Sugar Rant, Bread And Tea

[Jingthing]

I recently made the mistake of buying some "black sesame bread" at Tops. I think I tried it years ago but don't recall it being so sickeningly SUGARY as it is now. Which made me think about a recent incident I had with a local minimart. They carry some Oishi green teas and I told them if they stocked the SUGAR FREE flavor of their tea that I would buy many bottles from them on a regular basis. This is a very low volume store and I knew they would be interested. So I checked back some days later and was told, sorry no, it is Oishi's policy to not ever stock their SUGAR FREE version of green tea to smaller markets, no exceptions. Now this market has a large foreigner potential customer base, and I do think foreigners are more likely to want the sugar free version than Thais. But no go.

So as Thais get fatter, don't wonder too much about what's happening.

[sangfroid]

I find it very difficult to buy canned fruit (peaches, pears etc) which are not canned in "heavy syrup" This stuff is diabetes in a can. In Australia you can buy all kinds of fruit canned in it's own juice but not here. Has any one found a source in Bangkok

[JimShortz]

I find it very difficult to buy canned fruit (peaches, pears etc) which are not canned in "heavy syrup" This stuff is diabetes in a can. In Australia you can buy all kinds of fruit canned in it's own juice but not here. Has any one found a source in Bangkok

I also cannot find tinned fruit that is not in heavy syrup, but just recently (you won't believe this ;-0) I have noticed an abundance of fresh fruit available almost everywhere I go. Now, I know it's not as good as the tinned stuff, but it's really not bad. You should try it yourself...

[lomatopo]

Oishii's sugar-free green tea has a white cap. Maybe best to wait until it goes on sale at Tesco, or some other retailer, then buy enough to hold you through. The sale price is usually 16 baht or 2 for 30 baht. This week at Foodland it is 16 baht. It seems odd that you'd try to adjust computerized retail stocking systems with a vague promise to some hourly employee? You can, of course, still rant.

[Jingthing]

Oishii's sugar-free green tea has a white cap. Maybe best to wait until it goes on sale at Tesco, or some other retailer, then buy enough to hold you through. The sale price is usually 16 baht or 2 for 30 baht. This week at Foodland it is 16 baht. It seems odd that you'd try to adjust computerized retail stocking systems with a vague promise to some hourly employee? You can, of course, still rant.

Did you read my OP? I was talking to a tiny minimart. Not a chain. A tiny operation. I know I could buy the item in bulk but believe it or not I wanted to support my tiny local market. I also tend to buy the tea wherever I am around town, but if I'm near home, I would have bought it there. Why would I make a promise to a tiny business if I wasn't serious? Its amazing the bizarre and often insulting back stories people assume about stories without any basis. Do you think some nameless clerk would have reported back to me on my query? GEEZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In any case, the obvious LARGER issue is Oishis (and how many other companies?) policy of NOT offering their healthier version of their products very widely. Here in Pattaya, even at chains like 711/Family Mart, only about a third of them stock the sugar free version. Of course I don't know whether that was the chain manager's decision or Oishis based on volume estimates, but I DO know about my tiny local nonchain market. They were told, they are not allowed to sell it, and I find that atrocious.

Edited September 20, 2010 by Jingthing

[bkkjames]

Jt, u assume it's oishi's policy.....

If I were to bet, sounds more like the store doesn't want to stock it. Perhaps there are minimums in play here?

Solution: give the mini-mart 500 baht to stock up for you and coupons you can use to draw down as required.

Now, if I can just get my local minimart to stock parma ham...

[ignis]

local mini mart maybe NO

Myself in the next Village is a few shops, market, 7/11 etc, One shop the owner she is Chinese has 2 sons and a daughter all speak good English, the sort of shop that has all the big sacks and boxes of stuff on the floor, she will find anything you want and stock it, buy lots of things every week from here... Pepsi Max, very hard to find even in the main Supermarkets 16 km away. I asked the Chinese Lady, no problem a week later she had, so far in the last 2 years she has always had it when I asked for a box.. + the price box of 12 is 260 baht, now if Tesco Express ever has it the price is 24 baht per bottle, and 7/11 is 27 baht.

For the past year have also seen she now stocks Pepsi Max and Coke Zero in the drinks fridge

Never used yet as I have a car, but they have 2x pickups and a motorbike, often seen one of the sons making deliveries

Edited September 21, 2010 by ignis

[MrJohnson]

I find it very difficult to buy canned fruit (peaches, pears etc) which are not canned in "heavy syrup" This stuff is diabetes in a can. In Australia you can buy all kinds of fruit canned in it's own juice but not here. Has any one found a source in Bangkok

I also cannot find tinned fruit that is not in heavy syrup, but just recently (you won't believe this ;-0) I have noticed an abundance of fresh fruit available almost everywhere I go. Now, I know it's not as good as the tinned stuff, but it's really not bad. You should try it yourself...

Wow! What a revelation. Thanks Jim, I'm gonna try that! Who'd have thought, fresh fruit! And all this time I've been chasing that tinned stuff.

[ignis]

I also cannot find tinned fruit that is not in heavy syrup, but just recently (you won't believe this ;-0) I have noticed an abundance of fresh fruit available almost everywhere I go. Now, I know it's not as good as the tinned stuff, but it's really not bad. You should try it yourself...

No idea what you need tinned fruit for ?

Much cheaper than tins or Market/Fresh is go to Makro... 1kg bag of frozen Peaches 99 baht, 1kg bag of frozen Strawberries 89 baht, + lots of other fruits Kiwi, Blueberries etc

[Jingthing]

My point on Oishi is that Oishi is an EXAMPLE of a wider problem. They produce a sugar free green tea. All their other teas are loaded with sugar, yet even the CHOICE to buy the healthier product does not exist at most outlets that sell their tea.

On the bread example, yes I know Thai people tend to like sugary breads. But the sugar in the bread I mistakenly bought was overwhelming. It wasn't bread. It was cake. What about labeling such things as sugar bread?

Edited September 21, 2010 by Jingthing

[xen]

The Thai population in general needs no encouragement to consume sugar . It would make marketing sense to make sugar free drinks/green teas available even in smaller quanities. It amazes me that if i go into a place like Black Canyon that i can't get a fruit based drink that does not require washing out my mouth with water later to eliminate the taste of sugar . Where is the choice ??? I love lemon juice. I can eat a lemon whole . Yet if i order "lemon juice" it tastes like liqid sugar with a lemon cordial flavour. They loose another customer.

[Jingthing]

Yeah, that's my point. OK, so most people may usually choose the unhealthy option, but if even the CHOICE isn't widely available, that's a very negative thing.