Why is meat at the butcher counter always cheaper than prepacked stuff at the grocery store?

[Eeezee]

I just bought some boneless, skinless chicken breasts. They were nearly $6/lb in the meat section, where they're already prepackaged and ready to go. They were half the price at the counter, where a guy actually packages it up and weighs it out for you.

Does the deli in the grocery store use cheaper meat or something? What's the deal

 

[HannibalX]

You mean the butcher counter.

Cold cuts and salads are at the deli (along with some cooked foods).

 

[onlyCOpunk]

Because they can make extra money on people who are too lazy to go to the counter and ask for what they want.

I always buy directly from the butcher or deli, it's more fun and usually cheaper. Plus you can get exact amounts.

 

[Zim Hosein]

Originally posted by: Eeezee
I just bought some boneless, skinless chicken breasts. They were nearly $6/lb in the meat section, where they're already prepackaged and ready to go. They were half the price at the counter, where a guy actually packages it up and weighs it out for you.

Does the deli in the grocery store use cheaper meat or something? What's the deal

Prepackaged by the grocery store or branded such as Boar's Head or the like Eeezee?

 

[EGGO]

Why is it the opposite where I shop at?

 

[nonameo]

Where I shop the meat and cheese is ALWAYS more expensive at the counter.

Meat and cheese...

Meat and cheeeesssseeee........

 

[Scarpozzi]

There are different grades of meat in both sections. You can get extremely cheap prepackaged stuff. A lot of it though has been marketed as "deli fresh". They started putting them in the more wasteful plastic containers....thus the price went up...

I've noticed that some of the chaper turkey and ham from grocery store delis sometimes has too much water content. So you get a bag of meat that's sliced too thin... Within a few days of being in the plastic bag, the thin slices of meat are sitting there in their juices and they don't exactly make the most appealing sandwiches. If you get the higher quality meats, they won't have such a high water content...

 

[imported_weadjust]

The deli counter buys their meat in bulk quanitities.

 

[randomlinh]

err.. i haven't looked lately, but a month or two ago... the unit price of prepackage hillshire deli select was 6.59/lb or so. the turkey that was on sale was 6.99. If it weren't on sale, it'd be 7.49. i have seen it fluctuate in the past, but usually the prepackaged is on sale far more often.

 

[jaqie]

The OP is talking about the butcher, not the deli. the butcher sells raw meat. It's a different story then the deli.

 

[Eeezee]

Originally posted by: Zim Hosein

Originally posted by: Eeezee
I just bought some boneless, skinless chicken breasts. They were nearly $6/lb in the meat section, where they're already prepackaged and ready to go. They were half the price at the counter, where a guy actually packages it up and weighs it out for you.

Does the deli in the grocery store use cheaper meat or something? What's the deal

Prepackaged by the grocery store or branded such as Boar's Head or the like Eeezee?

Both were more expensive, even prepackaged by the grocery store

 

[sjwaste]

It's the opposite at Harris Teeter, since the counter only sells their "reserve" meats, which are usually $1/lb more across the board. Funny thing is, if you're willing to look through what's already packed in the meat case, you can usually find one or two very well marbled, on the upper end of the Choice grade. Once or twice, I've spotted a prime-looking steak and taken it home.

 

[Eeezee]

Originally posted by: nonameo
Where I shop the meat and cheese is ALWAYS more expensive at the counter.

Meat and cheese...

Meat and cheeeesssseeee........

That was my expectation; the cost at the butcher counter would be greater than or equal to the cost of the meat just sitting on the shelf.

It never works out that way for me.

 

[PottedMeat]

Around here the butcher counter costs a lot more than going to the case.

I usually get the $0.99/lb bone-in chicken breasts - use the bones & skin to make chicken stock

 

[sjwaste]

Originally posted by: PottedMeat
Around here the butcher counter costs a lot more than going to the case.

I usually get the $0.99/lb bone-in chicken breasts - use the bones & skin to make chicken stock

Dude, a lot of the supermarkets around here don't even SELL bone-in chicken breasts anymore. Everything is boneless/skinless and it pisses me off. Bone on and with skin, you can actually roast them in the oven w/o getting dry, but boneless and skinless, a chicken breast is about the most boring thing in the American diet.

 

[lightstar]

it's in bulk and you have to wait for it. not all stores have butchers any more

 

[Jeff7]

Originally posted by: weadjust
The deli counter buys their meat in bulk quanitities.

NOW you've gone and done it!

 

[Modelworks]

My dad was a meat manager for Winn Dixie stores for about 20 years.
You can never go to the grocery store for him, he knows all the tricks and if you don't use them , you hear it for hours.

The main one:
Learn where the meat you buy comes from on the animal.
Most of the time you can buy the same meat uncut and have it sliced cheaper than you can buying the prepackaged packs.

Here is a site to get you started :
http://mistupid.com/food/butcher.htm

I was probably the only 10 year old in school that knew how they cut up a cow

 

[seemingly random]

Packaging costs are more than one would expect.

Packaged stuff (not just meat) uses lots of preservatives - an extra cost.

Could be a loss leader for that particular grocery.

 

[LS21]

never seen chicken for 6$/lb. are these free range?

 

[Squisher]

Originally posted by: Scarpozzi
There are different grades of meat in both sections. You can get extremely cheap prepackaged stuff. A lot of it though has been marketed as "deli fresh". They started putting them in the more wasteful plastic containers....thus the price went up...

I've noticed that some of the chaper turkey and ham from grocery store delis sometimes has too much water content. So you get a bag of meat that's sliced too thin... Within a few days of being in the plastic bag, the thin slices of meat are sitting there in their juices and they don't exactly make the most appealing sandwiches. If you get the higher quality meats, they won't have such a high water content...

Are you talking about the white tray with the clear plastic wrap tops? If so, that is so they can inject nitrogen over the food so it won't look discolored even though it is old.

 

[Bill Brasky]

*obligatory alternator comment*

edit: To add to the thread, the prepackaged stuff probably cost more due to packaging a labor. At the counter it's usually just wrapped in paper.

 

[DrPizza]

It's a little more expensive from a real butcher - not the butcher in the grocery store. But, around here, in the grocery store, boneless skinless chicken breasts are about $1.68 a pound about 2 out of 3 weeks. Sometimes they're $2.99 a pound. (I don't buy them at that price.)

But, for steaks, I'd much rather get them from a small butcher than get the crap that's sold in grocery stores.

 

[CPA]

Originally posted by: onlyCOpunk
Because they can make extra money on people who are too lazy to go to the counter and ask for what they want.

I always buy directly from the butcher or deli, it's more fun and usually cheaper. Plus you can get exact amounts.

oh, wow, we now have meat elitists.

 

[ultimatebob]

That's odd. At the grocery stores I go to, all of the top shelf meats are in the butcher counter. Those cost at least $2 a pound more than the packaged stuff.