Whole Foods

I'm so frustrated with Whole Foods in Sherman Oaks at Sepulveda Blvd. Half the time I go in there for raw kale salad with cranberries, they are out of it. I've complained to the manager and deli people and asked why they can't think ahead and prepare more salad when the tray is close to empty. I get the most ridiculous answers. Today's answer was, "We have other things to do." Last week's answer was, "We have another shift coming in and they'll make it." I know dozens of people who are also frustrated. Your Riverside Drive store thinks ahead, as does your Tarzana store. This one seems like they just don't care.

While eating a salad from the salad bar, I found a huge grasshopper in the bottom of my bowl. I was sick to my stomach. I called over the store manager. He took a picture and told me he would notify regional manager. I called corporate office that next morning. I was told that their salads are organic and I should expect those things! I asked where there quality control was and just because the salad was organic (Satur Farms), it doesn't mean it shouldn't be washed. I got a call back from the Lake Grove store telling me that if I want salad again, they would personally make it for me! No letter, no gift certificate! I would expect that a huge company like that would compensation for my disgust and their gross negligence!

At a family gathering, my mother had spent $8 on a tub of marinated mixed olives and sun-dried tomatoes which she served as finger food. I had several bites myself as did others, until my wife made a very unpleasant discovery. Wedged in a sun-dried tomato was an open and apparently rusted safety pin. She discovered it, thankfully, before putting it into her mouth, but it was a dreadful occurrence nonetheless. We put it in a baggie and I brought the remains of the olives and the pin to the local Whole Foods in Wellesley, MA.

The young man at the information counter was very polite and very concerned. I told him that I didn't know if they made the mix in-store or bought it in bulk from elsewhere, but that this was extremely dangerous and reflected very poorly on the company. He agreed and immediately got on the phone to inform a supervisor. The supervisor was out apparently, but he did his best to inform someone and struck me as intelligent and genuinely concerned. Strangely, the person on the other end of the phone apparently did not know what a safety pin was. It may have been a linguistic barrier, but again, not at all encouraging.

He refunded the purchase while I awaited the arrival of the supervisor. I wanted to make sure that someone in charge saw clearly what we had found in our food. The supervisor finally came, a man dressed in what looked like some sort of security uniform(?) and this was what got me angry. He immediately brushed off the occurrence saying something along the lines of, "Well we don't make that here anyways, so it's not our fault". The other employee working the information desk corrected him and the man blustered a bit and insisted on giving me a $20 store coupon. To my regret, I accepted this and let it end there.

Ever since, it has been bothering me a great deal how this manager person tried to blow off any responsibility on the store's part for the disgusting item found in their food. The fog is lifted and my entire appraisal of the Whole Foods operation has been turned on its head. I can understand people looking to defend the organization that pays them, but doing so with the brazen flippancy I saw in this man is extremely disappointing. I have no doubt that he berated the lower employee working the desk for giving out too much information or something to a customer with a viable complaint. It really, really bugs me. This occurred at the Whole Foods in Wellesley, Massachusetts on Sunday, April 15, 2012. I thought that I would write the company first before going public with this, but the behavior I've seen so far is not encouraging that the right people, if in fact there are any, will hear about what happened.

Whether the pin came from Italy or a factory somewhere else or whether it was put there by a careless employee or an irate one looking to smear the company is anyone's guess. It was wedged into a sun-dried tomato and not simply floating around, and was open to the point where its back edge was bent. As horrible and viscous looking as you can easily imagine. I shudder to think what might have happened had this tomato been in a sandwich instead of being served as finger food. I'm angry and disappointed and I've had my say. Thanks for reading and tread carefully with this company which appears to be spending its "do-gooder" status capital down to nothing in short order.

I bought fish for the third time at Whole Foods (I've tried both Cambridge St, Boston store and now Cambridge store.), and each time, they have been bad! I know you're supposed to smell it in the store, but at the fish counter, it's impossible with the smells to distinguish aromas! When I got it home, it was obvious the fish was on the verge. I tried two of the times to cook it, and that was the real test--bad fish; as it cooks, it reeks! I'll never buy fish at the fresh fish counter again!

This guy is so gay that he followed my husband around the store without any regard to my being there. He treats his employees like crap. It's a wonder that any of these young and talented people continue to work for him.

I contacted corporate office via telephone since there is no way to email the company. I love shopping at Whole Foods. But I am disappointed there are no 365 Everyday Value gluten-free, milk-free, raw and organic nuts. Why do 365 nuts contain milk or wheat? Why doesn't Whole Foods try harder to avoid selling products with the top allergens? Why not look for vendors who do not have these cross-contamination issues? Why is there no email for customer relations?

