Searching For Products
I was looking for a way to search your products to see if you carry Barbara’s Cheese Puffs. I could not find a search engine on the site did I miss it?
Willy Street currently does not have a customer utility to search in store stock levels. We do have an online shopping site that catalogs most of the products we offer from the North store’s catalog. You can access that by navigating to shop.willystreet.coop. We appreciate your feedback and idea to add a product search feature to our website. -Forrest Herschelman, IT Director
Empanadas
I just had a vegan samosa empanada (my first ever) from the hot bar and it was incredible. So flavorful, so pillowy, yum. Thanks!
So glad you liked it! These are one of my favorites too! -Nicholas Oconnor, Director of Prepared Foods
Local Produce
I notice when I buy produce it says product of another country etc. I realize to have variety, that’s necessary. How do I ensure that when foods are in season I can buy from local farmers? There seems to be a lot not from local farmers. Also, are those products from ethical farms in other countries? How do I know if they are?
When local products are in season and available to the Willy Street Co-op, you can identify those items by the local icon on the product sign. Availability of local items is seasonal, and we are currently offering over 100 local items in the Produce department. We expect, as the season progresses, to have upwards of 150 local items. The certified organic products we offer from “other” countries meet all USDA organic rules, and they are often “fair trade” certified. I don’t see the likelihood of these farms not being ethical any greater than a large scale certified organic domestic farm or a small local farm. If you have any questions as to whether or not a product is available locally, or how to identify which products are currently from local growers, don’t hesitate to ask. -Andy Johnston, Produce Category Manager
Coca-Cola
I am disappointed to learn that the Co-op sells Coca-Cola products. The fact that Coke is sugar, water and caffine is the least of my concerns. Murders in Central America of pro-union activists, and the extraction of saccharin from coal tar should be enough reason to boycott Coca-Cola products. To learn more about the many contributions to society by Coca-Cola, read Citizen Coke by Burt Elmore. Then ask yourself if the Co-op should sell Coke.
I appreciate you sharing your concerns about us carrying Coca-Cola products. We have been selling Coca-Cola and Pepsi products at our stores since just after we opened Willy North in August of 2016. We changed our product policy at that time to better serve our growing community and to reflect a more inclusive perspective as to what we would be willing to carry. We are both a natural foods store and a neighborhood store, so excluding products that our Owners want us to provide felt inconsiderate. I appreciate you voicing your opinion. Many might not know about Coca-Cola’s operations and practices. -Dean Kallas, Grocery Category Manager
Protein
Hi! Been getting older, and doc recommended more protein. I’d like to buy some protein powder to up my numbers, but with such a wide variety of powders and flavors and textures, it can be hard to decide; to boot, pretty much EVERYTHING comes in a huge plastic tub. Is there any chance you could start offering an option in the bulk foods? That means I could at least try a variety without devoting myself to a large tub/flavor/brand that I wouldn’t like.
We currently carry our private label ‘Show Me The Whey Vanilla Protein Powder’ in our bulk departments. Other than that, I have not seen bulk offerings from the other brands we carry. Some of the brands offer single serve packets, which is a nice way to try it before buying a canister with 20-30 servings. If you like whey protein, I highly recommend the Ancient Nutrition Vanilla (also available in chocolate) Whey Protein Powder (available at all three Willy Street Co-op stores). I’ve tried many protein powders over the years and this one is by far my favorite. A lot of protein powders can have a gritty and/or thick texture, but not this one. It’s smooth and the flavor is delicious. I put it in my smoothie every morning! -Sara Berg, General Merchandise Category Manager
Primal Kitchen Mayonnaise
Primal kitchen chipotle lime mayonnaise: Please stock larger size. Squeeze bottle is terrible!
Thanks for reaching out, unfortunately this product only comes in squeeze bottles now. There is a larger squeeze bottle but it was twice the price and given the shelf height available and pricing we decided that the smaller size would be the best fit for the area. -Nate Groth, Willy North Grocery Manager
To Go Containers
I think you need to provide some way of identifying your soup, hot bar and salad bar purchases – markers perhaps – packages alone does not help the cashier. She /He would have to open, for example: I put turkey and some potatoes in a soup container. Plus I purchased some soup. So cashier had no idea that turkey was hot bar.
Generally customers put soup in the round containers and hot bar in the boxes. But over the years we’ve found that occasionally customers like to put their hot bar in the rounds too, so we have an option to use the rounds as hot bar or soup. It could be tough if we were to add another option of packaging solely for the soup, so usually our cashiers will just ask which one you have. Hope this helps! -Nicholas Oconnor, Director of Prepared Foods
Powdered Laundry
Hi! I found Country Save powdered laundry soap at Willy west — it’s great. Economical, it works, and it is truly fragrance free. Country Save makes more stuff, like a liquid laundry soap, dish soap, and a non-chlorine powdered bleach. Any chance Willy Street could carry more Country Save products? Especially the liquid laundry soap? The fragrance free liquid laundry soaps you carry don’t work for us. And we’d like ot try this one. Thanks for considering!
Their powdered laundry detergent is the only product of theirs that is currently available to us through our suppliers. Thank you for letting us know what you are looking for in our stores! -Dean Kallas, Grocery Category Manager
Organic Seedless Fruit
Just wondering how seedless watermelon or any seedless fruit can be organic???? What is done to the plant to make it seedless? Thank you.
Great question, with a simple answer. There are two main methods for producing seedless fruits and vegetables. The first is just by using cuttings to propgate clones, which is primarily used for grapes, citrus, and bananas. The other method is crossbreeding, where two entirely different varieties are crossed to produce a hybrid with the desired “seedless” characteristic. They are not “genetically modified,’ no chemicals are applied, and seeds aren’t exposed to radiation. Essentially, it’s a natural process that breeders use to produce varieties with ‘desirable’ characteristics, whether that be seedless, specific color, taste, plant hardiness, etc. I hope that answers your question. Have a great day! -Andy Johnston, Produce Category Manager
Parking Signs
Surely there was another way to post parking rules along the west side of the coop. Affixing a row of signs that don’t even match to the mural itself seems like a bad choice. It totally destroys the mural. Can you please remove the signs and plug and repaint the holes. Post using another method. Call in the tow truck a few times and I think the problem of non-coop parkers will stop.
Thanks for taking the time to write in and share your concerns about the parking lot signage along the mural wall. We understand you feel like it detracts from the artwork. We are working to get the wall repaired from some prior damage and as we do so, we will take your feedback into consideration. -Katherine Kornely, Willy East Assistant Store Director
Chickpea Wraps
There are never any chickpea wraps when I arrive, which is late morning or early afternoon during the week. The other vegan wraps are always well stocked. Can you please look into this?
Thank you for letting us know that this particular wrap has been out of stock. We will work with our team to ensure this product is available at the times you shop with us. If you would like to call ahead, or request this sandwich to be made fresh when you arrive, we are happy to make it to order for you.
-Pete Silver, West Prepared Foods Manager
Spice Labels in the Deli
I just want to thank you for printing the letter about spice levels in deli- made products. We too have noticed salads and sandwiches getting hotter and spicier over the years, and some inconsistency from week to week in the same products. I think the suggestion to label them is a good one. However, the person tasting and labeling should be a spice-sensitive person. Everyone’s tolerances vary so much, and not every dish needs a peppery spice for it to taste good. Hot pepper condiments can also be easily added by the consumer.
Thanks for adding your voice to the conversation. The method you’ve suggested was going to be my approach as well. Having a spice-sensitive person tasting will be the best way to get a read on this. -Nicholas Oconnor, Director of Prepared Foods
