Brand names?

[rideaway]

Is there any grocery type items that you buy that absolutely have to be the name brand?

Normally, I buy store brand, but there are a few things that I only buy name brand, unless I'm so broke I can't squeeze the pennies enough. I buy Dawn dishsoap, Miracle Whip, Best Foods Mayonnaise and Crisco.

What do you splurge on for brand names?

[hillbillygal]

I always buy Duke's mayo if it is for home use. I buy the off-brand if it's for a cookout because for some reason my stuff never makes it back home with me. I buy Mrs. T's pierogies. And on the rare occasion I buy hamburger helper it is the name brand on deep discount. And trash bags I usually buy Glad if I have the money.

[pcrowder]

ERA detergent for sure! It's the only thing that will get our filthy farm clothes clean the first time! And, d/h will only eat Miracle whip, but for the rest of the stuff, as long as it's not made in China :P, then I'm okay with it.

[anna]

Miracle Whip & Pepsi. Since I'm allergic to most soaps I stick to Ivory and unscented Tide. Oh, M & M's definitely perfer the original! Mostly I shop Aldis and store brands.

[leera]

I agree on the M&M's...... ;D

Other than that the only time I really stick to name brands is with pet food.....I like to give them high quality,and not switch them around.......

I shop at Aldi when I need to stock up for a few months......for little things I shop Kroger on the way home from work.....

As for mayo.....I'm not picky.I buy the store brand whipped salad dressing....it all tastes like Miracle Whip to me,can't stand regular plain old mayo.....

[Deberosa]

I also stick with one brand of Dog food - cat gets whatever. That' because of the illusion that one brand is consistent over time...

There is a local brand of Oatmeal that I always get, but it's not a national brand.

I want to start making my own mayonaise out of fresh eggs. Also get out of buying any salad dressings,etc. I have a friend who doesn't buy any of that stuff - just mixes them up when she needs them.

Other than that can't think of anything that has to be a certain brand for me. Especially since finding out that stuff like brand name peanut butter comes from the same batch as the cheap stuff - because the whole batch gets e-coli at the same time!

[hillbillygal]

ERA detergent for sure! It's the only thing that will get our filthy farm clothes clean the first time! And, d/h will only eat Miracle whip, but for the rest of the stuff, as long as it's not made in China *:P, then I'm okay with it.


I've never used ERA. How does the price compare to the other brands? I may need to switch if it's really good!

[gump]

Science Diet. The dog seems to like it as well ;)

[Deberosa]

Science Diet. *The dog seems to like it as well *;)
Science diet was one of those contanimated with stuff from China that was killing dogs and cats!

[bee_pipes]

Had a dog I raised on Science Diet years ago - she did extremely well and was healthy. My wife was feeding IAMs to her dogs when I met her, so we kept feeding it - they too were doing well. Now with 4 dogs the stuff has gotten a bit too expensive. We are in the process of switching them again to the brand the feed store carries. Dog food is one thing I'd like to replace with stuff we can raise here. Just hasn't become a priority yet.

The name brand dog foods are good, in that they get good results, but they are like prepared foods - you're playing russian roulette with the global supply line. There have been some really good items mentioned in this thread, like penutbutter, and time to take another look at exactly what we buy in town and how we would go about replacing it with locally produced products. I think we're going to try penuts this year...

Regards,
Pat

[pcrowder]

I've never used ERA. *How does the price compare to the other brands? *I may need to switch if it's really good!
-------------
It's pretty expensive, but it truly takes out tractor grease, goat poop, and anything else vile you can think of and 99% of the time, it gets it out the first time! I must admit I use really cheapie detergent (or some of my homemade stuff) when I wash stuff like sheets & towels and other stuff that doesn't get really dirty. I "save" the Era for the really nasty stuff because it IS so expensive!

[pcrowder]

Also - wash in the hottest water the fabric will stand with Era - and it does make a GREAT presoak too! Sorry to sound as if I'm "hawking" it, but I finally found something that will truly get the clothes clean the first time! Unfortunately, some of the grocery stores don't stock it, so I'm forced to go to - gulp - Wallyworld to get it...and not all of them have it either. It's cheaper to buy it in the BIG jug with the spigot, but I have arthritis, and it's hard sometimes to set it up on top of the washer to fill the cup, so I take my old Era jugs and refill them from it...It really DOES make a difference in the cleanliness of the clothes.

[onelook]

I must buy Maxwell House. Can't get hubby to drink anything else. Tried the gradual switcheroo, but he noticed.

Have to agree about the M&M's...Nothing can compare.

