Sunday, November 15, 2009
Saw Palmetto over breakfast
copyright 2009 The Bettina Network, inc.
Great breakfast conversations today! The bit of information I would like to share is from the gentleman who had to stop at the GNC to pick up a bottle of Saw Palmetto before leaving the country. He buys a couple bottles each time he is in the U. S. because he can't find it in his country. He uses it to keep his prostate healthy and swears by them. First time I'd heard of this, but I will take it seriously, he is several years past retirement is very healthy and has been doing this for a number of years. I wanted to ask if he'd had prostate problems or was this in response to prostate cancer, but I didn't know him well enough and he didn't go beyond where he could find a GNC store. Maybe he will return and knowing him better we can get a bit more into his business.
Great breakfast conversations today! The bit of information I would like to share is from the gentleman who had to stop at the GNC to pick up a bottle of Saw Palmetto before leaving the country. He buys a couple bottles each time he is in the U. S. because he can't find it in his country. He uses it to keep his prostate healthy and swears by them. First time I'd heard of this, but I will take it seriously, he is several years past retirement is very healthy and has been doing this for a number of years. I wanted to ask if he'd had prostate problems or was this in response to prostate cancer, but I didn't know him well enough and he didn't go beyond where he could find a GNC store. Maybe he will return and knowing him better we can get a bit more into his business.
TO RESPOND TO THIS BLOG email comments to info@bettina-network.com
TO LEARN MORE about the Bettina Network, inc. try www.bettina-network.com
IF YOU ENJOY OUR BLOG, USE OUR SERVICES TO BOOK YOUR ACCOMMODATIONS WHEN YOU TRAVEL!!! 1-800-347-9166 inside U.S. or 617-497-9166 outside or inside the U.S. Labels: Food Shopping, Guest comments, Health
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Bettina's Box of Shame
copyright The Bettina Network, inc. 2009
Earning its way into "Bettina's Box of Shame" today is WHOLE FOODS MARKET.
Imagine our surprise, while shopping and looking for frozen, organic spinach we find Whole Foods only carries its own brand and the product comes from CHINA. When we saw that we totally understood why the Federal Trade Commission sued Whole Foods to keep them from buying Wild Oats Company because they (the FTC) claimed it would be negative and a major loss for smaller organic foods companies because Whole Foods would replace them, as much as possible, with its own brand to the detriment of the organic foods industry.
Sure enough, here we have the beginnings of the truth of the Federal Trade Commissions logic.
It was a shocker to see the only frozen organic spinach in the refrigerated cases at Whole Foods was its own brand and ALL OF IT FROM CHINA. That was quite a juxtaposition against their many signs around the store about knowing your farm and farmer - buying local - etc.
Given all the problems we have read about lately from China made me leave the frozen organic spinach on the shelf and buy it from another store where they carried frozen organic spinach from several companies as a "product of U.S.A." giving me a choice including one from American farms not far from my home.
Keep that up WHOLE FOODS and not only will small American organic food companies be replaced, but so will organic products from large American Companies.
SHAME!! SHAME!! SHAME ON YOU WHOLE FOODS!!!
TO RESPOND TO THIS BLOG email comments to info@bettina-network.com
TO LEARN MORE about the Bettina Network, inc. try www.bettina-network.com
IF YOU ENJOY OUR BLOG, USE OUR SERVICES TO BOOK YOUR ACCOMMODATIONS WHEN YOU TRAVEL!!! 1-800-347-9166 inside U.S. or 617-497-9166 outside or inside the U.S.
Labels: Bettina's Box of Shame, Food Shopping, Health, Making Connections
Saturday, August 9, 2008
WHOLE FOODS vs ARROWHEAD MILLS FLOUR
copyright 2008 the Bettina Network, inc.
We have been noticing what looks like a regular marketing practice in some of the Whole Foods stores. We can't say all because we have not visited all.
When Whole Foods is about to push or introduce a new Whole Foods brand - the other brands seem to disappear from the shelves - or - they are sold in other sizes - smaller and less popular sizes just to maintain a presence.
We've been looking at this phenomenon around Organic Whole Wheat Flour. Our choice is Organic Whole Wheat STONE GROUND Flour. In that group our choice is Arrowhead Mills Organic Whole Wheat Stone Ground Flour.
We've seen the Whole Foods brand of Whole Wheat Flour appearing on the shelves immediately adjacent to the Arrowhead Mills Flour. At the same time we've noticed the Whole Foods brand has depth in its positioning - usually, large bags of flour four abreast being placed either two or three bags deep on the shelves.
At the same time the Arrowhead Mills' position is shrinking. Only one bag long and one bag deep and most of the time there is none available. When we ask, we are told it is due in tomorrow. Tomorrow comes and the shelves still do not have the Arrowhead Mills Flour and we get the same response from the Whole Foods employee - tomorrow!
We looked carefully at the prospect of changing to Whole Foods flour and decided against it because the Whole Foods brand is "Organic Whole Wheat Flour". It is $1 less per bag, but it is not STONE GROUND. It is apparently ground with heat making it much less nutritious and with all that such milling implies. If you are going to get serious about this and are willing to spend more for organic products, make sure they are the best you can find. Make your money count. Eat less of the right food and save money even at higher prices.
