Guest guest Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 One of these just opened up recently in my area... http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/ I haven't been in yet to check it out, but ......how do I say this......it almost looks a bit too 'slick.' And, it's a chain. Anyone know anything about these guys? Are they ok? TM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 It's not the same as a co-op. A step better than a regular grocery store perhaps. You'll probably also find it expensive. But you could find some good things there. Kathy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Tim, Are any of these in your area? http://www.chicagofoodcoop.org/ http://dillpicklefoodcoop.org/ this website lists a bunch in Chicago. http://www.greenpeople.org/healthfood.htm > > It's not the same as a co-op. A step better than a regular grocery store perhaps. You'll probably also find it expensive. But you could find some good things there. > > Kathy > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Good question.....I'll check. In the meantime I went to the Whole Foods Market in Schaumburg today. It is HUGE. And you really have to watch the labels, as they sell " organic " as well as " conventional " items, tho......like as regarding the meet or eggs etc., even the conventional items carry labels that say that the animals were not caged, or that the source was a 'regional' farm (IN, WI, MI, IL, etc.). I bought my first dozen " organic " eggs. $3.99. I sure hope they taste good!! :-) TM ________________________________ From: twincitieserrands <twincitieserrands@...> Sent: Fri, January 28, 2011 9:25:58 AM Subject: Re: " whole foods market " Tim, Are any of these in your area? http://www.chicagofoodcoop.org/ http://dillpicklefoodcoop.org/ this website lists a bunch in Chicago. http://www.greenpeople.org/healthfood.htm > > It's not the same as a co-op. A step better than a regular grocery store >perhaps. You'll probably also find it expensive. But you could find some good >things there. > > Kathy > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 i try not to shop at wf when i can i go to a coop. i heard negative things about wf donating money to political campaigns not pro environment - they are a wealthy corporation.. It feels very " corporate " and snobbish to me. I think they are overpriced. It is also impossible to find grass-fed meat at the one I know. I rather give my money to a coop. I also heard they dont pay the employees well. articles http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/8/13/766208/-The-view-from-a-former-Whole-Foo\ ds-employee-%28Updated%29 http://econerdfood.blogspot.com/2007/07/why-i-hate-whole-foods.html > > One of these just opened up recently in my area... > > http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/ > > I haven't been in yet to check it out, but ......how do I say this......it almost looks a bit too 'slick.' And, it's a chain. > > Anyone know anything about these guys? > Are they ok? > > > TM > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 I agree that many things there are over-priced but some of the basics that I use are actually much cheaper at Whole Foods than at my co-op. I think b/c they are such a bulk buyer their prices can be cheaper (I find this to be occasionally true at Trader Joes as well). One recent example: My co-op has a certain variety of Washington state organic apples right now that they are selling for $5.99/lb (which is insane...and I cannot imagine who would buy them...I expect they will rot along with the organic strawberries they are selling for $7.99 and the conventional asparagus they are selling for $6.99). Whole Foods sells the same apple variety for between $1.99 and $2.49/pound. They also often have better deals on organic olive oil than my co-op does. Many people call it " Whole pay-check " instead of " Whole Foods " but I think it all depends on how you shop there (there are many temptations after all) and really in my experience, though I do love my co-op and was just there today as a matter of fact, some items are much cheaper at Whole Foods than the equivalent items in my co-op. I know many people here are " anti " Whole Foods but I believe they are much more on the side of real food than any other 'large' buyer out there. I am old enough to remember big city living before there was a Whole Foods and it wasn't pretty! They have always done a great job of catering to the people who simply want 'real' food while also catering to the mainstream 'foodies' who just want interesting ingredients. Their prepared foods aisle puts together recipes and lists all the ingredients and for many many people out there it is an absolute revelation that you can make interesting food without glutamates and high fructose corn syrup and nasty hydrogenated things and fake blobs. They also typically do a good job (some stores better than others) of introducing people to international cuisines that are very often healthier than what the SAD gives them. The Whole Foods I used to live near regularly had Ethiopian and Thai and Jamaican dishes etc etc. If I had to eat from the prepared foods section of a Whole Foods (every ingredient listed and disclosed) or say from a Byerlys (speaking of overpriced and speaking of recipes that are more than likely not including real food) or Kowalskis...give me the Whole Foods every time!! It is also worth mentioning that their bakeries use only unbromated and unbleached flour which is also (mostly) organic. I cannot think of another large scale buyer who even knows why bromated flour would be bad for someone!! Are their loaves worth of Sally Fallon? No of course not. But they are a far cry from the bleached out rottenness the average consumer buys in a grocery store. And if you are the parent of a kid who has to navigate the mainstream, they can be a Godsend b/c you can get a 'better' substitute for almost any rotten conventional food a mainstream parent is bringing. Definitely there are some parents that use this to continue feeding their kids pop-tarts (albeit 'organic' pop-tarts - ha!) and continue to live on 'processed organic' food instead of real food but I can tell you that if every kid on the block is slugging back bags of Oreos after school every day it is nice to be able to buy the occasional bag of " Newman O's " (still an over-priced unhealthy snack but no high fructose corn syrup, and looks like health food when you compare it to the Nabisco Oreo). Their fish practices stink overall (though getting better in part due to consumer pressure). Their meat is spotty. They do sell frozen veggies from China; and you can definitely pay a lot of money for produce that has been flown in from Peru or beyond if that is your thing. That said I think they are way more on the good side than on the bad side. Their stores have boosted the demand (and therefore the growing power) for organic products nationwide. And while you can definitely do much better with local CSAs and local farmers and a totally local food supply...you can definitely do a