There is a question of whether or not people with food allergies should shop in the bulk section at their local grocery store. I always hear that people with food allergies shouldn’t ever shop in the bulk section at their local grocery store. This response makes complete sense since the chance for cross contamination is really high in a bulk food section. I even asked the supervisor at my local grocery store, who I now consider a grocery store friend, if those of us with food allergies should shop in the bulk section. She even said no, that the risk would be too high for people with food allergies. Ok, I get it loud and clear, no shopping in the bulk BINS at your local grocery store. I definitely agree that this is not a safe place for people with food allergies to shop.
I will though encourage you to shop in the bulk section of your grocery store, just not in the bulk bins themselves. What I have found with the many grocery stores near me that have a bulk section, is that they also sell their items in bulk, at a discount (usually between 5-10% off the bulk bin price), to their patrons. While I can certainly buy my flours, gums, sugars, etc. online, there are times when the shipping cost is so high it’s almost as much as the item itself. Enter my love for my local grocery stores with bulk sections. I purchase many items from these stores, in bulk bags from the manufacturer, and keep them in containers in my garage. These bags are sealed shut from the manufacturer when I pick them up from the store. My grocery store just acts like a middle man between the manufacturer and myself. Most of the time I have between 150-200 lbs of baking items on hand.
For those of you that have the space, love to save money where you can, and want more than a few lbs of baking items on hand, I suggest you find a great store near you that has bulk items. Typically, I find that most of the stores near me with a bulk section sell their items in 25 or 50 lb bags. I bake A LOT and go through each of my 25 lb bags of flour about every 3-4 months. Hopefully that gives you a good gauge on how long 25 lbs could last you. We are all different in what items we use and need, but here is what I typically have on hand in bulk: brown rice flour, white rice flour, tapioca starch, potato starch, oats (GF of course), expandex modified tapioca starch, yeast, coconut sugar, and guar gum. I have many other items always on hand as well, but I don’t buy them in bulk. If you have found a place online to purchase your baking items from that you love, great! If you are looking for something local, hopefully this is helpful for you. It’s ok to shop in the bulk section at your local grocery store if you have food allergies, just don’t ever shop in the bins themselves.