I called the Austin, TX corporate office, and this is what the rep had to say. Basically, Whole Foods is doing a great job, because they notify consumers about these allergens on their products and she will simply pass on my concerns to a private vendor. Whole Foods, is this the "best" you can do? Simply label products but not work your tails off to find different vendors who avoid these top allergens? It's sad.

I have now made several complaints about the absolutely atrocious customer service at Wholefoods High St., Kensington and nothing has changed in the slightest. So when I come into Wholefoods for my lunch today, as I usually do plus I also fairly come to Wholefoods in the evenings as well, I am going to make myself known to the management. Perhaps we will be able to make some progress that way as it seems to me that my e-mails are not even being read because no one seems to be getting back to me.

On Wednesday, January 25, 2012 I went to my local whole foods in Vienna, Va. I thought to get my usual favorite coffee and head home. While I was getting coffee I decided to test out a new coffee type. As I was doing that a sales person, who has been very rude to me, gives me the feeling as if I'm not a wanted customer because I am a Hispanic woman. As I was at the coffee section I was approached by the store manager, and at first I thought he was just asking how things were but as the conversation continued he came out and said I get samples from here every week. I feel very offended because I felt as if I was being discriminated against. I am a hard working single mother who has never stolen from anyone. The reason for my complaint is that I do not want anyone else to be discriminated again or feel as offended and hurt as I have been made feel.

I recently applied for an open position at my local Whole Foods market. Though I'm aware Whole Foods is a remarkable company, to prepare for my interview, I made sure to visit the Whole Foods website to learn more. I was relieved to read such a well thought out mission statement and "Declaration of Interdependence" (my brother and I have started an international NGO and I'm aware how vital these compasses are for a growing business). I was also impressed by the Whole Foods "gain share" program among other incentive plans that help to cultivate a positive team environment, as well as, encourage positive relationships between distributors, local SB (Small Businesses) and COF (Certified Organic Farms).

I'd like to briefly detail the highlights of the interview process which took place within my local Whole Foods market. I was personally recommended to the floor manager as a candidate for hire. The manager contacted me by phone and left a message asking that I contact him to set up a time and date for an interview. I contacted the store Wednesday and Thursday though was transferred around multiple times each call for approximately 10 minutes before until an employee could tell me he was either not available or not on site.

Friday: In the afternoon, I decided to stop in to meet the floor manager in person. We met briefly. He mentioned that he would be available the next day at 1 P.M.! I confirmed by phone that I'd be there and was looking forward to the meeting.

Saturday: I arrived at the Whole Foods 12:40 P.M. (Dress, Black Slacks, White Shirt, Tie) and approached the customer service desk to inform a Whole Foods employee that I had arrived for my 1 P.M. interview. They asked me kindly to sit in the cafe. This is where things begin to become odd.

I sat in the cafe until 1:20, for 40 minutes. Then I re-approached the customer service counter to check if the manager would be available. They kindly asked me to wait in the cafe. I returned there and sat for another 45 minutes. The floor manager never showed for the interview. After 1 hour and 25 minutes of waiting, I approached the customer service desk and left the floor manager a hand written note stating that I had arrived at 12:40 and waited until a little after 2 P.M. I wrote that if he'd like to reschedule, he would be able to reach me by phone to do so (my number included).

Sunday: I received a call from a friend who is employed at this Whole Foods location. He mentioned that the manager felt awful for not coming to our interview and wanted to apologize for his not being available. Also, this manager encouraged him to ask me to call the store to contact him to reschedule. I contacted the store many times. Each time I called, I was transferred around a bit for about 10 minutes and was eventually told he was not available or was not in (among other things). A few days later, I was able to reach the store manager to reschedule the interview.

First Interview: I arrived 15 minutes early and was met by the store manager shortly following my check in with Whole Foods customer service. The interview lasted approximately 4 minutes. I was asked no standard interview questions. We walked into the back conference room, he told me a little about his Whole Foods experience and asked me if I'd be available to work weekends. Then, he assured me that I'd be hired! He told me he would recommend me for a second interview and in addition, he would personally recommend to the next manager that I be hired and put on the floor for a 30 day probationary period. I said Thank you! We shook hands and I awaited a call from the next interviewer.

