The news is that those at the helm at Whole Foods have decided to follow its original plan and sell more whole foods and a lot less junk foods. Aug 5, 2009 www.dailyfinance.com/bloggers/sarah-gilbert
In Philadelphia the supermarkets are on the outskirts of the city, and the two Whole Foods in Phila have cornered the market. Many people shopping at a Whole Foods for the first time, and expecting the offerings to be healthy, are getting mixed signals because, after passing the organic and conventional fruit and vegetable section, the junk foods are waiting for them. It begins with the onslaught (I say onslaught because it’s always a mental wrestle when passing all this stuff) of potato chips, tortilla chips, packaged cookies and crackers, and chocolates. Soon after that is the special-looking, sugar-ladened cakes, cookies, cupcakes, croissants, coffee cakes, and quick breads. As we meander along that aisle, surprise, there’s the long counter of sometimes overcooked, sometimes overly-salted prepared foods, including fried chicken and farm-raised salmon. And the sushi? Well, what’s with the long list of ingredients on the label, even with the simplest of sushi combinations?
It’s not that Whole Foods is doing anything other markets aren’t, but that their original claim was about health, as in whole foods, and then the scales began tipping with junk foods now vying for top billing.
On the other hand, the cosmetic department is very good. Whoever is doing the buying seems in the know, and is bringing in products seemingly devoid of toxic substances, i.e., for the most part. That said, there’s the matter of the bars of soap. . . . Jeepers creepers that game could be called: how expensive can we get before customers say no.
Well, so be it, mental note: when shopping at Whole Foods by-pass the junk food aisles (almost impossible), or rev up the discipline.