Speak Up. They're Listening.

So, recently, I sounded off in a post here about my frustration with Safeway over a telephone survey I participated in, purportedly to improve my local store. I was so annoyed after the survey that I fired off an email to Safeway with my list of suggestions, none of which were covered by the survey. Among my complaints were things such as not being able to buy fresh, wild-caught salmon and the unavailability of unprocessed staples like beans and rice in bulk, or at least in sizes larger than a single meal. I complained that while regular milk got several cases that were always full, organic milk got only one case that was always near empty. And I mentioned that it would be nice to have the option of buying the "most sprayed" produce items in organic instead. In addition, I told them that my family tries to eat a "real foods" diet and that we have some food sensitivity issues that make buying groceries challenging in a store filled with processed foods.

This morning, I went to my local Safeway. The produce section is right by the entrance, so I always start there. The produce section at this store generally looks pretty good. But when I got to the little organics section in the middle, I was surprised to see it fully stocked. Usually it looks pretty picked over, with the middle pretty much empty.

Now, there are lots of aisles I generally skip and today was no exception. But there were still a bunch of changes that jumped out at me. In all the aisles I shopped, organic products were front and center. In some cases, the selection of organic products had increased. I brought home a couple new things to try and I'm so thankful they were available. I was stunned, however, in the aisle where I used to frown at the puny bags of dry beans. Not only are the dry beans now available in larger quantities, but also in a much wider variety! (Rice too, I think, although I was so amazed by the bean selection that I sort of drooled over them until it became awkward and then I scurried away to finish my shopping.)

For the first time that I can recall, I was able to buy fresh, wild-caught salmon in exactly the amount I needed. And while I didn't need milk today, I did notice that the organic milk case was fully stocked.

I can't claim that my one little email brought about these changes at my local store. And it probably didn't hurt that CNN linked to my blog a week after I posted my rant. But people, somebody is listening. So when you can't find real foods to feed your family at your local store, fire off an email and let them know. Post about it on your blog because these corporations employ software that pours through social media searching for what people are saying about them. I know they do because they trolled my blog after my rant.

Speak up. They're listening.

This post is a part of Fight Back Friday hosted by Food Renegade.