One may not eat or derive benefit from chometz which was owned by a Jew during Pesach. The following is a partial list of local stores and their status regarding the purchase of chometz.
Vaad supervised stores: are acceptable for the purchase of chometz. The Vaad encourages the community to patronize local kosher establishments whenever possible.
Dunkin Donuts (under Vaad supervision): baked items may be purchased after 9:30pm, Motzo’ei Yom Tov (April 13). In general, throughout the year, one should wait one hour after the end of Shabbat or Yom Tov before purchasing Dunkin Donuts baked products.
Stores in general: the following list (a. – e.) is ordered from the most halachically preferable to the least preferable, based on the measure of Jewish ownership in the store’s chometz. An explanation for the hierarchy will be explained in the footnotes.
Aldi, BJ’s, Costco, CVS, Duane Read, H Mart, Rite Aid, Sam’s Club, Target (NOTE: not frozen chometz items), Trader Joe’s, Walgreen’s, Walmart (in-store purchases), Wegman’s and Whole Foods. These stores and their suppliers are non-Jewish owned, and it is unquestionably permitted to purchase chometz in these establishments immediately after Pesach.
Acme has minority Jewish ownership of less than 50%, and there is halachic justification to purchase chometz in Acme after Pesach.
Select ShopRite stores (non-Jewish owned): Aberdeen, Bound Brook, Chatham, East Brunswick, East Windsor, Edison, Elizabeth, Lawrenceville, Livingston, Marlboro, Millburn, Morristown, Neptune, Sommerset, Springfield, Union, West Orange: there is halachic justification to purchase chometz in these stores after Pesach, since these stores are non-Jewish owned, even though their supplier (known as Wakefurn) has partial Jewish ownership, which is less than 50%.
Stop & Shop: overt chometz may be purchased from Lag B’Omer on (Tuesday, May 9). (Overt chometz includes cereal, cookies, crackers, pretzels, grains, and flour. Products which contain vinegar, such as mayonnaise, ketchup, and mustard, may be purchased, since it is probable that the vinegar is not chometz.)
Some Shoprite stores that are Jewish-owned (see above part c; the ShopRite stores not listed in part c should be considered Jewish owned): overt chometz may be purchased from Lag B’Omer on (Tuesday, May 9).
Online companies such as Amazon.com and Walmart.com sell products from their own inventory or from suppliers. Chometz from their own inventory is acceptable, but chometz from a supplier may come from a Jewish owned company. Therefore, the customer needs to make a reasonable effort to determine whether the supplier is Jewish.
Non-chometz items: may be purchased from any Jewish or non-Jewish-owned store (e.g., fruit, vegetables, eggs, cooking oil, etc.)
Alcoholic beverages (except for wine): may not be purchased from a Jew who did not sell his chometz until after Shavuot, since they are either definitely chometz or possibly chometz and the depletion of inventory in liquor stores is slower than in supermarkets. Locally, one may purchase alcoholic beverages from, RiteAid (Highland Park), which is a non-Jewish owned corporation.