This mum's supermarket act with her kids raises eyebrows: ‘They are FOR SALE’

Navigating the aisles of a supermarket with children in tow can be a challenge for any parent. It's a balancing act of keeping the kids content while managing the shopping list.

But one mother's approach to this challenge has sparked a debate on parenting and supermarket etiquette that has people talking.



The incident unfolded in a Coles supermarket and was shared by a bystander on social media.

‘I was out doing groceries, and I saw a mum with two kids. One in the trolley, the other one, might be five or six years old, walking beside her,’ she said.

The mother in question, shopping with her two children, was seen peeling and handing bananas to her eldest child right in the produce section.


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A bystander shared a mum’s questionable supermarket act with her kids. Credit: Facebook


‘I was a bit shocked,’ she admitted. ‘And was in shock some more when she came back and got another one.’

‘She peeled it and gave it to the same kid. They were big bananas, too.’

She added that there was no ‘free fruit for kids’ stand in this Coles branch.

The post quickly ignited a conversation online, with many jumping to the mother's defence.

Fellow shoppers pointed out that the financial impact on Coles, a company that reported a $1.1 billion profit last year, would be negligible.

'I think Coles will pull through,' one commenter remarked.

‘I’m pretty sure the billion-dollar grocery chain will survive another day. You should see what they throw out,’ another said.

‘I love how you said big bananas too, like would it have made a difference if they were small?’ a third noted.



Others shared their own experiences.

‘I’ve asked the ones that don’t have a free fruit stand if we can get something. They said it was more than okay, they just removed the free fruit stand because teens were coming after school and abusing the system. Two kids = two bananas,’ one shared.

‘I always ask a Coles employee if there is no free fruit stand, and they are more than happy for children to have an apple/banana/pear. Leave this woman alone,’ another said.

‘Definitely have done this before; most shops have a free kids area, and when they don’t, my girls don’t understand that,’ another parent admitted.

'My child cracks it if she doesn't get a banana. I totally get this mum's situation,’ a commenter added.



However, the original poster stood her ground, expressing concern over the message this behaviour might send to children.

‘I myself have experienced my toddler asking non-stop for a banana. So I go and pay for some before I continue my shopping. LOL,’ she wrote.

'Responses here are why kids today seem very entitled.’

‘Yes, they’re just bananas. Yes, Coles has a huge profit. But still, they are FOR SALE.’



While ‘Free Fruits for Kids’ programs are successful in some supermarkets, people still take advantage of the free fruit meant for children.

In a previous story, a Woolworths customer attempted to take bananas without payment from the store’s ‘Free Fruit for Kids’ stand despite not having any children with him.

The incident was shared on social media, sparking debate among other shoppers. You can read more about the story here.
Key Takeaways
  • A Melbourne mum was criticised online for peeling and giving her children bananas in a Coles supermarket without paying first.
  • Other parents came to her defence, pointing out that Coles is a large corporation likely unharmed by the act and mentioning that the store has profited significantly.
  • Some commenters admitted to doing similar things, with many stating that other Coles supermarkets offer free fruit for children and staff often allow it even without a dedicated stand.
  • The original poster reiterated her position, suggesting that allowing such behaviour contributes to a sense of entitlement in children.
Have you witnessed similar acts in supermarkets? Do you think the mother's actions were justified, or do you agree with the original poster that it sets a bad example? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
 
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Funny how the woman posting had enough time to see her come back for a second banana why are you why are you watching people if you where doing your shopping you wouldn’t notice you go shopping to shop not worry about what others are doing you should be worried about why it worries you so much to put on social media
 
I think this sends a wrong message to kids. It’s not usual for shops to provide free fruit. The idea may be good. Ie helping nourish children by multi million profitable businesses however there must be a better way to distribute free food if that value is paramount. Otherwise will provide the wrong message in stores where this policy is no acceptable
 
I think this sends a wrong message to kids. It’s not usual for shops to provide free fruit. The idea may be good. Ie helping nourish children by multi million profitable businesses however there must be a better way to distribute free food if that value is paramount. Otherwise will provide the wrong message in stores where this policy is no acceptable
My children were taught to never eat or drink anything whilst in the supermarket. If they were consuming something then we would wait until it was finished. If they wanted something we were buying they would wait until it was paid for and we had totally left the shop. Never had a complaint about those rules from any of them.
 
The issue that is being ignored here is the principle of not stealing. Stealing is stealing for whatever reason. It is irrelevant that the supermarkets make large profits. They are a business not a charity. How would people feel if someone came and stole something from their house.. I have noticed at checkout that some people have money for chips, soft drinks and say they cant afford fruit and veg. Try living in India or Africa where there is no Centrelink. Many adults are doing the stealing and they teach their children to steal. Honest people have to pay the price for the Billions that are stolen. Anybody caught stealing should be banned permanently from the shop. There needs to be a deterrent and accounability.
 
