On the first Wednesday of every other month, I have a column called Wednesdays at Whole Foods. It showcases the most interesting news, products, store events, and happenings at the company.

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE SOAP

Have you ever heard of Dark Rye?

No, not the bread. The James Beard award-winning online magazine from Whole Foods Market that is putting out incredibly compelling content with cutting edge design. If you haven’t seen it yet, definitely take a look. You’ll be surprised, and very impressed, at what you discover.

In the recently released issue of Dark Rye called The Body Issue, we are introduced to Olowan’djo Tchala, the founder of Alaffia, an African company producing super-high quality lotions, body and face washes, soaps, and other body care products.

Olowan’djo Tchala started the company as a way to support communities and employ women in his home country of Togo. All of the shea and coconut products sourced for his products are fair trade, and the shea is harvested and processed in Togo by a cooperative of women who use a traditional, centuries-old technique. Using this process means keeping African traditions and culture alive while simultaneously processing ingredients without harmful chemicals. Read more »

On the first Wednesday of every other month, I have a column called Wednesdays at Whole Foods. It showcases the most interesting news, products, store events, and happenings at the company.

HOW DOES YOUR PRODUCE RATE?

While it may not have received as much national attention as the decision to label all GMOs in its stores by 2018, the announcement by Whole Foods Market to introduce a new rating system for flowers and produce could prove to be equally as important.

Beginning in September 2014, Whole Foods Market will present customers with a three-tier rating system and begin displaying ratings of “GOOD,” “BETTER” and “BEST” throughout the produce and floral departments. Read more »

On the first and third Wednesday of each month, I have a column called Wednesdays at Whole Foods. It showcases the most interesting news, products, store events, and happenings at the company.

If you have any suggestions, ideas, or things that you would like to see in this post, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I would love to hear from you.

ON THE JUICE

No, this is not another story about pressed organic juice.

Instead, I want to talk to you about a different kind of juice – electricity.

When I first heard about a ribbon cutting ceremony for an electric vehicle charging station (EVCS) at the Whole Foods Market store in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, I said to myself  “Wow, that’s interesting.”

But once I did more digging, I realized that the company’s EVCS program is not new at all but has been flourishing for the last few years. (You have to cut me some slack – I live in NYC and don’t drive here.)

With the first EVCS installed in 2010 at the Lamar store in Austin, Texas, the company now has a total of 93 stations at stores in California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Washington, and there is no cost to charge a car. Read more »

On the first and third Wednesday of each month, I have a column called Wednesdays at Whole Foods. It showcases the most interesting news, products, store events, and happenings at the company.  

If you have any suggestions, ideas, or things that you would like to see in this post, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I would love to hear from you.

THE SECOND ACT OF HARMLESS HARVEST

Without question, Harmless Harvest is one of the most innovative and successful companies in the organic food sector.

They were one of the first beverage companies to use HPP (high pressure processing – a technology that uses pressure, instead of heat, to kill bacteria while maintaining a high percentage of enzymes and nutrients) and launched the world’s first “raw” coconut water. The product remains so popular that keeping it on supermarket shelves is still a challenge.

Not content to be a one-trick pony, Co-Founders Justin Guilbert and Douglas Riboud have spent the last two years preparing to shake up the another segment of the beverage world – the tea market.

Harmless Harvest has just launched the world’s first “raw” tea – using HPP and no hot water to brew the tea. It is a cold-water process, which “maintains the powerful flavor, fragrance, and nutritional profile of the raw leaf while controlling the tannins – or bitterness – released,” said Douglas Riboud, and the tea contains no detectable levels of caffeine. Read more »

(To get a $1 off coupon for any Suja Elements drink, see below.)

I come across hundreds of new organic products each year, and it doesn’t take long for me to assess which ones are truly special.

So, when I tasted Suja Elements the other day, I knew right away this drink belonged in that category.

Many people may be familiar with the Suja brand because its pressed organic juices are sold at stores throughout the U.S. Yet, this week the company is introducing a new smoothie line – Suja Elements – that is very, very unique. Read more »

Whole Foods has a very important place in both the organic industry and the American cultural landscape, and as I have gotten to know the company better, the more fascinated that I have become with it.

Since the company has so many cool initiatives going on all of the time, most of which do not get the attention that they deserve, I have decided to create something called Wednesdays at Whole Foods. This column will appear on the first and third Wednesday of each month and will showcase a wide variety of news, interviews, and other features.

If you have any suggestions, ideas, or things that you would like to see in this post, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I would love to hear from you.

In the meantime, enjoy my new column – Wednesdays at Whole Foods!

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THE LATEST IN MOTOWN

In one of the most anticipated events in the company’s history, Whole Foods cut the ribbon on a new store in inner city Detroit a few months ago and as you can tell from the picture above, it was an absolute mob scene on opening day. Read more »

The next time I speak with Walter Robb, the Co-CEO of Whole Foods, I can’t wait to ask him the following question: So, how does it feel to be a rock star?

This was the jaw-dropping scene from when he and his colleagues opened Whole Foods’ highly anticipated Detroit store, located at 115 Mack Avenue.

While I have never attended an opening of a Whole Foods store before, I cannot imagine that there has ever been quite a reception like the one above.

Yet, the new Detroit store is by no means your average Whole Foods location. It is the company’s first inner-city store and has been the subject of close attention in the Detroit media since 2008. Additionally, it has been of tremendous personal importance to Walter Robb.

“We’ve worked toward this day for nearly five years. We’re inspired by what Detroiters are doing for this great city,” the Co-CEO of Whole Foods said. “They are our partners, our neighbors, our team members, and our friends. We couldn’t be prouder or happier to be part of the mix.” Read more »