How you do your Groceries?

[beforewisdom]

I want to become vegan, but currently it seems quite difficult for me to do my groceries in normal supermarkets, as I spend a lot of time on reading product ingredients or googling vegan food. How do you normally do your groceries? Do you go to specialized stores, or maybe use some apps to check if the product is vegan? Did you also have struggles in the begging? Would be grateful for any recommendations

Why did you write "do your groceries" instead of "buying your groceries" or "shopping for your groceries"?

I go to supermarkets and food co-op that sells things similar to a Whole Foods, but cheaper.

I just read the ingredients lists on products. After a while you remember what products are vegan and what products are not so you don't have to do that as much.

 

[Veganite]

Why did you write "do your groceries"

I sometimes say that, myself. It simply refers to the task as a chore. For example my next chore is to "do my laundry". While I love grocery shopping myself, I know many people do consider it a chore.

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[HappyRoxy]

I'm in Australia. There are some social media accounts here, and each week they post the "Vegan Specials" for the major grocery stores. I tend to make a shopping list using what I see on those posts. It saves me from having to read ingredients. Plus, I'm always trying something new.

 

[Andy_T]

Hello Tanya,

I am coming to this quite late, as I just saw this thread mentioned in the « similar threads » section below another thread, but here in Germany, Lidl (supermarket chain) are doing a really nice job of clearly marking many vegan items as such with a yellow-and-green logo next to the price tag, that can help a lot.

I am also really happy that many of the items at Aldi and Lidl now have a vegan logo at the product, likely not, because they were made vegan on purpose, but because they already were accidentally vegan and many people (also omnivores) now see such a logo as a positive trait of a product.

 

[Lou]

Hello Tanya,

I am coming to this quite late, as I just saw this thread mentioned in the « similar threads » section below another thread, but here in Germany, Lidl (supermarket chain) are doing a really nice job of clearly marking many vegan items as such with a yellow-and-green logo next to the price tag, that can help a lot.

I am also really happy that many of the items at Aldi and Lidl now have a vegan logo at the product, likely not, because they were made vegan on purpose, but because they already were accidentally vegan and many people (also omnivores) now see such a logo as a positive trait of a product.

We haven't seen Tanya in 6 months so I don't feel bad about expanding the ideas here.

I read somewhere that for the longest time companies were reluctant to put the word "vegan" on their product because according to surveys and polling, people thought "vegan" translated to "tastes bad".

That does not appear to be the case anymore. One margarine product now labels itself as "Vegan Butter".

I saw a headline earlier today, but now I can't find it. but the headline said that a certain grocery store had put its non diary cheeses in with the regular cheeses. And sales of nondairy went up. I actually haven't read the article but I can't help wondering if sales went up because people bought the nondairy by accident. Also, me personally, I would never find the nondairy cheeses if they were mixed in with the other cheeses. Actually I kind of like it that the cheeses are in with other vegan foods.

At the supermarket the vegan cheeses are in the produce section along with tofu, udon noodles, and a few other specialty items. However yogurt and cream cheese are mixed in with other cream cheeses and yogurt.

 

[Veggyolky]

As some said before me, I can’t speak for others, but I personally check sales, x-tra prices and what items will be cheap the coming week (I do this on Sunday). After that I write a grocery list of the items I will be buying. Then I plan my coming meals using the items. I don’t go to special stores and I don’t buy any fake meats or so alike (nuggets, cheese, sauces and so on, I make my own) I only buy soymilk, oat milk and soy yogurt since I can’t make that at home. I need to stay in my budget so I usually go to the cheapest stores and buy cheap stuff like beans, rice, pasta, veggies and fruits and discounted household items.

If you have a greater budget than me (20$ a week) and like the fake meats and vegan substitutes then you can go al out and just enjoy checking what’s new and interesting!

Good luck mate!

 

[silva]

Why did you write "do your groceries" instead of "buying your groceries" or "shopping for your groceries"?

I go to supermarkets and food co-op that sells things similar to a Whole Foods, but cheaper.

I just read the ingredients lists on products. After a while you remember what products are vegan and what products are not so you don't have to do that as much.

This is like not seeing debris in lentils so you skip the wash--oops, found a rock!
I find products can change without any identification, unless they're labeled vegan. Like the candy Mambas--they were known for being vegan for years (they're like Starburst- fruit chews). They appeared at Aldi by the checkout so I figured I'd get a pack, and browsed the back to find gelatin got snuck in. I find this true for things like tub margarine, and packet gravy mixes. I think mostly true with US Aldi

 

[Amali]

I want to become vegan, but currently it seems quite difficult for me to do my groceries in normal supermarkets, as I spend a lot of time on reading product ingredients or googling vegan food. How do you normally do your groceries? Do you go to specialized stores, or maybe use some apps to check if the product is vegan? Did you also have struggles in the begging? Would be grateful for any recommendations

Try this scanning app vegofy.com/app