Yesterday I bought a Cook's Spiral Sliced Ham. It cost $1.79/lb, weighed
10.02 lbs... cost $17.94. It's in the oven now, according to directions
275ºF for 2 1/2 hours.

Okay, here's my thoughts... this ham has included in its outer wrapping (a
mesh netting) a package of glaze, consists of mostly water, sugar, a bit of
oil, and like 10 things only a chemist can explain... essentially it's sugar
syrup (mostly water), and says to keep refrigerated (doesn't indicate how
long for safe use). In the past Cook's ham glaze consisted of a packet of
ordinary brown granulated sugar with some dehy maple granuales and some
anticaking stuff (weighs like 3 ozs - have a packet I just weighed). This
packet of glaze weighs 1/2 pound (I weighed it because it's not marked),
which means since it was weighed with the ham for pricing this glaze cost me
90¢, same price as a half pound of ham. Now I realize it's no fortune but
millions of Cook's hams are sold so those 90¢s add up quickly to a lotta ham
gelt. I don't use the glaze on ham, never did, but at least with the
granulated type that needed no refrigeration I could save it and use it for
other purposes, typically in my case glazed Spam, but I've used it for baked
goods too, makes nice topping for quick breads, sticky buns, even pineapple
upsided down cake, has as many uses as ordinary brown sugar. Anyway after
putting the ham in the oven and putting the package of glaze in the fridge I
got to thinking, I have no use for that glaze in the immediate future and
since it appears it has a rather short shelf life, I'm thinking that Cook's
ripped me off for 90¢... costs 4 times more than Aunt Jemima syrup - just
checked my 24 oz bottle - and AJ is essentially a pure sugar product, I'll
probably just toss that chemicals laden packet. Multiplied by just one
million hams comes to $900,000 (I'm sure they sell many millions more). And
of course the retailer shares in this bohamza. The consumer is always the
one to get shafted, and in this economy it's the royal shaft (Cook's must be
hurtin'). I feel this is a slick/smarmy way to cheat the public, they
should sell their liquid glaze seperately, or at least return to the
granulated, even that should not be sold at ham prices, I'm sure if you
asked Cook's they'll say they allocated for the of glaze by selling hams for
a few cent's less a pound, which of course we all know is BS. I don't mind
paying for stuff, what I resent is how they think they're pulling the wool
(in this case plastic net) over my eyes. How say yoose?

I don't like that plastic netting either, it pollutes, but much more
important it creates a life threatening danger to critters... I always cut
it into small bits, I do that with all plastic wrap.