Shoppers ‘treated like scavenging dogs’ as they scramble for a discount - see what happens

Nothing was going to get in the way of a good discount for these Tesco shoppers. But the video has left other shoppers appalled

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We've all hovered around the reduced aisle in the supermarket.
But it takes a certain type of obsessive to shove the staff out of the way and dive straight in.
That's exactly what happened in this Midlands Tesco.
Filmed on a smartphone and uploaded by Facebook user Johnny Lester, this video shows shoppers crowding round a reduced section.
A woman, apparently Tesco staff, shouts: "Move back, move back now. Otherwise I'm taking them away. Let the staff out."
But instead, the shoppers turn into a scrum and scrabble on their hands and knees to grab the discounted food.
The image has caused a shock - being viewed nearly 1.5million times and shared by 22,000 people.
When Lester starts filming, the scene appears to be calm, with one watcher joking the staff are like dog owners telling the shoppers to "sit".
A woman says: "This is the first time I've seen the staff intervene."
But while the staff remove covers from the reduced food, someone shouts "Go!" and the shoppers go beserk.
A man comments: "Never in my life have I seen anything like this." A woman adds: "This is disgusting."
Lester later posted on Facebook: "How there was not a fight is beyond me. I'm actually lost for words that this can happen in a supermarket."
Some Facebook users called the shoppers idiots, but others said they could be needy and desperate.
Former Northampton MP Tony Clarke told the Northampton Chronicle & Echo that store staff treated shoppers like "scavenging dogs".
A Tesco spokesman said: "The safety of our customers and colleagues is of paramount importance to us. The manager of the store has conducted a thorough investigation and will take steps to prevent a similar situation happening again.
"We are continually trying to improve the way we deal with surplus food, this includes making better reductions earlier in the day to make it easier for customers and colleagues in the evening."

Get the best deals - without diving in

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Play it cool - and cheap

We asked supermarkets when they price down items, but few would come out with a clear time.
Waitrose and Sainsbury's will reduce products throughout the day. Aldi doesn't mark down items, but its new stock comes in on Thursdays and Sundays.
If you don't fancy fighting off the shoppers, check out websites for discounted food like Approved Food.
Some shoppers prefer to wait until the supermarkets have given up altogether - and then take home thrown-out food for free. But this isn't always legal. You can find out how to be freegan and stay on the right side of the law here.
And of course, you can always check Mirror Money's deals page for the latest discounts.