Yesterday I went to Whole Foods (Venice) fully prepared to do some eco-vegan shopping: I brought a reusable shopping bag, reusable produce bags, and a glass jar that once contained apple sauce. When I walked in the door my first stop was the customer service desk to inquire if they would allow me to put their freshly ground organic peanut butter in my glass jar (instead of their plastic containers). At first, the manager was a little hesitant because the jar weighed a lot (.60 lbs), but when I explained that I was trying to avoid plastic she helped me out. She weighed my jar then multiplied that by the cost of a pound of bulk organic peanut butter ($3.99), and then asked me to return to her when I filled it. At checkout, the cashier was a little unsure, but when she called over the manager the process was very smooth. I walked out of the store without buying anything prepackaged and I saved some money too (the peanut butter was only $2.50 - organic peanut butter can be up to $5)
This experience is a great example of two things:
- If you ask politely, most places with good customer service are willing to help, especially if you ask ahead of time. Whole Foods customer service is generally pretty stellar (at least in my experience)
- It is so important to express your desire to reduce packaging, especially plastic. The more that we ask/demand, the more likely these needs will become common. Lay the ground work for the next person.
Don't be embarrassed to ask a store to accommodate your wishes. That is a typical fear about the eco and healthy lifestyles - people don't want to be viewed as obnoxious or weird. I think the reason it's easy for me to be eco-vegan is because I'm not afraid of the opinions of others - I stand up for what I believe in, even if it's against the grain. While asking to put peanut butter in a glass jar might not seem like a big deal, it's not a common request at Whole Foods, so for some this might be too much of a hassle. However, by asking for help I taught 3 employees how to handle that type of a situation, so when the next person asks the same question they'll be prepared.
I'm often called an extremist, but in my eyes every little bit counts towards improving the planet and my health. It took me less than a minute to put my glass jar in my reusable bag, and about 5 minutes of talking to the manager at Whole Foods. I returned home that night feeling proud that I didn't buy any packaged foods and that I was able to recycle a jar that would have otherwise been tossed in a bin. That satisfaction is totally worth the 5 minutes I "lost".
I'm often called an extremist, but in my eyes every little bit counts towards improving the planet and my health. It took me less than a minute to put my glass jar in my reusable bag, and about 5 minutes of talking to the manager at Whole Foods. I returned home that night feeling proud that I didn't buy any packaged foods and that I was able to recycle a jar that would have otherwise been tossed in a bin. That satisfaction is totally worth the 5 minutes I "lost".
How do you feel? Would you have done the same in this situation, or would you have given up out of connivence? Are you afraid to ask special requests in fear of seeming obnoxious or weird, or is being environmentally friendly and healthy more important to you?
Check out this amazing how-to guide my pal Felicity wrote up after reading my post!
Check out this amazing how-to guide my pal Felicity wrote up after reading my post!
How to Ask a Store to Sell You Items Using Your Own Containers
8 comments:
Great story! A similar thing happened to me at my local WFM (Sugar Land, TX). Customer service guy and cashier worked it out, and since I had scored a dozen organic cotton bags at Krogers the previous week (on clearance, $1.49 ea), I had two handy in the coupe with a few Vegan Outreach "Why Vegan" pamphlets inside. So as a Thanxs!, I gave each a pamphlet and said "read this on your next break and you will be thankful too". :-)
It surprises me that the employees were so unsure/inexperienced with people using their own containers to purchase bulk items. At the wonderful little local health food store in my home town of Prescott (New Frontiers), they encouraged people to bring their own containers. They would just weigh them before and after filling... no problem!
I'm glad you are willing to go outside the box and stand up for what you believe in. I remember a while ago when I got SUPER weird looks from people when I took my cloth bags to the "regular" stores... now, they ALL sell their own cloth bags! Things that seem "odd" or "obsessive" at the beginning will become common place if we all just keep making those positive changes! :)
I think it's great that you used your glass jar instead of getting plastic. One thing I find strange is that people bring cloth bags to the grocery store but still take a bunch of plastic produce bags. I have a few but I re-use them a million times.
And what you said regarding helping the next person - that's how I feel about using the word "vegan" in restaurants. It's not as big of a deal here in LA as it was when I lived in Indiana, but I would always say that I was vegan and explain what that meant, and I figured I was helping out the next vegan to come in the restaurant.
I don't think you're an extremist at all! What's extreme about living your convictions? I think it's great that Whole Foods has freshly ground peanut butter. It is one of the affordable items there and it tastes better than anything else I've ever tried. I have always been the recipient of good customer service in Venice and Santa Monica and the staff are easy going and chatty. I try not to use produce bags at all and I have to admit, I wasn't always good about bringing the gazillion reusable bags I own. I have found that grabbing a few on my way out the door, even if I'm not planning on shopping, helps. I wish more things came in bulk. I'd love to eliminate all packaging for water and maybe juices! Imagine, going to the store with a clean jug and getting an OJ refill! I'm sure it's more cost effective down the road. If only I were an engineer...
I loved your article so much, it inspired me to write this to help people who might be worried (and yes, there are many people who find this hard to do): http://www.wikihow.com/Ask-a-Store-to-Sell-You-Items-Using-Your-Own-Containers in your honor. :) Keep up the fantastic work, you're a true inspiration and it is great that you're giving voice to such important issues!
I also remember a time when I was considered "weird" or got strange looks from the people in the stores when I brought my own bags or my own containers to take-out food places, which I still do all the time. But now, in the last few years, it's become totally acceptable and normal (and even expected!) behaviour! And that's because of people like us who have made it the "norm". So thank you, Whitney, for doing this with the peanut butter, which I wouldn't have even thought of doing for peanut butter (I don't buy bulk pb myself). This raises the issue to the people at Whole Foods so that it, too, will become the "norm".
In response to Chanda - the Whole Foods near me in Studio City (on Riverside) has a fresh OJ machine, so you could probably bring your own bottle and fill it up. Maybe the future is now!
It's all bullshit and it's bad for you.
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