# Why do Dollar store food taste... **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 4, 2017, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dollar-store-food-taste/790492 "2017-07-04T12:53:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dollar-store-food-taste/790492/21 "2017-07-05T11:57:24Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Poundland in the UK launched its own cheap knockoff of Toblerone - called [Twin Peaks](http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/food/819061/poundland-toblerone-twin-peaks)… Sounds like a damn fine bar of chocolate. mmm ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dollar-store-food-taste/790492/22 "2017-07-05T13:01:46Z")
> [@Club\_33](#): > > I’ve had Snickers bars that were more like a Mars bar, as if they were either packaged incorrectly or simply a bad production run. It is likely that these stores buy up these defective products in bulk and that’s why a $2 dollar candy bar costs $1. There is always something just a little bit off about most of the products I’ve tried, especially ones that are a major brand. As Snickers Bars have peanuts and Mars Bars have almonds, it seems like you’d know which one you were eating and it would be immediately obvious if it were packaged wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Rama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ccd318/32.png) [@Rama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rama)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dollar-store-food-taste/790492/23 "2017-07-05T16:26:52Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > I’ve seen overlabelling in some cases for branded products on sale in discount stores - although those were products intended for a different geographic market, overlabelled with English language ingredients labelling etc - but the grey market could also be a factor in the OP’s question - some manufacturers of food products formulate their products differently for different world markets - either to cater for taste demographics, or to maintain shelf life in a different climate - and this will affect the flavour. > (also, there’s the fact that the product for a different market could be rolling off a different production line, backed up by a different supply chain with different local ingredients that are technically the same, but vary a little in flavour) Usually the importer has to stick a label on there that obliges to the rules of that specific country. A Mars bar should of course not come packaged as a Snickers bar in any case. That would be an enormous error and I doubt that was actually the case. I do know that small variations occur between countries, for example the type of sweetener used in Coca-Cola in the US (corn syrup) and Europe (sugar) is different so it tastes a bit different. If both products were manufactured in the same country, my guess would be the quality of the ingredients makes for a difference in taste. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dollar-store-food-taste/790492/24 "2017-07-05T20:49:12Z")
I’m not sure about foods but there’s a real counterfeit product problem in dollar stores for things like toothpaste and such. When it comes to counterfeit products, FDA/FTC rules about labeling are irrelevant to those folks. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dollar-store-food-taste/790492/25 "2017-07-05T21:49:48Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > I’m not sure about foods but there’s a real counterfeit product problem in dollar stores for things like toothpaste and such. > > When it comes to counterfeit products, FDA/FTC rules about labeling are irrelevant to those folks. This did indeed use to be true. I wonder how much it’s still true. The specific reports of counterfeit toothpaste that came up in a Google search were all from about 10 years ago. Nowadays there’s probably more scrutiny about such things. For example, “[Colgate takes a very aggressive stance against counterfeit producers and actively investigates counterfeiting activities around the world.](http://www.colgate.com/app/Colgate/US/Corp/HomePage/ProductSafety.cvsp)” There aren’t as many odd little independent dollar stores as there used to be. Nowadays, the only true dollar stores still around in my neck of the woods are all part of the Dollar Tree chain, and they all sell pretty much the same stuff, which I suspect makes it much less likely that they could get away with stocking products that are fraudulent or hazardous. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dollar-store-food-taste/790492/26 "2017-07-05T22:32:24Z")
The name brand food at the Dollar Tree tastes the same as anywhere else. But the off brand stuff is a different story. I bought a box of [Crunchy King & Berries](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/3e/cd/69/3ecd69e203ef269512db0b9dd5850d6a--champions-berries.jpg) yesterday. It’s a half-assed knock off of Cap’n Crunch. Even though it has 12 walloping grams of sugar there is nothing sweet about it. Tastes like bits of cardboard and assorted pablum. It doesn’t even smell nice. You know that candy store aroma you get when you open a box of name brand sugary kids cereal? This stuff smells like the inside of a box factory. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dollar-store-food-taste/790492/27 "2017-07-05T22:49:29Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > Even though it has 12 walloping grams of sugar there is nothing sweet about it. Tastes like bits of cardboard and assorted pablum. What did it taste like _before_ it became “NOW even better tasting”? ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dollar-store-food-taste/790492/28 "2017-07-05T22:57:27Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > What did it taste like _before_ it became “NOW even better tasting”? I didn’t even want to go there in my post! :eek: Just for the record, I’m a connoisseur of kids cereal (as long as there are no marshmallows in it) and as an adult I’ll eat whatever I damn well please. But I strongly suggest people spend the extra half buck and buy the Aldi version of Froot Loops, Cap’n Crunch, Apple Jacks, etc… Their’s are really good. The Dollar Store versions are terrible. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-dollar-store-food-taste/790492.md?page=1)