# "Sampling" grapes: theft, uncouth, or perfectly legit? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 7, 2014, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521 "2014-04-07T01:53:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2014, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/81 "2014-04-07T23:12:52Z")
I would never do this, and if I were with someone who did this, I’d be embarrassed. ---
**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:** [April 8, 2014, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/82 "2014-04-08T00:23:07Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > I don’t know if I’ve ever done it with grapes, but I’ve sampled bulk bin food (sorry **Cat Whisperer** ) and I consider it (very minor) stealing. Did you use the scoop at least? 🙂 > [@UncleRojelio](#): > > You know someone sneezed on that grape before you came along and ‘sampled’ it. I was in the local Superstore today, and some kid was handling all the produce he could get his hands on while his mom shopped. _That’s_ the real reason I was my produce - because of all the other people who groped it in the store. > [@Alan\_Smithee](#): > > I’m confused by all this talk of shitty grapes. I’ve never had a shitty grape except for one that was brown and wrinkly. In fact, I’ve always thought that grapes vary _less_ in quality than any other fruit, especially ones like apples, which can be dry and mealy, or strawberries, which can be bland and tasteless. Maybe that’s one reason that I never considered grapes-sampling to be any less than theft—I didn’t see any good reason for it. I’m definitely not in grape-growing country, and the grapes vary wildly in quality here, from so sour you can barely eat them to very nice and sweet. > [@Penfeather](#): > > Why is there no “No, but I stick them up my butt and then put them back” option? That reminds me of that joke about the monkey eating the pool balls. 😃 > [@CookingWithGas](#): > > That’s it, blame the victim! Statutory grape. Alright, who let this guy in? ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/83 "2014-04-08T01:08:16Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > That’s it, blame the victim! Statutory grape. Sure, a joke, but this far into the thread on grapes without a grapist reference? For shame! And me, no, I don’t sample the produce unless there’s an obvious sample being given out, that’s hopefully been washed already. I inspect carefully and usually have good results once I’m home with whatever I bought. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/84 "2014-04-08T01:23:32Z")
What about taking more ketchup packets or more napkins than you need at the local fast food joint? Is that stealing too? What if you used their bathroom with out buying anything? Is that theft of services? What if I’m in the grocery store and find a nickle on aisle five? If I stick it in my pocket, is that stealing too? Shouldn’t I turn that nickle into customer service so they might reunite the nickle with its rightful owner? ---
**Author:** ![Inna\_Minnit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Inna\_Minnit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inna_Minnit)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/85 "2014-04-08T01:32:22Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > \ Mods, I rarely lodge complaints but I do not appreciate being accused of “crappy parenting”, which anyone who is a parent knows is about the most hurtful/enraging insult one can level. I know myself to be one of the most thoughtfully engaged, firm, and fair parents possible, and I will not stand for these accusations And I object to you taking my reply out of context and making it personally about you. Which it wasn’t. You asked my objections to the practice and this is the pertinent portion. > [@](#): > > I raised a child. And never, not once, did I pull something off the shelf to feed her. Aside from the objections listed above, I’ll add another. Children live in the moment. Especially at that age. They don’t get the connection “it’s ok mom/dad will pay for it later.” What they see, what they learn, is “I want it now, I can have it now.” The don’t learn not to steal, they learn to grab what they want. They don’t learn self control. They don’t learn waiting, or delay of gratification. They learn that their appetite rules every decision. That’s crappy parenting. If the crappy shoe fits, that’s hardly my fault. ---
**Author:** ![grayhairedmomma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/47e85d/32.png) [@grayhairedmomma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grayhairedmomma)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/86 "2014-04-08T04:13:35Z")
> [@Inna\_Minnit](#): > > I raised a child. And never, not once, did I pull something off the shelf to feed her. Aside from the objections listed above, I’ll add another. Children live in the moment. Especially at that age. They don’t get the connection “it’s ok mom/dad will pay for it