Second Interview: I arrived 10 minutes early. I was met shortly after checking in with Whole Foods customer service. The interview lasted approximately 4 minutes. We shook hands and sat. She asked me no standard interview questions aside from, "So, why would you like to work for Whole Foods?"

A minute later she informed me that the first manager whom I had interviewed with is the man responsible for hiring new staff members. That he is looking into multiple applicants and would contact me if he felt I was a good fit for the team. Then, I said Thank You and we said Good bye.

This type of dissonance of responsibility borders on discrimination. I left the experience feeling confused and cheated. I am aware that this is not your standard practice. In fact, this may be the exception. Though this experience was mortifying, I have learned a few things in the process, which I will take with me as I work exceptionally well for a different company with similar values. And hopefully they will have a managerial staff with a basic knowledge and understanding of the word integrity.

I just wanted to add that I am a witness to Whole Foods' horrible treatment of people. They allowed my manager, Michelle, in Philadelphia to badger me during shifts in front of other employees and customers. In fact, she would make comments that were inappropriate and had the nerve to tell me once that I should not joke with customers because I could offend someone. I was also the only one cashier in which people would wait to allow me to check them out. Michelle and the other employees started calling me Mr. Customer Service like it was a bad thing. I even saw and heard along with other customers, Shirley, a supervisor, call a lady crazy! I was stunned.

They routinely follow minorities around and I was told I was only hired because the other black male cashier had just quit. Michelle also did not allow me to finish training because she did not like me. They have this policy of not sending you to corporate training if they want you to quit. I did report Michelle to the GM and Assist before I quit, but they did not care. HR at corporate was also not concerned about how I was treated as a 42 year old male. It is a shame that people with such low self esteem are allowed to run businesses and treat employees and customers as they wish and the wimpy higher managers don't stand up for what is right! I now go all over the country and take advantage of Whole Foods Try me policy.

Michelle and Whole Foods will pay for treating me in an unprofessional manner. Every time I eat one of my favorite items I think about her. They are an evil company, look at what the owner did to that other company's stock. It starts at the top! This is another shady company like Morton's, Allied Barton, Banana Republic, Us Airways, Air Wisconsin, Embassy Suites, Gap, Southwest Airlines, America West, and others who treat employees like non humans! Corporate greed at its best, get the dollar but care less about customers and employees!

I thought it was just me but here we go. My wife works very hard for her body, so we go to Montclair, NJ Whole Foods for something healthy. My wife has a shapely rear-end, which brings her attention. The black floor workers followed us around the store the whole time. How sick and perverted is that. Now I thought it was just the first time but no, the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and I'm done. They have a lot of sexually deprived black guys working there; the last store worker (Black male, every time) walks past us then literally spins around to gawk at my wife's rear. My wife stopped me. I would have spit in this guy's face. We don't shop to be harassed by the workers. I'm going to try Kings as suggested by the other reviewer.

My wife was visibly shaken and I got her out of that store asap. Don't go into the store, women. With a healthy body, you will be harassed subtly. I will also call headquarters as I notice they also treat white and black people a little differently in certain instances. On the 1st visit, besides getting harassed, the customer girl that came over tried to degrade me by talking about me as if my headphones were really on. The people who work there aren't even healthy. It seems they are more like predators, its sickening.

They are going to catch the right one and all hell will break loose, I was almost to that point if it weren't for my wife. So, why should a shopping experience become stressful in a healthy environment? Because you have deviants working around good people. By the way, I'm black and never thought I would come at my own in such a way but they are for sure predators. I hate anybody that would make a woman feel uncomfortable on purpose because of their stalking, predatory behavior.

I am outraged that WF in Framingham, MA does not provide motorized shopping carts for mobility challenged guests! No excuse! If you have crutches or need other mobility aids, you are not welcome to shop independently at WF. Team members told me there are daily requests for these carts. Apparently, WF doesn't care about their customers! I had to flop myself over a cart and hobble around the store while other shoppers looked at me oddly. I felt foolish and left with just a few items.

I bought Whole Foods' 365 Herbal Mint Shampoo and found it to be thin, watery and sudless. I used extra large amount to wash and clean my hair. Dissatisfied, I returned bottle to the store. I live 60 miles out of town and don't get to Jacksonville often. To my surprise, the management said, "We can't take it back without a receipt." I said, "I don't keep shampoo receipts. Your Whole Food is the only store that sells 365 products." Whole Foods did not back up their product and refused to return my money or allow me to make an exchange.

I didn't drive another 60 miles to fight with another manager over a few bucks of lame shampoo. It bothered me that the store did not compensate for a complaint product. No coupon, no anything, but a letter of empty words. I will not buy 365 products again.

