Episode 6 Rip Off Britain


Episode 6

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There's a lot we don't know about the food on our plates,

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and the shops and the labels don't always tell you the whole story.

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Sometimes, when you have these offers on in the supermarket,

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you think you're getting a good deal,

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but if you're actually throwing it away, it's not a good deal.

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Whether you're staying in or going out,

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you've told us that you can feel ripped off by the promises made

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from what you eat and indeed what you pay for it.

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What really winds me up, I suppose,

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is the price of so-called healthy food

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compared with the unhealthy stuff.

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The unhealthy stuff seems to be so much cheaper.

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From claims that don't stack up, to the secrets behind the packaging,

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we'll uncover the truth about Britain's food

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so you can be sure you're getting what you expect at the right price.

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Your food, your money - this is Rip-Off Britain.

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Hello and welcome to Rip-Off Britain,

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where today we're going to be ripping open the packets

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and peeling back the labels on some of our most popular foods,

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just to see if what it says on the tin is actually what

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you're getting, and of course what you're paying for,

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because, I have to say, in some cases,

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it may not be the full story.

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And how true is that?

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Because how products are labelled and described can make

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all the difference as to whether you want to buy them in the first place.

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So if you've ever wondered if buying that bigger size really is worth it,

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or you're completely frustrated when you discover that

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a bumper packet of crisps seems to be more air and less potato -

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as I think I have -

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stand by for some tips to make sure that, next time you go shopping,

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you're getting proper value for money.

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Coming up, why buying a multipack

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doesn't always end up saving you money.

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That makes the twin pack 30% more expensive.

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-That is outrageous!

-It's cheeky.

-It is cheeky.

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And would you know how many of these foods

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are fit for vegetarians to eat?

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There's quite a lot here you'd give them, then?

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-Most of it, I think.

-Yeah. Would you?

-Yes, I think so. Yeah.

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-I'm wrong, aren't I?

-Yeah.

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Next, something that's a real bugbear for a lot of you.

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Now, we know from all the e-mails and letters we get about this

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just how fed up some of you are

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with the way that food packaging sometimes disguises

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how little of the actual product might be tucked away inside.

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Some of the cereals you buy are three-quarters-full.

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Crisp bags, they're half-full, sweet packets are half-full.

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I've had it with, like, cakes.

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You know, they're in a massive box and there's polystyrene in it,

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and then when you get to the cakes, there's hardly anything there.

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Normally, when you buy a large bag of potato chips,

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you will find that by the time you've opened them up and the air

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has come out, the bag is that full, not that full.

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Well, a number of you have written to us about exactly this subject

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after being disappointed by the contents of

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the packaging you've bought.

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Wendy Rowland from Carmarthenshire for one.

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She has coeliac disease -

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an autoimmune disease affecting the digestive system.

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There's not a lot of choice when it comes to coeliacs,

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for breakfast cereals. It's mainly cornflakes.

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When I saw the box of Tesco Special Flakes,

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I thought, "Hmm, not a bad price. I'll give them a go."

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I opened the box and I thought, "Oh, where's the inner bag?"

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And I peered in and I thought, "Oh, that's a bit low."

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So I pulled it out and I put it alongside like that

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and I thought, "Well, surely they could have filled the box up

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with more cereal, because I thought I'd got a box full of cereal."

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Now, of course, manufacturers are not breaking any rules by selling

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their products in oversized packaging

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and Wendy's cornflakes are by no means the only -

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or indeed the worst - offender.

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'So, I met up with author and shopping psychologist

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'Phillip Adcock

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'to get his take on a few other products that contain a little less

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'than meets the eye.'

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When I look at something like this,

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I think to myself... I mean, look at that.

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It's just about a third full.

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It's ridiculous. Why would people pick up a bag of that?

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Psychologically, we'll always go for the bigger packet.

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And, dare I say, children definitely like the bigger packet

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cos they think there's more in it.

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I'm going to let you open the packet

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cos, as I get older, I can't open any packet at all.

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So, we're going to see how many more, in fact, we could get in.

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Yeah, so that holds five to start with.

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-Five? Only five?

-There's five in there now.

