I have never been that great a fan of Safeway. (It was not the greatest store to shop at in Alaska growing up, and it was not that great in VA or CO either, in my experience). However, with their "makeovers" they have become updated and more interesting and there are always less people there than King Soopers, so that is a plus.
But, the latest thing that I think is a great assett about Safeway is that they have a very competitive line of their own organic products. It is competitively priced and so far what I have tried is good quality.
Today, I was impressed that they had organic ketchup in this brand, which so far no other grocery store that is not "health food" store has had locally. They also have a good selection of frozen organic veggies and fruit and French fries. We traditionally have gotten Alexia brand organic fries in large quantity from Costco, but they don't always have the kind we prefer (traditional crinkly fries). Safeway also has organic milk which is reasonably priced and other things.
(Now for the editoralizing....you can skip this part if you just wanted to the low down on Safeway's organics. :)
I suppose this is the beginning of the "corporate coopting" of organics, which is good or bad, depending on how you view it. But, as long as it is really organic and adheres to what that should really mean (USDA certified organic or similar), I think long-term, this is good for consumers, despite mourning the loss of some of the power the smaller farmer has regained with the rising deman for organics.
Newspaper or other articles often mention that Wal-Mart is getting into organics in a "big way" and this will profoundly change pricing and distrubition in this area, but do you think Wal-Marts core customers really care? Maybe Wal-Mart is trying to get at the more "affluent" market who values organics, but I really hate Wal-Mart and I am sure that a lot of the "new customers" they want to get with the move toward organics do too.
Why do I hate them? For all the cliched reasons: they squeeze prices down but have crappy products, they won't pay for workers' insurance but force the public systems to pick up the tab, blah blah blah.... But, mostly I hate shopping there because it is a big ugly warehouse and (snob that I am, I guess) I just think it is a creepy place to shop with scary people shopping there.
Articles and "the media" talk about how "everyone" shops there, but I can tell you, I only go there two or three times a year if I really have to and I would be glad if that store fell off the face of the earth. Also, I think it is absurd to say that we all want the cheapest possible prices at the bigger cost that Wal-Mart enforces (a favorite theme of news articles on Wal-Mart): terrible labor practices, crappy products that are cheap-o, and an unfriendly shopping environment. If I can (which of cousre I can, I can choose as any consumer can, where to spend my money), I would always choose to spend my money elsewhere, even if it costs a little more.
How did this discussion become an anti-Wal-Mart rant? Well, it is not like I love the Safeway corporation, but they seem more palatable than Wal-Mart and not disgusting to shop in, in any case. So, whether Wal-Mart has organics or not, I will not be dashing out the door to shop there. But, you should give Safeway a try for more reasonably priced organic products.,