I am the husband of a very devoted and loyal employee of WFM. For many years, my dear wife dedicated her life, services, and loyalty to WFM. Even sacrificed our relationship, with hopes that hard work, would some day be to our benefit. During her tenure of long hours to commute, and odd shifts that would require her to work from 3PM to 11PM, and then open the next day at 7:00 AM, with an hour of commute each way. Rain, snow, or hail, did not matter, she was there. By the way, she is colored. An immigrant, yet she pushed it all aside. After all, this is America.

Whilst she thought that she would be getting ahead, we were slowly getting apart. I had done my research and realized that she was being manipulated, used, and abused from all the nasty things I had researched about WFM. But being a dedicated husband, I went along. Unfortunately, recently, she had a nervous breakdown, and was forced, though she is entitled by law, to take a Leave Of Absence, which she did. She is entitled to six months. But just after two and a half weeks, she contacted them that she was ready to return. She was told that they would get back to her. Well they did, only to be be offered a lower position, at a location much further from home, and at a pay cut. Being not too happy, she called to inquire of the decision and was told "take it or leave it".

I overheard the conversation, the Regional Human Resources guy. John **, or something like that, was so nasty. Now he is working for corporate and I, who is a business owner had to pause, wondered and ask myself. He works for the company, and I have my own company, and if he can abuse with such authority, then maybe I am allowed to lynch my employees. The guy was such an **. Anyway, my wife was an employee, not for the financial reasons, but for the challenge, and the love of working as a team. My main point here, is that for all those already employed with WFM, I sympathize with you. For those considering working for WFM, contact me, maybe I will employ you, and save you, or enlighten you to go elsewhere. As all great empires collapses, so will WFM. They are a doomed prophecy. I have a recording, that I will allow you to hear, under proper verification of who you are of the conversation between John, the ** Nazi and myself.

John Mac, "self hair cutter", CEO or DOG, CFO, or whatever of WFM, need to address, pay attention. People like John ** would cripple your company. Minorities, people of color, look at this forum, do not patronize,nor seek employment for whatever reasons. If you do, then you would have succumbed only to find, that you have betrayed, and have been betrayed. They are racist as described above, and they are prejudiced, as mentioned. I am confessing from my conversation with John **, that its Nazism.

Funny how some people will sell themselves for gold and lose their soul. Praise the day, like Woolworth, Alexanders, etc. that exploited and reigned, yet failed and fell. Praise WFM. Johnny ** and John ** "whoever", your people know you. If you claim it's fresh and natural, whose checking? Sorry ** for believing all that you hear, and paying through your nose. I will shop Wegmans. Plain and honest, cheap, and worth it.

Blessed are the meek and humble for we shall conquer the world, and it's much easier for a camel to enter the eye of a needle, than enter the gates of heaven. Goodluck WFM.

Basically, I'm just very disappointed in this company and who they choose to hire as cashiers. I go to different Whole Foods in the LA and Santa Monica area and I must say, without exception, the cashiers are unfriendly and unhelpful. Why they seem so mad, bored or both, I don't know, but I never look forward to going to any of these stores. I was raised to be friendly and courteous. That seems to have gone out of fashion. Quite sad.

I had bought some rotisserie chicken from Whole Foods in Albuquerque back on August 14, 2011. I did not want a full chicken so the female in that department cut the chicken in half. I recall telling her several times that they had some things on the cutting board from previous use and if she would clean it off, but she insisted it was okay. Furthermore, I notice she used a knife that is dripping with some fluid which I assume was water. I then mentioned that I was allergic to shell fish (shrimp, crab, etc.) and wanted to make sure there was no shell fish on the utilities.

And again, she assured me everything was okay. When I got home and started eating chicken, I started realizing that my throat was tightening up. I eventually had to go the ER and be treated for anaphylactic allergic reaction. A representative from Gallagher Bassett representing Whole Foods contacted me about the incident. Eventually, the representative told me there was no way the chicken got contaminated or cross-contaminated, because the managers at that store told her it was not possible. During the time when I got the chicken, the Whole Foods store was doing a major remodeling in the meat, fish, and was preparing food area. Currently, the representative is trying to get me to sign a contract to resolve the matter for a $200 gift certificate to Whole Foods.

