The cost of groceries has been going up in recent years. A survey published in June of this year found that 80% of respondents claimed to have seen notable increases in food prices since the pandemic. The same report found that grocery prices have increased by 25% since early 2020.
These high prices have taken their toll on shoppers. For example, one Safeway customer sparked a discussion after claiming that his grocery bill of $123 was barely enough to cover two nights of food. A service worker also claimed to have felt awkward charging customers given the high prices.
Now, a TikTok user has sparked a discussion after documenting something they observed at Walmart which they say has a dark backstory.
Why people leave items at Walmart self-checkout
In a video with over 613,000 views as of Friday, TikTok user Jojo (@jobeist) shows several self-checkout machines with food or other items left on them.
“Its pretty upsetting that at walmart, people are having to abandon their food because they cant afford it!!” she writes in the text overlaying the video.
According to the BBC, Americans spending this great of a percentage of their paycheck on food is relatively new, and a growing number of people appear to be going into debt to buy groceries.
“Across the country, Americans on average spent more than 11% of their incomes on food, including restaurant meals last year – a higher proportion than any time since 1991,” reads the BBC article.
For those who cannot risk going into debt, or simply cannot afford food, they may see it fit to leave the food at the self-checkout, as Jojo shows.
@jobeist #foryou #foryoupage #fypage #fy ♬ original sound – Jojo
Commenters say it’s common
In the comments section, users shared their own experiences seeing this sort of thing, or even being the person who left groceries at the self-checkout.
“It especially hurts when you’ve got to put back the one thing someone really wanted because you were short only a dollar, but you had to get the ‘necessary’ food first,” a user wrote.
“Breaks my heart when it’s formula and diapers left at the self check,” added another.
“Legit we can’t even get a full cart anymore now because it would be close to $500 or more. Not even half is worth $100,” said a third.
“Remember shopping with my mom when I was way younger and getting plenty of snacks. Now I have to save money to BUY SNACKS,” revealed a further TikToker.
The Daily Dot reached out to Jojo via TikTok comment.
Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.
