Mr. Langenberg needs to get out more. A LOT more. Not only is this a bizarre obsession on his part, from my own personal experience I know he's waay off-base.
Around here, no-one beats Randalls (i.e., Safeway) for good service, and the prices are pretty much the same as Krogers. HEB can be cheaper, but their stock is usually stale in most of the Houston HEB's that I've frequented, so it kind of negates any price advantage.
You are so wrong on this statement. I have never seen any stale products from HEB.