# Is your grocery store becoming more automated? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [October 28, 2021, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380 "2021-10-28T12:46:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2021, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/61 "2021-10-30T13:12:49Z")
The very first time i used self-checkout, it short changed me. And it took about twenty minutes to track down the appropriate employee and get it fixed. And it wasn’t much money, not nearly worth hanging around an extra twenty minutes, but i felt like if i walked away, they would be incented to routinely short change. So i have a bad attitude regarding self checkout, and avoid it. My local supermarket has replaced the “only a few items” staffed lane with self-checkout, though. ---
**Author:** ![Kimera757](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kimera757/32/3765_2.png) [@Kimera757](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimera757)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2021, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/62 "2021-10-30T13:55:49Z")
Yes. My grocery store and a big pharmacy chain (plus some McDonalds) have done this near me. Unfortunately the device is too fragile. Once when purchasing something at the pharmacy, it double counted one of the purchases. That was probably my fault, but I’ve seen experienced cashiers do this too (and then immediately correct). There was no option to “delete” the extra, I literally had to call an employee over. I could have walked out of the store with unpaid products, but the machine effectively accused me of trying to steal a single product. And the same machine could not handle the pharmacy’s in-house rewards program. I gave up and went to an employee at the cash register. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2021, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/63 "2021-10-30T14:43:03Z")
First time ever I saw a line at the shop and scan aisle, but it moved quickly much faster than the self scan aisles where shoppers have to zipper in to one of 8 checkouts. I did use a cashier yesterday instead of shop and scan as my phone was forgotten and left on my desk. I’m not crazy about self scan checkout it tends to infuriate me with its barked commands and touchiness. Lol! So I and my loaded cart head to a cashier line and I overheard the middle aged dude behind me grumbling about waiting and how he remembers the good old days when all the lanes were staffed with cashiers. It’s my turn to greet the cashier when I see a sign thanking customers for their patience and if you’d like to see more lanes open please apply for a job. At what they pay? And for limited hours? Good luck! > [@shop, scan and checkout](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shop-scan-and-checkout/836852): > > It’s a game changer, a revolution, and I love it! You need to down load the store app, bring your own bags, charge up your smart phone, then get shopping, scanning and bagging. Need to get produce? Weigh your stuff on the digital scale, print a label. When your finished shopping just go to the self serve checkout,(I can haz as many items as I wants) scan in the QR code and bada bing! you’re done! The CSR does a bag check of three items to keep you honest then you’re really done! I so happy! S… ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2021, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/64 "2021-10-30T14:51:57Z")
I worked at a library from 1998-2003, and then again later for awhile(same library). We got rid of the laser/barcode scanning at that library around 2002 or so and moved to RFID tagging. The desk could just scan through your entire stack of books at one go and then send you on your way once the receipt printed out. No stamping of due dates. We had one “self” version of this where patrons could do the same. Here I am 19 or so years later and in the area I live in, all the libraries still use the barcode/laser scanning system and do each item individually. I am surprised it didn’t achieve wider appeal over the last two decades, but almost all items in the Michigan public system don’t seem to have the required tag. Is this true in other states? ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2021, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/65 "2021-10-30T14:57:57Z")
Yes here in W Michigan Kent District Library has switched over. But don’t microwave your books! > **[The story of a Facebook post going viral](https://kdl.org/blogs/post/the-story-of-a-facebook-post-going-viral/)** > > You never know what is going to gain national attention! Recently our Plainfield Branch had a patron return a book that they had microwaved… ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2021, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/66 "2021-10-30T18:48:41Z")
> [@Bonum\_Legatum](#): > > I must be an outlier here, because I prefer self checkout. I can bag items grouped together exactly as I want them, and I get to choose how many items go in each bag. The cashiers in the traditiona checkout at your store don’t allow you to bag your groceries yourself? That’s something I’ve never seen. ---
**Author:** ![Bonum\_Legatum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bonum_legatum/32/6183_2.png) [@Bonum\_Legatum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bonum_Legatum)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2021, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/67 "2021-10-30T18:51:19Z")
Some of the stores have a bagger at the end of the checkout lane, who bags while I’m handing over coupons and getting ready to pay. Some of the stores have the cashier bag while I’m getting ready to pay, or putting everything back in my wallet. So yes, there are stores where I need the self checkout to ensure that I can bag for myself. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2021, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/68 "2021-10-30T18:52:06Z")
Occasionally it is tough to do your own bagging. I’ve seen this a few times. I almost always bag my own stuff with bags I bring. Some checkout lanes are well designed for it. Sometimes the baggers won’t get out of the way when asked politely. I usually look for lines without baggers. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2021, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/69 "2021-10-30T20:11:36Z")
> [@Bonum\_Legatum](#): > > Some of the stores have a bagger at the end of the checkout lane, who bags while I’m handing over coupons and getting ready to pay. Some of the stores have the cashier bag while I’m getting ready to pay, or putting everything back in my wallet. > > So yes, there are stores where I need the self checkout to ensure that I can bag for myself. Have you ever asked the cashier if you can bag your own? Or do you just assume you can’t? This cashier is thrilled when someone chooses to do their own bagging. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2021, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/70 "2021-10-30T20:27:23Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > I worked at a library from 1998-2003, and then again later for awhile(same library). > > We got rid of the laser/barcode scanning at that library around 2002 or so and moved to RFID tagging. The desk could just scan through your entire stack of books at one go and then send you on your way once the receipt printed out. No stamping of due dates. > > We had one “self” version of this where patrons could do the same. > > Here I am 19 or so years later and in the area I live in, all the libraries still use the barcode/laser scanning system and do each item individually. > > I am surprised it didn’t achieve wider appeal over the last two decades, but almost all items in the Michigan public system don’t seem to have the required tag. > > Is this true in other states? My town library has RFID, and it’s all self-scan. An employee hangs around to answer questions and help. It’s great. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2021, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/71 "2021-10-30T20:47:32Z")