later.” What they see, what they learn, is “I want it now, I can have it now.” The don’t learn not to steal, they learn to grab what they want. They don’t learn self control. They don’t learn waiting, or delay of gratification. They learn that their appetite rules every decision. That’s crappy parenting. This is ridiculous, and I’ve raised two kids so I know more than you. If you teach your kids to eat during every shopping trip, then it becomes a problem. If you give in to tantrums, you are creating a problem. But if you occasionally let your hungry child eat something non messy and that can easily be scanned and paid for, while shopping, then you’re fine. But, that takes a parent who is willing to explain, repeatedly, why something might be okay one day and not another. Like saying, “No, we just had lunch, you don’t need a cookie.” or “Yes, it’s going to be awhile before dinner, you can eat a granola bar.” Since most people shop at least once a week, there are ample opportunities for these distinctions and lessons in self control to be taught. And no, we don’t sample grapes or other produce. (I used to try and pay for the item before eating, but it always seemed to make the store personnel more nervous because they’d worry that you would consume the product you paid for and use the receipt to get another item for free.) ---
**Author:** ![Inna\_Minnit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Inna\_Minnit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inna_Minnit)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/87 "2014-04-08T04:17:16Z")
> [@grayhairedmomma](#): > > This is ridiculous, and I’ve raised two kids\*\* so I know more than you. \*\* If you teach your kids to eat during every shopping trip, then it becomes a problem. If you give in to tantrums, you are creating a problem. But if you occasionally let your hungry child eat something non messy and that can easily be scanned and paid for, while shopping, then you’re fine. But, that takes a parent who is willing to explain, repeatedly, why something might be okay one day and not another. Like saying, “No, we just had lunch, you don’t need a cookie.” or “Yes, it’s going to be awhile before dinner, you can eat a granola bar.” Since most people shop at least once a week, there are ample opportunities for these distinctions and lessons in self control to be taught. And no, we don’t sample grapes or other produce. > > (I used to try and pay for the item before eating, but it always seemed to make the store personnel more nervous because they’d worry that you would consume the product you paid for and use the receipt to get another item for free.) Bad habits do not make one smarter no matter how often you repeat them. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/88 "2014-04-08T05:05:32Z")
> [@Inna\_Minnit](#): > > Bad habits do not make one smarter no matter how often you repeat them. So you’re still a sanctimonious twat then? Good-O. Nice to see that some things never change! ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/89 "2014-04-08T06:07:41Z")
> [@kambuckta](#): > > So you’re still a sanctimonious twat then? > > Good-O. Nice to see that some things never change! You’re gonna get mod’ed for that. But thank you for this. ---
**Author:** ![Inna\_Minnit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Inna\_Minnit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inna_Minnit)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/90 "2014-04-08T06:50:38Z")
> [@kambuckta](#): > > So you’re still a sanctimonious twat then? > > Good-O. Nice to see that some things never change! Wrong on three counts. I was asked my reasoning. I gave it and have been taken to task twice. Name calling and defensiveness are sure signs someone hasn’t got a position worth defending. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/91 "2014-04-08T06:54:35Z")
> [@Inna\_Minnit](#): > > And I object to you taking my reply out of context and making it personally about you. Which it wasn’t. Nothing out of context there–it’s quite simple: I had said that I feed my kids out of the package before buying it, and you responded by saying doing so was inherently “crappy parenting”. That’s not some kind of tortured leap I’m making, so please spare me your disingenuous bullshit. ---
