to think supermarket shelf stackers shouldn't get annoyed because I want to get items that have a later best before date?

[supersup]

When I am food shopping, I always choose the items at the back with the later best before dates. The items at the front are sometimes out of date in the next day or two. When I am planning ahead, I want to get food with a later date as possible.

I know the dates don't have to be strictly followed but I prefer the later dates.

Shelf stackers are getting increasingly annoyed when I pull out items from the back and I was told I should just get one from the front. I put everything back properly so it is not as if I am messing up the shelf.

AIBU?

HTH

You can hear my voice and tone?

I do it when they aren't looking.

Can’t hear your voice, but the tone is there.

Do you think everyone that’s said you’re snappy is just ganging up on you, or do you think just perhaps they’ve got a point?

I should try this!

I’ve always done this and won’t consider online shopping as try and leave as long as possible between shops
Some things I won’t even buy if the dates are too short

I thought everyone did this. If they don't want you to buy it, they shouldn't put it on the shelf. 🤷‍♀️ I'll lift fruit and veg trays if they're getting on the empty side and help myself to the nicer stuff underneath as well. Never noticed staff getting annoyed but I don't really look to be honest.

Totally agree. We can only really do a big shop weekly and our little local coop is too expensive. If I'm shopping Friday afternoon and we're having salmon steaks Sunday, I'm going to go to the back. The same with fresh bread rolls. Some are two or three days fresher.

I don't leave a mess but I'm not stopping.

I do it too! Items in my Tesco grocery delivery are often short-dated, so it's karma when I get to pick it myself

I do leave the shelf very tidy though and won't bother if the item is too far back.

I used to share a flat with a guy who worked in Tesco. It was him that suggested it to me.

If you are like me and need to shop for an elderly parent for a week, it's a real headache if shops only have short date stock left

I had that with the bread.
"All those (product) have the same date"
Customer "how do you know?"
"I put put out 4 trays of them, coming straight off the bread delivery van and the shelf was completely empty before that"

Before you say, there could be some loaves with a different date. Not a chance. Only found that once in 15 years, with some chicken breasts (4 breasts per pack). On the delivery, there were two crates with 16 packs in each. Each crate had a different date. It was the following day. Obviously end of one day's production run then the first of the next day's.

Sometimes its not the supermarkets' fault for having rubbish dates. The main reason is supply issues. If there is a factory breakdown or reduced supply - supermarkets cannot ask the suppliers to give them better dates.

Please understand this.

I do this too,although our new aldi only have produce out with 2/3 days max shelf life,very frustrating.

I once told a customer off for leaning on other loaves of bread which she squashed that the bag popped. She could have moved the loaves to one side (one of the loaves' neighbours was out of stock) and checked at the back. But no.

Another thing that annoys me as a supermarket worker and now as a customer is dumpage. Customers should return the stuff back where they picked it from. Not everywhere. Customer picks item up, customer changes their mind. THEY should put it back, NOT the supermarket workers. The amount of food we had to dispose of because customers dumped fresh in the baked beans, frozen pizza in the fresh pizzas, milk in the freezers was ridiculous. I had to dispose of £200 of stuff that was left in the wrong temp section one day.

Potatoes and apples last for weeks. Buy some of those long life bags https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sealapack-Fresh-longer-Fruit-Bags/dp/B003KUVQTQ/ref=sr_1_5?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.T41hTlqqQ6bkOvbW72eeKW00nwSsredNsSYFC2Wdyuv_oAJIfLinpqOCpgCBfvKqd3ujhYx-VMWhwQRupZYRPCZbsdEGSyCf2SuhasHDkvMQk8IlBzRP2NEjVz3l7c7NJyf93lsl5oNrjMnbYmgbkNiSZ-X7i6Zz-zYRnvsG9BOel4ALgsneOOhwecbcHk57bWDuNOXz5OeDswapMt-JTPotLkKeZ9T8bAkU7Y9YW6gWyWodWjhCQg8EGFLcXyuYgqPOMjlTbnEKLYRYo7f7fqe654E4Gm3QirL2qZi0kv6lXAC0aVjufR2XndZUQYCHvk5Cb5bIl45FeNZmOrfKSiHeWmiH0g0EIEkkdxJyoqBlYTanx5GKNJCF1xhPRNQRSxQaI7JD3RTgqjjJ-CpsuLSP49nVwq4JwJi7GhGZkHhLALvN8apQXgh16bqcNf70.oSvD7Qr6PLisAOAxonXy3Qk4eane4hzUJxagSB3Qvvc&dib_tag=se&keywords=stay+fresh+bags&qid=1739832550&sr=8-5

I did an experiment. The carrot which I didn't put into one of these went bendy after 4 days. Carrot went into a vegetable soup.

Your tone comes across pretty snappy to me @supersup. Just a suggestion that perhaps you can may come across that way. Quite abrupt - only my opinion and I am not having go just giving you an alternative view.

I'm so laidback that I am a bit of pushover - we're all different

Did you not bother reading the op.

No then I get called snappy.

So many other posters have carried on to say a mess shouldn't be left either!

Reading skills are an issue 😂

I work in a supermarket.
No one is employed purely as a "shelf stacker" it's actually a small part of the job.
I have never got annoyed with someone choosing an item from the back of the shelf, it's a sensible thing to do. What I do have an issue with is people who want the item I'm currently putting out, and rather than wait 30 seconds they feel the need to lean over me, or stand so close to me it's uncomfortable and snatching one up the second I move.

Wish people would understand that to ignore dates on majority of produce. As a kid I visited the greengrocers and nothing had a date on it.

If it’s prepared such as cut up mango, bags of salad leaves, they don’t last as long as intact produce.

I don’t mind if they asked “excuse me could you give me one of those”. If it’s a short dated item like bread, if they ask for the longest date, I would do that.

For those who moan about short dates if have shopping delivered, don’t they realise that the pickers have targets? They literally have time to locate item, take the number what customer ordered and move on. Not allowed to talk. If you need assistance at a supermarket, do not ask the online pickers.

Ah, thanks for that - interesting to know.

So does that mean that the management themselves are saying you should reach to the back for the best dates - and that the principle of stock rotation is only to catch out the unwary customers?!