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-Gosh, shall I count them in?

-Yeah.

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Six, seven, eight, nine, ten,

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11, 12...

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13... I'm not going to put it up too high.

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-14. I think it would take 15.

-That's probably...

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15 would be about the maximum.

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-15.

-And that will still stack on the shelf in the supermarket.

-That...

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That is terrible, isn't it?

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'So, you could quite easily fit in three times as many Mini Moons

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'in this packet as Tesco currently puts in.'

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I would feel hoodwinked about this packaging.

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So what is the answer to that, in terms of the manufacturer?

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It's who can be good and shrink their pack,

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cos as soon as one shrinks the pack,

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-theirs is smaller than everybody else's.

-Mmm.

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And so, suddenly, it doesn't look as good value.

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'Let's try another. And this one, I must say,

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'I do find extraordinary.'

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So it says here "five lunchtime loaves".

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I would expect that it would be right up to the top.

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'Instead, it looked like they'd missed one out.'

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So, generally speaking,

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is the product inside the bag getting smaller?

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Over the years, the supermarkets have negotiated harder and harder

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to get us better prices. That's actually a good thing.

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It gets to the stage where the brands that supply them

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can't make it for the money,

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so they have to what they call "value-engineer" the products -

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basically give less in the pack.

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'And here's another product.

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'It's a favourite of my grandchildren, for sure - popcorn.'

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So, not quite half.

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That's less than half-full.

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See, if I opened that and I'd go to stick my hand in it, which I would,

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I'd sort of think, "Oh, who's been eating the remainder?"

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You know, it looks like somebody's had half the bag, doesn't it?

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Back in Wales, Wendy is keen to gauge public opinion on the matter.

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Now, she has taken her half-empty cereal packet to Carmarthen

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to ask shoppers if they feel

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short-changed by the oversized packaging.

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If you were buying this packet of cereal,

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where would you expect the contents to come up to?

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I think a bit higher?

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Yeah, I'd say probably about... at least up to there.

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If I show you that that's actually where it comes up to,

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what would you say, I wonder?

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Not good. It is misleading.

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Oh, my gosh!

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That is, well... That is low, isn't it?

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Mmm-hmm.

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I think that's a little bit unfair to present something in the box that

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is so much too big for it.

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Well, it's a rip-off, isn't it?

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Because it's more or less half the size.

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Well, Wendy didn't meet many people who disagreed with her,

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but when we asked Tesco about its packaging of this product,

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and indeed about those Mini Moon cheeses I saw earlier,

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the company didn't want to comment.

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We also contacted Soreen, the maker of those lunchbox loaves,

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who told us that after it had

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received similar feedback from its own customers,

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it has now introduced a new pack, reducing the packaging by 30%.

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And Asda, which sells the popcorn,

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explained that corn can expand to different sizes

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and air is required to protect the popped corn.

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But a production line will detect and discard...

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But as we dash around the supermarkets,

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falling foul of oversized packaging,

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Phillip suggests we start thinking differently about the things

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we choose to buy.

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First thing I would do is I would start to try and ignore -

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this is going to sound strange - the price.

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Pay attention to the little number in the corner

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which is the pence per gram, pence per litre.

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Compare those. And that's the second point.

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Don't just say, "A pound or a kilo, that's about right,"

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look to either side.

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Compare. Thirdly, take your glasses.

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Yes, remember the glasses - I agree with that.

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Here in the UK, it's estimated that more than a million people are

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vegetarian, all of them taking great care about the food that they eat,

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but it remains the case that several everyday foods that you might assume

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are suitable for vegetarians are in fact no such thing.

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And even if you do know which ones to watch out for when

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you're shopping, you obviously won't have the same control about

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what's being put in your food if you're eating out.

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Now, you might think that being a vegetarian was relatively

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straightforward, provided you follow the one simple rule -

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don't eat meat.

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But, whilst avoiding a steak or a spag bol should be easy enough,

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there are plenty of other foods that throw up more of a problem

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because, while you'd probably have never guessed it,

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there might be some sort of animal product inside.

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Are there foods in which there are animal derivatives that we're not so

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clear about? So, let's find out.

