To celebrate National Pams Day on August 22, Sophie Neville commits herself – and her kids – to an unusual test.
How could I say no? This challenge had my mum’s name written all over it. Literally.
My mum Pam was everything the name suggests: a good old Kiwi boomer, dependable, nurturing, and unapologetically no-frills. She’d cook you a casserole, buy you merino socks for winter, and pick up your kids from school when you were stuck at work. She’d wear her undies till they were threadbare, she’d rinse out her ziplock bags, nothing in her garden was wasted. And, importantly, she loved a supermarket home brand.
While the identity of the original Pam of Pams fame (the brand started in 1937 with just two products) has been lost to the mists of time, it is with my Pam in mind that I commit to the task ahead, vowing to eat only Pams products for seven days straight. I admit, there is some trepidation. I am loyal to my favourite brands. I like good food and I like to cook. But I’m easily influenced, I’m a sucker for fancy packaging, and I often exist dangerously close to my credit card limit. Will Pams change my life? It’s time to find out.
Day one
In honour of their late grandmother – who never said “no” to her grandchildren – I take the kids to our local New World and utter the words they never thought they’d hear: “You can choose anything you want – as long as it’s Pams!”
With a basket each, they sprint to the lollies and biscuits aisle, leaving me alone in the fruit and veggie section to select from Pams’ impressive array of fresh stuff. While I’m taking a sensible approach, loading up with Pams bagged Asian slaw, green beans, onions, cherry tomatoes and apples, the kids are balancing my efforts with everything their hearts could desire: pre-made jelly, chocolate sauce, cookies, ice cream, chippies, party mix, frozen fries, mini eclairs, pancake mix…
The 11-year-old appears with a huge bag of Pams rabbit food. “Can we get a bunny?”
Revelation of the day: Tasked with seeking them out on the supermarket shelves, I’m struck by the sheer number and variety of Pams products. I check online when I get home – apparently there’s more than 2,000 products across the entire range.
Still day one:
The kids rip into their loot like children possessed. Pams party mix is gone in seconds, the middle child eats Pams sliced pineapple from the tin. The youngest makes herself a Pams hot cocoa with Pams milk and Pams mini marshmallows. The oldest one grunts, as teenage boys do, and heats up a Pams mince and cheese pie. They sit together at the bench, consuming their deranged combinations and discussing the relative merits of each. A contentment settles over the house. Pams is not only offering great value, but bringing harmony into an often-febrile environment. That is until the middle child grabs the marshmallows from his sister’s hand and a brawl breaks out. Back to normal programming.
Revelation of the day: Our first Pams dinner is a massive hit. Sticky pork ribs and jacket agria potatoes. Served up with roasted Pams green beans and Pams Asian slaw, dinner gets the tick of approval from the whole whānau.
Day two
When someone you love dies, you learn a surprising amount about ready-made meals. Lasagnes, soups and pies start appearing on your doorstep. Homemade or not, after our Pam died, every delivery was received with enormous gratitude. Which brings me to one of the biggest surprises of my week: Pams ready-made mac ‘n’ cheese. It’s genuinely delicious. Better, in my opinion, than some of the pricier versions. “I hate mac ‘n’ cheese, but this is bussin’,” says my fussy 11-year-old.
Revelation of the day: I was worried when I found Pams doesn’t have its own yoghurt, but breakfast is saved by Pams instant oat sachets – they’re delicious! And affordable! The berry, coconut and chia flavour also has 4.5 health star rating, so it’s a great find.
Day three
In the name of research, I return to the supermarket, where I bump into a friend. She’s captivated by my Pams challenge because as mum to a coeliac 12-year-old, Pams has long been her go-to. She leads me on a whirlwind tour of gluten-free products – the GF pizza bases are the best, the GF bread is “pretty good” and they’ve just introduced a GF flour. She follows up with a text, telling me she thinks “Pams is definitely the most reliable and affordable, especially when you’re shopping for kids – things like lollies and rice crackers are reliably free from gluten.”
Revelation of the day: People are passionate about Pams.
Day four
It’s become impossible to ignore the fact that I’ve been a fool. My Pams week is already making me rethink some of the grocery habits I’ve fallen into over the years. I feel it’s the staples where I can make the biggest difference to our weekly grocery bill. Pams wheatmeal bread seems to taste the same as our usual go-to but cost us a cool $2.11 less – pretty good when we’re going through four loaves a week. It’s the same story with milk, with a difference of $1.12. Pams tomato sauce was $2.89, compared to $5.49 for the other, more well-known brand. I am reborn! Saving money is intoxicating! Am I… becoming my mother?
Revelation of the day: Pams frozen pizzas actually taste like a proper woodfired pizza. These are legit – they’re made in Italy! And incredibly, they were only $5.99 each.
Day five
I have raised a daughter who exists almost solely on pasta with a simple sauce of tinned tomatoes and not much else, covered in grated cheese. Until now, I have been a loyal purchaser of a premium Italian tomato brand I first spotted on a celebrity chef’s Instagram. However, as news of my Pams challenge spread, I received a tip: “Pams organic tomatoes are good.” The tipster was right – these Italian canned toms are delicious, organic no less, and $1.49 on the day of my shop. I’m a convert.
Revelation of the day: Pams pasta is perfectly good. It’s made in Australia, tastes no different to me than its Italian-made counterparts, and it was only $1.79 a bag.
Day six
Rejoice, my friends had a baby! What would Pam do? She’d make them a chicken pie, that’s what. I whiz to the supermarket – Pams has everything I need for said pie and before you know it, I’m at their house, newborn baby in my arms, and their Pams dinner in the fridge for later. We sit around and talk about baby names.
“Pam is nice,” I offer. “It’s a boy,” they remind me.
Revelation of the day: I consult the internet about the name Pamela, and discover it means “all sweetness” or “all honey”, from the Greek words pan (“all”) and meli (“honey”). With that in mind, I buy Pams squeezable liquid honey.
Day seven
It’s not yet 7am and Pams products are whirring away in every cooking gadget in preparation for school and work lunches. Pizza in the oven, potato hashbrowns in the air fryer, and pancakes made from a Pams ready-mix are in the pan for breakfast. Best of all, I’m not involved. After a decade making school lunches, the kids are finally doing it on their own.
Revelation of the day: Pams has got the kids into the kitchen, but they’re still annoying – I find three empty Pams biscuit packets in the pantry.
Final reflections
Our Pams week has been fun. I’ve said yes more times than my kids can remember, I’ve found cheaper alternatives, we’ve eaten well, and we’ve all tried something new. But the best part? Getting to say my mum’s name out loud, over and over.
My biggest revelation: whether it’s a literal Pam, someone who embodies a Pam, or the humble Pams products sitting on our supermarket shelves, it’s easy to take the Pams in our life for granted. Just because they’ve been around a long time and don’t seek out the limelight doesn’t mean they don’t deserve to be celebrated. Sometimes we just need to be reminded how much they mean to us. So, on August 22, find the Pam in your life and do something nice.
Groceries selected by the writer to reflect a typical weekly shop for her household from available Pams branded products. Prices and products reflect prices available for the specific products instore at New World Devonport on 26 July 2026. Product and price may subsequently change and may vary between PAK’nSAVE, New Word and Four Square stores.
