) were now all 4 pounds.. (and the
price
PER
BAG was also up from last year, fwiw).
Since I almost always buy by the "unit", e.g., can, bag, box, etc.
rather
than by the weight, I don't really pay close attention to the
"unit's"
weight

I realize there has been a lot of "downsizing" of the quantity
without
any commensurate lowering of price (a lot of candy bars put out in
new
displays in the past few weeks, e.g., ), but when did the "old
standards"
like sugar make that change?

(FWIW 2 - It also looks like the price per pound of sugar is up
almost
100%
over last year.)


It hasn't been downsized. They make 3 sizes currently:

4-lb. bag
4-lb. New Plastic Canister
5-lb. bag

The 5 lb bags from C&H and Crystal, offered for an eternity at the local
upscale bigmart, have been replaced on the shelf by 4 lb bags of C&H and
Crystal.

No 5 lb bags offered.

C&H makes 4, 5 & 10 lb bags. Nothing has been downsized. The decision to
carry only the 4 lb bag was made by your supermarket's buying department,
for any of a number of reasons. What store do you shop at?

byerly's

"hob" wrote in message
...

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"hob" wrote in message
...

(FWIW 2 - It also looks like the price per pound of sugar is up almost
100%
over last year.)


The wholesale price has done no such thing. What do you mean by "looks
like"??? What were you looking at when you came up with your 100%
figure?


I paid $.99 for 5 lb bag of sugar on sale late last fall and the 4 lb
bags
are $1.69 on sale a few days ago.
( First, 5 lb just fills my canister and I never buy 10 lb bags, and
second, I made candy for a group around Christmas that took five pounds of
sugar and I needed to submit the costs.)

that's .20 a lb then vs .42 a lb now.

Ok, so it's up 110%. Close enough.






First, a question: How old are you?

Now, some data. Right now, unless a store negotiates a hot deal with Domino
or C&H, they're paying about $2.00 for a 5 lb bag of sugar. This price has
been the same, give or take a quarter, for the past year.

Another question: Why do you think your store occasionally sells these $2.00
bags of sugar for $0.99?

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...

"Steve Wertz" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 30 Apr 2006 20:32:20 GMT, Peter A wrote:

In article ,
ost says...
You can blame the HFCS lobby for that. Not only Kraft, but many
candy makers have moved to Canada (LifeSavers, ie), putting
Americans out of work all to fatten the politicians pockets.
Somebody gimme a gun... I *HATE* politicians.

Don't be ridiculous. If a company moves it's to fatten their own
pockets. If you want to fume at anyone for plants moving out of the US
then at least figure out who is really to blame - greedy corporations.

WHat astounding business logic. I want my business to just break
even, too. Screw the shareholders.

Fact is, they woulnd't have had to move if the price of sugar
wasn't drastically lower in Canada because of the HFCS lobbies.

-sw

It's contagious. Look at the original post in the thread. The OP's a
finalist in the stupid conclusion olympics.

Yeah, unlike you who are in the finals for moronus maximus assus.

Check the price of refined sugar in the past six months, smart ass?

http://www.ers.usda.gov/briefing/sugar/Data/Table02.xls

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"hob" wrote in message
...
I was walking through the store yesterday, and I noticed that the "5
pound"
bags of sugar (of all producers) were now all 4 pounds.. (and the price
PER
BAG was also up from last year, fwiw).
Since I almost always buy by the "unit", e.g., can, bag, box, etc.
rather
than by the weight, I don't really pay close attention to the "unit's"
weight

I realize there has been a lot of "downsizing" of the quantity without
any commensurate lowering of price (a lot of candy bars put out in new
displays in the past few weeks, e.g., ), but when did the "old
standards"
like sugar make that change?

(FWIW 2 - It also looks like the price per pound of sugar is up almost
100%
over last year.)


It hasn't been downsized. They make 3 sizes currently:

4-lb. bag
4-lb. New Plastic Canister
5-lb. bag

The unit price *has* gone up some, but that's due to freight more than any
other factor.


No, you are wrong. The price of sugar has jumped significantly.

from the USDA

refined sugar price November 2005 - 13.10
refined sugar price April 2006 -21.35

in the last six months, price of refined is up 63%

--------

from the USDA

raw sugar price, November 2005 -12.86
raw sugar price, April 2006 -18.21

in the last six months, price of raw is up 42%

http://www.ers.usda.gov/briefing/sugar/Data/Table02.xls

http://www.ers.usda.gov/briefing/sugar/Data/Table03.xls

"hob" wrote in message
. ..

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"hob" wrote in message
...
I was walking through the store yesterday, and I noticed that the "5
pound"
bags of sugar (of all producers) were now all 4 pounds.. (and the price
PER
BAG was also up from last year, fwiw).
Since I almost always buy by the "unit", e.g., can, bag, box, etc.
rather
than by the weight, I don't really pay close attention to the "unit's"
weight

I realize there has been a lot of "downsizing" of the quantity
without
any commensurate lowering of price (a lot of candy bars put out in new
displays in the past few weeks, e.g., ), but when did the "old
standards"
like sugar make that change?

(FWIW 2 - It also looks like the price per pound of sugar is up almost
100%
over last year.)


It hasn't been downsized. They make 3 sizes currently:

4-lb. bag
4-lb. New Plastic Canister
5-lb. bag

The unit price *has* gone up some, but that's due to freight more than
any
other factor.


No, you are wrong. The price of sugar has jumped significantly.

from the USDA

refined sugar price November 2005 - 13.10
refined sugar price April 2006 -21.35


I'm sorry, but that does not reflect the actual price being paid by the
supermarket chains and wholesalers. Do you have any theories as to why this
might be?

