baggers
bagging groceries
canned food
cat food
checkout
refrigerated items
target
trader joes
whole foods markets
Do you care how your groceries are bagged?
By autismfamily
@autismfamily (190)
United States
November 1, 2006 7:34pm CST
This happens more often than not. If I am busy unloading the grocery cart I do not find out until I load the bags into my minivan and there is the canned cat food with ice cream sandwiches on top!
One time the store manager put Sunny Delight with cat food. I told him I did not want those mixed and he made a big stink about how it did not matter.
What happened to the customer gets their choice on how their items they paid for gets bagged for their use?
Years ago, back in the late 70s and early 80s I had part time jobs at grocery stores. Usually weekends and nights as I had a full time job during the day.
They taught us how to bag items, and everyone knew that all refrigerated go in their own bag and the same with frozen foods.
Edible items should not be mixed in with automotive items, yet I have to keep telling them to put the oil or other fluid in a separate bag.
When did the common sense go out the window in the grocery stores? I do not have a driveway and sometimes have to park a block away and I will grab the frozen and refrigerated bags first and go home. Then after putting it all away I will go out for the rest, except now I have to check every single bag as they mix all the contents up.
Many times I tell them I will bag my own items and you would think I stole some items the way they treat me.
I stopped going to stores when they continue to do this and find new places. This does not seem to be a problem at Target, Trader Joes or Whole Foods Market.
So the question is, do you check what they are bagging into the bags and do you say something about what items they mix together?
11 people like this
35 responses
@moonstone22 (219)
• United States
2 Nov 06
My goodness, this is one of those subjects that can get me going for hours. Much of the issue, in my opinion, is that the stores do not train the baggers like they used to in previous years (I really did want to say the "old days") and part of it is that the baggers today don't really think in terms of how something is going to make it home. I have noticed that baggers that are our age and older tend to be thoughtful about the bagging, and don't fill a plastic bag with canned goods and your bread all together. I find that when I am in a grocery store, I turn into the "customer from h-ll" for the baggers that are not concerned about my purchases, because I am very firm about saying "please don't put those together" or "please double bag the frozen foods" or "please put that in a separate bag". I am polite, but I have been known to rebag things in front of them and to stand there until it is done correctly. I try not to cause a back up at the register, but I paid hard earned dollars for my items and I would like to get them home without bottles breaking, canned getting dented, bread getting flattened, or bleach contaminating or crushing the fruits and vegetables. Needless to say, there are some baggers at my regular store that determine it is "break time" when they see me in line.
Thanks for this topic, and the opportunity to vent a bit. Cheers.
3 people like this
@autismfamily (190)
• United States
3 Nov 06
Thanks so much for your detailed response. It is nice to know other shoppers are bothered by this and step in to get their products bagged the correct way.
1 person likes this
@LadyCroft (701)
• Australia
20 Feb 07
oooh what a great answer. I will do everything above if need be. I dont pay thier over priced prices just to have things squashed or broken by the time I get them home.
Well Said
@alena824 (376)
• Philippines
4 Nov 06
I live in the Philippines, and if this is your experience where you reside, then I didn't realize we were lucky here. Baggers here are trained to separate the food, non-food, frozen goods, etc. And even if a shopper doesn't care how he dumped everything on the check-out counter, they must bag things accordingly.
I'm trying to remember if this has been the practice before... anyway, I learned a long time ago to do my own separating at the counter. So I put all the canned goods, bottled products, toiletries, food in packs, in boxes, etc together to help out the baggers especially because i usually shop when everyone else is there and we do shop to last about 2 weeks at least.
What I do get annoyed about here is the slow pace of cashiers that holds up the line.
@autismfamily (190)
• United States
4 Nov 06
Thanks for sharing the checkout experience for your country. Interesting to know how it compares elsewhere.
1 person likes this
@maya_n_bennett (4687)
• United States
3 Nov 06
I care, I keep my eyes open good while they bag my grocery. Specially when high school student put the foods in the bags. If they mix the cold and hot, I let them know and make them put it in different bags. I one time had this girl put dish detergent with my bread. I was very surprised, almost laughed. I told her not to put the dish detergent with my foods. She didnt like me correcting her at all but if the people going to work in grocery store, they need to know that basic.
@autismfamily (190)
• United States
4 Nov 06
Wow putting the dish detergent into the bag with the bread is a big no-no. I had someone put dish detergent with paper plates. I had to toss out half the plates due to the detergent. I use the plates for the cat food and could not salvage them. Plus the scent would not be good for kittens.
1 person likes this
@AprilNicole1983 (564)
• United States
4 Nov 06
We always seperate cold stuff from "other" stuff as we put it on the belt for scanning. You would think it'd be common sense to the bagger, but then again, they're probably only getting paid minimum wage or just above and don't really care.
@juicemilk (2283)
• Australia
6 Nov 06
yeah i try and do that too, group things together on the counter
1 person likes this
@shawnasie (389)
• United States
4 Nov 06
I hate having items that are not alike in the same bag. I also was a cashier/bagger at a grocery store when I first started working and learned the appropriate ay to bag groceries. When I go shopping I now put like items together on the belt to get most of the items bagged correctly. I also go to an older cashier in hopes that they learned the correct way to bag from experience.