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How many of these foods really would be safe for a vegetarian to eat?

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'We're asking the shoppers at Spitalfields Market in London

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'just that question.

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'Let's see if they can guess which of these everyday foods

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'contains any veggie-unfriendly ingredients.'

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What on at this table do you think a vegetarian would be able to eat?

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-That.

-Marshmallows? OK.

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Worcester sauce.

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Worcester sauce, righto.

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-Caesar salad.

-Salad.

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-Strawberry yoghurt.

-Yeah.

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-Grapefruit yoghurt.

-Beer, I think you'd be OK with.

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Oh, there's quite a lot you'd give them, then?

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Well, most of it, I think.

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-Would you?

-Yeah, I think so, yeah. I'm wrong, aren't I?

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'I'm afraid he is, and he wasn't alone.'

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Marshmallows, no, they definitely can't have the marshmallows.

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-It's got beef gelatine in it.

-Right, OK.

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Caesar salad has got anchovies in it - can't have that.

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Parmesan has got calf's rennet in it.

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-Right, OK.

-Right.

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The strawberry yoghurt and the pink yoghurt - that's got gelatine in it.

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-Oh, so I...

-And that, actually, the pink one contains cochineal,

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which is also from animals.

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-OK.

-And beer...

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-Yeah?

-..has got isinglass, which comes from fish.

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Ugh.

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'Uh-oh, not a great start,

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'but surely Spitalfields' veggies will do a bit better.'

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-Are you a vegetarian?

-Yes.

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Would you have a look at the foods on this table and tell me which of

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these foods you think you could safely eat as a vegetarian?

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-Pesto.

-Right.

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Well, the pesto, authentic pesto contains calf's rennet

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-and some of them have anchovy paste in them.

-Ugh.

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-Really?

-Yeah, so that's off the menu.

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-Yeah.

-Oh!

-Thanks(!)

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Which of these foods do you think you would be able to eat?

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-Just beer.

-A beer?

-Yeah.

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Well, beer has actually got some isinglass in it, which is from fish.

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-No.

-So, you can't eat that.

-No!

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Parmesan, I could eat that all day.

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I've got a shock for you, vegetarian.

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All right. Right, OK.

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-It's got calf's rennet in it, proper Parmesan.

-Nice. Lovely.

-All right?

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In fact, none of the products on our table

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were suitable for non-meat-eaters.

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Worcester sauce, for example, contains anchovies,

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and many cheeses, - not just Parmesan -

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use calf rennet - an enzyme

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extracted from their stomachs.

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Similarly, the gelatine found in marshmallows -

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a substance derived from the skin and bones of animals -

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is also found in many ice creams,

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dips and yoghurts.

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And the beer? Whilst the one we used in this demonstration

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wasn't suitable for veggies,

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there are plenty of varieties out there that are.

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But someone who thinks he would have passed our little test with

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flying colours is Rob Colville from Stockport.

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He's been meat-free for over 30 years,

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and while he's confident that he knows his onions about what's in

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the food that he cooks,

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the same can't always be said when he goes out for a meal.

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I really enjoy eating out at restaurants,

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but one of my biggest concerns and frustrations

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is the misunderstanding around what is and is not vegetarian,

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Parmesan cheese finding its way into a lot of vegetarian-labelled dishes

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and it's not vegetarian.

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Fish-based products finding itself into a lot of dishes.

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A lot of the time, the chefs don't understand what is and is not

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vegetarian when it comes to their ingredients,

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so these are the people that are cooking the food -

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if they don't understand it,

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how can vegetarians ever have confidence in eating out?

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To try and tackle some of his concerns, today,

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Rob is visiting the Vegetarian Society in Cheshire...

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-Hello, Lynne.

-Hi, Rob.

-How are you doing?

-I'm...

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..to meet boss Lynne Elliott.

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-Welcome, and come in.

-Hello. Thank you.

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One of the things that concerns me quite a lot is that,

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on vegetarian-labelled meals, you're finding things like Parmesan.

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-Yeah.

-I mean, is this something you're getting complaints about?

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More than half the complaints we get from people about eating out

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are exactly about Parmesan, so it's a big problem.

