Friday 19 August 2011

Supermarket Waste

19 August 2011

I'm sure we've all seen things on telly about how much stuff supermarkets throw out on a day to day basis.  Well, I've come across an unexpected consequence of it.  Our son is a junkie - I take no pride in saying that but it needs saying so that the rest of this falls into place.  We have done as much as we can to help him come off drugs and he just laughs and ignores us.  Well yesterday Jan saw him in town and then went around to his place for a cuppa.  She left there with a jar of instant coffee.  It seems he is living off supermarket throw aways now and the coffee Jan left with is one such item.  I had a look at it and all that's wrong with is the plastic top is cracked, the inner seals is intact.  But they still threw it away.  Why couldn't they put on sale at a reduced price instead?  They would still have made some money on it even if it was just its cost to them.

Here's the rub though - while they are throwing away all this good food and stuff for such silly reasons, they are leaving people like my son to scavenge on it and then being able to use what money they do have to buy more drugs.  It doesn't help Tom at all does it?  And what of all the other junkies around the country?  Are they doing the same? 

It's not just instant coffee either.  He had loads of cans of beer and bottles of wine up there.  He's close to being and alkie as well as a junky now.  I know that some of retail laws don't help in this but surely there's something the supermarkets can do to make it harder for these folks to get in and steal the stuff.  Anyway, there's people about in genuine need here in the UK that are crying out for help; people who are working hard yet still struggling to make ends meet who would be happy to take some this so-called waste.  Why can't they be helped by passing this stuff on to them?

On a happier note, we have Kile coming today ... I'm shattered just thinking about it ;-)))        

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