While in one Whole Foods Store recently, we were standing in front of the Organic Whole Wheat flour and watched a woman pass quickly by, pick up the Whole Foods brand, advise us to do the same because it is $1 cheaper than the Arrowhead Mills flour. We stopped her and asked if how the flour was ground meant anything to her. "Of course," she said. We asked her to read the label of the Whole Foods brand carefully and tell us if it was what she wanted and what she thought she was buying. She looked carefully at the label and expressed her shock at realizing this was not flour ground properly for it to have the Organic label. Why pay more for flour so milled. She put the Whole Foods brand back and instead bought the only two small bags of the Arrowhead Mills "Organic Stone Ground Whole Wheat" Flour. She was quite upset that Whole Foods had 'tricked' her (her words not ours).
So - shop carefully and healthily as you shop for flour and if you don't like the Arrowhead Mills' Flour, please read the labels slowly and carefully and make sure your "Organic Whole Wheat Flour" is STONE GROUND" - ground without heat to destroy the nutrients.
Whole Foods is changing. While they have some great organic products, they are not the store they used to be and look as though they are on that slippery slope to becoming just an ordainary grocery store with a few organic products, most of which are their own store brand watered down from what they should be.
We are going to call the Arrowhead Mills company to see if we can't get the large bags of their stone ground organic whole wheat flour because what we see on the shelves at the Whole Foods Stores is small bags of Arrowhead Mills Flour and even those small bags are out most of the time now and we want a constant reliable source for our flour. Whole Foods seems to want to reduce and finally eliminate the competition, leaving us with lesser quality and less healthy products.
TO RESPOND TO THIS BLOG e-mail comments to info@bettina-network.com
TO LEARN MORE about the Bettina Network, inc. try www.bettina-network.com
We have been noticing what looks like a regular marketing practice in some of the Whole Foods stores. We can't say all because we have not visited all.
When Whole Foods is about to push or introduce a new Whole Foods brand - the other brands seem to disappear from the shelves - or - they are sold in other sizes - smaller and less popular sizes just to maintain a presence.
We've been looking at this phenomenon around Organic Whole Wheat Flour. Our choice is Organic Whole Wheat STONE GROUND Flour. In that group our choice is Arrowhead Mills Organic Whole Wheat Stone Ground Flour.
We've seen the Whole Foods brand of Whole Wheat Flour appearing on the shelves immediately adjacent to the Arrowhead Mills Flour. At the same time we've noticed the Whole Foods brand has depth in its positioning - usually, large bags of flour four abreast being placed either two or three bags deep on the shelves.
At the same time the Arrowhead Mills' position is shrinking. Only one bag long and one bag deep and most of the time there is none available. When we ask, we are told it is due in tomorrow. Tomorrow comes and the shelves still do not have the Arrowhead Mills Flour and we get the same response from the Whole Foods employee - tomorrow!
We looked carefully at the prospect of changing to Whole Foods flour and decided against it because the Whole Foods brand is "Organic Whole Wheat Flour". It is $1 less per bag, but it is not STONE GROUND. It is apparently ground with heat making it much less nutritious and with all that such milling implies. If you are going to get serious about this and are willing to spend more for organic products, make sure they are the best you can find. Make your money count. Eat less of the right food and save money even at higher prices.
While in one Whole Foods Store recently, we were standing in front of the Organic Whole Wheat flour and watched a woman pass quickly by, pick up the Whole Foods brand, advise us to do the same because it is $1 cheaper than the Arrowhead Mills flour. We stopped her and asked if how the flour was ground meant anything to her. "Of course," she said. We asked her to read the label of the Whole Foods brand carefully and tell us if it was what she wanted and what she thought she was buying. She looked carefully at the label and expressed her shock at realizing this was not flour ground properly for it to have the Organic label. Why pay more for flour so milled. She put the Whole Foods brand back and instead bought the only two small bags of the Arrowhead Mills "Organic Stone Ground Whole Wheat" Flour. She was quite upset that Whole Foods had 'tricked' her (her words not ours).
So - shop carefully and healthily as you shop for flour and if you don't like the Arrowhead Mills' Flour, please read the labels slowly and carefully and make sure your "Organic Whole Wheat Flour" is STONE GROUND" - ground without heat to destroy the nutrients.
Whole Foods is changing. While they have some great organic products, they are not the store they used to be and look as though they are on that slippery slope to becoming just an ordainary grocery store with a few organic products, most of which are their own store brand watered down from what they should be.
We are going to call the Arrowhead Mills company to see if we can't get the large bags of their stone ground organic whole wheat flour because what we see on the shelves at the Whole Foods Stores is small bags of Arrowhead Mills Flour and even those small bags are out most of the time now and we want a constant reliable source for our flour. Whole Foods seems to want to reduce and finally eliminate the competition, leaving us with lesser quality and less healthy products.
TO RESPOND TO THIS BLOG e-mail comments to info@bettina-network.com
TO LEARN MORE about the Bettina Network, inc. try www.bettina-network.com
Labels: Food Shopping, Health
Subscribe to Posts [Atom]