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I think that chefs perhaps don't always understand

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what is and is not vegetarian.

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How can we make that understanding better communicated

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through to the restaurant industry?

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Yeah, I think you've identified a really big problem,

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because it isn't just the chefs - it's the managers,

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it's the waiting staff, it's the whole...

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You know, everybody who's involved in food outlets and restaurants.

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But there's also an education process, really,

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about cross-contamination,

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because it isn't just the ingredients that are in the food

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that you're eating -

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it's how it's been handled, how it's been stored,

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how it's been prepared and how it's been cooked.

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So it just needs to go into the pot of boiling water...

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To help all of that,

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the Vegetarian Society's principal tutor, Alex Connell,

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has been training chefs for over five years.

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If you're doing a Thai dish,

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watch out for the paste if you use a Thai cookery sauce,

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because they sometimes have fish in there.

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Alcohol, as well.

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Some wine isn't vegetarian,

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so you're going to go to the trouble of making some beautiful vegetarian

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dishes and then spoiling it at the last bit

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by putting a bit of white wine in there that is non-vegetarian.

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Today, Alex is meeting Rob...

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-Hello.

-Hi, Rob, nice to meet you.

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..who wants to grill him about something that he's found

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can be one of the most problematic dishes for veggies.

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I absolutely love pesto,

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but one of the things that really frustrates me sometimes

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is that an awful lot of pesto contains

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non-vegetarian cheeses, particularly Parmesan.

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Parmesan cheese, yeah, and vegetarians don't eat Parmesan, OK?

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Now, the reason that it's not vegetarian is that it's got

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an enzyme from a calf's stomach

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and, unfortunately, the calf has to be killed to get the enzyme,

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and that's why Parmesan cheese is not vegetarian.

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But, in fact, restaurants could easily make a tasty pesto

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that doesn't have that problem.

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So, what we're going to do today is we're going to make some

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beautiful home-made pesto, which is so easy

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and, of course, you know that it's not got the Parmesan in it.

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So, the ingredients are some pine nuts, plenty of basil,

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garlic, olive oil,

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salt and pepper and, if you want to put that...

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If you want that cheese flavour,

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then you can get an Italian-style hard cheese.

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-Put the garlic in there...

-With all of those ingredients

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put into a food processor...

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So all we need to do is to pop the lid on,

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switch it on...

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MIXER BUZZES

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Hey presto, pesto!

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How easy is that?

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It's actually really quite straightforward.

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Anybody could do it, really.

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Yeah, couldn't be easier.

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So, if you've got a menu item at a restaurant,

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-and you see that there is pesto in that dish...

-Right, yeah.

0:15:100:15:13

-..what would you advise?

-Ask. That's the way to...

0:15:130:15:15

And if you're not sure, if you think you're getting fudged,

0:15:150:15:19

get the manager.

0:15:190:15:20

But the thing to look out for, if it's got a "V",

0:15:200:15:23

that's great, but the Vegetarian Society does its own

0:15:230:15:25

independent checking, so if you see

0:15:250:15:27

the Vegetarian Society symbol,

0:15:270:15:28

you know that someone's

0:15:280:15:29

checked it independently.

0:15:290:15:32

And we're done. We just need to serve that.

0:15:320:15:34

But it's not just the perils of eating out that can get vegetarians

0:15:340:15:38

hot under the collar.

0:15:380:15:39

Buying the right foods at the supermarket isn't always

0:15:390:15:42

as easy as you might expect.

0:15:420:15:44

So, one of the issues we hear a lot about from consumers is,

0:15:450:15:48

when they're buying food products, the labelling -

0:15:480:15:50

it can be very, very confusing.

0:15:500:15:52

There's a lot of names of things

0:15:520:15:53

that people have never heard of before.

0:15:530:15:55

So there's a lack of consistency and clarity, really.

0:15:550:15:58

We have a "Vegetarian Society approved" trademark

0:15:580:16:02

and that's an attempt to combat some of that,

0:16:020:16:04

so that appears on over 15,000 products now.

0:16:040:16:08

But, despite all of these checks,

0:16:080:16:10

some products do slip through the net

0:16:100:16:13

and have to either be recalled or relabelled.

