The success of Whole Foods Market tells us something about the relationship between Americans and food: it is becoming healthier.
Amazon’s recent purchase of Whole Foods proves just how judicious its sales are. The tech giant's $13.7 billion acquisition of Whole Foods eliminates any doubt that Whole Foods has been the most successful health store in the United States in a competitive $800 billion supermarket industry.
According to the Whole Foods website, their strict quality standards take into account things like artificial food preservatives, sustainable seafood, animal welfare, antibiotics in meat and pesticides in vegetables.
This legacy has resonated with many people. Whole Foods’ promise of healthy food and sustainable practices is the reason customers choose it over other stores.
Whole Foods’ rapid growth in the supermarket industry is vital for business. However, it is also cultural.
Food culture, as defined by the Lexicon of Food, refers to “the practices, attitudes, and beliefs as well as the networks and institutions surrounding the production, distribution, and consumption of food.”
By this definition, America’s food culture is not only changing (as we can see via the expansion of Whole Foods) but it is doing it fast.
Our tastes — the music we listen to, TV shows we watch, and the books we read — show what kind of individual we are. Similarly, the stores we buy our food from also show what kind of community we are as well as what our priorities are.
Towns that are located by the sea, for instance, tend to have seafood restaurants. Similarly, the people who live in freezing weather buy plenty of snow gear. It is like the supply and demand curves in economics.
A rise in popularity of a health-oriented food chain demonstrates an increase in the market of people who are health-oriented, in America.
This is a change because it was not always this way.
One of the many venture capitalists who initially refused to invest in Whole Foods said something that explains why this chain’s success is a cultural change.
“To me, it looks like you’re just a bunch of hippies selling food to other hippies, I don’t think that’s a huge market,” said John Mackey, Co-founder of Whole Foods, recalling what a venture capitalist said to him.
That was four decades ago when Whole Foods was one single store in Austin, Texas. Today, the same venture capitalist would not have underestimated Whole Foods since it has grown to more than 400 stores. Amazon for sure did not miss the opportunity, seeing its success and promising future.
People's change in consciousness about food is not thanks to Whole Foods. Whole Foods only reflects an increase in people who are conscientious of their food choices.
The movement that advocates for healthier eating habits can arguably be traced back to the 1950s but can be more accurately said to have started in the mid-1970s, with a group of people that opposed the use of pesticides in food and introduced their households to better food alternatives.
We know this because the Natural Museum of American History has a compelling exhibition of (new at that time) healthy recipes from the 1970s.
While this food culture change has been underway since five decades ago, it is only strengthening, and we can see it by the growth of a health store like Whole Foods.
Why does this matter? According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one-third (36.5%) of U.S. adults have obesity. Regardless of the known risks associated with obesity, vendors want to push for cheap and damaging substances like high fructose corn syrup and foods high in trans fat.
There are also an overwhelming amount of irresponsible farms that follow unethical practices for the mass production of livestock and crops, making it unsafe for consumers, soil, and animals.
One cannot underestimate the impact of the growth of a health-oriented food chain that is blossoming in the United States. If the food culture keeps changing. If we, as Americans, start and continue valuing the same things that a store like Whole Foods stands for, then the other profit-driven disruptors will not have a market in which to sell.
Change doesn't happen overnight. However, every journey starts with one single step. Whole Foods’ growth shows we keep taking strides toward a healthier future.
