Whole Foods: the Temple of Pseudoscience.

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  • ascrit
    ascrit Posts: 770 Member
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    IN for reading later. I enjoy shopping at Whole Foods so this should be interesting...
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,951 Member
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    Whole Foods: America’s Temple of Pseudoscience
    http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/02/23/whole-foods-america-s-temple-of-pseudoscience.html

    This is a really great article that nails down what makes me so uncomfortable with the place.

    "Still: a significant portion of what Whole Foods sells is based on simple pseudoscience. And sometimes that can spill over into outright anti-science (think What Doctors Don’t Tell You, or Whole Foods’ overblown GMO campaign, which could merit its own article)."
    also that is a terribly written article. It repeatedly uses the phrase "pseudoscience" and then uses anecdotal evidence to prove his claim.

    um.

    ironic article is ironic.
    Yup. End of story.

    For great success!
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    Wait, am I reading this right? People think Whole Foods is a small company? $10 billion a year in sales, publicly traded company with hundreds of locations is "small?" They're a pretty large corporation.
  • FlaxMilk
    FlaxMilk Posts: 3,452 Member
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    Wait, am I reading this right? People think Whole Foods is a small company? $10 billion a year in sales, publicly traded company with hundreds of locations is "small?" They're a pretty large corporation.

    No, I don't think they are a "small" company. I think that other companies influence a bigger and more varied market.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    Whole Foods: America’s Temple of Pseudoscience
    http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/02/23/whole-foods-america-s-temple-of-pseudoscience.html

    This is a really great article that nails down what makes me so uncomfortable with the place.

    "Still: a significant portion of what Whole Foods sells is based on simple pseudoscience. And sometimes that can spill over into outright anti-science (think What Doctors Don’t Tell You, or Whole Foods’ overblown GMO campaign, which could merit its own article)."

    also that is a terribly written article. It repeatedly uses the phrase "pseudoscience" and then uses anecdotal evidence to prove his claim.

    um.

    ironic article is ironic.

    Example?

    Here ya go:

    "I invited a biologist friend who studies human gut bacteria to come take a look with me. She read the healing claims printed on a handful of bottles and frowned. “This is bull****,” she said, and went off to buy some vegetables."

    ^^ That's when I quit reading too.

    We don't have a Whole Foods where we live anyway, but this is something else that I find amusing: people who are self-righteous about shopping there.
  • stealthq
    stealthq Posts: 4,298 Member
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    We don't have a Whole Foods where we live anyway, but this is something else that I find amusing: people who are self-righteous about shopping there.

    The closest grocery to me is a Whole Foods and I shop there all the time because I don't want to drive another 20min to get to the next closest. Plus, they have Bell and Evans chicken that I think is the bomb.

    Anywho, what I find amusing (and annoying) is the self-righteous attitude of 50% of the checkout staff. When my cart is full of meat and produce, everyone is all smiles and they're chatty Kathies. Get to the front of the line with a basket full of frozen meals and ice cream and it's pulling teeth to get them to talk to you. Ridiculous.
  • totem12
    totem12 Posts: 194 Member
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    I think it's quite right to take issue with a retailer based on one of their products - here in the UK i no longer shop at Tesco due to them refusing to engage in any meaningful dialogue with skeptics regarding stocking of 'What Doctors Don't Tell You' magazine. However, sadly, so many shops have their dark side - I would have boycotted Boots pharmacy due to their selling homeopathic products, were they not unfortunately sold in every other pharmacy I went into. So as much as it bothers me, you just have to hope that if you boycott the products themselves the retailer will make the decision not to stock them anymore.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    We don't have a Whole Foods where we live anyway, but this is something else that I find amusing: people who are self-righteous about shopping there.

    The closest grocery to me is a Whole Foods and I shop there all the time because I don't want to drive another 20min to get to the next closest. Plus, they have Bell and Evans chicken that I think is the bomb.