0:16:130:16:17

In February, the National Trust had to pull all of its

0:16:170:16:19

mulled wine & whisky truffles after it found that,

0:16:190:16:23

despite being labelled as suitable for vegetarians,

0:16:230:16:26

they contained carmine, a food colorant derived from animals.

0:16:260:16:31

And in November last year,

0:16:310:16:32

Lidl withdrew its deluxe olive pesto from sale

0:16:320:16:36

after it, too, was wrongly labelled as suitable for vegetarians,

0:16:360:16:40

despite it containing anchovy paste.

0:16:400:16:43

If you find a product that is labelled suitable for vegetarians

0:16:430:16:47

and then you discover that it isn't,

0:16:470:16:49

then you can let the Vegetarian Society know,

0:16:490:16:52

and also let the manufacturer know, as well,

0:16:520:16:54

because the chances are that they will want to rectify

0:16:540:16:56

the situation and change the labels as soon as possible.

0:16:560:17:01

Meanwhile, Rob is happy that so many of his concerns are being tackled,

0:17:010:17:05

so that what is and isn't genuinely vegetarian

0:17:050:17:08

is much clearer to veggies and meat-eaters alike.

0:17:080:17:12

Today has been a really good day.

0:17:120:17:14

I've learnt a lot more about what is and is not vegetarian

0:17:140:17:17

and also how to tackle the issues when you're not quite sure -

0:17:170:17:20

understanding what questions to ask and who to ask them.

0:17:200:17:22

Now, if, like me, you fancy yourself as a bit of a savvy shopper,

0:17:290:17:32

then you'll always be looking to get the best value for money

0:17:320:17:35

when you go to the supermarket,

0:17:350:17:36

and you probably assume that a terrific way of making

0:17:360:17:39

some tidy savings is to take advantage of multipack offers

0:17:390:17:42

on your favourite foods.

0:17:420:17:44

After all, buying in bulk has traditionally meant that

0:17:440:17:47

you'll be able to get cheaper prices.

0:17:470:17:49

But now it seems that may not always be the case.

0:17:490:17:52

We've been contacted by a number of viewers who aren't sure whether

0:17:520:17:55

the multipacks they regularly buy are the best value for money,

0:17:550:17:59

so we've done some investigating to see if multipacks really do

0:17:590:18:02

save you a packet.

0:18:020:18:04

Whether it's an eight-pack of crisps, six bars of chocolate,

0:18:060:18:10

or four tins of sweetcorn,

0:18:100:18:12

multipacks seem to offer big savings and a cost-effective way of

0:18:120:18:15

stocking up on foods that you regularly eat,

0:18:150:18:18

and that can prove a life-saver if you've got a hectic household that

0:18:180:18:21

needs a lot of planning,

0:18:210:18:23

as is the case for Claire Cremin from Urmston in Manchester.

0:18:230:18:27

As a busy mum, and with five children

0:18:270:18:29

and running my business from home,

0:18:290:18:31

everything throughout my day has to be very finely planned

0:18:310:18:34

on a daily planning board, and every minute counts.

0:18:340:18:38

I have to be very quick,

0:18:380:18:39

fulfilling all the tasks that I've got in the day.

0:18:390:18:42

The normal things that you would find easy -

0:18:420:18:44

getting up, brushing your teeth, making the breakfast -

0:18:440:18:47

can be quite challenging.

0:18:470:18:49

So, five plates, five lots of food all out at the same time.

0:18:490:18:54

A lot of the time, it's very much just a rush, so it's like,

0:18:540:18:57

"Let's see how quickly we can get everything out

0:18:570:18:59

"and get everybody eating,

0:18:590:19:00

"everybody dressed and then out the door for school."

0:19:000:19:02

BABY GIGGLES

0:19:020:19:04

With quite a schedule to juggle,

0:19:040:19:06

Claire usually heads straight for the multipacks when she does

0:19:060:19:09

her shopping, hoping that they'll save her time and money.

0:19:090:19:12

I've got to go into the supermarket,

0:19:120:19:14

get in and get out with minimal fuss.

