Why does everyone think Whole Foods sells healthy food? (cream, coke, vegetables)

[MAK802]

Originally Posted by thepinksquid

I always thought that only "standard" Whole Foods claimed was the they sell products from manufacturers with certain production/ethical standards. I've never heard a claim that they carry 'healthier' (as in, more nutritionally compete) items than other stores.

Also...I don't think they sell just regular Cheerios there. Never ever seen that. Just saying...

I don't shop there because I have better, cheaper options for healthy food nearby.

Actually, they do claim they are healthy. They sell reusable bags with their logos, and change the pattern every few months. This time it's one with words on it, words like "healthy," "local," and "eco-friendly." They are neither.

And they do sell Cheerios and Quaker oatmeal for that matter. Basically, anything that is not processed or that contains HFCS. But, only the plain Cheerios and plain oatmeal are at the stores. They won't carry the processed, flavored ones. I don't know why they don't just boycott the entire line, but that's WF.

[joe moving]

it is just supposed to be more "natural" i drink soda in a glass bottle from cane sugar. it is not any healthier (other than perhaps not causing cancer from GMO #2 corn) than COKE but tastes better and is more natural. (i should really not drink it)

while on the topic of soda, they also do sell Orangina (sp?) which has HFCS in it......??????

[roohound]

I remember being at a WF looking for some whipped cream to go with my strawberries. I wanted some Reddi Whip - but no, they don't sell that. I wound up buying a can of some organic sugar whipped cream that tasted deletedand cost twice as much as RW

My favorite WF story is when I was there with my BF and he asked one of the workers there if they sold Pepto Bismol. The look of disgust on her face was palpable and she said quite haughtily, " We don't sell that here. That pink is not a color you'd find in nature." I don't know why, but damn, that just irritated the hell out of me. Wench lol

I'm a TJ's fan all the way I mean, if you asked a TJ's employee about Pepto they'd tell you no, but being told no is always better when it's done by someone in a Hawaiian shirt

[thepinksquid]

Originally Posted by MAK802

Actually, they do claim they are healthy. They sell reusable bags with their logos, and change the pattern every few months. This time it's one with words on it, words like "healthy," "local," and "eco-friendly." They are neither.

And they do sell Cheerios and Quaker oatmeal for that matter. Basically, anything that is not processed or that contains HFCS. But, only the plain Cheerios and plain oatmeal are at the stores. They won't carry the processed, flavored ones. I don't know why they don't just boycott the entire line, but that's WF.

Ah, I see.

Honestly I think the bags are probably more just hiring some external graphic designer for the bags and that's the cheesy design he/she came up with (more so than some message), but I digress.

Honestly I *have* seen items that contain HFCS in Whole Foods, though. I think it was some sort of jelly/jam.

[Ceece]

I shop at WF, TJ, and the big chain grocery stores. They all have their upsides and downsides but I'm glad for the variety and choice. We also have a Ranch 99 Asian Market in the area and will soon be getting a Fresh and Easy. I can't complain.

[subwayfan]

Originally Posted by thepinksquid

Ah, I see.

Honestly I think the bags are probably more just hiring some external graphic designer for the bags and that's the cheesy design he/she came up with (more so than some message), but I digress.

Honestly I *have* seen items that contain HFCS in Whole Foods, though. I think it was some sort of jelly/jam.

I think I saw Heinz ketchup that has HFCS, but it was more recently. Perhaps because Organic Ketchup becomes dark red and doesn't have a desirable consistency half way through the bottle. There may have been pressure to carry it, and sales of the organic weren't doing well.

Besides that, they carry very few items with HFCS.

They'll sell fried, sugary and salty, but I think they are absolute about not carrying anything with partially hydrogenated oils or msg.

[subwayfan]

Originally Posted by MAK802

I don't know why they don't just boycott the entire line, but that's WF.

It's better for business to leave the door open to other business.

So, they carry some General Mills product; likewise, they carry Frito Lay's Natural line.

Similarly I've been to my Wal-Mart (which isn't a SuperCenter) and they had entire stock of Honey Nut Cheerios but no regular Cheerios. No shelf space reserved. Wal-Mart tends to be selective as well, though for other reasons - in this case, they must have gotten a deal arranged.

[eureka1]

The Whole Foods in Chicago was shut down for a while last year because of rats. TJ's is a giant corporation pretending to be a folksy neighborhood store. Thank God I have REAL local stores nearby and don't have to deal with either of them.

[VegasGrace]

Originally Posted by MAK802

Check out this video. It's an investigation done to their Chinese imports. As you can imagine, WF was not happy about it .


YouTube - Whole Foods Market "Organic" food made in China !!!!

Thanks for the post!

I switched from heavily processed foods to organic 2 weeks ago and wondered this very thing.

how do I know?

Is this a sham?

At Earth Fare...the zucchini was from Canada- noticed the little sticker after I got home.

Guess I should try to avoid HFCS, and try to stick with natural as possible ingredient lists.

[michgc]

After reading this thread, I went to my kitchen to check Whole Foods products that I have bought. I was curious if many of them were from China. I went through everything I had, and the results of my non-random sample of items purchased from Whole Foods are:

365 brand frozen spinach - product of USA
365 brand jelly - product of USA (no HFCS)
365 brand organic tortillas - product of USA
365 brand cream cheese - product of USA
365 brand organic vegetable broth - no country source written but says "USDA Organic"
365 brand organic soymilk - product of USA
365 brand penne pasta - product of Italy
365 brand can of black beans - product of USA
365 brand can of pumpkin - no country source
365 brand chocolate chips - product of USA

Maybe I just got lucky, but it doesn't seem like a whole lot of items were from China, if any. I never shopped there looking specifically at where the products were made. Anyone else care to look in their kitchens? I'm curious if others will find a lot of "product of China" or no country source on their food products from Whole Foods.