[Sca-cooks] Why bother to import the cheap stuff?

[JIMCHEVAL at aol.com]

The Romans certainly imported lesser quality versions of some foods.  
Martial writes of "unsavory Toulouse cheese" and disparages the tuna fish of  
Antibes, which were used to make a lesser quality of garum (usually made with  
mackerel.)
 
 
Just as some very inferior French  wines find their way to the States 
today, when there's a big demand for a luxury  product, there are often those 
willing to accept a lesser version for a lesser  price. A good sauvignon blanc 
is crisp and lemony; don't expect that experience  from Trader Joe's house 
brands (except the Vina Chilenas, actually one of the  cheapest).

 
Jim  Chevallier
_www.chezjim.com_ (http://www.chezjim.com/) 

Comparing prices in  medieval France
_http://leslefts.blogspot.com/2014/08/comparing-prices-in-medieval-france.ht
ml_ (http://leslefts.blogspot.com/2014/08/french-cities-of-dark-ages.html) 







In a message dated 9/4/2014 10:02:53 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time,  
StefanliRous at gmail.com writes:

Really?  I assume by “broken rice” you mean broken kernels? I would also 
assume this  means a lower quality of rice. But why would you spend the time 
and money to  import less than the best?

That doesn’t seem to fit with other examples  I’m aware of.