To put this woman straight next time?

[LuisSuarezTeeth]

In tesco yesterday. My trolley contained mostly value products, including fruit, veg, meat and cheese. I am on a very tight budget. 2 women behind me and I hear one stage-whisper "would you buy all that crap?"

Woman 2 says something I didn't hear, then woman 1 says "could be for the food bank, you wouldn't give them quality stuff..."

I turned and glared, they obviously realised I'd heard and looked embarrassed.

I should have said something, shouldn't I? What a cow

I really wanted a new handbag and started budgeting in order to get the handbag I wanted....

I now buy all value products and am quite smug as i get my purse out of my new Mulberry handbag to pull out my coupons!

I think the stare was perfect as they would have stereotyped you anyway and if you had ranted at them, you would have proved them right.

It's a shame this stigma exists and is perpetuated by adults, my family didn't have must growing up and I had a pack lunch box full of Kwic save and telco value products and got teased mercilessly for it

I don't know what Tesco Value products are like these days - I used to have the bread a lot as a student. But a lot of supermarket own brand stuff is very good now and I hardly buy brands at all except where there is no alternative.

If people still have this stigma then frankly they are idiots and wasting money hand over fist. I started buying non-branded stuff more often when I was a full time professional on a very good salary. It's just good value for money!

The packaging used to mark me out to the others but that helps the product to be cheaper so I don't know what the answer is to that, I guess parents not passing their negative view on to their kids

Someone up thread is right, they had already stereotyped me so it would be pointless saying anything.

I buy a lot of value products. Less crap as others have said, and as you chop fruit and veg up for cooking, good looking veg isn't necessary, tasty veg is. So the value stuff tastes just as good for less. I save my money for a few branded products only. And we eat pretty well and healthily here.

What a pair of cunts.

Not sure if I find the comment about you 'buying all that crap' or the comment about 'them' at the food bank the most offensive.

Your long hard stare obviously embarrassed them so I think it was adequate although I'd have loved it if you'd started a full-on row too

Yes LadyClarice - but I was more bothered about the food bank comment.

It's a small town and to return to my OP, I wonder if I should say anything if/when I see them again? My guess is I won't have the bottle, so I'm a bit pissed off at myself.

It'll probably be too late by then, Woman 1 sounds like the type to lose track of the nasty things she says!

Tesco value chopped tomatoes and kidney beans make as good chilli con carne as the more expensive stuff.

Value chips I actually PREFER - lots of different shapes and a bit pale and soggy, just how I like em.

Sainsbury's value chocolate is quite nice (but Tesco's is awful)

I also coupon to the max like a chav. I think I'm the smart one. Why pay a fortune when you don't have to.

Oh ffs! I take my food and cooking seriously and choose value fruit and veg over other types as it is the environmentally friendly option as it means the odd shaped/sized stuff doesn't get chucked. And the tins and frozen stuff have less sugar/salt thickeners added. And the money saved means I can afford a small amount of free range meat from the butcher.

You are sensible. They are fools.

We're not restricted to a definite 'budget' more a general i'll try not to spend more than X but both df and i both really like certain value foods half the shop and when i'm doing a big shop the trolley can be 5:1 value to branded a lot of the time. I wouldn't buy it if i didn't like it cheeky mares obviously sat too high on those horses of theirs.

Re: lottery win. I'd still buy value as i like it, i've never seen the point in spending more when i'm happy with what i have.

we have switched from tescos to morrisons and our bill is £20 less. I buy own brand where possible and I dont care.if people have got a problem with it. I have saved £100 per month by swapping brands and supermarkets & my kids are happy & healthy.

Waitrose value ratatouille makes a lovely base for a curry/casserole in the slow cooker.

I buy 'value' things to put in the food bank. I figure that way, I can buy more and help more people.

That is a very good point about basics fruit and veg when weaning and for toddlers. Nutritionally just as good and most of it will end up smeared somewhere!

I wouldn't put value items in my DCs lunch boxes because of my experiences (see up thread) but own brand I would

Ha MrsD I'm doing it because I need to not necessarily because I want to. But this has made me think that I am actually still providing a healthy diet for the children at a much lower cost than I used to. So if my income increases not holding breath I may well stick to the products I buy now. I have become very good at feeding a family of 5 on a very small budget WITH some homemade treats.

Loreilee that's great - wish everyone could think that way!

Had a fine time peeling wonky carrots today - DC thought they were hilarious

most value stuff is just as good, like everyone else said,it's just lower grades because of not being ripe enough, or big enough, or funnyshapes.

those women needed the MN "did you mean to be so rude?"

sod 'em

and if I were buying for a food bank, i'd buy either what i'd buy for myself or better because people who are down already need a pick-me-up, not a reminder that they're down.

I once accepted a collection of harvest festival food for a refuge and there were some basics stuff in there. I swapped them for better brand stuff and usex them myself. everything was perfectly fine, apart from the tesco value teabags which were very weak and not very nice. still haven't used the rest! it made mevery glad that i'd swapped them
but in the main, value stuffis perfectly fibe.

I decant stuff into small pots, bags, etc for the kids lunches. No-one has any idea if the food is branded or not.

we don't bother peeling most veg - just scrub it and chop it
(most of the good stuff is in the peel)

I would've appreciated that FryOne