This article is shocking, but confirms my suspicions.
"If you’re picking up your ginseng or St. John’s Wort at Walmart, you may not be getting what you pay for. A recent investigation by the New York attorney general’s office found that many of the store-brand herbal supplements sold at Walmart, Target, Walgreen’s, and GNC didn’t contain any DNA from the plants listed on the label. Walmart was the worst offender of the bunch, with only 4% of products testing positive for the labeled ingredients. Its ginkgo biloba supplements were actually powdered radish, houseplants, and wheat, the New York Times reported". (only part of the article) Look below for the link.
I buy few supplements but never buy the Walmart brand. Imagine buying ginkgo biloba when you are allergic to wheat. I do not buy any medication made outside the US. Okay, Canada would be okay.
Other things mentioned:
Gift cards--your decision and my solution
Food--I price match
Wrapping supplies--I buy only on deep clearance or at garage sales, same with cards.
Furniture--would not have their furniture if it were given to me.
There is MORE.
Your turn
Do you buy Walmart brand supplements? Any supplements? Where do you buy gift cards, food, wrapping supplies, and furniture. Of course, if there is no Walmart close by, never mind...lol.
I made a new year's resolution to stop shopping at WM. I haven't bought anything from them in over 6 months, but then recently my daughter needed something that only they carry, so I ordered it online. It was not a big purchase though. Not surprised about the supplements. That's terrible.
ReplyDeleteBecause of the electric carts, I sort of have to shop there. However, I will not buy any WM brand of food or supplements. Some of this comes from China. China will poison their own babies with milk laced with melamine. Why should I trust them just to save money?
DeleteHaving owned a health food store I only buy supplements from brands I know to be superior - Now Foods and Swanson's own brand, thru Amazon.
ReplyDeleteFood - shop almost exclusively at Walmart, best prices as the only other feasible stores Publix and Winn Dixie - other stores are more than 5 miles away. What I do buy is organic produce, some dairy, bread and Smucker's natural peanut butter.
Greeting cards and wrapping supplies I buy at Dollar Tree exclusively.
Gift cards - I only buy Amazon and thru them.
I also use Amazon's Subscribe and Save for many of my boxed groceries like MoriNu Tofu, Vital Wheat Gluten (to make seitan), Simply Organic brand spices, because they have the best prices.
Tom, there are many other stores here. I feel bad about it, but I price match at WM for most things. I do go to the Farmer's Market for produce, beekeepers for honey, fruit I can find free around country or town. I do buy Smucker's Natural Peanut butter. Since I cannot eat dairy or wheat, I don't buy it anywhere.
DeleteThanks for the rundown.
Sixty Minutes found that even the supplement brands recommended by Chopra and other health gurus didn’t contained much if any of the substances listed on the label. So, how is that you know which brands to trust? What little I buy, I buy from Costco (Kirkland is their store label) because their other products are so good, I figure that maybe their supplement products are the same, but I can’t say that I know this to be true.
DeleteSnowbrush,
DeleteI had not heard that. It's said to have to go on bling trust and then find out your trust was betrayed.
I joined the boycott Walmart movement a while back, though I did go last week. We were at the lake and needed a few things and Walmart is the only shopping option other than Dollar general which did not have what we needed. Walmart prices seem to have risen to the point of absurdity. I find much better toiletry deals shopping CVS, Walgreen, or Rite Aid sales
ReplyDeleteAnne,
DeleteIt is interesting to hear from someone who boycotted and then had to return. I did shop more places until I needed an electric cart. In this town, the WM prices are usually the lowest.
I loathe Walmart with a passion. They are to retail what Trump is to politics, that is they'll do any damn thing they can get away with while boasting of their good will and integrity.
DeleteSnowbrush,
DeleteI do agree. Once, I shopped there little. Now, I am dependent on the electric carts and averse to walking into so many stores. I never buy their brands at all.
I never shopped at Walmart when we lived on the mainland, but we have very few shopping options here on Kaua'i, so Walmart fills a niche. They have the best/same prices for toiletries (shampoo, for example) that we bought on the mainland, and the lowest prices for some of the food items that we use (especially Asian products). They're practically the only place to get school supplies. I don't think we've ever bought medicine there, or supplements, other than Tums. Otherwise we buy almost everything at Costco, and then fill in the gaps with Walmart, local groceries, or order through Amazon Prime. We get all our produce at the farmers' market, which runs year-round here.
ReplyDeleteNomad,
DeleteYou have an unusual perspective. Thanks for the explanations of what is available. Look up the info on heartburn products and the connection to dementia. A year-round market sound wonderful. I would not be in a store for produce if we had a market with local produce.
I do not shop at Wal-mart lest I appear on that ghastly website.
ReplyDeleteI doubt you have the qualities to make the website.
Delete