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Happy Cheapskate | Bulk store vs. grocery store

Nancy Walsh's quest this week is to see if bulk store ingredients are really cheaper than regularly priced or bulk-style goods in the grocery store.

Nancy Walsh CBC News Posted: Oct 29, 2014 4:49 AM EDT | Last Updated: October 29, 2014

At Dominion, lots of cake ingredients are No Name only. (CBC)

I've been lucky.Inever had to make my own Christmas cake.I've been blessed with an alarmingly dutiful mother, the kind who cares for sick relatives and knits sweaters for new babies.

Aside from raising a daughter who doesn't deserve her, her other greatest achievement is her Christmas cake.

Moist, heady, sweet. Light and heavy at the same time. Not too much alcohol and, happily, completely devoid of those gnarly bits of hard fruit that have all the appeal of the shot in Uncle Lloyd'sturrs.

My friend Deirdre usually gives me a cake, too, her blonde one asdrool-inducinglygood as my mother's dark.

My grandmother's way to get rid of the last of the Christmas cake? Slap on some icing! (CBC)

If you are one of those generous bakers who bestows a cake on a miserable friend or relative, thank you.And keep 'em coming!

My quest this week was to see if bulk store ingredients were really cheaper than regularly priced or bulk-style goods in the grocery store.The short answer: Not always.

I visited the Bulk Barn on Topsail Road and the Dominion stores onStavangerDrive and atQuidiVidiLake.

Some highlights:

Dominion was the cheaper place for all-purpose flour, but only if you buy a back-breaking 10 kilogram bag. Otherwise, flour, sugar and peels are pretty comparable.
I found the weigh scales at Bulk Barn accurate. Those in the grocery stores were not.
The Bulk Barn is tonnes of fun to shop in, with great weird stuff (Organic black beluga lentils? Excellent!), lots of varietyand heaps of seasonal goodies.

For easy comparison, the prices are adjusted based on the cost of 100 grams.

I hope the chart below helps.

Nancy's price chart
	Bulk Barn (100 g)	Dominion: Regular size (100 g)	Dominion: Bulk size or bin (100 g)
Flour, all purpose	22 (Five Roses)	24(Robin Hood, 3 kg bag)	15(Robin Hood,10 kg bag)
Sugar, white	13	16(Lantic, 2 kg)	13(Lantic, 10 kg)
Sugar, yellow	22	30 (2 kg bag)	N/A
Walnut pieces	$2.56	$2.25(No Name, 400 g)	$2.49 (loose bin)
Cherries, red, glace	$1.14	$1.78(No Name, 225 g)	N/A
Raisins,Sultana	42	$1.11(No Name 375 g)	79 (loose bin)
Raisins, Golden	98	87 (No Name 375 gr)	N/A
Mixed peel	99	88(No Name 225 gr)	N/A
Dried fruit regular	81	89 (450 gr)	N/A
Coconut, unsweetened medium	$1.08	92(400 gr)	89 (Loose bin)
Apricots, Turkish	$2.83	N/A	$1.49 (Loose bin)

About the Happy Cheapskate

Like most of us, I hate getting ripped off. Or worse, feeling ripped off.

There are some things worth a higher price to me. I'll fork over cash for a brand name pair of running shoes. I bought cheap ones before and they hurt.

I'll pay for premium chocolate on occasion, but Cadburyrocks my world.

I refuse to pay for a frozen food product that has been bleached, battered, covered in oil and salt and made out to be something nutritious.

The Happy Cheapskate is all about value. Join me as I search for it.

If there's anything you'd like me to look into, email me.

Follow Nancy Walsh on Twitter at @nancywalshcbc.

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Happy Cheapskate | Bulk store vs. grocery store

About the Happy Cheapskate

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