We feed 'Diamond' brand pet food. It may not be a national brand but is available at many feed stores and Rural King in our area
(Southern Illinois)

We prefer to use organic foods when possible.

I heard a rumor (Urban Legend) about the milk available at Wallyworld. Seems it is full of hormones :o and supposedly is causing our little ones to hit puberty earlier and earlier.
Has anyone heard about this?

[leera]

The rumor about milk being full of hormones is true......not just WallyWorld milk though,pretty much any brand that does not clearly state on it that it doesn't.I can't remember right now what the abreviation is.

I do not know if that is the cause of girls hitting puberty earlier and earlier,but it couldn't hurt to cut out the milk that does contain those hormones.

I have no children myself,so I really don't keep up on too many things related to raising them.

[onelook]

Our daughter is grown now, and has our only grandson, (what a joy he is!! :D) We keep him regularly, so we try to give him organic as often as we can. Daughter & husband are picky about what he eats...little or no sweets, lots of fruits & vegetables, etc. We do try to abide by their 'rules' but you know the saying "What happens at Grandma and Grandpa's house stays at Grandma & Grandpa's."

[FirestarterKY]

I was a Tide only user but this week bought a cheap detergent and a box of borax....just to see how it does.
Use a 1/4 cup borax and a 1/4 cup of detergent...we'll see....
I am hooked on downey.....sigh....
I also use purina dog food for our dog.....used it for 13 years for our Rotty with great results.
However.....I know a lady who has a kennel of Carin Terriers, and she's a natualist, found giving her dogs all wild raw meat has created great results. Where her dogs would have 3 maybe 4 pups, they now have 5 or 6 each litter. She is know in her little county in Marion KY that if ever there is fresh road kill she is called. She gets it and has her own little meat processing building with saws and freezers.....lol! She's wild!
Speaking of the milk thing.....that is exactly why I want a milk cow.
It would sell like gold I'll bet.
I wish I lived closer to the amish, I'd get my milk from them all the time.
they are 80 minutes round trip.

[Funkhouser]

In North Carolina, there's Duke's Mayo and everything else is sandwich spread. LOL

I buy Purex Free & Clear (unless I can get a BOGO plus coupon on a comparable F&C type detergent for less).

Everything else? Store-brand if I can help it. Most of the Great Value (Wal-Mart store brand) grocery items I buy are just as good if not better than the comparable name-brand merchandise.

[DM]

My mom always used Tide and always said it was the best... I've tried other brands, but always liked Tide best too...

After reading this thread, i was at WW and noticed Era was quite a bit cheaper than Tide... (same amount of loads per container) So, i bought a big container of Era... I just put a load in using it a few ago, so i'm hopeing i like it for more than it's price... lol

One thing i noticed right off is, the jug that Era comes in, is "exactly" the same size and shape as my old Tide jug! The soap is even the same color... :o Era just looks a bit more concentrated... Even the cap and lines on the cap for how much to use are exactly the same!

I wonder is Era is just a more concentrated Tide? ::)

DM 8)

[Deberosa]

* My mom always used Tide and always said it was the best... * I've tried other brands, but always liked Tide best too...

*After reading this thread, i was at WW and noticed Era was quite a bit cheaper than Tide... *(same amount of loads per container) *So, i bought a big container of Era... *I just put a load in using it a few ago, so i'm hopeing i like it for more than it's price... *lol

*One thing i noticed right off is, the jug that Era comes in, is "exactly" the same size and shape as my old Tide jug! *The soap is even the same color... * :o *Era just looks a bit more concentrated... *Even the cap and lines on the cap for how much to use are exactly the same!

*I wonder is Era is just a more concentrated Tide? ::)

*DM *8)
I use ERA first because it's cheaper and second because it says "safe for septics" on the label and I couldn't find that on Tide. I won't use it if it doesn't specifically say that but hey - alot of good it did!

ERA seems to work fine but it's been a long time since I even use Tide to compare. I only use a quarter cup for a big load because I have a front load washer (again to save water and the septic!!!).

[Katrina-Sisu]

Most of the time here in Finland, storebrand tastes better than namebrand lol.

We have allergy-free pizzas which are sooo good. Gluten and lactose free and no spices. I can eat them and they're brandname Ateria, but cheap! Horsemeat and cow meat..mmm.

Namebrand coffee here is superb compared to storebrand. Some of the storebrand coffee we've tried can eat paint off the walls.

Outside of coffee and pizza, everything else is storebrand.

Kat

[theresehirko]

I buy the toilet paper that is recycled. I currently bought the Seventh Generation brand. Other than that and Hellman's mayo, we don't buy name brands.