LOT worse than Whole Foods aka " Whole Paycheck " My 2 cents in any case! Josie _____ From: [mailto: ] On Behalf Of ezmbh Sent: Friday, January 28, 2011 5:50 PM Subject: Re: " whole foods market " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 29, 2011 Report Share Posted January 29, 2011 Hi all... Well, I really didn't intend to start a debate about " Whole Foods Market. " And, again, I'm still very new at scoping out the possibilities in my area......not to mention....still in the infancy stages of discussion with my wife regarding " how far " we want to go with this process. " Back in the day " when we were eating better, we were primarily concerned about whole foods, & staying away from the uber-processed junk foods. We also distilled our own drinking water, & incorporated a lot of fresh fruits/vegies in our diet. That was about it. (and it made a tremendous difference). Obviously, there's LOTS more that can be done--such as going totally organic, etc. I really like the co-op idea/movement; I like the idea of local food procurement; sustainability; and all of that. But I also have to balance that against other things like co$t, time (we both work full time & our schedules are nuts), and just where we " plug in " given our place in life. Given all of that, what I like about Whole Foods Market is that there's no membership fee, they're close, everything is clearly labeled so if I read the signs I know what I'm buying, and their selection of stuff is immense. If nothing else, perhaps they're a good 'bridge' for us, for now, to a consciously healthier alternative life. TM ________________________________ From: Josie <josie.nelson@...> Sent: Fri, January 28, 2011 7:07:34 PM Subject: RE: Re: " whole foods market " I agree that many things there are over-priced but some of the basics that I use are actually much cheaper at Whole Foods than at my co-op. I think b/c they are such a bulk buyer their prices can be cheaper (I find this to be occasionally true at Trader Joes as well). One recent example: My co-op has a certain variety of Washington state organic apples right now that they are selling for $5.99/lb (which is insane...and I cannot imagine who would buy them...I expect they will rot along with the organic strawberries they are selling for $7.99 and the conventional asparagus they are selling for $6.99). Whole Foods sells the same apple variety for between $1.99 and $2.49/pound. They also often have better deals on organic olive oil than my co-op does. Many people call it " Whole pay-check " instead of " Whole Foods " but I think it all depends on how you shop there (there are many temptations after all) and really in my experience, though I do love my co-op and was just there today as a matter of fact, some items are much cheaper at Whole Foods than the equivalent items in my co-op. I know many people here are " anti " Whole Foods but I believe they are much more on the side of real food than any other 'large' buyer out there. I am old enough to remember big city living before there was a Whole Foods and it wasn't pretty! They have always done a great job of catering to the people who simply want 'real' food while also catering to the mainstream 'foodies' who just want interesting ingredients. Their prepared foods aisle puts together recipes and lists all the ingredients and for many many people out there it is an absolute revelation that you can make interesting food without glutamates and high fructose corn syrup and nasty hydrogenated things and fake blobs. They also typically do a good job (some stores better than others) of introducing people to international cuisines that are very often healthier than what the SAD gives them. The Whole Foods I used to live near regularly had Ethiopian and Thai and Jamaican dishes etc etc. If I had to eat from the prepared foods section of a Whole Foods (every ingredient listed and disclosed) or say from a Byerlys (speaking of overpriced and speaking of recipes that are more than likely not including real food) or Kowalskis...give me the Whole Foods every time!! It is also worth mentioning that their bakeries use only unbromated and unbleached flour which is also (mostly) organic. I cannot think of another large scale buyer who even knows why bromated flour would be bad for someone!! Are their loaves worth of Sally Fallon? No of course not. But they are a far cry from the bleached out rottenness the average consumer buys in a grocery store. And if you are the parent of a kid who has to navigate the mainstream, they can be a Godsend b/c you can get a 'better' substitute for almost any rotten conventional food a mainstream parent is bringing. Definitely there are some parents that use this to continue feeding their kids pop-tarts (albeit 'organic' pop-tarts - ha!) and continue to live on 'processed organic' food instead of real food but I can tell you that if every kid on the block is slugging back bags of Oreos after school every day it is nice to be able to buy the occasional bag of " Newman O's " (still an over-priced unhealthy snack but no high fructose corn syrup, and looks like health food when you compare it to the Nabisco Oreo). Their fish practices stink overall (though getting better in part due to consumer pressure). Their meat is spotty. They do sell frozen veggies from China; and you can definitely pay a lot of money for produce that has been flown in from Peru or beyond if that is your thing. That said I think they are way more on the good side than on the bad side. Their stores have boosted the demand (and therefore the growing power) for organic products nationwide. And while you can definitely do much better with local CSAs and local farmers and a totally local food supply...you can definitely do a LOT worse than Whole Foods aka " Whole Paycheck " My 2 cents in any case! Josie _____ From: [mailto: ] On Behalf Of ezmbh Sent: Friday, January 28, 2011 5:50 PM Subject: Re: " whole foods market " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 29, 2011 Report Share Posted January 29, 2011 I enjoy the store and when my errands take me that way over the co-ops i'll happily shop there. I've been told their organic produce is less expensive than a typical chain because their produce volume is so high. I'm not a fan of their prepared meats, but that's just my taste buds. Also, a good way to guage eggs i've discovered is the hardness of the shell (and color of the yolk). It's suprising (to me) that price and labeling does not correlate obviously to egg quality.... As anywhere however, shop the perimeter as much as possible and when you have to buy grocery items, always read the labels! (even at coops!). HTH. > > One of these just opened up recently in my area... > > http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/ > > I haven't been in yet to check it out, but ......how do I say this......it almost looks a bit too 'slick.' And, it's a chain. > > Anyone know anything about these guys? > Are they ok? > > > TM > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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