Don't forget to bring calculator, magnifying glass to Paramus ShopRite

Last week, I picked up hothouse-grown Big Taste Tomatoes for $1 a pound, but by Tuesday, ShopRite in Paramus had replaced them with Campari Tomatoes for about $2.50 a pound, above and below. Costco Wholesale in Teterboro sells the 2-pound Campari Tomatoes package for $4.49.

ShopRite, at 224 Route 4 east in Paramus, also is accessible from Forest Avenue or Spring Valley Road.

ShopRite Fruit on the Bottom Low Fat Yogurt in 6-ounce cups, made with sugar, were on sale for 50 cents each, but ShopRite Light Fat Free Yogurt uses aspartame, an artificial sweetener. Only the aspartame-sweetened fat-free yogurt is available in boxes of 12, which brings down the price to about 41.5 cents per cup.

Chobani Greek Yogurt with fruit in 5.3-ounce cups was on sale for $1 each. Though it's pricier, Chobani contains about half of the sugar found in ShopRite Fruit on the Bottom Low Fat Yogurt.

I don't eat meat so don't have to try and figure out which package contains beef raised on feed that includes chicken-house waste or bits of dead animals.

Nature's Reserve 100% Grass Fed Ground Beef from Australia doesn't contain antibiotics, and is available with 20% fat, above, and 15% fat, below.

This package of hamburger patties appears to have the wrong shelf label. They are made with Certified Angus Beef Prime, which is raised on antibiotics. Certified Angus Beef Natural is antibiotic free and vegetarian fed.

-- VICTOR E. SASSON

New at Costco Wholesale, lactose-free milk and Greek Yogurt with fruit

I've been buying the ShopRite brand of lactose-free milk for several years, but recently, Costco Wholesale in Hackensack introduced Kirkland Signature 100% Lactose Free 2% Reduced Fat Milk for about $2.66 a carton (three for $7.99).

A new item at Costco Wholesale in Hackensack is Kirkland Signature non-fat Greek Yogurt with Fruit on the Bottom.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

If you're lactose intolerant and add milk to your coffee, frittata mixture or an occasional bowl of cereal, you know how uncomfortable that can make you feel.

Conventional milk causes bloating or gas.

I'm a big fan of Starbucks Coffee, but I've never found lactose-free milk there or at Dunkin' Donuts.

So at home, I've been using ShopRite's brand of 1% Lactose Free Milk, usually $3.49 a half-gallon, to add to my morning coffee and in a Nespresso foamer for espresso drinks.

Now, Costco Wholesale in Hackensack is offering Kirkland Signature 100% Lactose Free Milk for $2.66 a carton (three 64-ounce cartons for $7.99).

Costco's product contains 2% milk fat. 

I hope Costco plans to introduce a lactose-free product with 1% milk fat and organic versions.

A natural enzyme called lactase is added to break down a sugar called lactose and help with digestion, according to Kirkland Signature.

Yogurt with fruit

A new dairy product at Costco Wholesale is Kirkland Signature non-fat Greek Yogurt with Fruit on the Bottom: Black Cherry, Blueberries and Strawberries.

Fifteen mixed 6-ounce cups were $10.89 or 69 cents each, compared to about 89 cents each for 6-ounce cups of Chobani Greek Yogurt with Fruit.

Costco's house brand of Greek Yogurt with fruit is sweetened with sugar.

We've been using Kirkland Signature's non-fat plain Greek Yogurt in 32-ounce containers for blending in smoothies or eating with organic agave syrup.

Costco coupons make good prices even better

Four-pound bags of Tru Roots Organic 100% Whole Grain Quinoa ($18.99) returned to the shelves of Costco Wholesale in Hackensack after an absence of a few months. The same 4-pound bag is available on Amazon.com for $27.99. This organic, non-GMO product has fewer carbohydrates than rice or pasta.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
Editor

As if Costco Wholesale's generally high quality and low prices aren't enough, store coupons sent to members in the mail make good deals even better.

On Monday afternoon, I bought several food and non-food products, got discounts of $2 to $3 at the register and earned cash rebates on my American Express Costco credit card.

A variety pack of 15 Chobani Non-Fat Greek Yogurt with fruit worked out to 63 cents for each 6-ounce cup with a $4 discount (normally $13.49).

Two 1-pound, 4-ounce containers of Kirkland Signature Lobster Bisque were about $4.12 each after a $2.75 discount (usually $10.99).

Three Champion-brand boxer briefs were $3 off the normal price of $12.99.

Ito En 100% Japanese Green Tea (100 bags) was $9.99 or $3 off.

And 3 1-liter bottles of Bolthouse Farms Organic 100% Carrot Juice were only $5.39 after a $2 discount.

Non-coupon purchases included Kirkland Signature Organic Diced Tomatoes (8 14.5-ounce cans for $5.99), which I use in rice, pasta and quinoa dishes.

Kirkland Signature Basil Pesto was $7.99 for a 22-ounce plastic jar, and 2 dozen Organic Brown Eggs were $6.99.

I still have unused coupons for Kirkland Signature Wild Caught Hake Loins (frozen, $4 off), Trident Seafoods All Natural Ultimate Fish Sticks ($3 off) and Glad 13-gallon ForceFlex Trash Bags ($3 off).

They expire on March 30. Coupons no longer need to be clipped and brought to the store, and signs in the warehouse show the savings on sale items.

Kirkland Signature Basil Pesto used as a garnish on leftover organic brown rice served with a broiled whole wild-caught sea bass from H Mart in Englewood ($4.99 a pound).

What makes Greek yogurt so pricey?

Image by Newbirth35 via Flickr

You have to dig deep for some Greek-style yogurts.

Greek-style yogurt is strained to make it thicker, but what makes it so expensive?

Fage, Oikos and Chobani are not only hard to pronounce, their inflated prices are hard to stomach.

At ShopRite supermarkets, a 32-ounce container of Chobani Greek-style yogurt is $5.99. Trader Joe's own brand of non-fat Greek yogurt is $4.99 for 32 ounces and $2.99 for 16 ounces. 

They're made here, not in Greece.

Now, Costco Wholesale in Hackensack has brought the price of Greek-style yogurt down to earth -- $6.49 for two 32-ounce containers of Kirkland Signature non-fat yogurt (about $3.25 each).

I tried a free sample with honey before I made the purchase and could not believe this thick, mouth-filling yogurt has no fat.

Up and down prices

Also at Costco, Earthbound Farm Organic Spring Mix is up to $4.99 for 16 ounces, but those incredible, small, round Campari tomatoes  are down to $4.49 for a 2-pound package.

Fairway Market in Paramus sells two 1-pound packages of these same Sunset-brand Campari tomatoes for $5, but their taste doesn't compare to the ones from Costco.

On Tuesday, I bought a large seedless watermelon at Costco for $4.99, the lowest price so far this season. 

Today, ShopRite put seedless watermelons on sale for $3.99, a $2 discount.

Not recommended

I drove to Trader Joe's in Paramus this morning to check Greek yogurt prices and pick up a few pounds of its imported Organic Whole Wheat Spaghetti ($1.39 for 16 ounces).

As good as that product is, I was disappointed with a can of Wild Pink Shrimp that I tried for the first time ($1.99 for 4 ounces).

The label says, "Crisp, tiny Oregon shrimp."

They are tiny -- about the size of the nail on my smallest finger -- but I found them far from "crisp" when I ate them over a big salad. "Mealy" is more like it.

Yuck.