Whole Foods Fiasco!

I went to Organic Heaven...er, Whole Foods, today to purchase some fresh produce and noticed their potatos and yams are perched atop open, mesh bags of varieties of nuts! NUTS!!! I looked down and noticed remnants of the nutshells amidst onion peel and broccoli florets before I drew the line. Big cross contamination no-no. After paying for nut free snack bars (only 2 of the entire 3 that store carries), I bumped into the food allergist specialist there, Bonnie, who goes around with all the customers that have special food needs and shows them which items in the store are labeled without that allergen. I'd met her at a previous shopping visit there. Well, she asked how things were going, and I mentioned the bit about the nuts (that could easily kill my child), and she hurriedly took me over to produce and asked the guys to bring out boxes of the produce I wanted from the back so I could pick some out that haven't been put in the front of the store! How sweet! I also mentioned that the Chicago Trib. wrote an article blasting Whole Foods on their lack of attention to detail when it comes to nut contamination in their store brands 365 Organic Everyday and Whole Kitchen. She said she'd read the article, but I told her another follow up one was published online just this morning. Then something happened...her head twitched, and she freaked out (as calmly as possible) by grilling me: what was it about, what did they find, who did they talk to...etc. etc. etc. I told her what I recalled, and that even though it did deterr me from buying their store brand, it wouldn't stop me from getting other things there.

Here's a link to the article...I think Sam Roe rocked it out today, kids.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-112308-allergens-whole-foods-nov23,0,241722.story

which is a follow up to their initial story published this past Friday:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/health/chi-081120-allergens-tribune-investigation,0,506031.story

Both articles help explain why Pumpkin had allergic reactions to 3 out of the last 4 foods that I introduced to her that did not contain nuts in any of the ingredients labeled on the packaging...which is why my husband and I eat a rotation of Tombstone's supreme pizza and Kraft macaroni and cheese blue box...both safe for our dumpling b/c reactions can and do occur regardless of whether she herself eats nuts. If we eat anything with nuts in it and kiss her, she can have a reaction. If we touch nuts and then touch her, she can also have a reaction that leads to...death.