Prices in Walmart...

[pgru2]

Hopefully it is not banned on forum.

Why the Walmart is so ... costly!

Let check the price of the sausage, start with 1st probably one of the cheapest. Bridgford Summer Sausage, 16 Oz. cost $4.88. It gives about 40,77092511 złotych / 1 kg. In Poland average sausage(and this is what average Pole eat) cost usually between 10 - 25 złotych 1 kg. And Poles dislike GMO, probably it may be generally banned and not used. Poland is much smaller that origin country of Walmart, the farms are usually not so big and mechanized. In Poland the robots on farms are rarely seen, on other side of Atlantic there are probably even fully autonomous laser robots that helps on farms. Even probably Diesel is much cheaper than in Poland.

 

[Eudimorphodon]

Start off by comparing the median annual income between the two countries and work from there:

https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/median-income-by-country

 

[pgru2]

Start off by comparing the median annual income between the two countries and work from there:

https://worldpopulationreview.com/co...ome-by-country

It's even more interesting if You use it in similar way(and Walmart lost again in that case). For example Eurostat(statistical bureau of union in Europe) - states that in 2020 the Poles are richer than USA citizens. How they count that? They check minimal wage(and minimal wage is better than median), and prices of products and services - the Polish minimal wage for whole country, checked in Eurostat way is higher than minimum federal wage in USA. It does mean that for basic and average (because it counts prices not only minimal basic products) is more costly in USA than in Poland.

Of course we can use median, or count rich people, and discuss if for e.g. COBOL programmer is underpaid in Poland because he earns less than in New York, even after counting basic food and flat/house rent price. But for the most people, on the poorer side it look like the Eurostat may be right.

Especially it may be interesting because of the automation process - there are self service check-outs, on farms the 1 guy can do the things that 100 years ago did a whole village or even more, even there are places where the cow is fully serviced by robots and computer is deciding. So probably the personnel related cost - in so big mass production on both sides of Atlantic is not so important on the final price of the product.

Personally I think that they have high prices, because... they can. It is like with the "branded" cloths - the price on the "high street" is very big, but when they go "out" because of the new items, they are sold much cheaper in the outlets(because they have different clients with different money there, and clients are not striking because they usually don't have the choice of other shops)...

 

[krebizfan]

Walmart's listed prices is about 10% cheaper than grocery stores on food items but grocery stores often run half price sales which would bring sausage in line with Poland. Some shops offer bulk sausage purchases that are quite cheap probably undercutting the listed prices in Poland. Whether you would like the cheaper sausages available in the US is a different question. Some brands are definitely preferred by very limited audiences.

 

[Eudimorphodon]

It's even more interesting if You use it in similar way(and Walmart lost again in that case). For example Eurostat(statistical bureau of union in Europe) - states that in 2020 the Poles are richer than USA citizens...

If this thread is going to turn into a lame and pointless argument about who's statistics are better than whom's then the least you could do is link your sources. I will say I went to the Eurostat website and.... frankly, the really sketchy handwavey way they describe their methodology makes me suspicious, and their website is a nightmare.

Also, let's be clear here: you chose at random the price of a summer sausage listed on a website and are trying to turn this into a macroeconomic comparison about which country is "better" than which, while describing these "delicious polish sausages that everyone eats" in only the vaguest of terms and simultaneously displaying a very questionable degree of knowledge about American eating habits. (I'll be clear here: I'm sure some Americans eat more summer sausage than I do, but at least in my experience summer sausage is a novelty item people eat at Christmas. Seriously, I buy one roll of it a year strictly out of nostalgia because my grandfather used to like it.) Is the comparison you're trying to make here even remotely relevant? I live in one of the most expensive states in the nation and a local grocery store has a pound of hot dogs for 99 cents. That's 8.23 Polish Zloty per KG, not 40. Are hot dogs a better comparison to this vaguely described polish sausage of yours? I have no idea.

