trader Joe's - baking soda in a classic baking powder container

[CariKittie]

not a happy camper right now. this is my first post. i'm new sort of. have read lots of posts and gotten advice from Chow for a few yrs now. sorry it is a neg one.

but maybe will alert others. i made some whole grain cornbread muffins filled with fresh blueberry's for mostly my son who has been getting up too late to eat breakfast other than orange juice. he was thrilled to see them when they came out of the oven when he just got home from school. must have been so hungry that he even told me the muffin was good! or was just being nice. or had yet to taste the weird under-taste.

ick!!! when i tasted them, i thought, maybe i just added too much salt? but then realized the flavor was metallic. i had just bought some more baking powder from Trader Joe's in Princeton at Thanksgiving time. still had enough of the old stuff left to make the Thanksgiving pies.

this was the first time i used the new baking powder. and that was the first time i had ever shopped at trader joe's though i had known for a while there was a new store in Princeton.

i almost bought the other brand, usually avoiding store brands, but thought "it's just baking powder, why spend 50% more?". i have never seen baking soda sold in anything other than a box and the round canister type containers are always baking powder. rush shopping at thanksgiving, i did not look at every word on the container.

turns out what was next to the baking powder on their shelves, and looked just like a container of baking powder, was instead baking soda with the trader joe label. yuk! the whole batch of muffins filled with three containers of blueberries is ruined because they deceptively packaged baking soda in a container that looked like baking powder and put it on their shelf right next to a more expensively priced, identically packaged, different brand, but true baking powder..

not happy with my very first shopping trip to Trader Joe's.

[waking1]

Thanks for the warning, I almost did the same thing. Ran out to get the real thing before my baking disaster.

[tabasc]

I just did the same thing!!! There was not even any other (real) baking powder. I made some beautiful shortcakes to bring to a friend for dinner & one broke so I had to taste it. BITTER!!!! Now I am so sad and empty handed. I thought I was crazy until I googled & found your post on the way over. So at least you made me feel better.

[greygarious]

CariKittie, the mistake is entirely yours. Trader Joe's is not being deceptive about their product and although their generoous and gracious return policy would allow you to return it, you would be unjustified in doing so. A supermarket would likely refuse to refund or credit you.

[marciab]

I really like being able to get baking soda in a resealable tin and was happy to see it at TJ's.
Trader Joe's has a generous return policy. I'm sure they will take it back, just tell them what happened.

[mgossett]

TJ's (like whole foods) has a great return policy. just take it back (receipt or not) and tell them what happened. they will replace all the items that got ruined too. a similar situation happened to me as well.

[KaimukiMan]

its really too bad, and yes i saw the similar packaging when i went to TJ's on a recent trip. Reading is important, just ask anyone who has accidently used nutmeg instead of cinnamon (had a cold, couldn't smell) or salt instead of sugar.

[Mattapoisett in LA]

I like the new packaging. I like the fact you can seal it up.

[andieb]

Me too. Actually this packaging isn't that new at least in the Boston area. I first bought the canister last December.. It's too bad this happened to you, but as KMan said it's important to read what you are buying...Take it as a lesson learned..

[mangorita]

I like the new style container too due to the fact that it is resealable and less prone to spillage in my clumsy hands. I've seen baking soda packaged this way at other stores than Trader Joe's for at least a year now (in Boston area)

[janeh]

Ditto.

[yfunk3]

Did you e-mail/call/write Trader Joe's about this?

[chez cherie]

about what? the op apparently mistook baking soda for baking powder. unfortunate, but hardly trader joe's fault, it seems to me.

[yfunk3]

I was just asking because TJ's would be a better outlet to send this complaint than an internet forum.