Watching out for the little guys

July 12, 2006  FILED TO: Miscellaneous

Since discovering about 5 years ago that I am gluten intolerant and also allergic to MSG I have become increasingly interested in nutrition – cooking most of my meals from scratch, avoiding junk food, avoiding colourings and preservatives, etc. In that time, the availability of gluten-free and otherwise healthy foods in supermarkets has increased dramatically, to my delight. For years I missed having yummy cakes (or had to pay through the nose for versions that I can eat), pizzas, puddings and biscuits but I can now get these foods in the supermarket health-food section (yeah, yeah, not exactly healthy but catering to my diet).

In the past few months however, the brands I have come to love have started disappearing from the supermarket shelves to be replaced by “home” brands (some of which might be gluten-free but packed with preservatives, colourings and/or MSG). After seeing a report on the evening news, I realised that this has been happening with other product lines as well. So I’m boycotting these generic brands. I know it’s nice to have a cheaper alternative but this is going too far in the name of profit, if you ask me – the smaller, more specialised brands are being pushed off the shelves. I would boycott the big supermarkets altogether if I could get what I want easily and quickly from somewhere else, but as I currently live in the outer suburbs of Melbourne that’s not easy.

Ok, the world is rife with issues in this day and age but I’d like to think I’m doing my part to resist the corporations and maintain consumer freedom of choice. Taking care of the little guys. Will you join me?