American / English supermarket

04/06/23 Hi
I was wondering, does anyone have any knowledge if there is any American or English supermarkets in the state of Santa Catarina
-@silandreoli

The French multinational Carrefour has an extensive presence in Brazil, including in Santa Catarina, with huge superstores. A regional chain that we liked when we were in Florianópolis, Angeloni, also has many large, well-stocked stores. In either place, your shopping experience will probably be very much like what you're used to.

Selection of international brands everywhere in Brazil is pretty hit or miss. The two big package goods manufacturers, Unilever and P&G, tend to use their European brands more than their American brands here, so you're likely to see some familiar names. The products are reformulated to meet Brazilian conditions and regulations though, so their performance may not be what you expect.

Food is an item-by-item affair. You may occasionally see your favorite British brands, but it will be sporadic; talking to store management might help.  The stores above and many others have in-house butcher shops, and usually welcome special requests. It will help to have a chart, easily found on the Internet, that lets you figure out the Brazilian equivalents of meat cuts you're used to in Britain. Any organ meats aside from liver and chicken hearts may require a special order. Fresh fish is generally what's available from the South Atlantic or, in the Amazon region, mostly freshwater.

Fresh produce is plentiful and relatively inexpensive. The selection, naturally, tends toward the tropical, but you'll see more items that you're used to more often in SC than you would farther north.

Amazon.com.br has noticed the apparent unmet desire for foreign groceries, and has been stocking more and more for sale. They're becoming an increasingly good place to look for nonperishables that you can't find in the stores. Other than that, like many of us you'll probably want to keep a list of things to pick up on your trips home, and that visiting friends and relatives can bring you. 

Good luck with your planning!

Thanks for the reply abthree, I cant go without my English cup of tea 😍

04/07/23 Thanks for the reply abthree, I cant go without my English cup of tea 😍
-@silandreoli

If you use teabags for your cuppa, you'll be ok in Brazil: commercial grade black tea and green tea are readily available. Sometimes they're a little hidden because Brazilians seem to prefer herbal "teas" ("tisanes", to be technical) and they're all mixed up on the shelves together, but looking carefully you'll find them. If the box says "cha preto" (black) or "cha verde" (green), it's tea; if it says "chá de (name of any plant), it's a tisane.

If you're a tea snob (like me!), bring your own. Every time we go to the US I order ahead from an importer there who brings loose teas in directly from India, China, Taiwan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and the other main producing regions, and bring back a suitcase-full of our favorite types in sealed packets. Our Brazilian friends are over the moon when they try it -- they've never tasted anything like it. ☕

Hi
I was wondering, does anyone have any knowledge if there is any American or English supermarkets in the state of Santa Catarina, as this is the state I will be emigrating to in s couple of years and hopefully can still purchase my favourite foods 😁 Thanks in advance
-@silandreoli

Most "American foods" are not very difficult to find. Sam's Club even sells Resses's Peanut Butter, Pillsbury, and Betty Crocker cake mixes, etc. French's yellow mustard is everywhere, as are all Helman's and Heinz's products. Some spices for cooking are non-existent here too, please ask for anything specific. You will not find any Mexican foodstuffs here, and Asian stores are rare and very incomplete. You be surprised at the poor variety of veggies here in the stores.

Things that are tough to impossible to find:

Group pork sausage of any kind, pork sausage links, like breakfast links

Pre-packaged convenience foods like Kraft Mac and Cheese, Rice-a-Roni, and canned beans, like Pork & Beans, kidney beans, etc. Sharp Cheddar cheese, and you will never find US-style California black olives, or sour cream.

Good breads, breads with flavor, especially French Breads are non-existent

There are very few canned soups here, you know, like Campbell's condensed soups, and when you do find them, the costs are just unbelievable. I bought a can of split pea soup last month and one can set me back about R$40

I love shopping for nothing, is there anything in particular that I can look for here for you?

Hi
I was wondering, does anyone have any knowledge if there is any American or English supermarkets in the state of Santa Catarina, as this is the state I will be emigrating to in s couple of years and hopefully can still purchase my favourite foods 😁 Thanks in advance
-@silandreoli

Don't know about Santa Catarina.

Black tea, pretty much you can find anywhere, it's called Cha Preto.  Given you will spend a considerable time down there, it would be time to get acquainted with Mate Tea, which would be a lot more interesting in terms of flavor to acquire. 

Black pudding, that's blood sausage, you can get by with Morcela or Chourice. Florianopolis has Azorean roots, and the Blumenau Valley has lots of  German Heritage farmers growing pigs. Somehow they might have what you look there. 

Brazilians, particularly from the South, have a taste for anything made out of wheat, so that should sort your needs for baked goods, with some adjustments. 

Cod fish, that's a North Atlantic specialty, if you have a hankering for freshly caught Cod fried with chips. So, you won''t find it, unless you are going for dry salted Norwegian Cod, which is found everywhere around from Rio towards South.   Santa Catarina has different fisheries, and there might be trawlers out there. You might just need to make  do with a substitute. 

Beer, we are mostly a Pilsner Country, but given that the microbrewery trend has already in full swing, if you are to spend the extra reals, i  am sure you will find what you want, granted you live in a large metro area.

As for the rest, make them from scratch, and invite folks over. Not only you will pick up on new acquaintances, but you also might have others to develop a different taste for your  staple foods.

04/09/23 Black tea, pretty much you can find anywhere, it's called Cha Preto. Given you will spend a considerable time down there, it would be time to get acquainted with Mate Tea, which would be a lot more interesting in terms of flavor to acquire.

-@sprealestatebroker

I find the taste of mate absolutely heinous myself, and I think that any tea connoisseur would, but to each his/her/their own. The cup and metal straw that you use to drink it are attractive. Try it once for the experience, anyway.