I just found out today that a Whole Foods is going to be built close to my neighborhood. Too bad it’s not an Earth Fare.
While many crunchy, green mamas might rejoice at Whole Foods coming to town, I am in mourning because Whole Foods is basically on par with your “neighborhood”  Walmart.
There is nothing “neighborly” about Walmart or Whole Foods.
What a joke.
Whole Foods is just another cutthroat Corporate Bully dressed in organic, “let’s save the world”, “buy local” disguise with the shareholders in full throttle, profit taking control.
While Whole Foods is undoubtedly counting on health conscious Moms like me in the neighborhood cha-chinging away at the brand spanking new registers, let me just share with you that you won’t see The Healthy Home Economist browsing the aisles there.
I’ll be shopping at the 2 small, local healthfood stores less than a mile away where I’ve shopped for the past 15 years. Â That’s where my business loyalty lies.
I spend almost all my food money with local businesses and local farms. Â Not Whole Foods.
How could I possibly rationalize shopping at Whole Foods which has recently rolled over on the GMO issue in the United States by suggesting that we all need to “learn to live with GMO’s” by accepting the USDAs proposal for “peaceful” coexistence between organics and genetically modified foods?
Here is Whole Foods’ official statement on the matter:
The reality is that no grocery store in the United States, no matter what size or type of business, can claim they are GMO-free. While we have been and will continue to be staunch supporters of non-GMO foods, we are not going to mislead our customers with an inaccurate claim (and you should question anyone who does). Here’s why: the pervasive planting of GMO crops in the U.S. and their subsequent use in our national food supply. 93% of soy, 86% of corn, 93% of cotton, and 93% of canola seed planted in the U.S. in 2010 were genetically engineered. Since these crops are commonly present in a wide variety of foods, a GMO-free store is currently not possible in the U.S. (Unless the store sells only organic foods.)
Since the U. S. national organic standards do not allow the use of GMO ingredients and practices in the growing or production of organic foods, choosing organic is one way consumers can avoid GMO foods. The other is through labeling, of which we are strong supporters.Â
Hey Whole Foods, here’s a novel idea:  How about selling only organic and local foods then? That would solve the problem nicely wouldn’t it?
I don’t know about you, but that statement screams “sell-out” to me. Even more damaging, Whole Foods recently endorsed the peaceful coexistence option with regard to GE alfalfa rather than an outright ban. The unrestricted planting of GE alfalfa that starts as early as this spring threatens the entire grassfeeding dairy industry over the long term as alfalfa hay is an integral part of winter feeding.
Whole Foods is all about corporate profits and management can shade it and couch it any way they like, but the message is loud and clear: Â corporate profit and shareholder gains are more important than sticking to the basic sustainability ideals Whole Foods was founded upon.
Do you want your neighborhood healthfood stores and farmer’s markets to suffer revenue losses from business ruthlessly stripped away by a Whole Foods coming to town?
If not, you can choose to stay away like me and treat Whole Foods like just another supermarket or Walmart: Â a place of last resort where budget dollars are rarely if ever spent.
Note: as of July 2012, it appears that Whole Foods is still sourcing much of its “organic” produce from China which provides further verification of the video below.
In addition, as of June 2015, Whole Foods’ new veggie rating system can rank conventional produce grown in another country ahead of organic, local produce!
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Marnie Bennett via Facebook
I will still shop at my local produce market for as much locally grown products as possible. Enlightening article. Thanks for sharing.
Linda McNary via Facebook
We have to shop at the small businesses or they will go out of business. I’m tired of seeing these big chains take over the market everywhere. We have one here but I will shop local farmers and the smaller stores.
Christie Littlewood via Facebook
We don’t have a Whole Foods (as far as I know) in Canada. But with US chains quickly gobbling up space in the Canadian market Whole Foods are likely on their way. Thanks for sharing. I’ll be watching this closely.
Jana
Actually, Whole Foods is in Canada and has been for some time, at least on the West Coast. Where I am, we have at least 4 stores, just in my city alone!
Nancy Ann Zamora via Facebook
I like Sunflower Foods but they’ve now changed names to Sprouts. I like their fresh vegetables and a few other things but not much else.
Nancy Ann Zamora via Facebook
We have 2 Whole Foods in Albuquerque. I do go there once in a long while and it is expensive, in fact my son Tim calls them “WHOLE PAYCHECK!” He also calls Nieman Marcus “Needless Markup! He does have a sense of humor! 🙂
Anita Messenger via Facebook
We’re not going back anymore, that’s for sure…I’m finding ways to get what I want (like maple syrup) by finding family farms all over the nation that will SHIP to me right from their farm…cut out the middle man.
Violet Revo via Facebook
I don’t know why people expect grocery stores to tell them what is healthy to eat. It’s your job to do the research and purchase what you find to be healthy for yourself.
Erika Lantry via Facebook
It’s all driven by the mighty $$$!
Sato Moughalian via Facebook
While Whole Foods is my shopping place of the absolute last resort, and only once every few months when there is no other choice, it seems to me that all of the rush to get to your new local WF is just an indication of the growing frustration that an increasing number of people have with the corruption of our food supply. With luck, and in time, some of those people will switch their shopping to good farms and greenmarkets, where traditional foods abound. I think we are at the forward edge of a big movement back to traditional practices. The evidence against “modern” food production is mounting daily, and it is a matter of time before people connect the dots and finally understand the impact that all this processed food is having on our health, on the corporate structures that benefit from it, on the pharmaceutical industry, in particular, and on the national economy. Please reach out to your friends in California and urge them to vote yes on Prop 37, and help bring transparency to our food supply.
Julie Ferris via Facebook
Where is this new store?