Unit 5 Shopping for food

Introductory reading and talk

Buying foodstuffs in a modern supermarket can be considered a sort of art. It is the art of combating a temptation.

Supermarkets play a dirty trick on the customers: practically every shopper is tempted to buy things he or she does not need or cannot afford.

The mechanism of this lamentable deceit is simple. Firstly, su­permarkets are laid out to make a person pass as many shelves and counters as possible. Only the hardest of souls can pass loaded racks indifferently and not collect all sorts of food from them.

Secondly, more and more supermarkets supply customers with trolleys instead of wire baskets: their bigger volume needs more purchases. One picks up a small item, say, a pack of spaghetti, puts it into a huge trolley and is immediately ashamed of its loneliness. He or she starts adding more.

Thirdly, all products are nicely displayed on the racks and all of them look fresh in their transparent wrappings with marked prices. A normal person cannot ignore attractively packed goods. And so one cannot but feel an impulse to buy. And, finally, supermarkets don't forget about those who look for bargains. The so-called "bar­gain bins" filled with special offers wait for their victims. No one can tell for sure if the prices are really reduced, but it is so nice to boast later that you have a very good eye for a bargain.

So when a simple-hearted customer approaches a check-out, his or her trolley is piled high. Looking at a cashier, running her pen over barcodes, he or she starts getting nervous while the cash register is adding up the prices. And, getting a receipt, he or she gives a sigh of relief if the indicated sum does not exceed the cash he or she has.

Of course, one can give a piece of advice to the simple-hearted: compile a shopping list and buy only pre-planned goods. But is it worth losing that great sensation of buying? One can really wonder.

A lot of people prefer to do their shopping in small shops. The daily shopping route of some housewives includes visits to the baker's, butcher's, grocer's, greengrocer's, fishmonger's and a dairy shop. In the end of the route their bags are full of loaves of bread, meat cuts, packs with cereals, fruit, vegetables, fish and dairy prod­ucts. Only very strong women can call in at the tobacconist's after all that.

The explanation for this housewives' craze is very simple. In ev­ery shop their buys are weighed, wrapped up, their money taken and the change given back. Meanwhile they can have a chat with salesgirls and shop-assistants about their weak hearts and broken hopes.

So, friends, go shopping as often as you can. Because the simple truth is: a visit to a good shop is worth two visits to a good doctor.

Exercise 1. Find in the text the English equivalents for the following Russian words and phrases.

A. сделать список продуктов; прозрачная упаковка; булочная; сдача; взвешивать; специальное предложение; кассовый аппарат; покупатель; отдел мясных продуктов; проводить по штриховому коду; ходить по магазинам; выгодная покупка; указанная цена; корзинка; прилавок; продавец; сниженная цена; выставлять; собрать все виды товаров; упаковывать

B. отдел молочных продуктов; покупатель; тележка; отдел рыбной продуктов; кассир; указанная сума; упаковка с крупами; заманчиво упакованные продукты; покупки; касса; позволить себе; искушать купить; прилавок с дешёвыми продуктами; продукты питания; булка хлеба; чек; тележка, набитая до краёв; бакалейная лавка; отдел табачных продуктов; отдел фруктов и овощей.

Exercise 2. Match the words with definitions.

1. cash register	a. a wheeled cart or stand pushed by hand and used for moving heavy items, such as shopping in a supermarket or luggage at a railway station
2. trolley	b. to attempt to persuade or entice to do something
3. to display	c. to fold paper around
4. counter	d. a written acknowledgment by a receiver of money, goods, etc., that payment or delivery has been made
5. to tempt to	e. a person responsible for receiving payments for goods, services, etc., as in a shop
6. wrap up	f. a till with a keyboard that operates a mechanism for displaying and adding the amounts of cash received in individual sales
7. receipt	g. to show or make visible
8. cashier	h. to bring down the price
9. reduce	i. to be able to do or spare something, esp without incurring financial difficulties or without risk of undesirable consequences
10. to afford	j. a long table on which food is served to customers

Exercise 3. Complete the statements by choosing the answer which you think fits best.

1. Mother never buys goods displayed on the racks with the notice "... offer".

A. specific B. special C. particular

2. The customers are asked to load their purchases on to the conveyor ....

A. strap B. line C. belt

3. It is a lot more convenient to push a ... than to carry a wire basket in a supermarket.

A. trolley B. roller C. van

4. While shopping my brother always tries to go through a ... till, as he hates queues.

A. swift B. fast C. quick

5. Housewives prefer to buy ... packets of stuff, as it is a little bit cheaper.

A. gross-size B. family-size C. block-size

6. Sometimes the queues at... points are so long that the idea of leaving the supermarket without buying anything may look attractive.

A. check-out B. check-in C. check-up

7. Customers are not allowed to put things in their own bags in supermarkets; they are supposed to use ....

A. iron baskets B. shop baskets C. wire baskets

8. A lot of people prefer to ... a cheque than to pay in cash.

A. write out B. write in C. write up

9. Salesgirls usually put all goods bought in a supermarket into ... for the customers' convenience.

A. trade bags B. carrier bags C. supermarket bags

10. 'Here's your ... from a ten-pound note', said the cashier giving me three pounds.

A. exchange B. change C. bill

Exercise 4. Translate the sentences into Russian.

1. Чрезмерное употребление алкоголя вредит вашему здоровью.

2. Покупая продукты, обратите внимание на дату изготовления и срок годности данного товара.

3. Бакалея – это отдел, где продаются такие продукты, как чай, соль, сахар, кофе, перец, мука и т.п.

4. Покупать продукты в супермаркете очень удобно: все покупки можно сделать одновременно.

5. Я никогда не составляю список продуктов, когда со­бираюсь идти в магазин, но всегда планирую, в какие магазины я зайду.

6. У кассира не было сдачи с крупной купюры, и при­шлось ждать, пока расплатится следующий покупа­тель.

7. Уже стоя у кассы, она вдруг вспомнила, что забыла купить молока, и пошла назад к прилавку с молоч­ными продуктами.

8. Рядом с нашим домом есть все магазины: мясной, молочный, овощной, рыбный, а также бакалея и бу­лочная.

9. В супермаркетах Великобритании цены на товары проставлены очень отчётливо и, как правило, в конце стоит число 99.

10. Когда мы с подругой приходим в супермаркет, я беру корзину, а она — тележку. У нас разный стиль: я покупаю только то, что мне нужно; а она — всё, что красиво упаковано.

Exercise 5. Read and translate the text.