0:19:140:19:16

And even at the other end, when I'm unpacking it,

0:19:160:19:19

I can put one big pack of them away,

0:19:190:19:21

as opposed to lots of individual items.

0:19:210:19:23

Even storage in the cupboards -

0:19:230:19:25

if I can store a multipack easier in the cupboards,

0:19:250:19:30

than actual individual items.

0:19:300:19:31

With little space,

0:19:310:19:33

and lacking in space with seven of us in a small three-bedroom,

0:19:330:19:36

we have to think of space-saving, as well.

0:19:360:19:38

CHILDREN LAUGH

0:19:380:19:40

Claire finds multipacks ideal for quickly putting together

0:19:400:19:43

packed lunches for the children, as well...

0:19:430:19:45

I've got five packed lunches to make, so the waters,

0:19:450:19:48

the crisps and the treats - the chocolate treats -

0:19:480:19:51

I would definitely always buy those in a multipack, never individually.

0:19:510:19:55

..but Claire has never stopped to work out whether those multipacks

0:19:580:20:01

genuinely are saving her cash.

0:20:010:20:05

So, I would assume that, if I bought a multipack,

0:20:050:20:07

I would be saving money.

0:20:070:20:09

I've never checked. Again, if I'm rushing in and out,

0:20:090:20:11

I'm not going to spend any time looking at the cost of it

0:20:110:20:14

or calculating it,

0:20:140:20:15

but I would wholeheartedly assume that I'm saving money when

0:20:150:20:18

I buy in bulk, in multipacks.

0:20:180:20:21

DOG BARKS

0:20:210:20:23

So, to help Claire find out if she's getting the bargains she thinks

0:20:230:20:26

she is, we went along with her on a midweek shopping trip

0:20:260:20:29

and we took a good look at what she's brought back

0:20:290:20:31

from the supermarket.

0:20:310:20:33

Inside those shopping bags was a total of 16 products,

0:20:330:20:36

on which she spent £43.90.

0:20:360:20:39

I firmly believe that buying in multipack saves me money and leaves

0:20:400:20:44

more money for us to spend on other things for our family.

0:20:440:20:47

We've got our crisps in a 24-pack.

0:20:470:20:50

That'll probably last us about three or four days at the maximum.

0:20:500:20:53

We always buy chopped tomatoes in a multipack,

0:20:530:20:57

purely because we do a lot of chicken dishes and pasta and rice.

0:20:570:21:02

I would always pick water.

0:21:020:21:03

I would be drawn to this one,

0:21:030:21:05

because it's very easy to put... to pick up,

0:21:050:21:07

put in the trolley and get home easily with the children with me.

0:21:070:21:10

Claire is convinced that she's saved herself a packet,

0:21:120:21:14

but retail behavioural expert Phillip Adcock isn't so sure

0:21:140:21:18

that that's always the case.

0:21:180:21:20

We have been conditioned over our lives to think bigger packs

0:21:200:21:23

represent better value.

0:21:230:21:25

So, if you've got a small can and a big can,

0:21:250:21:27

you think the bigger can will be less per 100ml.

0:21:270:21:31

The supermarkets and brands work hard to give us

0:21:310:21:33

more product for less money, but there are exceptions to the rule.

0:21:330:21:36

Go in there eyes wide open.

0:21:360:21:37

'And to prove the point,

0:21:390:21:40

'Phillip is going to show me examples of multipacks

0:21:400:21:42

'from the big four supermarkets that really could save you money,

0:21:420:21:46

'as well as some that, on the days we looked online,

0:21:460:21:49

'weren't quite such a bargain.'

0:21:490:21:51

Let's start with the crisps, for example.

0:21:510:21:53

-This actually is a good deal.

-Ah.

0:21:530:21:55

We can buy six packets of Walkers salt-and-vinegar crisps,

0:21:550:21:58

and if we buy a six-pack, it costs us £1.50.

0:21:580:22:01

That is £1 per 100g.

0:22:010:22:03

If we buy one 32...

0:22:030:22:05

-That's just a single bag.

-A single bag.

