Who has the best bread, milk prices at SC grocery stores?

Jan. 21, 2026Updated Jan. 22, 2026, 1:06 p.m. ET

Snow, ice, and sleet are in the forecast for this weekend.

Will it get so icy that roads will be closed? Will grocery stores shut down? Will Waffle House stay open?

The answer to those questions is “We don’t know, yet.”

And in the South, we’ve been promised snow so much in the past that most of us are in the mindset of “we’ll believe it when we see it.”

But that won’t stop us from stocking up on bread, milk, and basically anything we can eat in the cold without electricity or a can opener.

More: Winter weather heads South. Will South Carolina see snow, ice? LatestSouth Carolina snowstorm means a rush on bread and milk

Most of us in the South gauge how bad a forecasted snowstorm will be by how empty the bread aisles are at the grocery store. If every loaf of bread, hot dog, and hamburger bun, kaiser roll, bagel, biscuit, and baguette is gone, we could be stuck at home with no TV, Internet, or heat for at least 24 hours, according to our Southern way of thinking.

But before you make your grocery list, keep in mind that some grocery stores might limit how many loaves of bread or gallons of milk you may purchase.

So bring on the milk-and-bread memes or meteorologist Bread Meters, here are a few questions we wanted to answer:

How long does food stay cold in the fridge when the electricity goes out?

Is your food safe to eat if the electricity goes out?

“The refrigerator will keep food cold for about four hours if it is unopened,” the FDA said in a CBS story. “A full freezer will keep the temperature for approximately 48 hours (24 hours if it is half full) if the door remains closed.”

What are your choices in the bread aisle?

There are so many different kinds of bread in the grocery aisle that it’s hard to pick. Some may pick a healthier whole-grain bread, while others may want a bit more flavor, whether it’s savory or sweet, or are on dietary restrictions.

At Aldi’s, a few of the bread choices included: Artisanal, multi-grain, white or whole wheat, honey wheat, Italian, whole grain, cinnamon raisin, cinnamon swirl, 7-grain, oat bran, seedtastic, gluten-free, graintastic, Keto-friendly, sourdough, and jalapeno cheddar.

How much is a loaf of bread?

At discount grocery stores such as Wise Buys Discount Groceries, 369 Whitney Road, Spartanburg, and S&A Discount Grocery in Spartanburg, Inman, and Greer, bread is usually marked at $1 a loaf.

On January 12, S&A had six loaves of Pepperidge Farm bread for $5 or $1 per loaf. If you are only purchasing bread and no other groceries, the cost is $1.50 per loaf.

For this experiment, we searched for the price of white sandwich bread at the following grocery stores. Prices were found through Google searches or on Instacart and may vary by location and city.

Aldi $1.55, L’Oven Fresh White Bread

Ingles $1.99, Laura Lynn Sandwich White

Lidl $1.29, Enriched White Bread

Lowes Foods $1.99, Lowes Foods White Sandwich Bread

Publix $3,31, Publix Bread, White Sandwich

Target $1.49, Target White Sandwich Bread

Trader Joe’s $1,99, Trader Joe’s White Sliced Bread

Walmart $1.48, Great Value White Sandwich

How much is a gallon of milk?

Aldi $2.59, Friendly Farms Whole Milk, 1 gallon

Ingles $4.48, Laura Lynn Vitamin D Whole Milk, 1 gallon

Lidl $3.15, Whole Milk, 1 gallon

Lowes Foods $1.59, Lowes Foods Whole Milk, half gallon

Publix $4.73, Publix Whole, 1 gallon

Target $2.39, Good & Gather, 1 gallon

Trader Joe’s $5.99, Organic Milk A2/A2, half gallon

Walmart $2.22, Great Value Whole Milk Vitamin D, 1 gallon

What to shop for at the grocery store

Bread and milk are usually among the most sought-after items at grocery stores when snow is forecast. Most folks look for ways to get by when roads are hard to navigate during snow or ice.

But you don’t have to survive on bread alone.

Before the winter weather hits, you can try stocking up on these snowstorm essentials in advance, per Direct Energy:

Bottled water (one gallon per day for at least three days)Canned foods like soups and stewsSnack food (package-sealed chips, crackers, and cookies)Cereal and granolaAnything jarred, like jelly, pickles, and meatsCanned tuna and salmonShelf-stable peanut butter and other nut-based buttersDried pasta and jarred sauceWax-sealed hard cheesesWhat do you shop for at the grocery store when snow is in the forecast?

What is on your grocery list when snow is in the forecast? What do you make with all of your bread and milk? Send me an email at jfranco@gannett.com. Thanks.

Reporter Nina Tran contributed to this article.

Jose Franco is the Content Editor for the Greenville News. Email him at Jfranco@Gannett.com.