is it better to send $ for food or send a compra from U.S.

[donrael]

Hi all,
please help me with put an end to this question once and for all...lol

I guess I ask myself this question every so often, so I wanted to check with ya'll...lol which you guys think its best
1-to send U$D to DR so they can buy food
or
2-send a famous compra?

In my mind the cost of sending the food even if its through a service that does it all for you offset any saving whatsoever. But I could be wrong, I mean people do this monthly.
so, is it worth it or should one just send $100 and say let them go shopping for the food.

thanks all

p.s. if this is discussed somewhere please just point me to the link because I could not find anything

[Yachtmaster]

Originally Posted by donrael

should one just send $100 and say let them go shopping for the food.

thanks all

Depends on the type of person on the receiving end. They may use the money to buy food, then again they might use it for other things, hungry kids or not. I learned that one the hard way. Generally not a good idea to just send money unless you have some way to follow up and keep track of where it actually goes......

[El Rey de Mangu]

Originally Posted by donrael

Hi all,
please help me with put an end to this question once and for all...lol

I guess I ask myself this question every so often, so I wanted to check with ya'll...lol which you guys think its best
1-to send U$D to DR so they can buy food
or
2-send a famous compra?

In my mind the cost of sending the food even if its through a service that does it all for you offset any saving whatsoever. But I could be wrong, I mean people do this monthly.
so, is it worth it or should one just send $100 and say let them go shopping for the food.

thanks all

p.s. if this is discussed somewhere please just point me to the link because I could not find anything

I like this topic. I have so many Domincian friends that send boxes of canned goods, pastas, rice, beans, oil, etc.

AT SOME POINT it may have been a good deal, if I could fill up a 50 gallon tanque and pay 150 dollars to send it. I just don't see the value in it anymore with stores like Jumbo and LaSirena. Even if you have relatives who don't own vehicles and don't normally venture farther than the colmado on the corner.

I would have to do an Excel to see the cost comparison, but off-hand:

can of carnation: 40 pesos DR, ?? in US: 1.29?
pound of habicuela ?
20 Pounds of rice?
Gallon oil?
Tuna by can? 35-60 pesos in DR, same in US

If you continued like this for a total "canasta de la casa", I think, once you added in the logistics, time and shipping costs, that you should just send 200 dollars. I have seen a family of 4 live on 50-100 dollars/week (even less). 7000 pesos goes a long way in the off-prime neighborhoods and even farther in the campos.

That said, if you want to send "specialty" items that are not easily found here, than that may be a good idea.

[korejdk]

[QUOTE=Yachtmaster;798411] then again they might use it for other things, hungry kids or not. [QUOTE]

sad but so true

[El Rey de Mangu]

Originally Posted by Yachtmaster

Depends on the type of person on the receiving end. They may use the money to buy food, then again they might use it for other things, hungry kids or not. I learned that one the hard way. Generally not a good idea to just send money unless you have some way to follow up and keep track of where it actually goes......

Very good point as well.

[Chirimoya]

When you say sending a compra from the US do you mean physically sending the food and stuff from the US? There is the option of paying for a locally bought compra and delivery via internet - mandale.com.do

Has anyone had any experience of using this?

[Hillbilly]

Depends on why you want to do this. If there is some love angle here? If so, forget it. It is a scam...

If this a bit of do-goody...you might refer to the church. and you can always send one of those famous boxes, door to door for about $75. You can fill it with whatever you want. Dominicans in NYC send cooking oil, rice and canned goods. If it weights 100 pounds, so what...$75...door to door..

Good luck

HB

[Tom F.]

Sending cash always leaves questions unless it is close family that is trusting. My sister-in-law raises more than $10,000 every November here in NJ/NY and passes out food baskets at Christmas for those less fornutate families from our campo, Jaya de San Francisco de Macoris. She buys wholesale and she, her husband and two children have been doing it for more than 10 years.

Also, buy local if possible. For $100, I wouldn't worry too much which way you get it to them.

Tom F.

[cuas]

My brother-in law sends tanks with food. Now his family does not want to spend money to buy spaghetti, sugar, beans, coffee. They want everything sent to them. They do not eat Dominican rice anymore. My sister tells me that they want canned guandules when they can eat fresh Dominican guandules. When he says you can buy it there they say US products taste better. He does not send them meat because it will spoil but I heard he sent them bacalao. He buys the 100 lbs bag of rice and spread it in the tanque.
This is for his half-sister that takes care of his elderly mother. He also send money but his sister's grown-up children go there every day to eat and to share the American food.
Unbelievable.

[Imbert369]

Cuas... I can relate, when i was living in DR I would shop at La Sierina and load up the refridge with all food international not because i didnt like dominican food (i love it) but its nice to have varity. All of a sudden my wifes little couisns and brothers were always at the house or stopping by. Now when they stop by you have to serve refreshments and at a daily basis my food was going quick. I questioned my wife as to the sudden appeal in visits and company and the answear was "Man ur a american everyone know u have everything good no one is going to give them what u give them and no one is going to show them different things" now i guess that refers to food but i was like ian not the Pope I only have so much charity to give. So in the end I stopped shopping for a month and did it the DR way every morning in the Market for just what i needed for the day ( rice, beans,meat, salad about 200 pesos) and at night platano and salami. Well they stopped coming but the question for them is now what happened to my money. Ahhhh life in the DR......I love it