Apples in Dole Fruit Cup from China

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:whole foods frozen organic asparagus is from China as well

Nearly all of the frozen (organic) foods from Whole Foods are from China.

That's disappointing. I thought Whole Foods pride themselves in sourcing locally. And I like shopping there because I generally don't have to read the labels to know it's okay (unlike shopping at Safeway/Giant).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Really? You women have never had apple crisp? I'm stunned that the idea of a fruit dessert is so shocking. I get the processed thing, but many people are acting as if they have never heard of a fruit dessert with sugar. how ridiculous!

Someone is eating all of those fruit tarts at Whole Foods. you've never had apple pie or strawberry shortcake?

You folks are so overboard in your criticism that it's comical.

That is the point, no?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Really? You women have never had apple crisp? I'm stunned that the idea of a fruit dessert is so shocking. I get the processed thing, but many people are acting as if they have never heard of a fruit dessert with sugar. how ridiculous!

Someone is eating all of those fruit tarts at Whole Foods. you've never had apple pie or strawberry shortcake?

You folks are so overboard in your criticism that it's comical.

But that's the whole point! If you are going to eat a fruit dessert loaded with sugar, why complain that it's made in China? You're not exactly doing the Lord's work.

It's like the folks who eat a bacon cheeseburger and fries, and have a Diet Coke with them because they are "dieting."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP and PP sound nuts.

YOU are nuts!
Bitter, empty generation!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP and PP sound nuts.

YOU are nuts!
Bitter, empty generation!

Right! Whereas, expecting people to watch your twenty minute video presentation is perfectly sane!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:whole foods frozen organic asparagus is from China as well

So buy fresh then. Big deal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:whole foods frozen organic asparagus is from China as well

Nearly all of the frozen (organic) foods from Whole Foods are from China.

That's disappointing. I thought Whole Foods pride themselves in sourcing locally. And I like shopping there because I generally don't have to read the labels to know it's okay (unlike shopping at Safeway/Giant).

Please do a little research before you start rumors. The organic frozen food I just bought at Whole Foods says PRODUCT OF USA.

WE ONLY DISCRIMINATE WHEN IT COMES TO QUALITY AND TASTE, NOT COUNTRY OF ORIGIN.
Whole Foods Market continues to buy from China because we believe in supporting farmers that provide high quality products.
Our strategy is not to run away from our Chinese suppliers, but to take a stand and get closer to our suppliers. We will continue to improve on the audit and testing procedures that are already in place.
Organic farming has a long history in China.
Our strategy is to build long term partnerships with our Chinese suppliers.
We are confident in the quality and integrity of our products from all countries, including China.

No matter where a product originates, all organic products that we carry must meet strict USDA organic certification, as well as our own Quality Standards.
A USDA approved certifying agent works with the producer on both growing and manufacturing processes to insure the organic integrity of their product.
Quality Assurance International (QAI) works on our behalf with that certifier to make sure that all of their procedures are in accordance with the USDA standard.
No matter where a product is grown the same USDA standard is used to evaluate suppliers. Organic standards in China are no different than they are in Brazil, Turkey, Thailand or anywhere else.
Any product that is going to be sold as organic in the U.S. must be audited by a USDA-accredited certifier. For example, the Chinese government does not certify U.S.-bound organic product in China. That certification is done by USDA-accredited certifiers in China who are themselves reviewed, approved and accredited directly by the USDA.


WE DON'T STOP AT "REQUIRED," WE AIM HIGHER.
In keeping with our commitment to quality, we instituted Country of Origin (COO) policies before they were required by the government.
Regulations have been passed and will be implemented on Sept 30, 2008, which will impact labeling requirements for certain products and will give our customers even more transparency in terms of where products come from. We take a progressive approach on "Country of Origin Labeling." We are ahead of the regulations and many of our products have already been labeled to identify country of origin because our customers expect that from us.

When creating our Private Label products, we use a multiple testing safeguard approach.
All of our suppliers are asked to produce specifications for their products and assure compliance with those specifications through testing.
We require they use highly credentialed laboratories who are specialists in their fields. We establish elaborate product profiles and risk potential testing methodologies for food testing. For example, a frozen meal is at a higher risk than sea salt due to the number of ingredients required to make the product. Different levels of risks results in different testing regimens.
When we develop testing profiles we also take into consideration country of origin. For instance, our testing profiles for frozen vegetables produced in China were developed in conjunction with a world class testing laboratory, and include specific tests to assess a broad spectrum of potential environmental contaminants. We periodically test our products using these profiles, as do our vendors, to ensure compliance to regulatory, safety and quality standards.
If specifications are not met, we have corrective action systems we use that can get to the root of the problem and we work together with our suppliers to fix any issues uncovered.

WE GO TO GREAT LENGTHS TO SECURE THE SAFEST, HIGHEST-QUALITY FOOD.
Multiple layers of auditing and oversight are provided to assure the quality, safety and legality of our products.
Our team of buyers and auditors personally visit farms and facilities where private label products are sourced. Every Whole Foods Market Private Label vendor is subject to strict quality assurance audits on site, wherever they are located.
All organic products are audited and certified by a USDA-accredited certifying agent.
We have highly trained internal experts who visit our suppliers and perform quality evaluations. We also use some of the most highly credentialed and experienced audit companies in the world to do independent inspections and thoroughly evaluate food safety at the supplier manufacturing plants.
Quality Assurance International (QAI), is an example of an independent certifier of Organic products. When you see their seal on our packages it means they have confirmed we sourced the product from a certified organic operation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:whole foods frozen organic asparagus is from China as well

Nearly all of the frozen (organic) foods from Whole Foods are from China.

