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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 28, 1984)
4 Portland Observer, March 28,1984 Generic labels add variety by Montne Stebbins W hat roared into the super* markets like a lion and has now gen tled down like a lamb? Generics! In the late 1970’s the consumer was in troduced to these very plain food labels. No fuss, no frills, no adver tising, lower cost and acceptable quality. A ll this was supposed to add up to big savings for the con sumer. But sales o f generics have been disappointing. Some kinds of generic foods are more available than others. Some, like frozen orange juice, have been well accep ted But the share of the market is now staying the same or shrinking instead o f the growth that was predicted. Some supermarket chains are trying to dress up the label. This becomes a little tricky when the selling point is that they’re supposed to be plain. They’re doing this with a band o f color or something very simple to give their generics a distinc tive look. Generics are often packed specifically for a super market chain, so there can be d if ferences between the generics in one store and in another. With the look alike labels, though, you can't really tell where a particular food product came from if you do like it and want to try that one again. Another way for grocery chains to make their budget items more distinctive has been to create a new private label. In other words, you may choose from nationally adver tised brands, regional advertised brands, store or house brands and now a new economy store brand. Generics, whether sold plain or as a budget house label, are usually C q uality. This is according to the government's A to C grading system. The A grade is usually sold under the national brand and the B under the store's house brand. A lower quality grade in food does not reflect lower safety standards or lower nutritive value. The quality standards are based on appearance of the product, uniform ity of size a n d /o r shape. Broken pieces or color may be a factor also. In my experience, the broken pieces in canned fruit may be related to the ripeness when it is canned. I like the flavor o f fully ripe fru it, but it is d iffic u lt to work with when can ning. When I purchased canned pears o f all three levels of labels— national, house and generic— the generic ones looked the least uniform but tasted the best. In most products, 80 percent of sales come from national brands and 20 percent come from a com bination o f house brand and generic, with generic seldom taking even 6 percent of that. Frozen foods are the one exception. Shoppers are choosing 71 percent o f their frozen vegetables under the store label, 26.5 percent as national brands and 2.5 percent in generics. Frozen fruits (67 percent) and juice (44 percent) are also popular under store brands. Here are a couple of recipes that feature fruits and vegetables that are often sold under generic labels. The fruit cobbler is one I entered in a contest at a fair nearly twenty years ago and won the grand prize. My favorite fruit to use in the recipe is canned apricots. Potatoes star in main dish salad Vi package dry onion soup mix le u Cook spinach and drain well. You can squeeze water out o f it by put ting it is a clean cloth and twisting. Combine spinach, sour cream, egg and soup mix in a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Bake uncovered in a 350* oven for about 20 minutes, or until set. 58c Assorted Coke Products 16 Oz Btls. Place canned fruit and sugar, if desired, into an 8 x 8 inch baking dish Dot with butler or margarine and place in 375* oven to heat. Make the pastry by combining the flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in shortening. Com bine egg yolk and water and then add to flour m ixture Blend well. Pat out this mixture into about an 8 x 8 inch square, cut into one inch strips and lay criss-cross over the heated fruit. Sprinkle with one tablespoon sugar. Bake at 350* for about 30 minutes. Serve warm either plan or with ice cream. D EE S C B E A M E D S P IN A C H I package frozen chopped spinach 8 ounces sour cream Bel-air Dinners S]99 • I ried Chit ken • Salisbury Sh ik • Turkey • Veal Piirn.tqian 11 Oz Pkg Plus Deposit Save 21 * Each Seneca Frozen Grape Juice Red Baron Frozen Pizzas Crest Toothpaste 89‘ $2 " $ j 29 Pamper’s Disposable Diapers p äiiip ^ 69 Save 40‘ Each Heq Gel Or Mart 6 4 0 / F R U IT COBBLER 2 cups canned fruit, including juice Vi cup sugar (optional) I Ibis, butter or margarine I cup flour I tsp. baking powder Vi tsp. salt Vi cup shortening ■ egg yolk Vi cup cold water Combine potatoes, cabbage, meat, celery and onion. Add com bined dressing and mustard; mix lightly. C h ill. Add cheese just before serving; mix lightly. 8 to 10 servings. W Pack Coca-Cola KrafTParkay Margarine Fine Table Margarine 1 Lb Pkg. I cup celery slices Vi cup green onion slices V* cup Italian dressing 1 tablespoon pure prepared mustard 8 ozs. natural Swiss cheese, cut into strips Good news! Salads aren’t just for side dishes anymore. N ow , these adaptable menu favorites are teaming up with a variety of popular protein sources to serve as sim ple—and simply delicious— main dishes. T hat’s really good news for the summer eating scene ahead and so is Alpine Potato Salad. 1 Vi qts. quartered cooked new potatoes 2 cups shredded red cabbage 2 cups ham strips A L P IN E POTA TO S A LA D • 8 0 / Wam Or Prestine!) • 6 0 / Gourmet Assorted Flavors 4 .s1 Your Choice $£99 Save $1.60 Each Asparagus Number 1 Asparagus Delicious Topped With Hollandaise Or Cheese Sauce1 Save $2.00 Reg Absorbent 72 Cl • Super Absorbent. 54 Ct • Toddler Absorbent 40 Ct SAFEW AY Ad Prices Good Wed . Mar 28 Thru Tues.. Apr 3 At All Safeways In The Immediate Area Of Originating Publication. Sales Limited To Retail Quantities. No Sales to Dealers Aunt Sue Raw Honey 3 Pound Fresh Tender päinPers Your Choice 3-Pound Honey Lucerne Yogurt r * s r. z r,
