A week ago, I purchased a 1/2 gallon of milk from Trader Joe’s for $1.49. The expiration date was for August 26. On Sunday, I used it to make French toast – and everything came out fine. When I poured the milk into the glass, however, I knew it had gone bad. Instead of a fragrant milkiness, there’s a weird aftertaste.
I thought about just dumping out the milk and chalking it up to a fluke, but I had only finished half the bottle. So even though I felt a little strange about it (it’s only $1.50, after all, and I didn’t have my receipt anymore), I decided to head back to Trader Joe’s and ask for a refund.
Just to be safe, I lugged the bottle of milk with me. At Trader Joe’s, I went to the customer service desk and explained the situation to the crew member. The nice gentlemen behind the desk immediately wrote me a refund for $1.49. “You can smell the milk,” I said eagerly. But he made a face and shook his head. Hah! That was probably the smart decision. (I smelled the milk and it was definitely funky!)
I left the store with a new 1/2 gallon of milk and a further appreciation of Trader Joe’s customer service. I still have no idea what happened – maybe I just got a bad batch, or the date was mislabeled, etc. Anyone with a theory, please feel free to chime in!
But at least now I have a new bottle of milk. So lessons learned: if the food is bad or spoiled, Trader Joe’s will issue a replacement / refund promptly. It never hurts to ask!
Related posts:
I don’t know what it is, but my skim milk keeps going bad early! I’ve tried all types. The 1% milk next to it (BF’s) didn’t go bad… so it can’t be the fridge.. or is it? I turned the temp down a wee bit, but it’s getting old to sniff that stench before my morning Cheerios… Good for you for going back to the store!
Also – my theory is that in the summertime, the time milk spends between the dairy and the transport truck, and the truck and the store refrigerator is that much more detrimental to the milk’s shelf life since it’s so effing hot!
Could be just that the jug got exposed to more light then the others, or it’s temperature didn’t stay consistent at the store…. or maybe that particular jug wasn’t sealed exactly properly.
It’s great that they exchanged it for you without question!
I have the same problem frequently with Trader Joe’s milk–I now buy it at Aldi because I still save money, it’s right next door to Trader Joe’s, and for whatever reason, it stays fresh longer. I have ruined far too many good cups of coffee to want to buy their milk anymore (but that is the only product I have had any issues with–everything else is fantastic there, in my opinion). Glad to hear they resolved the problem!
Don’t get me wrong — I love TJ’s. But I have had lots of problems with spoiled things there. Bags of spinach that reeked as I opened them, milk that went bad, etc. They’re unfailingly friendly and helpful when I come back all sad-faced, but sometimes, when I know I really need to be able to make a quick meal with fresh ingredients, I choose to spend more and go to Whole Foods or the coop where I can count on things being good. Seems like there’s always some trade off….
Curiousjul, I have this happen to me at least once a month there (when I shop at TJs more regularly). Maybe they let their stuff sit out too long before stocking it in the fridge? I have bought a bag of pre-diced onion- spoiled, salsa especial- fermenting, milk- sour after two days, brie- smelled up my car on the drive home (I thought I had left a wetsuit in the trunk and it was rotting, but it was the cheese!)
They are easygoing about issuing a refund, but this kind of stuff shouldn’t be happening in the first place.
I have a lot of problems with spoiled items from TJs also. I have had the exact problem with several kinds of their milk (skim, whole, 2%). I chalk it up to the fact the store has to keep prices low somehow so they must cut corners somewhere. I was also very mad with a loaf of bread I bought there. I took it on a camping trip and tried to use it the day after I bought it and it was all moldy on the interior slices. Uggh. It wasn’t like there was a Trader Joe’s anywhere for miles and that was supposed to be a main source of our food for the weekend.
I’ve had the spoiled milk thing happen many times. And with the veggies, too, as curiousjul noted. Almost always from TJ’s. I bought some bell peppers there the other day that had some time before they were supposed to ‘expire’, and when I cut into them, the insides were totally overgrown with nasty mold.
I don’t know the reason for the milk spoiling, but it’s funny that you should mention taking it back. The other day, Boyfriend bought one of those little itty bitty single serve ice cream cups (look like a pint, but one serving instead of 4). When we got it home, it turned out it had gone bad. I said we should put it in the freezer and take it back when we next go to the grocery, but he wanted to just throw it away. It WAS only $2.99, but to me, that’s a lot to just throw away! I reasoned that since we’d be going to the store anyway, it wouldn’t hurt to return it or exchange it for a new one. He finally acquiesced… but now I think he lost the receipt.