Here's a website, I have no idea how good their data is, that lets you punch in cost of living comparisons between random cities. When I try "San Francisco, United States" (chosen because it's known as one of the most expensive cities in the world) and compare it to "Warsaw, Poland", sure, it agrees that consumer prices in Warsaw are 45% lower than San Francisco. (Although, weirdly, it claims that clothes are cheaper in San Fransicso?) But then look down a ways and see the part where it says the "Local Purchasing Power" is 61% Lower in Warsaw vs. San Francisco. I know you're going to complain that stat is an "average" and, yes, you'd have a point that because minimum wages are a pitiful joke in a lot of the US that the "poverty line" is higher than raw stats would lead you to believe, but, again, what are we arguing about here, the quality of living for an "Average" citizen in each country or a "Poor" one?

I don't know enough about how Poland treats its poorest people to really make an informed argument but, heck, I'm not even going to try to defend the state of the social safety net in the United States. But I don't think that's some big secret, either. I don't think your "average" American worries that much about the price of sausage.

 

[whartung]

Well, it should be noted also that the US is going to be going through an upheaval in the pork market starting next year as California and Massachusetts start mandating the conditions under which their imported pork are raised and processed. As much as folks would perhaps like to ignore the CA and MA markets, the simple truth is -- they can't.

So, raising pork is going to be less efficient, and pork prices in general will rise. They will spike short term in CA and MA as the processors proceed to convert over and thus supply for those specific markets will be lower.

The current prices may already be reflecting some of those price increases.

 

[pgru2]

@krebizfan Agree, it is right. The other side may be(but I am not sure if it is in all states) that some people in USA can even do they shopping "for free" because of the coupons(they made even a TV series about coupons hunting) - which is usually not possible in Poland(not counting IKEA shops that for anniversary given coupons for "free shopping", and if You don't known many of IKEA furniture is made in Poland, starting in communism times)

@Eudimorphodon Yes the prices of hot dogs cited by You is nice, and interesting thing to discussion, and yes for that price it is in pair with Poland. I started with the sausage because it is very important in Poland, part of Polish culture, and probably well known abroad because there is also a Polish sausage sold in USA for big prices. Just don't wanted in first post write about potatoes, fruits, vegetables, chicken and other raw meats making quite long post...

whartung It is common problem in Europe. I read an article, where (probably) well paid science people writes - "We don't need cheap food". Despite I like classic rural village, flying butterflies etc. - there are totally not right. We need cheap food, many of people are living under the poverty line, and the population of the world may increase by big number to 2050.

 

[pgru2]

About state of "social helping" - it of course probably depends on Your polit. views, but to say some facts. In Poland the very common discussion is about 500+ (500 złotych, about 131.6535 $, about 24,2524% of minimum wage in Poland). The program is giving 500 złotych monthly for every child under 18 years(and probably longer if he/she study). Looking about discussion for it it sometimes nearly funny - let's say that "half of nation" - totally supports it, but says they are giving too less and prices are too much(in mean time they increased prices of sugar, cooks, juices, and petrol just saying "doing it for Your health"), second "half of nation" says "oh, You are communists giving this about 131 $ per month", but they usually are first(the program is not depending on Your wealth, You get it despite income) to take it (including representatives, which this year raised probably by themselves their wage by 70%). The most and partially joking is that other European countries are usually far ahead before Poland with social benefits. For example Spain(which is quite poor for western Europe, and flat prices are sometimes similar to Poland) is giving same (similar) money like Polish minimum wage as a guarantee income. Yes You get about 2000 złotych monthly (after conversion) of "free money" - if Your income is 0 or less money up to that income, if Your income is less that about 2000 złotych per month. Of course Polish National TV (which get big money from gov. and taxes) don't say about it. Usually they say about Spain in negative way - like moving the monument of Polish pope. Often also - "how good the Polish gov. is because they are giving 500+". It look for me even more interesting - when I read that California want to pass law about a "guarantee income" for some groups of people, and probably even conservative supports it...