Grocery Auctions on the Rise

As the economy falls, grocery auctions rise. You've read it in the newspaper, online, and in the magazines. The economy is in shambles. Some fear an economic depression, while others see our current situation as a mere recession, which our people surely will bounce back from. In this time of penny pinching, how can you still eat the foods you love, without paying high prices? Many families have turned to food and grocery auctions, as a way to avoid sacrificing their favorite foods during our recession.

On eBay, in your local newspaper and in auction halls across the U.S., local and national food suppliers are selling leftover or damaged foods to consumers, eager for the days before our food supply saw a 20% increase.

While many people still go to companies like GFS and Sam's Club for bulk foods, there is a growing trend of consumers who prefer the auction-style setting as an alternative to the higher-priced retail marketplace.

Currently, I am living in a house with seven other people. Our house is full of musicians, who have to take a lot of time off of work to tour, write, and record our songs. Even in a "conventional" economic situation, a household like mine would see some thin meals at the dinner table, and our current recession only serves to make this problem worse.

While our household has little to no experience with conventional grocery auctions, I can definitely understand why this phenomenon has become such a wide-spread trend.

Until the day comes when we can no longer stomach them, our staple food during these times of hardship has been the ever so delicious Ramen Noodles.

Just yesterday, my roommate John and I picked up 48 packs of Ramen, and we hope that will last us through the next week. Our house also visits restaurants that offer "free" food, as a way of filling up before we have to pay for side items that we purchase while we stay. Great places to visit for their "free foods" are Mexican restaurants, which usually offer free chips and salsa, and Italian restaurants, which will usually offer free bread sticks.

In my opinion, it is very hard, even at the lowest bracket of the economic chain in the United States, to call yourself poor. However, it is fair to say, that many will have to get creative if they do not wish to sacrifice, due to our recession.

Grocery auctions are a great way to dodge the high dollar bullet of traditional retail markets, and keep eating the foods you love.