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We like shopping locally, organically and seasonally at our local farmers' market, but thought we'd try something new and paid a visit to Whole Foods Market and Waitrose. Both supermarkets pride themselves on being ahead of the game when it comes to local and organic produce. To put them to the test, we kept a record of which products on our shopping list could be got organically grown in the UK.
The stores could potentially get two points for each product on our list -- one for being UK-grown and one for being organic. Although neither scored 20 points, we are pretty impressed with what was on offer. Both stores are located on High Street Kensington in London.
Waitrose:
Apples: English, UK-grown and organic, £2.49 for 6 -- 2 points
Vine tomatoes: UK-grown and organic, £2.19 for 5 -- 2 points
Squash: Non UK-grown, organic butternut squash, £2.09 per kilogram, or UK-grown non-organic squash, £1.79 (Waitrose claims its UK-grown, organic squash suffered during the summer rain) -- 1 point
Pear: Comice, UK-grown, but non-organic, £1.89 per kilogram -- 1 point
Lamb chops: From the UK, but not organic, £12.99 per kilogram -- 1 point
Chicken: From the UK, organic and free-range, £5.69 per kilogram -- 2 points
Baking potato: UK-grown and organic, £2.99 for 1.2 kilogram -- 2 points
Cauliflower: From Holland, but organic, £1.99. Or non-organic grown in the UK, 99p -- 1 point
Carrots: UK-grown and organic, £1.46 per kilogram -- 2 points
Onion: UK-grown and organic, £1.46/kg -- 2 points
TOTAL: 16 points
Whole Foods Market:
Apples: Cox, UK-grown and organic, £2.29 per kilogram -- 2 points
Vine tomatoes: Organic but from Italy (the shop assistant explained that the British tomato season had been short this year), £2.29 per kilogram -- 1 point
Squash: UK-grown and organic, £2.69 per kilogram -- 2 points
Pear: Conference, UK-grown and organic, £2.29/kg -- 2 points
Lamb chops: Organic but from New Zealand (outdoor access required for the lambs), £9.99 per kilogram. Or non-organic from the UK. -- 1 point
Chicken: From the UK, organic and free-range, £6.59 per kilogram -- 2 points
Baking potato: UK-grown but non-organic, £3.99 per kilogram -- 1 point
Cauliflower: UK-grown and organic, £1.69 -- 2 points
Carrots: UK-grown and organic, £1.79 per kilogram -- 2 points
Onion: Yellow, organic but from Holland, £1.99 per kilogram -- 1 point
TOTAL: 16 points
02 November 2007 03:35pm
Interesting results as I have wondered about Whole Foods as I've not been yet and have a Waitrose two minutes away. I think you should do this again soon though as a few months ago I couldn't find British apples in Waitrose at all so there must be seasonal and supplier variations.
28 April 2008 03:02pm
I am surprised by the prices! I think of Whole Foods fruit and veg as being expensive compared to Waitrose. Nice little comparison that shows that it's not always the case.
I'm an Ocado shopper, as I'm not situated near a Waitrose store or the behemoth Whole Foods Market. To my dismay I can't see where the Ocado produce is grown! This limits my ability to make the best eco choice and leaves me guessing about the place of origin until the shopping arrives on my doorstep. I've asked that they add this information to the item description online and their response was;
"This is due to the fact that for certain products, particularly produce, our suppliers may vary the country of origin quite often, and sometimes at very short notice, based on climatic conditions and other factors. They do this to help us ensure that we give the best quality to our customers".
I'd have been much happier if they said 'we're working on this and here are the issues we're facing'. I've not doubt there's a reason why they don't currently do it, but what I want to know is that they are working at rectifying the issue. Looks like they've not heard enough about the issue of food miles. All Ocado shoppers please start pushing for locality information to be added to the site!
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