1327 days ago

Putting It Back On The Consumer

Marie from Waikanae

It felt like a cruel joke, when the brown paper bag from the supermarket arrived in my mailbox last week. I stared at it in disbelief as I read the instructions to fill the bag with groceries to help a family in need.
"I cant believe they did that" I muttered and threw the bag in the recycle bin.
The supermarkets have made millions in profits over the past two years while the rest of us mere mortals struggled to make ends meet. The first thing they did when the pandemic began was to remove all specials from the shelves. My shop went up by around $50 per week and its kept going from there. Some people report that their former $150 shop now costs $300 or more. Food costs only make up approx 18% of the CPI, so the real cost of food increases is somewhat hidden.
Demand for food parcels has risen exponentially and many working families are now queuing at the food banks as people struggle with these rising costs. So now that the supermarkets are raking it in, they have decided to put it back on the consumer and ask them to foot the bill. Not only are we paying round 50% more for our food, but we are supposed to dig deep and support the people the supermarkets have priced out of the market. All the while making the supermarket look like the good guys. The arrogance is gob smacking.
If I was a food bank manager right now I'd probably feel I had to bite my tongue and accept the goods, but it would feel like the Tobacco Industry funding cancer research. I refuse to support this disingenuous piece of marketing. What do others think?

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More messages from your neighbours
5 days ago

Poll: Is it ok to regift something that you have been given?

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

🎁 Holiday Gift Chat!

Do you ever regift?
What’s your take on asking for a receipt if a gift doesn’t fit?

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Is it ok to regift something that you have been given?
  • 79.9% Yes! It's better to regift what I don't need
    79.9% Complete
  • 20.1% No. It's the thought and effort that matters
    20.1% Complete
929 votes
3 days ago

Today’s Mind-Bender is the Last of the Year! Can You Guess It Before Everyone Else? 🌟🎁🌲

The Riddler from The Neighbourly Riddler

I dance in the sky with green and gold, a spectacle few are lucky to behold; I’m best seen in the south, a celestial sight—what am I, lighting up the New Zealand night?

Do you think you know the answer? Simply 'Like' this post and we'll post the answer in the comments below at 2pm on the day!

Want to stop seeing these in your newsfeed? No worries! Simply head here and click once on the Following button.

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2 days ago

Driven On The Akatarawa Rd Lately?

Marie from Waikanae

If so, its good to know you are still alive and reading this.

We have a function to go to over Christmas up that way and having heard a few hairy stories about the road, I went up there on Thursday to check it out. The road's ok, narrow and winding, but not much worse than a Wellington hill suburb. What was pretty scary was the behavior of other drivers. Three vehicles heading the other way at speed would have crashed into me if I hadn't been pulled off the road. I had pulled in to check the address when a truck came flying past, taking up all of the narrow road at speed. There is no way the driver would have been able to stop had they come around the corner immediately in front of me. The other two drivers came hurtling past as I had turned in to turn around and come back down the hill. They were also driving at speed and taking up most of the road. Coming back down I passed another car coming up and estimate that the safe speed to pass another car was about 30-35 kms.p.h. So, now we're thinking, do we go to the function or not.? Feels a bit like we're taking our life in our hands going up there. Drivers appear to be overconfident, and they are courting serious injury.