0:22:050:22:07

As the foods go, it's a slightly bigger bag, but it's one bag -

0:22:070:22:09

that costs us 55p or £1.69 per 100g.

0:22:090:22:14

69% more expensive,

0:22:140:22:16

so the advice is, go and buy a multipack.

0:22:160:22:18

-So the multipack worked out well, then.

-Very well.

0:22:180:22:20

Let's go onto the juices. Children love the juices, don't they?

0:22:200:22:23

-Not so good.

-Not so good? OK.

-Not so good value.

0:22:230:22:25

If you buy eight, that'll cost you £2.98 or 18.6p per 100ml.

0:22:250:22:30

If you buy just a single 2.75ml bottle, just one, that's only 18.2p,

0:22:300:22:35

so it's cheaper per 100ml to

0:22:350:22:36

buy eight singles than one pack of eight.

0:22:360:22:39

In your mind, in the consumer mind,

0:22:390:22:40

-you'd think it'd be better than the pack.

-Yes, cos we've been trained.

0:22:400:22:43

-OK.

-Yes. We've got Maryland cookies.

0:22:430:22:45

You can buy two packs, a twin pack -

0:22:450:22:47

they're stuck together, in one bag, for £2.49.

0:22:470:22:51

That's 62p per 100g.

0:22:510:22:53

Or you can buy one times 230ml pack -

0:22:530:22:55

one, that's a bigger pack where there's only one -

0:22:550:22:57

for 47p per 100g.

0:22:570:23:00

That makes the twin pack 30% more expensive.

0:23:000:23:03

That is outrageous.

0:23:030:23:04

-It's cheeky.

-It is cheeky.

0:23:040:23:06

Now, of course, supermarket prices change all the time,

0:23:090:23:11

but on the day we checked quite a selection of multipacks,

0:23:110:23:14

most of the ones we looked at did offer good value for money.

0:23:140:23:18

Nonetheless, there were still a few that worked out more expensive than

0:23:180:23:21

if you'd bought the individual items.

0:23:210:23:23

Take, for example, this three-pack of Wispa bars.

0:23:250:23:28

When we shopped, we found it priced at £1.50 for three 30g bars -

0:23:280:23:33

so that's 50p a bar.

0:23:330:23:36

Meanwhile, a single 39g bar was 60p.

0:23:360:23:40

So, although at first glance

0:23:400:23:42

it looks like the multipack offers better value,

0:23:420:23:44

in fact, because the bars are smaller in the multipack

0:23:440:23:47

per gram of chocolate,

0:23:470:23:48

that individual bar works out better value.

0:23:480:23:52

Likewise, these Heinz Five Beanz,

0:23:520:23:54

on offer the day we checked at three tins for £2,

0:23:540:23:57

but you could get exactly the same size single tins for just 50p.

0:23:570:24:02

In other words, buying three separate tins rather than

0:24:020:24:04

the multipack would save you 50p - the price of a whole extra tin.

0:24:040:24:09

Now, supermarkets, on their websites,

0:24:090:24:11

do make these price differences clear,

0:24:110:24:14

but the time it takes working it all out may outweigh the benefit of

0:24:140:24:17

any possible savings.

0:24:170:24:19

And, after all, for many, including Claire,

0:24:190:24:22

the appeal of the multipack lies in its convenience.

0:24:220:24:25

But the good news is that Phillip thinks the examples we found are

0:24:250:24:29

an anomaly, and not a deliberate attempt to rip us off.

0:24:290:24:33

Supermarketing now, from the retailer's side and the brand side,

0:24:330:24:36

is so fast and so furious, they just can't keep up with themselves.

0:24:360:24:40

So, if they hear that Morrisons is doing a deal on eight-packs,

0:24:400:24:44

Tesco wants the same deal for Pepsi,

0:24:440:24:46

so they'll knee-jerk and match the deal,

0:24:460:24:48

and what happens is things get out of line.

0:24:480:24:50

And whereas we could totally trust everybody to give us the best value,

0:24:500:24:54

now it's down to us, because there is no one magic person

0:24:540:24:57

keeping an eye on all the prices - the bigger is better value.