    Anywho, what I find amusing (and annoying) is the self-righteous attitude of 50% of the checkout staff. When my cart is full of meat and produce, everyone is all smiles and they're chatty Kathies. Get to the front of the line with a basket full of frozen meals and ice cream and it's pulling teeth to get them to talk to you. Ridiculous.

    How funny! They have a store called "Nature's Pantry" in our city, but it's 20 minutes or more from us, so I know what you mean. I shop at a store called "Sav-A-Lot," which is uber cheap for staple items.
  • anyamb
    anyamb Posts: 52 Member
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    I don't agree with everything that Whole Foods sells or does, but they have the best (freshest) produce, largest bulk bin selection, and the only milk bottled in glass bottles (grass fed and local too) of any grocery store in my area. I spend a little more than I would at the Kroger (not much more though), and since I'm blessed enough to be able to afford to spend a little more, I do.

    Also, their take and bake pizzas are better and cheaper than any of my local pizza places, so that's a win.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    A little food for thought, in the form of a quote from a friend:

    "They have these "standards" for foods that they won't allow in their store, like anything with hydrogenated oil, or high fructose corn syrup. But they're fine with selling homeopathic remedies, and healing crystals"
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
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    A little food for thought, in the form of a quote from a friend:

    "They have these "standards" for foods that they won't allow in their store, like anything with hydrogenated oil, or high fructose corn syrup. But they're fine with selling homeopathic remedies, and healing crystals"

    Show me the research that shows homeopathic remedies and healing crystals hurt people.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    A little food for thought, in the form of a quote from a friend:

    "They have these "standards" for foods that they won't allow in their store, like anything with hydrogenated oil, or high fructose corn syrup. But they're fine with selling homeopathic remedies, and healing crystals"

    Show me the research that shows homeopathic remedies and healing crystals hurt people.

    Well, I personally know people who have been seriously hurt by trusting homeopathic remedies to cure their ills, and delaying actual medical treatment. It was really sad and frustrating to see, actually.

    But that's not the point of the quote, I think. Not to me, anyway. It's that if Whole Foods positions itself as having certain standards for the products they sell, what does it say when they peddle snake oil?
  • Charlottesometimes23
    Charlottesometimes23 Posts: 687 Member
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    A little food for thought, in the form of a quote from a friend:

    "They have these "standards" for foods that they won't allow in their store, like anything with hydrogenated oil, or high fructose corn syrup. But they're fine with selling homeopathic remedies, and healing crystals"

    Haha, what a joke. Clearly it's all about consumer demand and little else.

    We don't have Wholefoods in my country. I've been to them overseas and spent some time wandering the aisles looking at the various potions that promise enhanced health. I can see how people can get caught up in the hype. The stores have an interesting 'ambiance' about them.

    I was impressed with the prepared foods section. I remember that they had red velvet cakes, full of delicious processed carbs, which I thought was rather ironic considering their theme. We had lunch there, including red velvet cake, and it cost a bomb.
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
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    A little food for thought, in the form of a quote from a friend:

    "They have these "standards" for foods that they won't allow in their store, like anything with hydrogenated oil, or high fructose corn syrup. But they're fine with selling homeopathic remedies, and healing crystals"

    Show me the research that shows homeopathic remedies and healing crystals hurt people.

    Well, I personally know people who have been seriously hurt by trusting homeopathic remedies to cure their ills, and delaying actual medical treatment. It was really sad and frustrating to see, actually.

    But that's not the point of the quote, I think. Not to me, anyway. It's that if Whole Foods positions itself as having certain standards for the products they sell, what does it say when they peddle snake oil?

    that doesn't mean the homeopathic remedy HURT that person, their decision-making did.

    but I see what you're saying and it's a valid point. but color me not-so-shocked that a megacompany would be hypocritical...
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    A little food for thought, in the form of a quote from a friend:

    "They have these "standards" for foods that they won't allow in their store, like anything with hydrogenated oil, or high fructose corn syrup. But they're fine with selling homeopathic remedies, and healing crystals"

    Haha, what a joke. Clearly it's all about consumer demand and little else.

