Is too much choice an issue and how do you decide what to buy?

Robyn

I lived in the United States of America for over 30 years and really enjoyed grocery shopping. The supermarkets are HUGE and the choice is remarkable. Most chains carry all the national brands some of which distribute in Australia, e.g. Campbell's, Heinz, El Paso, Kleenex, plus their own label, plus labels produced only in that particular state plus local stuff and they all have an international section. On the rare occasion you can't find a particular ingredient for a recipe, you would visit the Chinese supermarket, or the Japanese, Korean etc. Not only is there an extensive choice of brand, each brand may include 20 or 30 different flavours e.g. Betty Crocker or Duncan Hind cake mixes. Oh, and all the major chains sell product from Australia. The only ingredient I could never find in the USA was golden syrup.
I am becoming more frustrated grocery shopping in Australia as the brands are disappearing from Coles and Woolworths. Coles ceased stocking Cadbury's 2L Vanilla ice cream about a year ago but until recently I could still purchase this product at Woolworths and Supra IGA. Last month Woolworths advised me they were no longer stocking the product and the Supra IGA closed down. I am not happy.
Too many brands does not make it harder to decide - you get to know from trial and error what brand you prefer - fewer brands does stiffle the economy and put the consumer at the mercy, pricewise, of supermarket chain. I base my decision concerning what brand to purchase on price, taste and size.
I am having difficulty believing that supermarket customers have complained that too much choice is stressful - life is full of choices, each day is full of choices, how are these people going to survive and why should my choices be limited to please others. Is this a product of socialism? We used to be such a progressive country, this is a giant step backwards.