I’m just glad to hear I’m not the only one who returns spoiled things!
I also find that a lot of TJ’s products spoil rather quickly. Like Bonnie, my bell peppers shrivel up and get moldy after only a few days. I never buy milk there, because it just tastes weird. Those pre-washed salads? They turn icky and sticky after 3 days. The chicken sausages? After ONE day of being opened (and kept in a ziploc bag in the cheese/deli meat compartment of my fridge) turn gooey and gross. The only milk I buy (and that lasts forever for some strange reason) is the 1% Horizon Organic milk. It tastes good too.
That’s awesome! I would have probably just thrown it out and forgotten about it.
Sometimes the produce seems that is spoils quickly. I rather spend a bit more $$ and go to the farmer’s market or whole foods. But I like everything else there.
I had something similar happen with Wegman’s, only it was raspberries that went bad the day after I got them. They were also ready to refund no questions asked.
I wonder how many stores do and don’t have the same policy. I know Trader Joe’s and Wegman’s are both considered “higher end” groceries.
@casey @Jessie
I think you guys are right. The temperature probably wasn’t cold enough for part of the transport / packing.
@Laura
I didn’t have a receipt either, I just bought in the actual product. Instead of thinking about it as “just $2.99″, think of it as delicious ice cream that you can have after dinner. That’s what I did. I’m not willing to go back to the store for $1.49, but I sure as heck will for a nice cold bottle of milk that I can drink while eating brownies.
@everyone
Ah I’m sorry to hear that so many of you had problems with TJ produce / diary spoiling. I am glad that the customer service is good. There’s that, at least.
It might not have been handled properly. You lose about a day of longevity to every hour dairy isn’t kept cold..
I haven’t had a problem with TJ’s stuff going bad…but I do know that their return policy is that they will take anything back, no matter what! Even if you just tried it and didn’t like it! Because of this, they are good people in my book.
I too have problems with TJs stuff going bad quickly, don’t leave their bread out or it will get moldy (I keep it in the fridge). Same thing with cheese, it often goes moldy before we even open the package! But they have a great return policy and will take it back pretty much no questions ask. I’ve never had a problem returning an item to them.
I worked at a TJ’s in high school and continue to shop there all the time. Here’s my insight:
a) as a company they did not start carrying any sort of produce until about 13-14 years ago, while that IS a long time, they are constantly adding new products so maybe they haven’t worked out some of the kinks (although milk should not be hard, so maybe that theory is dumb). b) as a smaller store than most giant grocery stores they only get deliveries twice a week and probably go though some things slower, thus it may have been on the shelf for longer than at another bigger grocery store.
I have never had too much of a problem with things spoiling, but on the few occasions I just bring my receipt back (not even the product or container) and they refund the money, it is their policy to do so, and yes, as someone else pointed out, even if you just didn’t like the taste.
Hey All ! HELP Me Figure This One Out !!! In March of 2010. I bought 1 Gallon of Milk at Walmart in Arizona & opened & used 1st day, it was Good. On 2nd day smelled funky ,3rd day really Lumpy & Smelled Totally Gross, poured down drain. So, I go to another store Smiths & buy 1 Gallon milk there. Exact same thing happened ! I go to another store Bashas, buy 1 Gallon milk. Exact same thing happened. I go to one last store Gas & Grub buy 1 Gallon milk, same thing happened. I'm thinking one bad batch yes ! But 4 in a ROW ! UNREAL ! Nothing else in refrig went bad, all items stayed Good, but the Milks. Then I started having Severe Headaches & Insomnia & Seizures. Which I NEVER , have had ever before. Been having Medical Issuses ever since. Someone with knowledge of what happened here "PLEASE " REPLY ASAP. Thank You,
When I went to pour my TJ milk (who's sell by date is 4 days from today) onto my Joe's O's this morning I got nothing but chunky, curdled milk. Not cool! The funky smell has happened to us in the past too and now I can see that we aren't the only ones this happens to and it seems to have been happening a long time. Like many of you I love TJ. My husband recently got a job their and he loves it and it only makes sense for us to buy our food their. I hope that TJ is aware of this problem and will fix it somehow.