Shawnasie
@autismfamily (190)
• United States
4 Nov 06
Thanks for the reminder. I always place all the frozen and then refrigerated and the catfood is last, so how they end up putting the ice cream sandwiches on top of the catfood is bizarre.
Good tip on finding older cashiers who might be old school.
1 person likes this
@rusty2rusty (6763)
• Defiance, Ohio
4 Feb 07
I do care how my groceries are bagged. I expect all laundry soap or cleaners to be bagged seperate from my food. In case one would leak on the way home. My food will not be ruined. I place them on the conveyor seperate and request seperate bagging for that reason.
@autismfamily (190)
• United States
20 Feb 07
It has not made a difference that I place the items categorized on the belt, they still all get lumped together.
It is a shame that we have to request separate bagging and that it is not a common courtesy.
@cdvassell (181)
• United States
6 Nov 06
I have the same problem when I go to the grocery store. I always pay keen attention when they pack the grocery. Even when I unpack my cart the way I want it to be for example I normally take out all refridgerated items first, then the cans or bottles items, then the delicate items like the eggs , bread. As for meats, chicken I always unpack that lastly because I know they will end up in the grocery bags with the milk or with vegetables. Sometimes I offer to pack the groceries myself. Packing groceries is common sense but someone said common sense is not common after all.
@toonatoons (3737)
• Philippines
13 Jan 07
not exactly, unless i'm buying loaves of bread, in which case i have specific instructions in the way they'd be packed so they won't get deformed or anything.
1 person likes this
@Cortney (3980)
• United States
6 Nov 06
I don't care too much.. just don't put raw meat in with other stuff that doesn't get cooked. Don't put jars in the same bag. And don't put cleaning stuff or shampoos in with the food.
You would not beleive how many idiots will put raw chicken in with lettuce or other veggies that you don't cook.. I get so mad when they do that.
1 person likes this
@RitaS8 (384)
• United States
3 Nov 06
It depends. I like perishable to be put in paper bags and everything else to be put in plastic. I also like all the stuff that needs to be put in the freezer together and all the stuff that needs to go in the fridge together. That way I know what has to be put away first and what items I can put away later.
1 person likes this
@autismfamily (190)
• United States
4 Nov 06
Yes exactly Rita! This is how I want mine done so I can put the ones needed away ASAP and then unload the others at leisure and take care of other matters as well.
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45940)
• United States
3 Nov 06
They really need to train baggers better. I watch as they bag, and often have to remove soap from the bag that the bread or fruit is in. Also have had bread and canned goods in the same bag. Makes me nuts. I do frequent a local Aldi's and you have to bring your own bags and bag your own groceries. That is great for me! I know just how heavy I want the bags to be and I am sure that items don't wind up bag.
@autismfamily (190)
• United States
4 Nov 06
There is a chain here in CA called Food 4 Less that is bag your own. The nearest location is on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood and I have not been there in awhile, but whenever I pass it I make a pit stop for some items.
1 person likes this
@fiyahcreation (2140)
• United States
6 Nov 06
yes because i'm a little clumsy and I wouldn't want my eggs to fall out because I wasn't paying attention.
1 person likes this
@flowerchilde (12529)
• United States
5 Nov 06
Oh yes! Nothing worse than broken bags, squashed bread or broken eggs! Usually I go to a discount store where the customer does their own bagging.. so (like you said) I put all the frozen fooda=s together.. and all the refrigerator foods together.. and then distribute the cans.. etc..
1 person likes this
@ForbiddenBeauty (209)
• United States
4 Nov 06
I worked in highschool and my first year of college, endeding my over 3 years, with a mainstream grocery store, so I know how it is. They do not train baggers anymore at all, from people who have been there for awhile like i had been and from costumers you may get tips, but other than that its the baggers discretion. I usually would get mad at my baggers on my costumers behalf and endup having them go help another cashier bag, because i was faster and mre efficient than any of them. My pet peeve was eggs and bread, if you have two loaves of bread put them together THATS IT, if you have a thing of eggs and bread put eggs on bottom bread on top, not only are they safe, but it allows the bread to keep its shape no matter what. Although, If the costumer was an extremely rude non-compliant person, who decides to take out their bad day on you, thats when a lot of us liked to ennact our venagance, because if a costumer is going to be rude when i didnt deserve it and had given them respect, then why should i return it? Ill bag 8 cans with a bag of chips on purpose, if they didnt like it tough... be nice or bag your own damn grocerys make your choice. But if your a costumer that gets along with a cashier then i see no reason for the cashier to mutilate your groceries.
1 person likes this
@juicemilk (2283)
• Australia
6 Nov 06
I'm not too picky about it, but we only live a short walk from the supermarket.
As longs my bread and eggs are okay :)
I do hate how they will put all the bottles of drink or cans into one bag though cuz then they can break and i can't evenly distribute the weight when I'm walking
1 person likes this
@madmax2crazy (1569)
• United States
4 Nov 06
Gads yes, could go on forever on this subject but I'll sum it up by saying baggers today just don't care, they're working a minimal paying job with hardly any aspirations to advance. You've heard of the x generation well now we're in the "me" generation, all they care about is themselves and they hardly to that well either... fortunately for me I'm still strong enough to get a bag or two on each finger and carry the whole dang 150pd load inside to the kitchen counter to sort out lol
1 person likes this
