"shoppers" news and stories

A few days ago, the Wall Street Journal ran a great piece to update consumers on when it makes sense to spend the extra money to buy organic, and when it doesn't. Their goal was to offer sound advice to shoppers who want to buy organic, but want to watch their wallets, as well. After all, with grocery stores stocking everything from organic oranges to organic beers, it is difficult to tell just from the label what is worth buying for the advantages that organics offer, namely environmentally friendly production and a lower level of pesticides in the final product.

Basically, they found that it is worth buying the foods that you eat a lot of and probably not worth buying things you only eat very occasionally. The "to buy" list includes: apples, peaches, bell peppers, strawberries, imported grapes, spinach, lettuce, potatoes, carrots, milk and other dairy products, meat, poultry and baby food. The "not to buy" list includes: broccoli, bananas, frozen sweet peas, frozen corn, asparagus, avocados, onions, processed foods that contain both organic and non-organic ingredients and seafood.

The vegetables were divided up by the Environmental Working Group's data from pesticide residue tests, though growers emphatically state that conventional products are safe. Seafood makes the "not to buy" list because there is still no standard for the production of organic fish, unlike the production of beef and chicken.

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In contrast to American consumers, who regularly request that the nutritional information be presented in the absolute simplest form possible, European consumers are now saying that they would prefer to have the calories in foods on their nutritional labels. The reason for this is not that they have some deeper understanding of nutrition than Americans, but that energy-based labeling is the most widely understood system and that many consumers would like to see an EU-wide system that does not vary from place to place. The US system seems to be their model, with the most recent drive being for foods to have "front-of-pack and back-of-pack nutrition labeling, based on a uniform list of nutrients, nutrition information per serving and the introduction of Guideline Daily Amounts (GDAs)." Once a standard is in place, then simplifications can be made or additional labeling systems added, but you can't simplify what isn't there, so shoppers will have to wait for a basic system first.

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Beef consumption is down in many consumer groups, with people saying 'I like beef, but I already eat too much.' According to the USDA, beef consumption has dropped by 14% over the past 20 years while, for example, chicken consumption has risen over 60%. These are worrying numbers to the beef industry, who are constantly seeking new ways to combat negative consumer perceptions about red meat and bolster sales.

Their newest strategy is to target the one group whose beef consumtion hasn't flagged: Hispanics. According to the beef council, "Hispanic shoppers spend 33 percent more on beef than non-Hispanics" - a statistic that is worth taking notice of. In an effort to maintain these sales, campaigns will be launched in states including California, Texas, Colorado and Minnesota that are aimed at promoting beef to Hispanic buyers. And just like they have a website marketed at teens, the beef industry is developing one that will be marketed towards an Hispanic audience to promote the nutritional and taste benefits of beef.

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Despite the title of Is Whole Foods Wholesome?, the Slate article is not about Whole Foods as much as it is about the organic movement. Essentially, the article treats the increased demand for organic goods as an overly cynical teenager would treat their once favorite band after it "sells out." The band, having joined up with a major record label and making more money, reaching a wider audience and popularizing their brand of music, is no longer appealing to the teen who feels that if it isn't small and under-recognized, it isn't worth his or her recognition.

Organic foods have had a following for a long time, though their potential value was largely unappreciated by the mainstream population of grocery shoppers. As Whole Foods picked up and popularized the organic foods market, neatly filling a growing consumer demand with smart store layouts and good timing, they had to look further to find the organic foods to fit the demand. The question that posed by the Slate is whether it is appropriate to purchase these goods when they are not grown locally. In California, this is not a problem because most of the organic produce in the country comes from the state, but New York has a more limited production of those types of goods.

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