The whole scenario for Whole Foods Market
Autor: Luis Corvini Filho | Publicado: 2013-03-29T17:02:00-03:00

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<!--StartFragment-->



Organic
giant Whole Foods Market has raised the flag. In five years’ time, the company
will prompt suppliers to disclosure the use of Genetic Modified Organisms (GMOs)
in all the products sold in its North American stores.



The
announcement, made on March 8th during the Natural Foods Expo West
in Anaheim, California, showed that WFM is on the same page as some organic
consumers and also with protest NGOs like
JustLabelIt.org and Food and Water Watch. All of them want the labels on the
products as soon as possible.



The
question has emerged to public opinion once more because of Food and Drug
Administration (FDA)’s decision to authorise or not the sale of genetic
modified salmon.



In
the 1990s, FDA announced that there was no difference between genetic
engineered (GE) crops and non-GE crops. Since then, protesters critic the
lobbying power of chemical companies such as Monsanto, Dow and DuPont over
politics and the lack of transparency of food producers on informing if a
product has GMOs in it.



Since
2009, WFM in North America has utilised the services of a third-party
organization to offer over 3,000 non-GMOs labeled-products to consumers.



Whole
Foods Market already deals with the GMOs’ topic in the United Kingdom, where
food-labeling laws follows the rules used in the European Union. Other
countries with GMOs labeling laws are Japan, Australia, Brazil, Russia and
China.



"We
are stepping up our support of certified organic agriculture, where GMOs are
not allowed, and we are working together with our supplier partners to grow our
non-GMO supply chain," declared WFM co-CEO Walter Robb in a statement. On
the company’s blog, he said the decision shows “full transparency” and that will
develop “additional supply choices for the years ahead”.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;




Escritório da Whole Foods Market, em Austin, Texas &nbsp;(Foto:&nbsp;Aspersions&nbsp;/ Wikimedia Commons)




Good for the consumer and for the
investor

Whole
Foods Market’s decision over GMOs labeling reflects the company’s philosophy
and also shows a great understanding of its consumers’ desires. 



The organic products retailer started in
the 1980’s in Austin, Texas, with 19 members. Today, it is a public-owned
50,000-employee retailer with 346 stores in USA, Canada and the UK. According
to Forbes, its market cap is $15.5 billion.



The company is listed as the second greenest retailer in the USA,
according to a ranking of the Environment Protection Agency (EPA). 100% of its
energy comes from renewable sources such as solar and wind.



WHM’s
values of selling organic products, creating partnerships
and growing wealth through profits in a way that leads to good things for
consumers, company and the planet are “a conscious form of capitalism”, in the
words co-CEO John Mackey.



Its
marketing strategy is to promote the idea of a healthier life and also to “teach”
potential consumers the value of organics in their
lives. But WFM also sells non-organic products in its shops.



The company’s 1,2 million Facebook fans are fed with posts about
cooking tips, offers and sustainability ideals. Recently,
the company partnered with organizations linked with the First Lady Michelle
Obama to promote healthy meals to children.



Even so, WFM has been nicknamed “Whole Paycheck”, in allusion to
its high prices (20 to 25% above normal food prices, the company declared). Mr Mackey
said the Wall Street Journal that part of the population doesn’t want junk food,
“and they’re willing to pay up for it.”



But all these efforts to promote health might be flawed at least
in organics’ main flagship –nutritional benefits. A study released by Stanford
University last year showed that there is no substantial difference between organics
and conventional food.



But co-CEO Walter Robb said to the Daily Ticker program that characteristics
like organics being more sustainable and having fewer pesticides (also
disclosed in the study) still justify the purchase of these products.



Despite the controversy, market specialists suggest that Whole
Foods’ shares can be a “nutritive” addition to investors portfolios. The
company’s last quarterly report showed a net income of $146 million, a result
22,7% more than the same period of 2011 ($119 million).&nbsp; 



In March 22nd, WHM shares in Nasdaq were quoted at $87.78.
In one year, they reached
a peak of $101.86 and a lowest of $80.81. 



In February, Mr Robb revealed in an interview for Bloomberg
plans to triple the number of stores in the USA. The
chain is to open a health resort in Austin in three
years.



Whole Foods Market’s assets include distribution facilities, seafood-processing
plant, bakehouse facilities, meat and produce procurement centres, etc.



The company’s revenue for 2013 is expected to be $3,86 billion,
13.8% higher than of 2012 ($3,391 billion).



But
the fight for a chunk of the $30 billion organic market in the USA is ferocious,
and WFM has fierce competitors like Walmart. The retail-store giant operates
over 28 countries and has a market cap of over $ 208 billion, according to
Forbes.



The
number 24 in Forbes World’s Most Powerful Brands’ list was also the biggest
organics seller in 2011, according to the Organic Trade Association. Whole
Foods was placed sixth.



But
the reason to this is simply numeric, since the other companies have more
stores across the United States. Costco has about 600, Supertarget and Safeway
about 1,750, Kroger has 2,500 and Walmart more than 9,500 stores under
different banners.



Even by having only 4% of its energy consumption coming from
green sources, Walmart is just behind Whole Foods in
the EPA green companies’ list.



Overseeing the overseas

Whole Foods entered the British market in 2004. It has currently
seven grocer shops over London, Glasgow and Gloucestershire. 



Unlikely
in the USA, the organics market in the UK doesn’t seem to be expanding.
According to a Soil Association report, sales have fallen by 1.5% in 2012 and
by 3.7% in 2011. The trend goes back until 2008.



WFM
is still a humble premium food seller in UK when facing big ones Tesco and Waitrose
(which has a similar high end customer roll just as WFM) – in the fight for a
parcel of the organics market.




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