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Generic vs Brand name, how to choose

Photo: Robert Tshabalala
Photo: Robert Tshabalala

Tough financial times always mean hard decisions must follow and for many households it means changing shopping habits.

One of the ways one can save food and medicine is by buying generic or store brand items instead of the expensive brands but these are still viewed with scepticism.

Generally speaking, store brands don't bear quite the same stigma as the true generics of years past.

When it comes to medicine the 2012 Mediscor Medicines Review (MMR), which tracks the medicine usage of members belonging to the majority of South Africa’s medical schemes found that these medical scheme members’ generic utilisation rate was at 53.4%.

"It's more about what people believe are the differences," says Lars Perner, an assistant professor of clinical marketing at the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business.

“As the quality of store brands improves and is regularly acknowledged as being on par with their brand counterparts, people are becoming more open to buying generics. In particular, when it comes to notoriously expensive over-the-counter and prescription medicines, people are becoming far less squeamish about going the generic route.”

The four major categories of consumer products are "generic" (no brand name of any sort), "store brand," "regional brands" and "national brands."

The majority of what most consumers consider generic today are store-brand products, which are created much like historic generic goods but bear the name of the retailer that primarily distributes them. Pick 'n Pay and Spar are two stores that have a widely known store-brand goods.

Generic medicines are as safe and effective as brand-name medicine," says Sandy Walsh, a spokeswoman for the Food and Drug Administration. "They use the same active ingredients as brand-name drugs and work the same way."

While categories such as pharmaceuticals have seen the reverse cost benefit of generics, there are several other categories where the perceived quality of generics remains low.

The bottom line is that you do get generic products that are of high quality and will save you a substantial amount of money.

When to consider generics or private label brands

Medicine

Paper products: Napkins, paper plates, toilet paper and other paper products

Staple food products like flour, sugar, corn flakes, salt, pepper.

However when in doubt stick to the product you know and trust.

SOURCE : Discovernetwork.com

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