Is Whole Foods Keeping True to its Original Intent?

The Whole Foods shoppping experience is definitely a pleasure (if you don't look at the receipt when you checkout). You just feel good knowing that their selection of produce is organically grown free of pesticides and toxic chemicals. Its worth it for me to pay the extra amount to ensure that the food I am getting is healthy. Plus, the selection of organic brands is not comparable to any other health food store. But has Whole Foods remained true to its original purpose? Well, lets examine what its original purpose was. From what I know, Whole Foods intended to support local organic farmers by stocking their fruits, veggies and meat in their aisles. Conventional produce was the exception to the rule. When I say conventional, I mean big agra, pesticides and fertilizer. Recently I have been seeing more and more conventionally grown produce and the organic selections they do offer are not local. You really need to read the labels before purchasing to make sure what you are getting supports local agriculture. My research has led me to believe that its not profitable for Whole Foods to buy from many different small farms when they can get better deals from the bigger farms and make more money on the markup. This is a disservice to the people who want to support sustainable organic farming. Within a few years Whole Foods will look no different then your neighborhood Publix, Kroger or Waldbaums. Where do we go then?

My message is simple. Seek out your local farmer's markets. You can rest assure that most of what they offer is local and organic. Plus, the prices are way cheaper than Whole Foods. You will be supporting many initiatives on many levels: your family's health, local agriculture, organic agriculture and the betterment of the environment. At some of the bigger farmer's markets they even have pastured meat. This is a great opportunity to try it out before contacting a local farm and buying it directly.

Its sad to see that profit margins are driving big businesses to cut corners and lose focus but its our fault for supporting it. We have a choice and we can easily choose to seek out local food that is in season and doesn't have to travel far to get to our tables. Just remember, all that conventionally grown produce from far across the world costs money to ship and uses oil to get it there.