Tag: grocery
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Whole Foods Joins Non-GMO Project Initiative to Certify Private Label Products
Whole Foods Market Inc. has reportedly announced a partnership with the Non-GMO Project to independently certify that its private label products do not contain genetically modified (GM) ingredients. A non-profit collaboration of manufacturers, retailers, processors, distributors, and consumers, the Non-GMO Project maintains a product verification program (PVP) “to scientifically test whether a product has met…
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Study Alleges Reusable Grocery Bags May Pose Safety Threat
Reusable grocery bags and packages can apparently contain a high level of bacteria, yeast, mold, and coliform that can pose a significant food safety risk because of cross contamination, claims a new microbiological study funded by the Environment and Plastics Industry Council (EPIC). The study, reportedly the first of its kind in North America, looked…
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FTC Approves Final Consent Order in Whole Foods Litigation
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced its approval of a final consent order in its challenge to the merger of Whole Foods Market, Inc. and Wild Oats Markets, Inc. Under the agreement, Whole Foods will sell 32 of its supermarkets and give up unrestricted rights to the “Wild Oats” brand. When the agreement was announced…
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Jenna Greene, “Whole Foods’ Mixed Bag,” Legal Times, March 30, 2009
This article comprehensively summarizes the events and proceedings that led Whole Foods Market, Inc. to agree in March 2009 to settle Federal Trade Commission (FTC) charges that its merger with Wild Oats Markets, Inc. violated antitrust laws. According to freelance journalist Jenna Greene, the two-year fight ultimately cost Whole Foods $28 million and resulted in…
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California Plaintiffs Allege False Advertising and Labeling of Frozen Waffles
California consumers have filed a putative class action against Van’s International Foods and retailers Whole Foods Market California, Inc., Trader Joe’s Co., and Costco Wholesale Co., alleging that Van’s frozen waffles did not accurately state the calorie and nutrient content throughout 2007 and into 2008. Hodes v. Van’s Int’l Foods, No. 09-01530 (C.D. Cal., filed…
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CSPI Urges Retailers to Use Loyalty Card Data to Notify Customers About Recalls
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has sent letters to retailers, calling on them to use their membership and bonus card data, which track customer purchases, to provide targeted warnings when tainted foods are subject to recall. Noting that some companies with bonus card programs already issue food safety alerts and, in…
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Whole Foods Loses Bid to Stop FTC Antitrust Trial
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has reportedly denied a Whole Foods Market, Inc. petition that sought to stop the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) antitrust proceedings against the company’s merger with Wild Oats Markets, Inc. The FTC’s administrative trial is scheduled to begin April 6, 2009, and Whole Foods contends that the commission has pre-judged the…
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Whole Foods Takes Due Process Claims Against FTC to Appeals Court
Whole Foods Market, Inc. has reportedly withdrawn from U.S. district court its due process challenge to the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) antitrust proceedings against the company’s merger with Wild Oats Markets, Inc. The case was then refiled before the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. According to a Whole Foods executive, “Whole Foods Market is interested…