The other day I was talking to Lisa. This is the same Lisa from “Lisa’s Tea Cup,” who inspired another post here on ZD45 https://zuludelta45.net/2013/12/28/would-you-like-to-come-over-for-tea/ 

Lisa was talking about something very near and dear to my heart; COOKIES. Let’s get this out-of-the-way right now; “I’m a Cookie Slut!” Don’t even try to shame me, because I don’t care! I like cookies, and I’m not embarrassed to say so. I even have social media to back me up;  #ZULU’SFATASS (I’m not even sure what that means; hahahahahah!).

I’d like to say we have gotten all the nonsense completed, but with this blog, you never know.

Anyway, Lisa was talking about baking cookies. Part of her tale turned to sugar, and we began to talk about breaking up sugar lumps. Lisa was thinking about the methods to do so when I mentioned that I actually use very little sugar at home, and I have an old paper bag of sugar inside a plastic bag to keep it “fresh.” Research at a later date turned up the idea of using the microwave, as well as placing the sugar in a plastic wrap with slices of bread to break it up; who knew (maybe Lisa)? I then commented that I was excited to finally buy a plastic container full of 5 lbs of sugar. Lisa then commented that it was only 4 pounds that I bought. “Really???” Yes, she said. That plastic container is only 4 lbs. I told her I was obviously confused on the matter.

Lisa then continued on to say that wasn’t the only confusion present here (with sugar in general; not me; not this time). She told me a few of the sugar companies had switched from the “historical” 5lb bags to the 4lb bags, and more than a few people didn’t catch it right away. Of course, besides continuing this conversation with Lisa, I was already preparing to do some consumer research. Later, it was off to Google I went. I easily found several stories about people who had who had mistaken the weight in the bag they wanted. One woman told the story how she had seen two sugar brands side by side. The packaging for each brand was what she was accustomed to seeing (see the picture above). She noted that she was excited because the brand she preferred was 50 cents cheaper than the competition. It wasn’t until she got home, did she realize that the bag she bought was 4 lbs instead of 5lbs.

So…….why am I writing about this now? Besides the fact that it’s a mystery of why I write about anything, I believe this is marketing deception at its core. Yes, each bag; 4 or 5 lbs is clearly marked, but the fact that the companies were no longer making or stocking the 5lb bags and they looked SO much like the 4lb bag is no mere “corporate coincidence.” This marketing scheme seems even murkier than the “olden days.” when I worked at the “Lost Supermarket.” The store would put green beans on sale “2 for a dollar.” When and if a sharp consumer was looking at the orange Unit Price tag, they knew each can could be bought for 40 cents instead of the 50 cent sale price.

There are some of you out there now thinking; ” Zulu, of all the crazy conspiracy theories you have passed on to us, this is what you have been reduced to; consumer cabals?” The answer is NO!

As pointed out in another post–https://zuludelta45.net/2013/04/12/kilo-crazy/, it was this same uneasy consumer skepticism lurking in the back of people’s mind that I am convinced killed the Metric System in this country. Someone was always afraid that they would pay more for a liter of gasoline or whiskey, or they wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between 4 and 5 pounds of sugar in a similar bag marked as 1.814 and 2.268 kilograms of sugar respectfully (I forgot to look at the pictures to get the weight, and did the calculation instead; LEARN, DON’T convert). Whoops!

Maybe those skeptics were right………..naaaaaahhhhhhh!

Editors Note;

Speaking of not being ashamed; I love this song! It reminds me of sitting around on Saturday mornings as a little kid; eating cereal in front of the TV, watching cartoons. This song is as pop, bubblegum, and sappy as it gets. Go Archie’s Go!! (Those guys can really play!!)