On Jan 12, 8:39�am, Omelet > wrote:
> In article 0>,
> �Wayne Boatwright > wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > On Mon 12 Jan 2009 05:49:05a, Nancy Young told us...
>
> > > Serene Vannoy wrote:
> > >> Mark Thorson wrote:
> > >>> Banned for life from popular Berkeley market
> > >>> for taking samples. �And he deserves it!
>
> > >>>http://cbs5.com/local/berkeley.bowl.ban.2.823933.html
>
> > >>> I don't know about the guy using "too much"
> > >>> cream and sugar in his coffee. �Did it exceed
> > >>> the volume of the coffee? �Was he feeding his
> > >>> family off this stuff? �That would be an abuse.
> > >>> I remember hearing stories about during WW2
> > >>> people would abuse sugar offered at restaurants
> > >>> and diners because it was rationed.
>
> > >> Thing is, at least with the produce, the Berkeley Bowl will GIVE you a
> > >> sample of any fruit you want, so there's no need to steal it. I am so
> > >> annoyed with people who stand there nibbling away at the produce I'm
> > >> about to buy.
>
> > > There was an article in the paper some time ago about these
> > > grazers, especially at a local orchard/produce place. �People
> > > would walk in, grab a bag of grapes or a bunch of cherries and
> > > eat them as they shopped. �Like Aesop's fable, they'd get to the
> > > checkout swinging an empty bag. �
>
> > > Berkeley Bowl's farmers must be losing a fortune for them to
> > > take such drastic measures. �I imagine there were big signs
> > > that people ignored.
>
> > > Not sure about the coffee thing. �I have seen people put
> > > 10 packets of sugar into a cup of coffee. �I don't know if
> > > it qualifies people to be banned or whatever.
>
> > > nancy �
>
> > I agree with the issue of "sampling" fruit. �However, preferences in sugar
> > and cream in coffee vary widely. �If the store feels they need to limit
> > that, then they should post a sign by the coffee bar noting the limits. �
> > When coffee is offered free, most people would naturally assume that the
> > sugar/sweetner and cream would also be free to the degree that they need
> > it. �It's not as though they're filling their pockets with it.
>
> As long as they are consuming it on the premises and not taking it home,
> I don't see what the problem is.

Of course, the retailer does extensive sampling before purchasing
produce. Used to be every produce market would offer samples, in fact
they'd aggresively push them on you, they'd slice apples, oranges,
plug melons, etc. I see no crime in sampling produce... providing
it's a sample, not eating the entire pound of grapes. At the market
in town where I shop the produce employees when asked will gladly
offer samples of cut fruit, especially summer fruit... there'll
invaribly be a platter of quartered peaches, nectarines, plums,
apricots, melon hunks etc. right at the display. Stores offer samples
because they know that by doing so customers are more apt to buy and
far less apt to over sample. Many larger food stores hire an army of
sample attendants stationed in practically every aisle... I can assure
you they are not losing any money with this practice.

As to the occasional patron apparently abusing the cream/sugar in
coffee... if the proprietor can't afford that kind of occasional
customer they've no business being in business... banning someone is
obviously an issue of control, that sort of proprieter needs
professional psychiatric counseling. At the prices charged for
coffee these days the customer filling half the cup with sugar and
cream is saving the proprietor money by taking less coffee... if not
then the coffee houses are obviously gyping everyone, which of course
at the typical prices charged they are. In truth the coffee
wholesalers provide the sugar packets gratis along with the nitrogen
packed coffee packages as an incentive to buy from them... they
typically provide far more sugar packets than the business could
possibly use... even after the store emplyees bring handfuls home
(along with coffee packages - there is far more theft by employees
than patrons) there are still too many to store so they end up in the
trash. And anyway all the condiment packets are figured into the
prices, they're paid for many times over, especially by those who
don't use condiments... far more use no sugar than use extra sugar.
At the prices charged for coffee nowadays even if someone uses twenty
packets of sugar and fills their cup halfway with cream the store is
still turning a profit, perhaps a larger profit since coffee costs
more than sugar and cream.