That's disappointing. I thought Whole Foods pride themselves in sourcing locally. And I like shopping there because I generally don't have to read the labels to know it's okay (unlike shopping at Safeway/Giant).

Please do a little research before you start rumors. The organic frozen food I just bought at Whole Foods says PRODUCT OF USA.

WE ONLY DISCRIMINATE WHEN IT COMES TO QUALITY AND TASTE, NOT COUNTRY OF ORIGIN.
Whole Foods Market continues to buy from China because we believe in supporting farmers that provide high quality products.
Our strategy is not to run away from our Chinese suppliers, but to take a stand and get closer to our suppliers. We will continue to improve on the audit and testing procedures that are already in place.
Organic farming has a long history in China.
Our strategy is to build long term partnerships with our Chinese suppliers.
We are confident in the quality and integrity of our products from all countries, including China.

No matter where a product originates, all organic products that we carry must meet strict USDA organic certification, as well as our own Quality Standards.
A USDA approved certifying agent works with the producer on both growing and manufacturing processes to insure the organic integrity of their product.
Quality Assurance International (QAI) works on our behalf with that certifier to make sure that all of their procedures are in accordance with the USDA standard.
No matter where a product is grown the same USDA standard is used to evaluate suppliers. Organic standards in China are no different than they are in Brazil, Turkey, Thailand or anywhere else.
Any product that is going to be sold as organic in the U.S. must be audited by a USDA-accredited certifier. For example, the Chinese government does not certify U.S.-bound organic product in China. That certification is done by USDA-accredited certifiers in China who are themselves reviewed, approved and accredited directly by the USDA.


WE DON'T STOP AT "REQUIRED," WE AIM HIGHER.
In keeping with our commitment to quality, we instituted Country of Origin (COO) policies before they were required by the government.
Regulations have been passed and will be implemented on Sept 30, 2008, which will impact labeling requirements for certain products and will give our customers even more transparency in terms of where products come from. We take a progressive approach on "Country of Origin Labeling." We are ahead of the regulations and many of our products have already been labeled to identify country of origin because our customers expect that from us.

When creating our Private Label products, we use a multiple testing safeguard approach.
All of our suppliers are asked to produce specifications for their products and assure compliance with those specifications through testing.
We require they use highly credentialed laboratories who are specialists in their fields. We establish elaborate product profiles and risk potential testing methodologies for food testing. For example, a frozen meal is at a higher risk than sea salt due to the number of ingredients required to make the product. Different levels of risks results in different testing regimens.
When we develop testing profiles we also take into consideration country of origin. For instance, our testing profiles for frozen vegetables produced in China were developed in conjunction with a world class testing laboratory, and include specific tests to assess a broad spectrum of potential environmental contaminants. We periodically test our products using these profiles, as do our vendors, to ensure compliance to regulatory, safety and quality standards.
If specifications are not met, we have corrective action systems we use that can get to the root of the problem and we work together with our suppliers to fix any issues uncovered.

WE GO TO GREAT LENGTHS TO SECURE THE SAFEST, HIGHEST-QUALITY FOOD.
Multiple layers of auditing and oversight are provided to assure the quality, safety and legality of our products.
Our team of buyers and auditors personally visit farms and facilities where private label products are sourced. Every Whole Foods Market Private Label vendor is subject to strict quality assurance audits on site, wherever they are located.
All organic products are audited and certified by a USDA-accredited certifying agent.
We have highly trained internal experts who visit our suppliers and perform quality evaluations. We also use some of the most highly credentialed and experienced audit companies in the world to do independent inspections and thoroughly evaluate food safety at the supplier manufacturing plants.
Quality Assurance International (QAI), is an example of an independent certifier of Organic products. When you see their seal on our packages it means they have confirmed we sourced the product from a certified organic operation.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQ31Ljd9T_Y&feature=player_embedded#![/youtube]

[Anonymous]

Can something still be classified as organic yet full of pesticides from polluted rain and irrigation water?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can something still be classified as organic yet full of pesticides from polluted rain and irrigation water?

There is very little regulation of the term "Organic." It's basically meaningless. That's one of the problems with shopping for Organic food.

[Anonymous]

Frozen vegetables are disgusting. How hard is it to snap asparagus in half, season them, and then roast or grill them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can something still be classified as organic yet full of pesticides from polluted rain and irrigation water?

There is very little regulation of the term "Organic." It's basically meaningless. That's one of the problems with shopping for Organic food.

Not true at all. USDA has fairly rigorous standards on use of the word "organic." You can criticize the standards themselves (which I do), but something is being measured & regulated. (Part of USDA's mission is the protection/promotion of US agriculture, and in the case of the organic label they act almost as an industry guild with legal authority.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP and PP sound nuts.

YOU are nuts!
Bitter, empty generation!

Right! Whereas, expecting people to watch your twenty minute video presentation is perfectly sane!

Try to watch 3 minutes and you'll just love it!

[Anonymous]

Dole diced peach cups packed in fruit juice are also from China

[Anonymous]

This stuff happens when you eat processed/packaged foods. If you are worried about it, buy fruit from the grocery store (which states what country it's from) and make your own fruit salads.