0:24:570:25:00

As we've highlighted before,

0:25:020:25:04

the key to whether a product really is a bargain lies in the unit price

0:25:040:25:07

information, usually in the very small print on the shelf label,

0:25:070:25:11

and I'm afraid the only way to know for sure is to do your sums,

0:25:110:25:15

comparing those unit prices to work out which

0:25:150:25:17

is the best value for money.

0:25:170:25:20

Focus on the pence per ml, the pence per litre, the pence per gram.

0:25:200:25:23

Don't leave your brain in the car.

0:25:230:25:25

Treat supermarket shopping as a job of work.

0:25:250:25:27

There's lots of bargains to be had, lots of extra value,

0:25:270:25:30

but you've got to go out there and look for it.

0:25:300:25:32

Back at Claire's house, how did her purchases stack up?

0:25:350:25:38

Did she pick multipack bargains or multipack mark-ups?

0:25:380:25:42

Well, for 14 of the 16 items she bought,

0:25:430:25:45

she had got better value by buying the multipack.

0:25:450:25:49

The biggest saving was on crisps,

0:25:490:25:51

which were more than £7 less than she'd have paid for

0:25:510:25:54

the equivalent weight in individual packets.

0:25:540:25:56

But she lost out on two items in her trolley -

0:25:570:26:00

her chopped tomatoes and tuna.

0:26:000:26:02

The four-pack of chopped tomatoes cost £3.50

0:26:020:26:05

but, at the same store,

0:26:050:26:06

individual tins were on special offer at 50p each.

0:26:060:26:10

So buying four loose ones rather than the multipack

0:26:100:26:13

would, today at least, have saved her £1.50.

0:26:130:26:16

Similarly, individual tins of tuna were also on offer

0:26:160:26:20

at lower than their usual price of £1,

0:26:200:26:23

meaning it was cheaper to buy three tins that way

0:26:230:26:26

rather than spend £5 on the multipack.

0:26:260:26:29

But, overall, Claire's shop was a resounding vote of confidence

0:26:310:26:34

in the multipack.

0:26:340:26:35

She saved a grand total of £28.93,

0:26:350:26:39

compared to what she'd have paid buying the same foods individually.

0:26:390:26:43

Wow.

0:26:430:26:45

I can't believe it.

0:26:450:26:47

I would expect to have saved money, but not quite as much money as that.

0:26:470:26:52

If I'd have bought all of these items individually,

0:26:520:26:55

my shopping bill would have been nearly double what we actually paid,

0:26:550:26:58

so I'm absolutely flabbergasted.

0:26:580:27:01

Amazing.

0:27:010:27:03

Even so, she'd rather not have lost out on those two items

0:27:030:27:06

that weren't better value,

0:27:060:27:07

so while she'll still be heading for the multipacks

0:27:070:27:10

whenever she goes to the supermarket,

0:27:100:27:11

from now on, she might just take a look at some of the other deals

0:27:110:27:14

and special offers along the way.

0:27:140:27:17

In future, I'd like to think that I will check some of the multipacks to

0:27:170:27:22

see if they're on offer,

0:27:220:27:23

if it's actually saving the money to buy them individually,

0:27:230:27:26

but I don't think it will change the way I shop.

0:27:260:27:29

Erm, I'll just be confident that I am going to save some money.

0:27:290:27:33

-ALL:

-Yay!

0:27:330:27:37

Well, that's just about it for today,

0:27:390:27:41

but I do hope that you've been able to pick up some hints and advice

0:27:410:27:44

and what to keep in mind about the food you buy.

0:27:440:27:47

And, of course, you can also find more advice on our website.

0:27:470:27:50

The address is...

0:27:500:27:51

And from there you can also send us your own stories

0:27:540:27:56

for us to investigate -

0:27:560:27:57

whether they're about food or indeed any of the other topics

0:27:570:28:00

that we investigate throughout the year.

0:28:000:28:02

Well, we'll be back to look into more of your stories very soon,

0:28:020:28:04

but, until then, thanks for joining us

0:28:040:28:06

and, until next time, from all of us here, goodbye.

0:28:060:28:09

-Bye-bye.

-Bye-bye.

0:28:090:28:11

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