instore - May 2016 - 58


natural
progression
by John Unrein

T

he rapid rise of national grocers in America coincides with the
heightened consumer demand for food products that are free
from partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs), artificial preservatives
and other unwanted ingredients.
Grocery chains such as Sprouts Farmers Market and Natural Grocers by
Vitamin Cottage are rapidly growing in store counts, joining Whole Foods
Market and Trader Joe's as popular grocers in the specialty food segment.
Educating shoppers about nutrition and offering clean-label bakery
products go hand in hand at Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage. Less
than 20 years ago, the company had 11 stores. Today, it operates 109
stores in 19 states, and will add 23 new stores in fiscal 2016.
"In our grocery departments," according to Natural Grocers, "we do not

approve for sale grocery products that are known to contain artificial
colors, flavors, preservatives or sweeteners or partially hydrogenated
or hydrogenated oils. All products undergo a stringent review process
to ensure the products we sell meet our strict quality guidelines,
which we believe helps us generate long-term relationships with our
customers based on transparency and trust."
Thanks to an extremely receptive customer base hungry for nutritional
knowledge and fresh products that meet their specific dietary needs,
Natural Grocers is poised to head on a phenomenal growth track.
Enjoying similar growth is Sprouts Farmers Market, which recently
announced plans to add 12 locations to its growing roster of "healthy
grocery stores" in early 2016. This comes on the heels of an impressive
5.8 percent comparable store sales growth last year.

Defining Natural
The Food and Drug Administration
now will accept information and
comments on the use of the
term "natural" in the labeling of
human food products until May 10,
according to the Dec. 28 issue of
the Federal Register. The previous
deadline was Feb. 10, but the FDA
announced it was extending the
comment period by 90 days because
of public requests.

58 * MAY 2016 * instore

The FDA initially asked for comments
on "natural" labeling in the Nov. 12
issue of the Federal Register. The
labeling could include foods that are
genetically engineered or contain
ingredients produced through the
use of genetic engineering.
The FDA currently considers the
term "natural" to mean that nothing
artificial or synthetic, including all

color additives regardless of source,
has been included in or added to a
food that would not be expected in
the food normally. The current policy
was not intended to address food
production methods, such as the
use of pesticides, nor does it address
food processing or manufacturing
methods, such as thermal technologies, pasteurization or irradiation.
The FDA currently does not consider

whether the term "natural" should
describe any nutritional benefit or
other health benefit.
The FDA requests information and
public comments on the appropriateness of defining the term "natural,"
on how the agency should define
"natural" and on how the agency
should determine the appropriate
use of the term on food labels.

LNSDES - FOTOLIA / ADOBE STOCK

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of instore - May 2016
