Day 123 - 09 May 95 - Page 36


     
     1   Q.   How long is it since you have bought a loaf of bread?
     2        A.  Oh, I have bought a loaf of bread, oh, a few weeks
     3        ago.  I still do my own shopping, at least, I attempt to
     4        help my wife out from time to time and do the shopping.
     5
     6   Q.   On the last occasion you said it would be 40 cents?
     7        A.  Yes, that is about right.  Sometimes there are
     8        bargains.  You can get three loaves of bread for a
     9        dollar  ---
    10
    11   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Three for a dollar or something?
    12        A.  Yes, three for a dollar.
    13
    14   MS. STEEL:  Do you know the Jewel chain stores?
    15        A.  Yes.
    16
    17   Q.   They are quite a well-known supermarket in America?
    18        A.  Yes, particularly in the Chicago area.
    19
    20   Q.   Yes.  A more realistic price for bread would be well over a
    21        dollar, would it not?
    22        A.  No, from time to time there are sales on bread.  The
    23        regular price for bread might be as much as twice the cost
    24        during a sale period.  There are times during the week
    25        where you can buy certain groceries, certain goods, at a
    26        greatly reduced price.  If you are a regular consumer,
    27        particularly at the Jewel chain, you can have a preferred
    28        card.  A preferred card gives you an additional discount
    29        over and above the discounted price to the general public.
    30
    31   Q.   Right, but to the general public $1.79 would not be an
    32        unusual price to pay for a loaf of brown bread?
    33        A.  That is very unusual.
    34
    35   Q.   You think that is unusual?
    36        A.  That is a gourmet -- that must be a gourmet loaf of
    37        bread.  That is not a regular loaf of bread at $1.79.  I
    38        would not pay a $1 79 cents for loaf of bread.  Maybe if it
    39        is multi-grain, specially baked with special ingredients
    40        I might pay $1.79, but that would be a rare situation.
    41        I would not characterise the typical loaf of bread that the
    42        average person would buy in a supermarket, I would not say
    43        that it would cost $1 79 cents.  That is an unbelievable
    44        price to me.
    45
    46   MS. STEEL:  I do not really know what to do, but when I was
    47        reading Mr. Beavers' evidence at the weekend -- as you
    48        know, we have just been to America -- it occurred to me
    49        that 40 cents was an incredibly low price.  It was
    50        something like about 25 pence, I think.  I looked through 
    51        the things I brought back with me.  There was actually a 
    52        receipt with a price for a loaf of bread on it.  It is 
    53        $1.79 and that is from Jewel stores.
    54
    55   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Do you know anything more about it?
    56
    57   MS. STEEL:  I know it was brown sliced loaf.
    58
    59   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I have not heard the phrase "gourmet" loaf of
    60        bread before, but I can see that there are fancy loaves

Prev Next Index