Whole Foods vs. Greenwise Publix

This week I went on an investigation to compare Whole Foods (WF) to Greenwise Publix (GWP). I wrote down a list of foods that we usually eat, (meat, produce, canned things, frozen items, etc...) and carried my bright green clipboard up and down the aisles to see which store would win the competition in "least expensive foods."  I did my best to match quality of ingredients as closely as possible.  Many of you may not have a Greenwise Publix near you, but essentially it is a regular grocery store with extra healthy things, more organic produce and a section of bulk items like quinoa, oats and flax seeds.  They do have more specialty items and have cooking demonstrations on a regular basis as well as a lovely bakery and area to get prepared foods (think extra big/gourmet deli- with fresh pizza and other ready to eat foods).  Our Whole Foods and Greenwise Publix just happen to be right across the street from one another, so it made my investigation that much easier.  These are the results of what I found.  If you have any further questions, please feel free to ask-as I may forget to write absolutely all of my observations.  

My goals for shopping & cooking- so you know more of what I'm looking for:
1- to provide nutritious foods that nourish and help the body to perform to the best of its ability- for everyone that dines at our table
2- to make delicious foods that are appealing to the eye that make you WANT to eat it-even if it's something you originally thought you didn't like
3- to stick within our set budget for food, and always be on the lookout of how to get good deals and be wise with our spending
4- to plan wisely and not spend all of my "free time" with food, but find ways to be creative to prepare things in advance, especially for the busy days
5- to find a good balance between making everything from scratch and finding what things are worth letting someone else make for me
6- to frequently make things that are easy enough for even the beginner chef- so as to encourage others that they CAN eat healthy at home too

This is a constant learning experience, and I have by no means achieved all of these goals-but this is what I am striving for.

                                                          
                                                                          

I will do my best at organizing these findings in the most logical of ways:

1- Ease of finding ingredients/products:  WINNER- Whole Foods

I prefer WF to GWP because I am able to find what I am looking for without searching quite so much. I have found that almost everything at WF is "healthier" to regular foods in some way.  Yes, they do have Oreos, but they are organic. Yes, they do have canned crescent rolls, but they don't have a bunch of artificial things in them.  GWP has the regular brands, as well as some of the organic/non-GMO/more natural brands, but do not have as big of a selection as WF.  This means you have to do a lot more sorting through things that you may not want to eat.  I also find that in general WF labels their foods more clearly- so you know what you are getting without having to guess.  WF has a much wider selection of organic foods and it is much easier to find things that pertain to certain strict diets- i.e. gluten free, paleo, etc... 

2- Cost of food:  WINNER- WHOLE FOODS!

This decision is based on a few factors.  First of all- this is ONLYcomparing GWP and WF.  I have not yet calculated the differences between these and the produce at the green market, at small local produce stores, or a buyers club or co-op.  Pretty much everyone I talk to always says "whole foods is so expensive."  And yes, it may seem like that, compared to what you are getting at Walmart, or if you are comparing the prices of organic to conventional produce.  But what are you gaining by eating organic foods without artificial substances injected and sprayed on everything?  I personally do not want to eat oranges that have been injected with orange dye.  Yes, they may LOOK more appetizing, but what is that doing to our health? 

I have decided that in general- it IS worth it to spend the extra money to eat as close to nature intended things to be.  I want to eat chickens that were out in the grass living a good life, and eating bugs, not GMO corn.  I want to eat pork that got to root around for truffles in the dirt who weren't living in their own poop in a little cage their whole life.  I am most certainly not a vegetarian, but I believe that animals should be treated properly and have a good life, even if it means paying more for it. I do believe, however, that following the "clean 15" and "dirty dozen" guidelines when it comes to which produce is more important to buy organic is a good way to save some money.

I want to save money just as anyone does. If you know me- I rarely ever buy anything that isn't on sale if I can help it, and want to find the best deals possible, which is why I'm doing this investigation.  I do try to buy more of the things WF has on sale, and I take advantage of their coupons- which you can print out online and use as many as you want (one per item. If you print out 2 of the same coupons, and get 2 of that product you can use both at the same time). 

So, in the end. These were my findings regarding prices differences:

1- In general WF and GWP had very similar prices.
2- WF had MORE things that were cheaper than GWP of the close to 50 items I compared, however there were many more things on my list (other than the 50) that WF has and GWP did not have (which means that I could get everything I needed at WF, but not near everything at GWP)
3-WF has a MUCH better selection of fresh meats and has them very clearly labeled so you know exactly what kind of environment the animal grew up in
4- GWP did have some things, i.e. Organic hemp seeds and flax seeds in their bulk section (which WF does not have) that were cheaper

For example- these are a few price comparisons:

                                                     Whole Foods:                                                      Greenwise Publix:
Ground beef:                          $6.99/lb (often on sale for $5.99)                                $5.99/lb
Nitrate free bacon:               $0.50/oz                                                                          $0.68/oz
Frozen organic broccoli          $0.16/oz                                                                       $0.23/oz
Organic fresh spinach            $0.42/oz                                                                         $0.59/oz
Real Maple syrup                      $0.62/oz                                                                      $0.94/oz
Canned coconut milk                $2.29/can                                                                     $2.69/can
Organic cane sugar                  $0.12/oz                                                                        $0.17/oz
Organic apple sauce- 6pk        $3.29                                                                             $4.29

Things that were the same (or barely any different):
Ezekiel bread, organic sweet potato, organic strawberries, chuck roast, Applegate deli turkey, asparagus, organic rainbow chard, organic plain whole fat yogurt, organic oats, organic milk and KIND bars. 

I hope this was a helpful overview for you! Please let me know your thoughts/ideas/tips of what you have learned.  We can all help each other on this quest for health in our highly processed world.  Let me encourage you to just eat REAL foods! Things that our ancestors have been eating for the past thousands of years, not things that have been in a box for the past 10-20 years.  Many of the "fad" foods, or latest convenience foods have not even been eaten for long enough to know the impacts they could be having on our health. 

I am on the search for the least expensive, readily available, fresh, organic REAL foods.  I will continue my search and share those results with you, and if you have any other ideas please send them my way!