I read an interesting article the other day in the Statesman Journal about what American consumers are buying and not buying these days. House paint, plumbing repair parts and SPAM are among the things enjoying higher sales. “Hormel said sales of its meat-in-a-can continued to rise in the quarter, gaining in the low double digits.”
I haven’t seen a can of SPAM in decades but today, just for the heck of it, I ventured into the interior of a local grocery to see what these great sales figures were about. The common belief is that this is an affordable “meat” in “these tough economic times.” It’s at least 10% more desirable than it was in the last fiscal quarter. Baloney and horse manure!
SPAM was offered in three sizes and one of them was on sale. Depending on the size package, today at the Port Hadlock, WA, QFC, you can buy SPAM BY THE POUND for:
- $3.99
- $6.16
- $8.50
I escaped the interior and went back to my more familiar territory, the perimeter of the grocery store, and checked out the meat sales. (I almost always and only buy things on sale.) I found:
- Petite Boneless Sirloin Steak, $3.99 a pound (on sale from its regular 6.99 a pound)
- Boneless Pork Sirloin Chops, $3.99 a pound, buy one, get one free. That makes it close to $2 a pound if you choose your packages carefully.
Last week when I was walking by the meat counter I snagged some skinless, boneless chicken breasts, not organic but no hormones and vegetarian-fed, on sale for $1.99 a pound. I bought two packages and they’re in the freezer.
Let’s look again:
SPAM®:
$3.99
$6.16
$8.50
PER POUND
BONELESS SIRLOIN STEAK, SIRLOIN PORK CHOPS AND CHICKEN BREASTS:
$3.99
$2.00
$1.99
PER POUND
Okay, so let’s blow Myth #1 away. SPAM IS NOT CHEAP! IT’S NOT A “MORE AFFORDABLE” OPTION.
As for Myth #2, that it’s “convenient,” let’s look at the three cuts of meat I named. All of them can be quickly sauteed (like SPAM) just after you take them from the package. There aren’t even any bones. And all three make fabulous, quick, stir fries.”PREPARING” SPAM IS NOT MORE CONVENIENT THAN PREPARING BONELESS REAL MEAT AND POULTRY UNLESS YOU EAT IT STRAIGHT OUT OF THE CAN.
Granted, you can’t store steak, pork chops or chicken breasts in the cupboard, but refrigeration is common in North America.
I am 23 (almost 24) and I remember when SPAM was $0.87¢ a can (the big ones). I still like to eat it once in a while, but down here in NC, its went up on price tremendously since 2010. I priced a few different grocery stores for SPAM (large can), here’s the results:
Food Lion: $3.99 (rarely they offer a 2 for $5 MVP special)
Harris Teeter: $4.28 (then again, HT is pricey as hell anyway)
Target Grocery: $4.10
Wal-Mart: $2.47
So honestly, its all rather expensive, but Wal-Mart is your lesser of the evils in price.
I highly doubt the post-apocalyptic population will be fortunate enough to eat Spam. I think that more likely than not, they will b e dining on the family pet. But I too was in the grocery shop and saw how expensive it was and I also was thinking why anyone would spend that kind of money on it.
Sometimes they even kill them before separating!
Poor cluckers.
Look at the ingredients. My favorite is mechanically separated chicken.
On the other hand, Spam will most likely be a staple in post-apocalyptic land.
Salt, salt and then add salt. How’s your blood pressure?
I’ve been eyeing Spam lately, wondering if it could be sliced thin and made into Jerky. It’s got to be pretty fatty, so I’m guessing it wouldn’t be a great candidate.