The two main supermarkets I use here in the UK both have the option of scanning and bagging yourself while you shop. I much prefer that and will choose to use those above other shops that don’t offer the service. I’d be perfectly happy if I never had to interact with a cashier ever again, they add no value and just cost me extra time. ---
**Author:** ![netverse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/958977/32.png) [@netverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/netverse)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2021, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/72 "2021-10-31T10:53:15Z")
The prices are not only being raised over the past year or so, but the contents of the items are being reduced. I have seen these items reduced in size, to maintain the same cost, and then afterwards, shortly, they are increasing the price. I saw recently herdez go from 2$ to $2.78, not to mention other increases in prices. Automation, no automation, with the government destroying things, causing gas to go up, a lot of things increased. A bread I buy at $4 is not $5.65, which I don’t buy anymore. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2021, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/73 "2021-10-31T12:35:00Z")
> [@Bonum\_Legatum](#): > > I must be an outlier here, because I prefer self checkout. I’ve used self checkout wherever it’s available, and I’ve stopped shopping at one grocery store (Shop&Save) specifically because they don’t have self checkout. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2021, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/74 "2021-10-31T12:45:24Z")
Going back just one small step: when did your stores start adding self-checkout, even the “scan by yourself at checkout” variety? I worked at Meijer from 1994-1998 and we put them in around 1996 or 1997. I sometimes get the impression from some folks they are newer than this. Having said that, I have yet to see the RFID machines here. ---
**Author:** ![Bonum\_Legatum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bonum_legatum/32/6183_2.png) [@Bonum\_Legatum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bonum_Legatum)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2021, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/75 "2021-10-31T13:45:32Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Have you ever asked the cashier if you can bag your own? Or do you just assume you can’t? No assumption necessary, I tried it and have experience: If I bag my own, the cashier then usually has to “hold back” on the next order - sometimes physically holding items back from proceeding down the belt - until I finish. That’s an imposition on the cashier, so it reinforces my preference for self-checkout. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2021, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/76 "2021-10-31T13:52:07Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > Going back just one small step: when did your stores start adding self-checkout, even the “scan by yourself at checkout” variety? I believe the patent for the first one that could handle weighed items was c1990. Bar code scanning versions were a few years earlier but not practical for grocery stores, because someone in the Produce department had to weigh the bag, seal it and affix a label with a UPC to it, similar to what you get when you buy sliced meat or cheese at the deli. I don’t think these were ever rolled out by any large chain. The first self-checkouts started rolling out in the the mid 1990s on both sides of the Atlantic. So your Meijer would have been pretty early. There was a jump in adoption in the 1990s and then a long plateau from 2000 onwards, until recently when rapidly increasing minimum wage in some states and now a labor shortage has upped adoption and usage. The “flex lane”, which can be converted from staffed register to self scan has pretty much been a bust I think. Source: My Dad, who is a supermarket management lifer (operations, accounting, IT) and a bit time automation fanboy. The only thing he hates more than wasted labor is stolen product, so his relationship to self-checkout is love-hate in a big way. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2021, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/77 "2021-10-31T14:09:22Z")
> [@Bonum\_Legatum](#): > > > [@Broomstick](#): > > > > Have you ever asked the cashier if you can bag your own? Or do you just assume you can’t? > > No assumption necessary, I tried it and have experience: If I bag my own, the cashier then usually has to “hold back” on the next order - sometimes physically holding items back from proceeding down the belt - until I finish. That’s an imposition on the cashier, so it reinforces my preference for self-checkout. How bizarre - that does not occur when one of my customer’s bags their own. Even it sometimes it might seem longer, it’s actually significantly faster if you bag while I ring you up. It’s to everyone’s advantage from the standpoint of speed if it is done that way. The only problem is that if I have a customer who needs special attention. That can hold up the line. But it can also cause an issue at a self-checkout as well. As for “imposition on the cashier” - no, it really isn’t. Or shouldn’t be, for someone who gives a damn about the job. Helping YOU, the customer in front of me, is my priority. Any assistance you need, including the time to bag your groceries, is part of my job. Anyone being “imposed” on might be the customers behind you. ---
**Author:** ![Bootb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19b73/32.png) [@Bootb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootb)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2021, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/78 "2021-10-31T14:17:34Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Totally agree. Costco shuffles locations of items around seemingly randomly (although I’m sure it’s not random). My Costco recently moved the _entire bread aisle_ , just for S&Gs. All retail chains do this, some more than others. You see, some customers know exactly what they what, and they go just where they need to go in order to get what they what. By reshuffling products, customers are forced to wander around, and by doing so, they may discover other products that look useful and/or delicious. ---
**Author:** ![smokey78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@smokey78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smokey78)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2021, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/79 "2021-10-31T14:30:05Z")
Most of the grocery stores here are, except one: Randalls (Tom Thumb in most parts of U.S) Recently I saw a list of the fastest cashiers on their work bulletin board (it was ranked) and I’m like whats the point? There’s not that many customers usually anyways (competes with so many other chains including Super Walmart here) What I’m now seeing at automated checkout is WAITING in line for a spot. Since many cashier spots were eliminated. ---
**Author:** ![Asylum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/53a042/32.png) [@Asylum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asylum)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2021, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380/80 "2021-10-31T14:37:47Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Has any store that has gone the automation route actually then lowered its prices? Hahahaha! No. Probably. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-your-grocery-store-becoming-more-automated/953380.md?page=5)