    We don't have Wholefoods in my country. I've been to them overseas and spent some time wandering the aisles looking at the various potions that promise enhanced health. I can see how people can get caught up in the hype. The stores have an interesting 'ambiance' about them.

    I was impressed with the prepared foods section. I remember that they had red velvet cakes, full of delicious processed carbs, which I thought was rather ironic considering their theme. We had lunch there, including red velvet cake, and it cost a bomb.

    Yes, it's not necessarily about actually providing superior products. It's about having an image of superior products/ethics/smarts/whatever. Yes, they provide many high quality products but they also peddle many products that are bunk but that people believe are great. To people who understand what's going on, it significantly undermines their positioning and branding.
  • Charlottesometimes23
    Charlottesometimes23 Posts: 687 Member
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    A little food for thought, in the form of a quote from a friend:

    "They have these "standards" for foods that they won't allow in their store, like anything with hydrogenated oil, or high fructose corn syrup. But they're fine with selling homeopathic remedies, and healing crystals"

    Show me the research that shows homeopathic remedies and healing crystals hurt people.
    They may not hurt directly, but I think that it's a problem when people turn to ineffective CAMs and shun treatment with proven efficacy. In some circumstances it might be fine, but in others it can be deadly.
  • cwsreddy
    cwsreddy Posts: 998 Member
    Options
    A little food for thought, in the form of a quote from a friend:

    "They have these "standards" for foods that they won't allow in their store, like anything with hydrogenated oil, or high fructose corn syrup. But they're fine with selling homeopathic remedies, and healing crystals"

    Show me the research that shows homeopathic remedies and healing crystals hurt people.
    They may not hurt directly, but I think that it's a problem when people turn to ineffective CAMs and shun treatment with proven efficacy. In some circumstances it might be fine, but in others it can be deadly.

    My grandfather chose experimental cancer treatment instead of traditional therapies and gained years of his life that he probably wouldn't have had otherwise.

    Risk/reward game.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    A little food for thought, in the form of a quote from a friend:

    "They have these "standards" for foods that they won't allow in their store, like anything with hydrogenated oil, or high fructose corn syrup. But they're fine with selling homeopathic remedies, and healing crystals"

    Show me the research that shows homeopathic remedies and healing crystals hurt people.
    They may not hurt directly, but I think that it's a problem when people turn to ineffective CAMs and shun treatment with proven efficacy. In some circumstances it might be fine, but in others it can be deadly.

    My grandfather chose experimental cancer treatment instead of traditional therapies and gained years of his life that he probably wouldn't have had otherwise.

    Risk/reward game.

    The experimental cancer treatment probably didn't consist purely of sugar pills.

    Experimental treatments and magic crystals are not quite the same thing.
  • Charlottesometimes23
    Charlottesometimes23 Posts: 687 Member
    Options
    A little food for thought, in the form of a quote from a friend:

    "They have these "standards" for foods that they won't allow in their store, like anything with hydrogenated oil, or high fructose corn syrup. But they're fine with selling homeopathic remedies, and healing crystals"

    Show me the research that shows homeopathic remedies and healing crystals hurt people.
    They may not hurt directly, but I think that it's a problem when people turn to ineffective CAMs and shun treatment with proven efficacy. In some circumstances it might be fine, but in others it can be deadly.

    My grandfather chose experimental cancer treatment instead of traditional therapies and gained years of his life that he probably wouldn't have had otherwise.

    Risk/reward game.
    So did my father-in-law.

    It wasn't CAM though. That's quite different.
  • FlaxMilk
    FlaxMilk Posts: 3,452 Member
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    To people who understand what's going on, it significantly undermines their positioning and branding.

    The only thing that has undermined them in my book is the significant decrease in varieties of vegan ice cream that they carry. Fewer brands, way fewer flavors of the brands they do have. I am displeased about this. You can't provide a huge selection of a novelty product like that and then take it all away.

    I mean, you can. But you shouldn't.

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