**Author:** ![Inna\_Minnit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Inna\_Minnit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inna_Minnit)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/92 "2014-04-08T07:01:40Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > Nothing out of context there–it’s quite simple: I had said that I feed my kids out of the package before buying it, and you responded by saying doing so was inherently “crappy parenting”. That’s not some kind of tortured leap I’m making, so please spare me your disingenuous bullshit. Again with the partial quote so you can be some pathetic martyr? What say you address the issues I raised and explain how it isn’t crappy parenting? ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 7:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/93 "2014-04-08T07:14:19Z")
> [@Inna\_Minnit](#): > > Again with the partial quote so you can be some pathetic martyr? What say you address the issues I raised and explain how it isn’t crappy parenting? Crappy parenting is leaving your little kids alone in the house while you go out partying. Crappy parenting is not changing your kid’s diaper because you’re too busy snorting a line of coke. Crappy parenting is making your kids eat ramen noodles while you eat quality steak and seafood. Crappy parenting is beating the kids to a mushy pulp because they wouldn’t eat their noodles. Crappy parenting is pitting one kid against another. Crappy parenting is telling your kids you wish you’d never had them. Crappy parenting is a _whole lot of things_…but giving your kid a grape at the supermarket is not one of those things. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/94 "2014-04-08T07:25:28Z")
> [@Penfeather](#): > > That’s just perpetuating grape culture. Ha! Nice one. > [@jsgoddess](#): > > But you just said that you would punish them if they revealed that they thought it was theft, so you don’t actually know what they believe about grape sampling. They may perceive it as theft (albeit minor) that isn’t worth pursuing because of the fallout from people who want to be able to do it. > > When there are penalties for a company from speaking, I don’t think you can consider their lack of speech as any sort of positive claim. Very well said. No one is denying that this is among the most petty of petty thefts (if it is theft at all, which is disputed but has been chosen by half the poll respondents, far more than the number who have said it is a perfectly fine thing to do). Many of us don’t want to push the boundaries of what a company is willing to tolerate. Even in cases where a company has explicitly guaranteed they will go along with actions taken by people with unbelievable levels of chutzpah ([NPR reports](http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2013/09/25/223787129/what-happens-when-a-store-lets-customers-return-whatever-they-want) that L.L. Bean has given refunds on returns of “a live Christmas wreath that had turned brown and a shirt ripped by a rescue crew after a car accident”), it doesn’t mean the majority of us are going to see it as anything but cringeworthy when someone takes full advantage. > [@Cheesesteak](#): > > I’d also rather share a store with a kid happily eating a banana than a kid crying because he’s hungry and doesn’t understand why he can’t have one of those perfectly tasty bananas in the cart. I can’t endorse the banana idea, because those are sold by weight. Anything involving a food that leaves behind a bar code that can still be scanned after the food is eaten, I’m with you 100 percent. > [@Bone](#): > > Their margins don’t change the nature of the transaction. > > Sampling is encouraged. If I need help opening a package, they will do it for me. As I’m eating it, I also can have a conversation with the person working. It’s fairly common. > > I also can go to the customer service desk, and they will give me food for my kids to eat while I shop because it makes the shopping experience nicer. Usually it’s the single serve fruit snacks, some Annie’s goldfish type crackers, fruit roll up type items. They present a choice and the kids get to pick what snack they want. Those items retail is probably a dollar or so, but they are given free to anyone who asks. But of course the margins matter. This is why you can go to an art gallery and get free wine and cheese, because the sale of one or two paintings more than pays for it. If your margins are razor thin, the sacrifice of packaged food may be too much to absorb, especially if more than a certain number of people take advantage. [http://www.wrensolutions.com/company/news/resources/no\_margin\_for\_error.aspx](http://www.wrensolutions.com/company/news/resources/no_margin_for_error.aspx) > [@](#): > > The grocery segment literally has no margin for error. Food margins are razor-thin and grocery stores don’t carry many of the higher margin products to significantly increase their average. Other realities food retailers face such as perishable merchandise and continuous stock rotations make it a tough business. > > Whereas other types of retail can withstand a greater shrink impact, high loss in grocery stores can lead to a quick demise. [http://www.brokersavant.com/blog/supermarkets-dying-can-commercial-brokers](http://www.brokersavant.com/blog/supermarkets-dying-can-commercial-brokers) > [@](#): > > Many experts claim the supermarket as we know it may be dying.[…]supermarket margins were always razor thin, and competition was relentless. ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/95 "2014-04-08T16:24:49Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > But of course the margins matter. This is why you can go to an art gallery and get free wine and cheese, because the sale of one or two paintings more than pays for it. If your margins are razor thin, the sacrifice of packaged food may be too much to absorb, especially if more than a certain number of people take advantage. This is laughably incorrect. The idea that is being advanced is that taking a grape is stealing somehow, though on a very small scale. The margin the store earns on a given purchase has no impact whether that it is permissible or not. You get that right? Just because the Ferarri dealer makes great margins, doesn’t mean I can take one that’s just sitting on the lot. It is a binary situation - either it is stealing or it is not. If you think the margins on a product enter into that decision then you are utterly incorrect. My position of course is that it is not stealing because the store owner doesn’t object. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/96 "2014-04-08T18:02:30Z")
> [@spinky](#): > > Isn’t that up to the store to decide? If they don’t mind if people sample grapes, then how could you possibly claim it’s theft? Well sure. But if the question was “If you sample produce in a store where they don’t mind or encourage sampling is it theft?” then there wouldn’t be much of a thread. ---
**Author:** ![spinky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@spinky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spinky)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/97 "2014-04-08T19:29:06Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Well sure. But if the question was “If you sample produce in a store where they don’t mind or encourage sampling is it theft?” then there wouldn’t be much of a thread. Oh, give me a break. If the question was “Is it theft if you sample produce in a store where they consider sampling produce theft?” then it would be equally uninteresting, but that seems to be what you’ve assumed about the question. The question was whether sampling a grape in a grocery store is theft. If the truth is that a large number of grocery stores don’t consider it theft, then saying (as you did) that it’s unequivocally theft is simply wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Inna\_Minnit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Inna\_Minnit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inna_Minnit)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/98 "2014-04-08T19:46:57Z")
> [@kambuckta](#): > > Crappy parenting is leaving your little kids alone in the house while you go out partying. > > Crappy parenting is not changing your kid’s diaper because you’re too busy snorting a line of coke. > > Crappy parenting is making your kids eat ramen noodles while you eat quality steak and seafood. > > Crappy parenting is beating the kids to a mushy pulp because they wouldn’t eat their noodles. > > Crappy parenting is pitting one kid against another. > > Crappy parenting is telling your kids you wish you’d never had them. > > Crappy parenting is a _whole lot of things_…but giving your kid a grape at the supermarket is not one of those things. I did not say that. For someone who writes legibly, you certainly don’t read very well. Thanks for not addressing anything I was actually talking about. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/99 "2014-04-08T19:54:28Z")
> [@spinky](#): > > Oh, give me a break. If the question was “Is it theft if you sample produce in a store where they consider sampling produce theft?” then it would be equally uninteresting, but that seems to be what you’ve assumed about the question. > > The question was whether sampling a grape in a grocery store is theft. If the truth is that a large number of grocery stores don’t consider it theft, then saying (as you did) that it’s unequivocally theft is simply wrong. Theft is taking the property of another without permission or compensation. The opinion of the taker is irrelevant. If the store encourages sampling it is not a theft. Because the property is freely given. I personally have never been in a store in which sampling was encouraged. If there isn’t a store policy allowing it, it is theft by statute. Regardless of your opinion. ---
**Author:** ![spinky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@spinky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spinky)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2014, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521/100 "2014-04-08T21:46:20Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > If the store encourages sampling it is not a theft. Because the property is freely given. … If there isn’t a store policy allowing it, it is theft by statute. Regardless of your opinion. Bullshit. The store need not encourage it or have an explicit policy on it. If they consider it acceptable that people take samples in absence of explicit permission, it’s not theft. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sampling-grapes-theft-uncouth-or-perfectly-legit/685521.md?page=6)