What's the meaning of "that" in this sentence?
What does it mean "that" of "That, and an awful lot of people do not have cooking skills.” (The last sentence) in this sentence?

People living alone often don’t want to cook and buy too many groceries that go bad before they’re used, says Jill Weisenberger, a Yorktown, Va.-based registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) and author of “The Overworked Person’s Guide to Better Nutrition.” Her clients tell her: “It’s hard to shop and cook for one.” That’s one reason why people are buying more snack foods, she says. “They are individually packaged and often have a very long shelf life. That, and an awful lot of people do not have cooking skills.”

I looked it up by dictionary and found the meaning of 'used to emphasize how much.' This meaning fits in the sentence, I guess.
If so, I'm starting to wonder why 'and' put in there.

Thanks in advance!

Question

What's the meaning of "that" in this sentence?
What does it mean "that" of "That, and an awful lot of people do not have cooking skills.” (The last sentence) in this sentence?

People living alone often don’t want to cook and buy too many groceries that go bad before they’re used, says Jill Weisenberger, a Yorktown, Va.-based registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) and author of “The Overworked Person’s Guide to Better Nutrition.” Her clients tell her: “It’s hard to shop and cook for one.” That’s one reason why people are buying more snack foods, she says. “They are individually packaged and often have a very long shelf life. That, and an awful lot of people do not have cooking skills.”

I looked it up by dictionary and found the meaning of 'used to emphasize how much.' This meaning fits in the sentence, I guess.
If so, I'm starting to wonder why 'and' put in there.

Thanks in advance!

Answer

'That' in the last sentence is a reference to the reason in the previous sentence, as Randy said. You could read it as something like:  'That fact, and also an awful...'

Answer

She has given factual reasons as to why people use long life foods. However, "That"  in the last sentence translates to "as well as". This is a colloquial/slang term which would not usually be written. She is trying to make a joke. The term "That"is only used because it is a direct quote.

Answer

"That" refers to “[t]hey are individually packaged and often have a very long shelf life".

Answers · 6

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