Good morning! Katy, Texas has a new WHOLE FOODS! To say that I am excited about the store opening would be an understatement. I toured it this morning and had an amazing Tofu Scramble Taco for breakfast. The food in the hot bar is clearly marked as "Vegan" or "Vegetarian." No more guessing!
My favorite part of the store is the veggie burger frozen food selection. There are many brands of veggie burgers, but only a few are vegan. I counted over 5 vegan burgers this morning!
Also, Whole Foods uses The Global Animal Partnership 5-Step Animal Welfare Rating System. Meats are marked with a numbered "step." Each set of tiered standards—from Step 1 to Step 5+—has its own requirements: Step 1 prohibits cages and crates. Step 2 requires environmental enrichment for indoor production systems; Step 3 requires outdoor access; Step 4 requires pasture-based production; Step 5 is an animal-centered approach with all physical alterations prohibited; and, finally, Step 5+, the entire life of the animal spent on an integrated farm. This takes the guess work out of what you are buying.
There are certain food ingredients that Whole Foods will not sell: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/about-our-products/quality-standards/unacceptable-ingredients-food. And, the flower market is amazing! Their flowers come with a the Whole Trade® Guarantee seal. This means that these flowers meet Whole Food's quality standards and more money is paid to producers who then provide better wages and working conditions for workers.
I'm going shopping tonight for groceries and will update here as I try different items!
Thanks! Holli
