New Whole Foods Market coming to Tampa! (Sarasota: sales, home)

[roaring-rox]

Have to say I love Whole Foods for the experience and hoopla... there are plenty of delicious items, especially the cheeses. Can buy a small amount and enjoy it without buying up everything else.

[Dallas Kitty]

The pending WF location is closer to Lutz but I will continue getting my herbs, vitamins and homeopathics at Nutrition S'mart across from Wire Grass. They have a tiny produce section and I don't bother with it so haven't compared prices. It's always nice to have veggies grown without pesticides but how do we ever know for sure unless we're growing it ourselves?

I moved here from Dallas a year ago. WF in Dallas had enlarged the stores and that seemed to coincide with sky high prices on all the produce. Sprouts is the WF competition in Dallas and they had better prices on fresh produce than the super markets. I'm happy as long as there's a place nearby to get the non-food health items.

[thethinktank]

Originally Posted by kyle19125

I find it despicable the back-biting about Whole Foods regarding how expensive they are, about how their standards aren't good enough, blah-blah. Where is the indignation for supermarkets who import vegetables and fruit into an area that produces tons of it but area farmers have to accept the lowest bids from whomever to unload it because Publix, Sweetbay and others won't buy it. But you'll willingly dump your hard earned dollars at the feet of companies like this who don't give squat about local agriculture and jobs and throw Whole Foods under the bus. Without Whole Foods we wouldn't be having this conversation because most likely their wouldn't be a Greenwise (which by the way Publix has like three of) and we would be stuck with veggies from Mexico and California, fruit from Chile and god knows where else. Not to mention our "farmers markets" where fake farmers sell the same produce Publix and Sweetbay sell under the guise of farm-fresh to the gullible populace who lives here and think its the real thing. Where is the outrage at that and those who run these markets that allow it to happen? Furthermore, unlike Publix and Sweetbay, Whole Foods pays their employees a living wage and decent benefits which should stand for something which is why the company is routinely voted among the best companies in the country to work for. But apparently like much else in this state it's not about ethics or standards, rather how cheap is it and how does it affect ME.....sickening.

Holy smokes, bro. I take it you didn't like my comment about Whole Foods. I stand by it pretty firmly. I don't know how Whole Foods became the sole representative of local agriculture, nor did I know that their entire stock is free from wasteful, unhealthy or environmentally-unsustainable practices.

What did I buy at Whole Foods that made me decide to stop? Farm-raised salmon from Chile. They dyed it for color, then marked it up to double the price of my local Greenwise. Not sure if you were aware, but aquacultured salmon is one of the worst environmental offenders in modern food production. It flushes our oceans with toxins, degrades the quality and health of the filets (large quantities of PCBs, etc.) and wastes more water than traditional farming per acre. But hey, Whole Foods sells farm-raised salmon, so it must be okay.

My comment on Whole Foods didn't come from a place of ignorance. I'm an aquaponic hobbyist, raising sustainably grown produce and tilapia in a vertical system. My goal is to build an aquaponic urban farm in Tampa with produce grown year-round for local restaurants. I study food policy on the daily, and I know precisely what Whole Foods stands for. They're built to turn a profit, and they cut ethical corners to do so. The fact that they even stock farm-raised salmon is a pretty solid indicator.

When I do have to shop at a grocer, I'm fine with Greenwise. Yes, I don't always leave with a clear conscience, but at least I leave paying 2/3rds of what I'd pay at Whole Foods. I'm not going to pay the difference just to feel good about buying something that is sold to me under false pretenses.

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by thethinktank

Holy smokes, bro. I take it you didn't like my comment about Whole Foods. I stand by it pretty firmly. I don't know how Whole Foods became the sole representative of local agriculture, nor did I know that their entire stock is free from wasteful, unhealthy or environmentally-unsustainable practices.

What did I buy at Whole Foods that made me decide to stop? Farm-raised salmon from Chile. They dyed it for color, then marked it up to double the price of my local Greenwise. Not sure if you were aware, but aquacultured salmon is one of the worst environmental offenders in modern food production. It flushes our oceans with toxins, degrades the quality and health of the filets (large quantities of PCBs, etc.) and wastes more water than traditional farming per acre. But hey, Whole Foods sells farm-raised salmon, so it must be okay.

My comment on Whole Foods didn't come from a place of ignorance. I'm an aquaponic hobbyist, raising sustainably grown produce and tilapia in a vertical system. My goal is to build an aquaponic urban farm in Tampa with produce grown year-round for local restaurants. I study food policy on the daily, and I know precisely what Whole Foods stands for. They're built to turn a profit, and they cut ethical corners to do so. The fact that they even stock farm-raised salmon is a pretty solid indicator.

