# Buying meat from the "day old" bin at the grocery-creepy? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 4, 2013, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434 "2013-12-04T03:20:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/21 "2013-12-04T15:44:18Z")
I quite like the pot-luck aspect of buying stuff from the tramp’s buffet. Last time I picked up a quiche for something daft like 40p, and had it for a very pleasant evening meal. I never would have thought of buying quiche normally. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/22 "2013-12-04T19:20:45Z")
I don’t even bother looking at expiration dates, and just go by price. I’m confident that if it were too old to be safe to eat, the store wouldn’t even be offering it. That’s one of the advantages of living in a civilized society. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/23 "2013-12-04T19:23:18Z")
Sure. I’d rather see it marked down than discarded. Never had a problem with it, either. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/24 "2013-12-04T19:53:11Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > I need to look for this shelf/bin. Most of the stores I go to don’t have a bin, they just add stickers that say $1 off or $2 off. You better believe I look for those stickers. > [@Rushgeekgirl](#): > > Creepy? I cannot imagine the life someone must lead if they find reduced price meat creepy. . . It’s an opportunity to be snobby that was taken or she has an emotional reaction to the idea of meat going bad that keeps her from thinking about it rationally. Or she inherited the idea from her family . . . there a bunch of easy ways to back into the idea. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/25 "2013-12-04T20:34:25Z")
Angus Ribeye 3-pack for $4.99/lb a couple of weeks ago at my local grocery, how the hell do you pass _that_ up? I love the bargain bin. ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2013, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/26 "2013-12-04T23:56:51Z")
Hell yeah! In fact, beef cuts nearing the discard date, even turning a bit grey are better than fresh. Unless you are a hoity-toity who only buys dry-aged US prime grade. ---
**Author:** ![MrDurden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ed655f/32.png) [@MrDurden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDurden)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/27 "2013-12-05T00:13:39Z")
Tell your friend that the expiration dates for meat are highly arbitrary. There’s no government agency looking over the back of the meat manager’s repacking of meat that he deems safe. Often times, meat past expiration is repacked. I suppose newer supermarkets without any sort of butcher in the back might not be able to do this, but you never know. ---
**Author:** ![PapSett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@PapSett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PapSett)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/28 "2013-12-05T02:21:41Z")
Oh hell yeah! In fact, just today I got a NICE pot roast for a little over 4 bucks. It will feed me for several days. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![DummyGladHands](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/49beb7/32.png) [@DummyGladHands](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DummyGladHands)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/29 "2013-12-05T04:01:14Z")
Well, this is the same friend who eschews buying clothing at Goodwill and prefers Walmart, and who won’t shop at the dollar store, claiming it’s all spoiled. Yay!! Continuing with my day old meat bargains!! ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/30 "2013-12-05T04:28:06Z")
> [@Rushgeekgirl](#): > > Creepy? I cannot imagine the life someone must lead if they find reduced price meat creepy. Me neither, but for a different reason. I can understand gross or questionable, but actually being creeped out by it? I just don’t understand the use of that word in this context. I mean, surely she doesn’t get cold shivers down her spine when she walks by the case, right? ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/31 "2013-12-05T04:33:42Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Me neither, but for a different reason. I can understand gross or questionable, but actually being creeped out by it? I just don’t understand the use of that word in this context. > > I mean, surely she doesn’t get cold shivers down her spine when she walks by the case, right? Oh no, that was my reason too! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/32 "2013-12-05T04:42:45Z")
I always check the BUY IT BEFORE IT ROTS!!! bin. I tend to freeze meat for later use anyway, so why not save a few cents? ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/33 "2013-12-05T05:00:23Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > I wonder what they all do with their ‘day old meat’ - just throw it away? I worked in the meat/fish department of a fairly large regional chain that’s still in business. As I recall, when the steaks and roasts were going out-of-date, they got made into hamburger, sometimes mixed with some fat from that day’s cuts/trimming. It had 2 days on the shelf, then it was sold to a dog food company, along with all the leftover fat trimmings. That info is about 20 years old though - buying meat labeled with it’s “leanness” was just starting to be a thing, and we only had that in the butcher’s display case. It wasn’t a shady operation - it was in a high-rent neighborhood and the meat I got there was better than I see most places today. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/34 "2013-12-05T05:09:52Z")
I just bought 30 lbs of hamburger from my local Aldi. The 5.5 packages were originally $13 each, marked down to $6 because their last date of sale was today. Cut it all up into patties and froze them. I’m set for quite a while. And yeah, I buy my pants at the Goodwill. ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/35 "2013-12-05T05:31:03Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > I just bought 30 lbs of hamburger from my local Aldi. The 5.5 packages were originally $13 each, marked down to $6 because their last date of sale was today. Cut it all up into patties and froze them. I’m set for quite a while. How much horse can you have in your beef and still call it hamburger? After a certain percentage, do they have to put the “horse” qualifier on it anywhere, or is hamburger a non-creature specific term? ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/36 "2013-12-05T05:45:33Z")
> [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](#): > > How much horse can you have in your beef and still call it hamburger? After a certain percentage, do they have to put the “horse” qualifier on it anywhere, or is hamburger a non-creature specific term? Cite? And even if true, it’s delicious. If I’m eating horse, I’m eating horse. But I call bullshit. ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/37 "2013-12-05T05:52:47Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > Cite? And even if true, it’s delicious. If I’m eating horse, I’m eating horse. But I call bullshit. [You think someone would do that? Just go on the internet and tell lies?](https://www.google.com/search?q=horse+meat+aldi&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a) > **[2013 horse meat scandal](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_meat_adulteration_scandal)** > > On 15 January 2013 it was reported that foods advertised in the European Union as containing beef were found to contain undeclared or improperly declared horse meat—as much as 100% of the meat content in some cases. A smaller number of products also contained other undeclared meats, such as pork. The issue was discovered through DNA testing on frozen beefburgers and lasagna sold in several Irish and British supermarkets. > The analysis stated that 23 out of 27 samples of beef burgers also contai... ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/38 "2013-12-05T06:03:24Z")
> [@Baron\_Greenback](#): > > I quite like the pot-luck aspect of buying stuff from the tramp’s buffet. Last time I picked up a quiche for something daft like 40p, and had it for a very pleasant evening meal. I never would have thought of buying quiche normally. I like that, too - we’re having something from the clearance section that I didn’t have to think of on my own! I don’t see anything wrong with clearance food, either - you check the expiration date, you make sure you eat it/freeze it ASAP, you save money. Plus, you get a buyer’s high when you find a super deal. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/39 "2013-12-05T06:13:22Z")
Not near the expiration date, but this evening I found two packages of what was described as “salmon ends” (mostly tails with a few inches of meat attached) at a MUCH lower price per pound than salmon steaks. I grabbed them both. And I’m very aware that I will have to put my female kittycat in the bathroom when I eat it, because she will jump up on the table and try to eat it right off my fork. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2013, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434/40 "2013-12-05T06:17:53Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I don’t even bother looking at expiration dates, and just go by price. I’m confident that if it were too old to be safe to eat, the store wouldn’t even be offering it. That’s one of the advantages of living in a civilized society. After working in a grocery store for a few months, you might be surprised. While facing product one day, I came across yogurt and other dairy that had been expired for nearly 3 months. Check the dates. Humans make mistakes! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/buying-meat-from-the-day-old-bin-at-the-grocery-creepy/675434.md?page=3)