Use It or Loose It and Other New Grocery Facts
With moving across the globe and being in another country I have found food rules and how you handle food has changed some. Since I just got back from the Commisary, I thought I would share a little bit on how the whole 'food' thing works.
I guess the place to start is price. The commisary tried to keep prices of most things about the same as what we pay at the commisary in the states. That means that what I pay for a can of green beasn here is probably still cheaper than the same can of green beans you buy at Albertsons. However, the Commisary doesn't buy generic brands and so if you buy generic in the states well, then you have got me there.
Things like meat, veggies, fruits and milk (perishable items) all vary in price, quality and appearence. A lot of the fruits and veggies are locally grown and much much smaller than what they have in the states. For example green pepers look more like the chili pepers ther have at home, cucumbers are only a little wider than a thick thumb. They also cost a bit more even though they are smaller, again its locally grown so the military will only eat so much of that cost.
Meat, well that seems ot change a lot. It can be cheap and it can be pricey. It is hard to get good lean cuts of meat on base as they seem to mostly sell lesser quality. The prices are simmilar to the states for a simmilar cut of meat. Off base however you can buy excellent cuts of mean and extreemly lean (if you want it that way) but it is often very thin and expensive.
Milk... what I consider necter of the gods. So yummy! Well, that leaves something to be desired here. Milk off base takes some getting used to buying as you have to know how to read the Kanji to get the right milk. It also costs quite a bit. On base they have California Ultra Fresh Sunshine milk and it has more preservatives in it than you can shake a stick at. The stuff has a shelf like of a very long time and has a funny tatste to it.
But today, finally they had Organic Milk in stock and it is worth the extra 50-75 cents you pay for it. Its good, normal, skim milk! It was heaven unto itself, I drank it straight from the carton and let out a very Homer-esqu Mmmmm Milk. So the Organic Milk is always an option, that is if anything but whole is in stock. It tends to sell over very fast as all organic products seem to at the Commisary, you think they might order more since they are in such high demand... rant...rant... okay I am done.
Ah yes, that 'use it or loose it' comment I made. Since it takes a very long time for food to get here, well sometimes it does, food also tends to spoil very fast. If you buy bread or cheese, eat it immediatly if not sooner. It might be best if you eat it on the way home in the car, it might actually have already started to grow mold sitting on the shelf, alway check to make sure. I tend to buy bread off base (its fresher) but I still have to get cheese on base as Japnese people are not to into cheese.
The other big difference between the states and here is that new Organic craze that seems to be sweeping the states, has yet to catch up here. The Commisary has a pathetic few organic products on their shelves and they tend to go quickly. They also lack in the vegitarian/Vegan/Soy departments as well with those products again going quickly. The local produce is grown semi organically and thats something, but the rest needs improovement.
And thats enough on groceries for now, all this talk of food has made me hungry. Time to grab a snack.
I guess the place to start is price. The commisary tried to keep prices of most things about the same as what we pay at the commisary in the states. That means that what I pay for a can of green beasn here is probably still cheaper than the same can of green beans you buy at Albertsons. However, the Commisary doesn't buy generic brands and so if you buy generic in the states well, then you have got me there.
Things like meat, veggies, fruits and milk (perishable items) all vary in price, quality and appearence. A lot of the fruits and veggies are locally grown and much much smaller than what they have in the states. For example green pepers look more like the chili pepers ther have at home, cucumbers are only a little wider than a thick thumb. They also cost a bit more even though they are smaller, again its locally grown so the military will only eat so much of that cost.
Meat, well that seems ot change a lot. It can be cheap and it can be pricey. It is hard to get good lean cuts of meat on base as they seem to mostly sell lesser quality. The prices are simmilar to the states for a simmilar cut of meat. Off base however you can buy excellent cuts of mean and extreemly lean (if you want it that way) but it is often very thin and expensive.
Milk... what I consider necter of the gods. So yummy! Well, that leaves something to be desired here. Milk off base takes some getting used to buying as you have to know how to read the Kanji to get the right milk. It also costs quite a bit. On base they have California Ultra Fresh Sunshine milk and it has more preservatives in it than you can shake a stick at. The stuff has a shelf like of a very long time and has a funny tatste to it.
But today, finally they had Organic Milk in stock and it is worth the extra 50-75 cents you pay for it. Its good, normal, skim milk! It was heaven unto itself, I drank it straight from the carton and let out a very Homer-esqu Mmmmm Milk. So the Organic Milk is always an option, that is if anything but whole is in stock. It tends to sell over very fast as all organic products seem to at the Commisary, you think they might order more since they are in such high demand... rant...rant... okay I am done.
Ah yes, that 'use it or loose it' comment I made. Since it takes a very long time for food to get here, well sometimes it does, food also tends to spoil very fast. If you buy bread or cheese, eat it immediatly if not sooner. It might be best if you eat it on the way home in the car, it might actually have already started to grow mold sitting on the shelf, alway check to make sure. I tend to buy bread off base (its fresher) but I still have to get cheese on base as Japnese people are not to into cheese.
The other big difference between the states and here is that new Organic craze that seems to be sweeping the states, has yet to catch up here. The Commisary has a pathetic few organic products on their shelves and they tend to go quickly. They also lack in the vegitarian/Vegan/Soy departments as well with those products again going quickly. The local produce is grown semi organically and thats something, but the rest needs improovement.
And thats enough on groceries for now, all this talk of food has made me hungry. Time to grab a snack.
posted by Crystal at 2:30 PM
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