When I do have to shop at a grocer, I'm fine with Greenwise. Yes, I don't always leave with a clear conscience, but at least I leave paying 2/3rds of what I'd pay at Whole Foods. I'm not going to pay the difference just to feel good about buying something that is sold to me under false pretenses.

That is exactly how I feel. To Kyle - not sure why you are so angry about some of us not wanting to shop at Whole Foods? I even said in my post they do some good things and serve a niche. But like the poster above, don't shop there due to the fact that they are selling many items under false pretenses and jacking up the prices while doing so. I have managed to find an organic option for everything I buy at SUPER TARGET, and it is about half the price of Whole Foods for the exact same stuff. Target, by the way, does not sell farm-raised salmon, only wild caught. And by 2015 will sell only 100% sustainable seafood.

Target To Sell 100% Sustainable Fish By 2015

Bottom line, we all have our opinions and preferences where we like to shop, and saying we are despicable for it is really a bit much.

[D-R-B]

Originally Posted by kyle19125

I find it despicable the back-biting about Whole Foods regarding how expensive they are, about how their standards aren't good enough, blah-blah. Where is the indignation for supermarkets who import vegetables and fruit into an area that produces tons of it but area farmers have to accept the lowest bids from whomever to unload it because Publix, Sweetbay and others won't buy it. But you'll willingly dump your hard earned dollars at the feet of companies like this who don't give squat about local agriculture and jobs and throw Whole Foods under the bus. Without Whole Foods we wouldn't be having this conversation because most likely their wouldn't be a Greenwise (which by the way Publix has like three of) and we would be stuck with veggies from Mexico and California, fruit from Chile and god knows where else. Not to mention our "farmers markets" where fake farmers sell the same produce Publix and Sweetbay sell under the guise of farm-fresh to the gullible populace who lives here and think its the real thing. Where is the outrage at that and those who run these markets that allow it to happen? Furthermore, unlike Publix and Sweetbay, Whole Foods pays their employees a living wage and decent benefits which should stand for something which is why the company is routinely voted among the best companies in the country to work for. But apparently like much else in this state it's not about ethics or standards, rather how cheap is it and how does it affect ME.....sickening.

Just wait until they figure out that the employees that they hire here are nowhere near as professional as in other states........i guarantee that whole foods will have more trouble running the stores in FL than anywhere else. I've been to several whole foods out of state, there is NO WAY that they will be able to find employees like those around here............

[planedition]

This is sooooooooo true. This is a big reason why the South Tampa Whole Foods is so terrible. You cannot compare the quality of the employees at the Tampa store to the quality of the employees I've seen at Whole Foods in Texas, Massachusetts, Virginia, etc.

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by D-R-B

Just wait until they figure out that the employees that they hire here are nowhere near as professional as in other states........i guarantee that whole foods will have more trouble running the stores in FL than anywhere else. I've been to several whole foods out of state, there is NO WAY that they will be able to find employees like those around here............

Well, they have been in Sarasota for several years and are doing just fine. Must be doing OK in Tampa too, since they are building a whole new store. Yup, all and all I'd say Whole Foods is doing pretty darn well in Florida.

[algia]

Not even with all the "northerners" moving to Tampa?

Originally Posted by D-R-B

Just wait until they figure out that the employees that they hire here are nowhere near as professional as in other states........i guarantee that whole foods will have more trouble running the stores in FL than anywhere else. I've been to several whole foods out of state, there is NO WAY that they will be able to find employees like those around here............

On the other hand, that's great actually, it feels like all my emails (and probably others too) were finally taken into account! GOOD! Its about time! (4, 3, 3, 1 years later)


On the last hand who cares? who has time to "interact"? really? go in, get the stuff, get out! It would be cool if they had all self check out lanes, so we don't even have to make the normal chit/chat!


The reason they won't get "better" employees, is simply because the ones in Tampa are not motivated financially enough to be nice! Pay them, and they'll be nice. That's how it works.

[D-R-B]

Originally Posted by gypsychic

Well, they have been in Sarasota for several years and are doing just fine. Must be doing OK in Tampa too, since they are building a whole new store. Yup, all and all I'd say Whole Foods is doing pretty darn well in Florida.

I didn't say they wouldn't do well, but i guarantee the store manager's have WAY MORE problems and staff turnover down here than up north.

My parents were both in retail management in the Northeast and in Florida, and they both noticed it THE SECOND they started thier new jobs down here.....they used to complain about it at the dinner table!

Florida will always be the same.......LOW STANDARDS, LOW PAY, HIGH TURNOVER. If you exceed the standards......well, you will be the one "rocking the boat".

[thethinktank]

I'm thrilled that the people bashing the workforce here are relying solely on hard, objective data. If they were bashing the workforce based on anecdotal experiences, I'd be offended.

Ignorant blanket statements are fun for the whole family!!