Organics: A Poor Harvest for Wal-Mart

[rumpel]

Businessweek

Top News April 12, 2007, 12:01AM EST
by Pallavi Gogoi

After the retailing giant laid out ambitious plans to offer organic food last year, farmers say it's backing off

Last fall, Peter Ricker got an order from Wal-Mart Stores (WMT) for organic apples that was the biggest he'd ever seen. "I'm talking trailer truckloads," says the 34-year-old, eighth-generation apple farmer in Maine. Ricker had heard of the giant retailer's push into organics, and he thought the order could be the beginning of a surge in demand. But that wasn't the case. While most retailers place orders with Ricker Hill Orchards once a week, Wal-Mart never came back.

He's hardly alone. A number of organic farmers across the country say that Wal-Mart has backed off of aggressive plans to offer more organic foods. After placing large orders for organic apples and juices last year, the retailer is cutting back or stopping orders altogether. Wade Groetsch, president at the Florida juice producer Blue Lake Citrus Products, says he stopped shipping his organic orange-tangerine blend to Wal-Mart after a few months. "The sales there just weren't enough to justify our costs of packing and shipping," he says.

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/apr2007/db20070412_005673.htm

[Kutjara]

1. Wal-Mart seems to have forgotten that the only reason people shop there...

...is because it's cheap. If they could afford better, most Wal-Mart shoppers would go someplace else. They're not willing (or often able) to shell out more for organic produce when the cheaper pesticide-saturated stuff is sitting nearby.

[jwirr]

2. Also if I could afford to buy organic food I would not trust WM to

tell me the truth about it. I would go through traditional sources.

[no_hypocrisy]

3. It wasn't the lack of sales. The organic farmers wouldn't let Walmart

lowball them into selling for an unconscionably low price like Walmart's other suppliers.

[Vincardog]

4. Bingo

[ClintonTyree]

5. The Wal*Mart business plan....

force the suppliers to sell their products at prices barely covering their costs. Wal*Mart hikes the prices on their shelves and makes a great profit while the supplier goes down the crapper. This business plan is the reason all of our jobs are being outsources overseas.

Fuck Wal*mart. I'd never buy groceries there and I'll pay more somewhere else of they have what I need. I only shop at Wal*Mart when there's no other choice and need something quick.