"hob" wrote in message
...

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...

"Steve Wertz" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 30 Apr 2006 20:32:20 GMT, Peter A wrote:

In article ,
ost says...
You can blame the HFCS lobby for that. Not only Kraft, but many
candy makers have moved to Canada (LifeSavers, ie), putting
Americans out of work all to fatten the politicians pockets.
Somebody gimme a gun... I *HATE* politicians.

Don't be ridiculous. If a company moves it's to fatten their own
pockets. If you want to fume at anyone for plants moving out of the US
then at least figure out who is really to blame - greedy corporations.

WHat astounding business logic. I want my business to just break
even, too. Screw the shareholders.

Fact is, they woulnd't have had to move if the price of sugar
wasn't drastically lower in Canada because of the HFCS lobbies.

-sw

It's contagious. Look at the original post in the thread. The OP's a
finalist in the stupid conclusion olympics.

Yeah, unlike you who are in the finals for moronus maximus assus.

Check the price of refined sugar in the past six months, smart ass?

http://www.ers.usda.gov/briefing/sugar/Data/Table02.xls


I don't need to check government sites. I'm in the grocery business. I punch
a few keys, and I see that my company has sold 73 truckloads of Domino & C&H
sugar since March of 2005. Using 5 lb bags as an example, the price has
risen about 10% in that time period. The discrepancy between the govenment's
numbers and reality can be explained in a way that's similar to the way you
can explain the problem with oil at the moment.

About an hour ago, I asked you how old you were. This would be a good time
to tell me.

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...

"hob" wrote in message
...

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"hob" wrote in message
...

(FWIW 2 - It also looks like the price per pound of sugar is up
almost
100%
over last year.)


The wholesale price has done no such thing. What do you mean by "looks
like"??? What were you looking at when you came up with your 100%
figure?


I paid $.99 for 5 lb bag of sugar on sale late last fall and the 4 lb
bags
are $1.69 on sale a few days ago.
( First, 5 lb just fills my canister and I never buy 10 lb bags, and
second, I made candy for a group around Christmas that took five pounds
of
sugar and I needed to submit the costs.)

that's .20 a lb then vs .42 a lb now.

Ok, so it's up 110%. Close enough.






First, a question: How old are you?

Old enough to have been a CEO twice and been in 'Nam, kid.


Now, some data. Right now, unless a store negotiates a hot deal with
Domino
or C&H, they're paying about $2.00 for a 5 lb bag of sugar. This price has
been the same, give or take a quarter, for the past year.

Yes, some data - real data, not some BS facts pulled out of some fading
memory bank.

Sugar was $2.32 wholesale last September (5 lbs, per wholesaler's book.)
On sale loss leader $.99.

Today's wholesale price for a 4 lb bag - $ 2.96. On sale loss leader, $
1.69.
( I just looked in "the book" for April, you know kid, the one the
wholesaler gives the retailer, to get you an accurate price.)

Try some real facts on for size, kid. It'll give you a real perspective.

The price of refined sugar has jumped over 60% in the past six months.

-----from the USDA

refined sugar price November 2005 - 13.10
refined sugar price April 2006 - 21.35

in the last six months, price of refined is up 63%

http://www.ers.usda.gov/briefing/sugar/Data/Table02.xls

http://www.ers.usda.gov/briefing/sugar/Data/Table03.xls




Another question: Why do you think your store occasionally sells these
$2.00
bags of sugar for $0.99?

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"hob" wrote in message
. ..

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"hob" wrote in message
...
I was walking through the store yesterday, and I noticed that the "5
pound"
bags of sugar (of all producers) were now all 4 pounds.. (and the
price
PER
BAG was also up from last year, fwiw).
Since I almost always buy by the "unit", e.g., can, bag, box, etc.
rather
than by the weight, I don't really pay close attention to the
"unit's"
weight

I realize there has been a lot of "downsizing" of the quantity
without
any commensurate lowering of price (a lot of candy bars put out in
new
displays in the past few weeks, e.g., ), but when did the "old
standards"
like sugar make that change?

(FWIW 2 - It also looks like the price per pound of sugar is up
almost
100%
over last year.)


It hasn't been downsized. They make 3 sizes currently:

4-lb. bag
4-lb. New Plastic Canister
5-lb. bag

The unit price *has* gone up some, but that's due to freight more than
any
other factor.


No, you are wrong. The price of sugar has jumped significantly.

from the USDA

refined sugar price November 2005 - 13.10
refined sugar price April 2006 -21.35


I'm sorry, but that does not reflect the actual price being paid by the
supermarket chains and wholesalers. Do you have any theories as to why
this
might be?


check your April 2006 wholesaler's price book and compare it to last
September's - I checked ours.

"hob" wrote in message
...

Now, some data. Right now, unless a store negotiates a hot deal with
Domino
or C&H, they're paying about $2.00 for a 5 lb bag of sugar. This price
has
been the same, give or take a quarter, for the past year.

Yes, some data - real data, not some BS facts pulled out of some fading
memory bank.

Sugar was $2.32 wholesale last September (5 lbs, per wholesaler's book.)
On sale loss leader $.99.


The actual number is $1.78 as of two weeks ago. No change anticipated, other
than BETTER deals negotiated by chains and wholesalers. Where EXACTLY did
your $2.32 come from?

But wait...this doesn't matter. The biggest change since a year ago was
perhaps a quarter, which does not explain the 100% you mentioned in your
original message. And, loss leader pricing explains nothing at all.