why is it when you go to get tea or coffee, most nyc deli’s will give you ten (10) sugar packets with one (1) cup of tea or coffee? do they get more money from Domino and other Sugar conglomerates for pushing more sugar on ppl? do they have to make quota each month? Even though sugar is probably really cheap, wouldn’t a little restraint work in their favor? How much money could a place like Delion save per month? Let’s see if we can calculate it.
According to http://www.foodservicedirect.com/, a carton of 2000 sugar packets is list priced at: $17.16. though the more you buy, the more you save they claim, so long as you buy 3 case minimum. $14.15 for 1 case, $13.35 for 12 or more cases, $12.55 per case for 24 or more, and $12.15 per Case for 48 or more.
Packets Domino Sugar 2000 Count per Case
NOTE: A 3 Case minimum applies to all bulk-food items. You can combine any three different bulk-food items to make the minimum. Non-food items dont count toward this minimum. Food items cannot be returned.
On an average day, let’s assume that they sell 30 cups of coffee per hour. 30 cups per hour multiplied by 24 hours results in 720 cups of coffee per day. I want to dbl check this with them, but for argument’s sake, let’s say they sell 360 cups of tea/coffee a day. Multiply 360 cups of coffee by an average of 8 sugar packets per cup will give 2,880 sugar packets in one day! For argument’s sake, let’s say they go through a case of sugar packets per day. In one month, Delion could potentially go through 30 cases of sugar!
Now that seems high to me, so let’s cut that number down and assume they use 24 cases of sugar per month. Which would mean 288 cases of sugar per year. That seems excessive right? Well, if we multiply 288 cases by $12.15, we see that Delion could potentially be spending $3,499.20 per year on sugar!!!
That may not seem a lot from a micro perspective, but from a macro view, if they are this liberal with dispensing their sugar packets, could this theory not be applied to napkins, straws, and other materials? How much money are we as end consumers being overcharged for their gross negligence? for their inefficiencies? Why should we have to pay 10 cents extra for coffee or tea and subsidize their mismangement and screw ups? I propose NO MORE SUGAR PACKETS!
I propose the following: Taking a nod from some of our nation’s stupid EPA energy policies (i may or may not have all the facts down on this, challenge me on this if you can) let’s employ a “Sugar Packet Trade Program.” Everytime you buy a cup of coffee or tea and they give you 10 sugar packets, you can bring them in and save 1 cent. It’s a sugar packet voucher. It doesn’t sound like much, but there could even be rebates based on scale. For each 5 packets of clean, unused sugar you bring in, you save 5 cents! The first ten packets will get you 10 cents off your next tea or coffee, where each additional packet over the first ten will give you 1.5 cents off. Using a sliding scale, you could save more. The more inefficient they are with materials, the more YOU and I can save! We could effectively break the ridiculous habits of such inefficient delis and save money!
It’s the equivalent of returning stupid take out menus to local restaurants, posting NO MENUS in your apt building’s door, chasing out the delivery people who loiter in your building shoving menus underneath your door, or sending catalogs back to those damn clothing stores, ripping out the magazine subscription cards and sending them in blank. Showcase their inefficiencies! Take it to the streets. It’s more than just being environmentally careful, it’s wasteful and a sign of gluttony. Take what you need, no more, no less. Say it with me, NO MORE SUGAR!
