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Yes, yes! I experienced the same. Went to HEB ( local grocery chain ) and saw a guy tossing good, fresh, still warm grilled chicken into the garbage. When I asked why they don't donate it to the shelter, he said that they don't want to be in trouble if someone gets sick.
But, the very same chicken was there a minute before he started to toss it out, for general public to buy! So… what’s the difference? Homeless people dig in trash to get something to eat. That kind of donation could be anonymous.
Or, why don’t they do chicken salad or sandwiches from the left over chicken?? It hurts to see how much food gets wasted here in a rich but troubled America, where many people have not enough to eat, because they lost the job, or even a house and have only little money to survive.
If they can sell a day old bread for half price, why they cannot sell older, but still perfectly edible goods for less???
There are at least 15 chickens that the guy was tossing away… now
imagine all the food, from every store, restaurant, or fast food joint at any given time…. What a concept of being savvy …..L
comparing bread to grilled chicken is apples to oranges
What do fast food restaurants do when they have too much cooked food ?
Keep reducing the prices til all is gone ?
I heard fast food managers get in trouble if they show too little in their reports of throw away as the company thinks they are selling fast food that has been sitting around too long.
And it holds true for items donated to Salvation Army as well. People sue and sue and sue. I know of someone who put out an old gas grill on the sidewalk, put a "Free" sign on it, and was sued by someone who claimed it leaked gas and caused him injury. Same reason why Salvation Army would refuse to take perfectly usable mattresses (better than cardboard boxes for homeless people) so they all end up in the landfill...because people sue. People sue over donated toys, etc. etc. I've never seen so much resources go into consumerism, and so much of it go to waste. It really, really is sad at all levels.
Very true!! And just shows that there is something terrible wrong with the whole system!
Bascailly the local wal-mart constantly contribute to the loac charties but not with somethings.I know that some restaurant learned to never doante uneaten food because of suits when the danate facity did not handle it properly.
What do you guys think?
Are you approving or disapproving the above?
I don't think Wal-Mart has a problem being sued. They are getting ready to kick out a huge amount of money for jacking around their employees in Massachusetts. They have consistently been sued for this. I think that if people paid in blood they would be fine just sucking out the very last drop.
I think if your going to get rid of the clothes anyway then take them to shelters.
I was in Wal-Mart one day and they were tossing cooked chickens in the trash that were 4hrs old. I was told that by law they had to toss any that were not sold within 4hrs of cooking.
My ex worked in a convenience store that sold chicken. Any chicken that was left too long (didn't happen much) was put in a pan and left in the walk in cooler until the morning shift deboned it and made BBQ chicken sandwiches out of it. I know one clerk who got fired for giving away old chicken. Sorry that happened to her but it was delicious!
I wonder how Walmart reflects this destruction of inventory in their books. Perhaps whatever write off they get by dumping it is greater than the one they get as charitable contribution. Charitable contribution is limited in an individual's tax return so conceivably, similar laws probably apply to corporations. In their mind, it's probably to their benefit to destroy a $5 shirt rather than see the same $5 shirt being sold by Goodwill for $2. Why would anyone go to Walmart to buy it then when they can wait for it to reach Goodwill and save the $3? It is unconscionable and I'm not defending Walmart whatsoever from the morality standpoint. But from the point of view of doing business, they probably are doing what is in their best interest, as most businesses do. They may want to be good Samaritans but not to the point of hurting their own business model in the process.
Beginning inventory plus purchases minus returns and alllowances minus ending inventory equals cost of goods sold. Now, once it leaves the store, I can't say what happens to the item. At Home Depot, they have something called RTV, which stands for "Return to Vendor". For credit. I don't doubt that some items are simply destroyed with the vendor merely signing off on them for the credit, but most of them do go back to the vendors--or at least our distribution center. I only know most of our stuff goes back on a truck when it's being recalled.
Working in grocery stores, there is a certain price point where the manufacturers would rather see the item destroyed than to sell it at a deeply discounted price. I remember, in that sort of scenario, that vendor items were returned, and store brand items were supposed to be destroyed--although managers were sometimes willing to let employees take out of date items home. I once got an entire box of chips and other snacks that would have been simply thrown away a few times...I also brought home some orange juice in the same condition. Drink it fast, and it shouldn't have any ill effects.
You are right. I asked my husband how unsold inventory is treated. He said that they will be taxed as part of the profit. Companies are only allowed 10% of the fair market value of the goods when they donate it, so 90% of it will still be taxed. It is also true that some vendors will allow a RTV arrangement, but then again it may be subject to a restocking fee, which again is cost. Plus, donating it also incurs some distribution cost (trucks, payroll on overtime, etc.). When I asked him why someone like Target could donate, we both agreed that if Target's margins are higher on the same goods, Target could absorb the cost and still make money. For example, a $3 item could cost $4.50 at Walmart but $6 at Target, so Target has more wiggle room to play with its options on treating unsold inventory.
There's a company near here that actually specializes in destroying items, I believe most of them are returned goods. It's like fort knox, I knew someone that worked there and she said you would not believe the perfectly good and expensive items that get destroyed.
Having said that it's a companies responsibility to make money, not be a charity. Not only would they be losing money because the item was not destroyed they are also losing a potential customer. That's besides all the lagal issues. Years ago, maybe going back 20 years there was a catering company here that used to give all the food they had left from big events to the soup kitchen. Those people would be getting prime rib, beef, chicken etc. The insurance company made them stop because a few caterers doing the same thing got sued.
It sounds like there needs to be a revision of the tax code if its more profitable for companies to destroy unsold products rather than donate them. Food however is completely different than clothing. One can't really compare the two.
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Same reason why Salvation Army would refuse to take perfectly usable mattresses (better than cardboard boxes for homeless people) so they all end up in the landfill...because people sue. People sue over donated toys, etc. etc. I've never seen so much resources go into consumerism, and so much of it go to waste. It really, really is sad at all levels.