Coles sells grapes in bags. I once saw an elderly lady put her hand into the bags and pick up and handle the grapes til she found the bunches that appealed to her. She then put those in one bag and off she went, leaving many bags of grapes with her personal touch for unwary future grape eaters.
 
Coles sells grapes in bags. I once saw an elderly lady put her hand into the bags and pick up and handle the grapes til she found the bunches that appealed to her. She then put those in one bag and off she went, leaving many bags of grapes with her personal touch for unwary future grape eaters.
WELL don't you wash your grapes before eating them? I sure do!
 
Bloody people these days that expect everyone else to pay for and nourish their kids whilst they are growing up. This woman is stealing, yes STEALING the fruit and also teaching her kids to steal and it is OK to expect everyone else to pay for that. Coles or Woolworths don't regardless of how much profit they make. All the other honest customers pay because they have to pay more for their groceries to cover the cost of STEALING. These people need to stop smoking, drinking, gambling, using drugs and getting tattoo's and use their own money to live and raise their children.
 
As was mentioned in the article, another mother asked a store employee about the free fruit for kids as it wasn’t on display and was told, basically, to take some as it is not on display due to misuse. How does anyone know if the mother with the two kids has been told to take fruit for her kids if there are non out on display. Did ‘The stalker’ bother to ask her? People are way to quick to judge these days
 
"These people need to stop smoking, drinking, gambling, using drugs and getting tattoo's..."

Please provide proof that that particular woman smoked, drank, gambled, used drugs and / or was tattooed.

But its nice to be indignant and blackguard those whom you don't know, isn't it? When did you last beat your wife?
 
Coles sells grapes in bags. I once saw an elderly lady put her hand into the bags and pick up and handle the grapes til she found the bunches that appealed to her. She then put those in one bag and off she went, leaving many bags of grapes with her personal touch for unwary future grape eaters.
You wash them before eating anyway. Can't see any difference to picking apples off the stands.
 
Originally the "free fruit for kids" came into being as part of a contractual clause when Jamie Oliver agreed to be a face for Woolworths . This was about fifteen years ago, i believe it is up to the individual store managers, or area managers now. No, in my opinion, if this is not offered in store then pay for what your children eat.
 
"These people need to stop smoking, drinking, gambling, using drugs and getting tattoo's..."

Please provide proof that that particular woman smoked, drank, gambled, used drugs and / or was tattooed.

But its nice to be indignant and blackguard those whom you don't know, isn't it? When did you last beat your wife?
what a stupid comment.
 
"These people need to stop smoking, drinking, gambling, using drugs and getting tattoo's..."

Please provide proof that that particular woman smoked, drank, gambled, used drugs and / or was tattooed.

But its nice to be indignant and blackguard those whom you don't know, isn't it? When did you last beat your wife?
Listen here you brainless dipshit, I didn't say that she (the particular women) did any of those things. I made a general observation. Don't you dare insinuate that I beat my wife you lowlife. I have never raised a hand to any woman or man my whole life, however if I was to meet you I just may forget myself. Get a life and don't judge me by your own actions.
 
a form of stealing and so many of you agree to it.
Indeed; if not invited to eat a couple of bananas, from either the price-gouge people or my fruit-bowl at home, it is theft.

I would suggest that $4.50 for a kilo of bananas is expensive, if not another form of theft, although it is winter here; but as a child in Pomgolia bananas didn't appear that frequently on the table and we ate apples from the trees in our garden, when we eventually got a garden, instead.
 
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Listen here you brainless dipshit, I didn't say that she (the particular women) did any of those things. I made a general observation. Don't you dare insinuate that I beat my wife you lowlife. I have never raised a hand to any woman or man my whole life, however if I was to meet you I just may forget myself. Get a life and don't judge me by your own actions.
you got it in one Geoff01.
 
Indeed; if not invited to eat a couple of bananas, from either the price-gouge people or my fruit-bowl at home, it is theft.

I would suggest that $4.50 for a kilo of bananas is expensive, if not another form of theft, although it is winter here; but as a child in Pomgolia bananas didn't appear that frequently on the table and we ate apples from the trees in our garden, when we eventually got a garden, instead.
gosh you are pathetic. tell me what would you charge if you were selling fruit in a shop?
 
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Reactions: ice.creeme
Listen here you brainless dipshit, I didn't say that she (the particular women) did any of those things. I made a general observation. Don't you dare insinuate that I beat my wife you lowlife. I have never raised a hand to any woman or man my whole life, however if I was to meet you I just may forget myself. Get a life and don't judge me by your own actions.
You led with your chin in that sentence, "These people....." etc. And I never said that you beat you wife. That is the class of insinuation you made starting with your sentence, "These people etc.......". There is too much of that type of gratuitous insult and slander in such "e-chat" sites as SDC. "General observations" of the type you made created the social justification for a lot a good people having ended-up in Hitler's concentration camps with the knock-on results that we still see today; with that remark I must be showing my age.
 

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