Editors’ Picks: Store-brand foods beat national brands

A blind taste-test study by experienced food tasters has found 23 of 29 “store-brand” foods that taste as good as, if not better than, their national-brand competitors, according to the new issue of Consumer Reports.

The Yonkers, N.Y.-based consumer watchdog magazine’s study found store-brand foods have moved beyond their generic, no-frills and often inferior predecessors, and are picking up market share while maintaining a significantly lower retail price than the national brands.

“Our tests should erase any lingering doubts that store-brand packaged goods aren’t at least worth a try. In many cases, you’ll save money without compromising on quality,” senior project editor Tod Marks said in a release.

For example, the magazine said in its October issue, tasters “actually preferred” Target’s Archer Farms Chewy Soft Baked cookies, Costco’s Kirkland Signature Organic Medium Salsa and Walmart’s Great Value Whipped Topping and Great Value Au Gratin potatoes (Walmart) to similar products from Pepperidge Farm, Old El Paso, Betty Crocker and Kraft.

Another 19 store-brand foods tied their national-brand competitors, the magazine said, noting stalemates between Duncan Hines Family Style Chewy Fudge and Target’s Market Pantry Fudge brownies, and between Grey Poupon and Publix’s GreenWise Market Organic mustard.

National brands won out in six out of the 29 taste tests, including Ocean Spray Craisins, KC Masterpiece Original barbecue sauce, Oscar Mayer pre-cooked bacon, Quaker Natural Granola Oats, Honey and Raisins cereal, and Kellogg’s Pop Tarts.

Generally, however, compared to their predecessors, spawned from the double-digit inflation of the 1970s, current store brands “enjoy more prominent placement on shelves, snazzier packaging, more promotion, and, in general, higher manufacturing standards than in years past,” Marks said.

Sales of generics used to fluctuate with the economy, but sales of today’s store brands are steadier, meaning the store brands are “here to stay,” food retail consultant Jim Hertel said in the Consumer Reports article.

The magazine cited an NPD Group study showing that last year almost a quarter of all food and beverages served in U.S. homes were store brands, up 18 per cent since 1999.

Consumer Reports estimated a family of four could now save as much as $1,168 a year on dinner (all figures US$) by replacing just four national-brand products with store-brand goods, assuming that family eats the same meal every day.

Store-brand foods in the study cost an average of 27 per cent less than major-label counterparts, which is about as much as consumers will find across all product categories, experts told the magazine.

Other price comparisons were more dramatic, the magazine said, noting Costco’s store-brand vanilla extract is 35 cents per ounce, compared to $3.34 for McCormick’s.