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Several months ago the Internet's mind was blown when Amazon bought Whole Foods. While changes are definitely going to be afoot at the grocery mecca—and some have already started—there are some secrets about the chain that every shopper really should know before the next time they grab a cart. So we asked current and former Whole Foods employees for their favorite little-known facts, features, and hacks about everyone's favorite health food store.
1. You can sample nearly anything in the store.
Known as their “try before you buy” policy, you can taste almost any product. Just ask an employee to let you sample something, and they’ll open it for you on the spot. “For something perishable like yogurt, team members may offer shoppers a free product so they can take it home and try it,” one employee told us. “That may not happen every time you ask for a sample, but your odds are good.”
2. They’ll cut almost any food for you.
If you only need a certain amount of an item, ask an employee to trim it for you. For example, you could get half a cabbage or half a watermelon. At the cheese counter, you can have a precut cheese sliced to your desired size. And butchers will cut any type of meat to order.
3. Don't sleep on the nonfood items.
One employee told us she regularly uses her 20 percent discount to stock up on baby products, especially diapers and wipes. “I realized that with my discount it was same price as if I went to Walmart, and the diapers are really absorbent and gentle,” she said. Her other faves for babies include BPA-free toys, organic cotton onesies, and dye-free and fragrance-free soap.
4. Yes, Whole Foods has coupons.
They're actually really easy to use, and you don’t have to clip anything because they’re all digital. Here’s how it works: Download the Whole Foods app. When you get to the check out line, open and sign into the app. You’ll see a coupon bar code on the main screen, which contains all of the coupons for the store. When the cashier scans it, any and all eligible coupons will be applied to your haul. Some deals that have shown up recently: $5 off $20 worth of fresh produce, $2 off homemade guac, or $5 off meat or poultry. Pretty good, right?
5. They celebrate food holidays.
Earlier this year Whole Foods started celebrating one food holiday per month—think National Coffee Day, National Pi Day, National Cookie Day, and National Cheese Lovers Day. They celebrate by offering deals, like coffee for a quarter or $2 off a large juice. Stay up to date on the dates and promotions through their social media pages.
6. The 365 brand products are just as good as everything else they sell.
Whether you’re buying beans, chips, or sauce, they have to be free of artificial colors, sweeteners, flavors, preservatives, and hydrogenated fats—just like the rest of the food in the store.
7. They’ll prep fish for you.
At the seafood counter, fishmongers will cut and debone any piece of fish. But here's the big news: They’ll also season it! Ask which seasonings are available—there’s usually a huge selection of blends including Thai, Latin, and many other flavors.
8. They have limited-edition seasonal products.
While a certain store may be better known for its seasonal offerings, Whole Foods has some notable ones too. An employee tipped us off to some favorites including pumpkin pie ice cream sandwiches, pumpkin spice granola, Thai curry cashews, and Sugar Plum lotion during the holidays.
9. The bath and body products are really legit.
There aren’t any government standards for body care products that are labeled “organic” like there are for foods. So Whole Foods created their own guidelines. For example, a personal care product in the store that says it’s “organic” has to contain at least 95 percent ingredients that are certified organic by the USDA National Organic Standards. If a product is labeled “made with organic,” then it must include at least 70 percent certified organic ingredients.
10. More than half of all Certified Cheese Professionals in the world work at Whole Foods.
These people literally know everything about cheese, so go ahead and geek out with them. You can pick their brain about how the cheeses are made, where they’re from, what to buy, how to store them, which wine or foods to pair them with, and much more. And yes, that generous tasting policy we mentioned extends to most cheeses at the cheese counter too.
11. The salad bar is a great place to hack meals.
One employee tipped us off to the fact that the prepared foods bar can be a great way to save money and make single-serving meals in a flash. Grab some precut peppers, mushrooms, and broccoli to make a super-easy stir-fry. Or fill a small container with some olives, artichokes, roasted red peppers, and feta for a Mediterranean spread without shelling out for a whole container of each item. Genius!
