Write Us!
We welcome your comments and give each one attention and serious consideration. Send them to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or fill out a Customer Comment form in the Owner Resources area. Each month a small selection is printed in the Reader; publication does not necessarily indicate an endorsement of views stated in a customer’s original comment. Many more comments can be found in the Commons or in the binder near Customer Service. Thank you!
TOO SPICY
Q: We have been very disappointed in that so many hot case foods have too much “tongue-burning” spice. Today I had the oven=roasted broccoli florets—but loaded w/ black pepper! Dousing w/ plain yogurt helped somewhat but spoiled the flavor I expected when purchasing. AND last Thanksgiving, the green bean casserole I expected to be traditionally mild had a load of spice—not edible!! Please tone it down.
A: I’ve checked in with our deli managers to make sure they are being more careful with the amount of black pepper being added to the dishes. Thanks for writing in! -Nicholas OConnor, Prepared Foods & Cheese Category Manager
UNEXPECTED DAIRY
Q: I have been shopping at your store for 23 years and shop at the East side store every week. I really do like shopping at your store because of the high quality of products
Recently, I bought your Terra Chips on sale. Afterwards, I got incredibly ill and threw up for hours. Then, I realized that there was milk in the ingredients. I think it was the Mediterranean chips.
I would like to implore you to routinely separate your chips that contain milk. Chips are not an item where dairy is expected. Also, many people who would like to reduce their carbon footprint will often purchase chips without knowing that they contain dairy.
If I actually read the ingredients of every product I chose at Willy St. Coop, I would literally need to spend hours shopping each week. It would be of great service to separate the chips that are vegan versus non vegan.
Many people are avoiding dairy for a variety of reasons, such as (1) methane emissions from dairy cattle have a huge carbon footprint, (2) 70% of humans on the planet are lactose intolerant (most non-white people), and (3) Dairy is incredibly cruel and involves killing calfs routinely.
Please help us all act in an environmentally conscious and cruelty free manner by helping us avoid dairy. One option would be to NOT order chips that contain dairy. Thank you for your consideration.
A: Thank you for being a loyal Willy Street Co-op shopper! I am sorry to hear you got sick after eating some of the Terra Chips we carry that have milk as a listed ingredient. Most potato chips do not have milk in them, but occasionally it is added to create a more creamy flavor.
It would take a lot of staff time to separate products out by their ingredients and we do not have the resources to do so. Manufacturers often change ingredients, so it gets tricky to track them. Even our distributor’s product ingredients lists online are not always accurate. The only way to be certain of what is included in the package is to read the ingredients labels.
I appreciate you reaching out and sharing your opinions with us! It is good to know what folks are looking for in our stores. -Dean Kallas, Grocery Category Manager
APPETIZERS
A: Greetings, My name is Nicholas, I am the Prepared Foods & Cheese Category Manager for the Willy Street Co-op.
I received your customer comment about catering. Although we did offer catering a few years ago, we have not resumed catering services at this time, so we cannot provide services for your event.
Our main priority right now is providing food directly to our stores and having our shelves full for our in-house sales. Currently, like so many others, adequate staffing continues to be an issue for us in being able to offer additional services. Sorry that we couldn’t make this happen for you! -Nicholas OConnor, Prepared Foods & Cheese Category Manager
WILLY NORTH HOT BAR
Q: Whoever is cooking up the hot bar on the northside is killing it! Every time I come to the northside co-op the food tastes amazing.
I totally agree! I am a huge fan of the northside hotbar! I shared your comments with the manager and the prepared foods category manager. Some of the foods are made at the north store and some are made at our production kitchen. We have such talented chefs and cooks! I was so proud to share this comment with our staff. Thanks for your feedback and hope to see you at the hotbar again soon. Thanks, Amanda Ikens, Owner Resources Coordinator
DOUBLE DOLLARS CHARGE?
I’ve noticed the last couple times I shopped, an admin charge for Double Dollars was automatically added to my total. What is this? You can’t just force me to donate money, that’s stealing. I certainly never agreed to it.
Thanks for reaching out! I do agree with you, we should not automatically charge you for any donations; however, that is not what is happening.
For the last several years, the Co-op has been donating to the Double Dollars program for every reusable bag a shopper brings in for their purchases. What you are seeing on your receipt are the donations the Co-op is contributing to the program (10 cents per reusable bag) for each transaction you use your reusable bags. You see it on your receipt so that you know it was added to the program, and how we record the donations for tabulating purposes.
Hope that information helps and thanks so much for asking!! If you have further questions and/or concerns, don’t hesitate to reach out to me directly about the Double Dollars Program.
In cooperation, Kristina Kuhaupt, Customer Experience Manager
NO ELA ORCHARD APPLES
Q: Apples from Ela Orchards have been regular items for many years, yet I’ve seen none at East this year, even though they were mentioned in the recent staff picks. What gives?
Good afternoon; I’m going to share some communication that was sent to us from Bob, from Ela Orchard:
“Our situation this year: Our crop is significantly down this year because of both the drought and the fact that some of our major varieties had almost no blossom last Spring.We have very little volume of McIntosh, Macoun, Cortland, and Spartan. These are the main varieties we have brought at this point in the season. So unfortunately it does not look like we can supply any of these this year.
“As far as a bit later the Ida Reds which are not ready yet look reasonably bountiful if they finish off, and the Golden Russets actually look like a bumper crop. They also are not quite ready but look promising. I am hopeful that we could supply either or both of these a little later if you want them. Stayman winesap may also be a possibility but we have to see if the apples gain enough size.
“We did have a nice Parker Pear harvest this year, and they are the one thing that would be available right away. We have one batch (about 10 boxes) in the cooler which are still hard and which we still have to sort. They are tasty as they ripen but they run small to medium. Also there would just be a one time delivery of them so probably it is not practical for your set ups, but it is an option.
“We very much would like to bring you apples at some point this season if we have something that works for you and can keep you updated on the progress of the later varieties.
“Wishing it was a more bountiful year here, and sorry not to have good apples for you right now.
“If you have interest in what we have later October and November we will keep in touch and hope to supply at least something this year.”
Hope this helps; unfortunately it doesn’t seem like Ela will be having many apple varieties this season, due to the drought earlier in the year. Hope we can get more volume from our other local apple suppliers. Have a good day. -Jorge Espinosa, Produce Manager—East
SELF-CHECKOUT TALKING
The self checkouts “talk.” I know some folks like the opportunity to self checkout. I want more quiet and less beeping. Is there a way to accomplish both? Help.
Each customer is able to adjust the volume for themselves (it actually will remember and turn the volume down the next time they put in their owner number). I am unsure if the default volume can be turned down, but for those who are hard of hearing, it wouldn’t be beneficial to turn them down to the point where they may be unable to use the machines as well as anyone else. -James Wolf, Front End Manager—East