Trader Joe’s sells many products that are better than name-brand products. But did you know that the grocery chain with a cult following also sells name-brand items? While marketed under the Trader Joe’s label, many items are manufactured by your favorite grocery store brands, according to shoppers, employees, and online sleuths. And the best thing is, they are so much less at Trader Joe’s. Here are 7 TJ’s products shoppers say are name brands for less.
The Chocolates Are Lily O’Brien’s, Employees Say
According to one Redditor, the chocolate is Lily O’Brien’s. “I work at Lily O’Briens factory, an Irish chocolate company and half the chocolates we make are TJ, such as the ‘trader joes dark chocolate sea salt caramels’ and ‘taste test of caramels’ We have made others but I csnt remember the names, So if you see chocolate with Ireland on the back, that’s Lily O’Briens,” writes one shopper.
The Organic Lolipops Are YumEarth
If you like organic candy but don’t want to spend Whole Foods money on it, head to Trader Joe’s. “YumEarth does the organic lollipops. There was a thread going about this on here that had a community spreadsheet, I thought,” another says.
The Turkey Is Perdue, According to Shoppers
Are you curious where Trader Joe’s gets their cold cuts? While unconfirmed, according to some shoppers, the store sources them from name brands. “The turkey lunchmeat is perdue,” one shopper claims.
Annie’s Organic Might Make the Mac and Cheese
If the Trader Joe’s mac and cheese tastes familiar, that’s because a popular brand might make it. “Annie’s Organic used to do the shell Mac and cheese. They may still,” one Redditor says. “This is a conspiracy theory in my local joes within the employees lmao they’re adamant it’s Annie’s,” another writes.
The Organic Plain Greek Yogurt Is Stonyfield
According to a 2017 Reddit thread, the organic plain yogurt is actually Stonyfield. An employee anonymously revealed in the thread that TJ’s sells products manufactured by Stonyfield Farms. “The nonfat plain Greek yogurt is one of my staple items. It’s $5.49 for 32 ounces at Trader Joe’s. Same size Stonyfield Organic is $8.69 at my local Stop and Shop,” one person writes on Reddit.
The Dry and Roasted Pistachio Are Wonderful
As a result of a 2016 salmonella recall issued by Wonderful, it was revealed that the company manufactured three popular TJ’s nut products: dry roasted and unsalted pistachios, dry roasted and salted pistachios, and 50% less salt roasted and salted pistachios.
Sources Say Naked Makes Trader Joe’s Smoothies
If you are a fan of Naked smoothies, you will be excited to learn that the brand is likely behind Trader Joe’s smoothies as well. According to Eater, the Freedom of Information Act confirmed in 2017 that the popular PepsiCo subsidiary Naked Juice was the smoothie provider for TJ’s, via FDA recalls. Lots of online sleuths have compared the brands offerings over the years, finding that many are identical, including Trader Joe’s Very Green Smoothie and Naked’s Green Machine.
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