Brita recycling follow-up
February 26th, 2009
I went for a lovely walk today to run some errands, one of which included picking up groceries for dinner at my local Whole Foods, so I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to find out if the store has plans to take part in the Preserve Gimme 5 recycling program. As I explained in my earlier post, many Whole Foods locations are partnering with Gimme 5 (which is supported by Preserve, Organic Valley, and Stonyfield Farm) to provide recycling bins for No. 5 plastics like Brita water pitcher filters, but my Whole Foods unfortunately isn’t one of them (the nearest one is in San Francisco). I figure it’ll be an easy sell to get my local LA Whole Foods to take part in the program. After all, Whole Foods is on the forefront of a number of environmental initiatives–most recently, the banning of plastic grocery bags in all its stores.
I went to the customer service desk, and was able to speak with an associate store team leader (ASTL), who said I was the second or third person who had encouraged the store to take part in the program, although she didn’t seem to know much about the program or how to get the store involved. I passed along the details of the program, and she said she would talk to the store’s marketing supervisor about getting involved. I’ll be sure to follow up with the marketing supervisor in a week or so.
As my mom always says: “You don’t ask, you don’t get!” Take five minutes the next time you’re shopping at Whole Foods, go to the customer service desk and ask to speak with a manager, and let him/her know how great you think it would be if your local store took part in the program. Whole Foods prides itself on its excellent customer service, so I’m sure someone super-nice will welcome you with open ears. Leave me a comment and let me know how it went!
–Jennifer Grayson
Like this post? Subscribe to The Red, White, and Green RSS feed
March 17th, 2009 at 6:14 pm
[...] 17, 2009 I followed up this morning with the marketing supervisor at my local Whole Foods to see if the store is planning [...]
September 15th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
About a year ago I asked the produce people at my local grocery store to start posting the source of all the produce. I would constantly be asking where everything was from so I finally asked them to make signs. And they did! Now it’s less hassle for me to get information about what I’m buying and it’s easier for me, and all the other grocery shoppers to buy as local as possible. So I agree, “You don’t ask, you don’t get!” If other people would ask the same of the produce managers at their grocery stores it would make it easier for everyone to make conscious decisions about their purchases. When it comes to getting masses of people to be greener, convenience is key.
September 16th, 2009 at 12:17 pm
My mom always says, “You don’t ask, you don’t get!” I’ve found most stores to be surprisingly accommodating if you merely ask — that’s great that you were able to convince them to add signs to the produce section. My Whole Foods does this (although I haven’t seen those signs in a while since the boycott), and it makes it really easy to stick to local fare. Somehow, those grapes don’t look as appealing when you realize they were flown all the way from Chile.