This is a result of a very disturbing experience at the Lincoln Park, Whole Foods Market. Let me start by saying that I have been a loyal supporting customer of Whole Foods since I can remember. I was living in NYC for 15 years as a model and actress. Living on the Upper East Side, when there was only one Whole Foods, in Chelsea, I always went out of my way. It became part of my life. Since moving to Chicago 6 years ago, I have also been a weekly, sometimes bi-weekly customer. I spend at least $35,000.00 a year at Whole Foods Market. I didn't even think about shopping anywhere else.

Today, there was an incident that is just so awful. I was walking out to my car and I was approached by Mario *** (Aggressive Loss prevention for the store). He asked me for my receipt for the Egyptian Magic cream that was in my purse. I was happy to give him the receipt but didn't know why he thought this cream was in my purse. It so happened that the cream was in my purse. I did not intentionally put it there. The only thing I can imagine is when I was looking through my purse for my credit card and keys (at the register), I took some things out of my purse and put some of my things back in. I must have put the cream in my purse by accident. I am not a thief. I am so upset about this accusation. I want this fixed.

I was taken to the Whole Foods offices in the store. I was told that since the cream was only $30, I would not go to jail. I am still in shock. Jail- what was I even doing back there? This couldn't be happening! I asked if this was on video and if it was, could we review it to see how this looked. I thought for sure if we looked at the video they would see I didn't put anything in my purse on purpose. Mr. Vasquez said no that he knew what he saw. Mr. Vasquez had me sign a Notice of Trespass saying I am not allowed into any Whole Foods Market ever again. I was informed I would be arrested if I enter a store. He also tricked me into signing a form admitting I took the cream. I am so mad at myself for even signing anything. I was so confused and he told me it was just a form verifying who I am. It wasn't until I was home and showed it to my husband that I had been tricked.

I am an abused long term customer who has just awakened from the manipulation and propaganda that Whole Foods spins. This year, over 50% of the Items that I purchased from Whole Foods were bad: moldy, stale, rotten, undercooked, over cooked, and tasteless. When they first opened up, 98% of their produce, baked goods, and prepared foods were wonderful. Alas, in recent times, the quality has decreased considerably.

I made the mistake of returning much of the spoiled, moldy, expired, and bug infested items to customer service. Like Wal-Mart, Whole Foods will cut off an individual customer's ability to address grievances after what they consider numerous returns or complaints even with receipts. The deception of Whole Foods staff being positive, kind hearted, and concerned with 100% customer satisfaction is revealed when you confront them with the ugly truth. Their true colors are shown when you don't buy into their sticky sweet illusions. Whole Foods management and team leaders have also shown me their loathsome natures filled with contempt which is defended with character assassination and manipulation.

I was accused of abusing their return policy and labeled a "serial returner." Several team leaders have falsely accused me of "tampering" with their products. I can never return any of their products, even with a receipt and I am banned from shopping at Whole Foods on threat of arrest.

I bought Whole Foods whitefish salad ($12/lb. ). When I ate some, I discovered it was filled with hundreds of thin bones. Some were over 3" long! I have purchased prepared whitefish salad at other supermarkets and delis for decades. I never saw anything like this mess, nor paid as much as WF. I called the store and was told, "Yeah, fish have bones" before they hung up on me.

On Sept 28, I visited the Whole Foods Market, Bowery location and purchased fresh Hake fish fillet that was on display. When I brought it home, I saw a parasitic worm slightly beneath the surface of the fish. It was about 2cm long and moving. After doing research I concluded that it was a parasite called Anisakis. It was a very disturbing sight that made me question the quality and sanitary conditions of the fish and other products at the store. Parasites shouldn't be alive in fish since proper handling of it requires that it be frozen to the point that they die out, that wasn't the case. A few months back I also purchased olives that were rancid and made me and a few other people sick. I talked to the store management and they took no responsibility.

This is a racist store: 11145 Westheimer Rd., Houston. The whole food store is racist against black people. I had an experience today and this needs to be exposed. The store workers, Ted, and store manager Micheal followed me around the store, interrogating me about the choice of snacks I picked. Also, the manager Micheal walked me out of the store because of false information given by Ted, the store employee. Ted was rude to me and insulted me because I am black. If you have any racist or sexist discrimination, please contact me. The truth must be exposed.

I tried to order a vegan cake and after speaking to six employees (they did not know what a torte was or what they had), I was told that the manager would call me back in 10 minutes. But it was more than an hour. He was rude. He told me I was confused and then hung up. "You have a nice afternoon," clink. I guess Whole Foods does not really need my business. I will laugh (as will many others) as this place crashes and burns in time. All the signs are here.

I witnessed security chase after a man who had shoplifted diapers. They tackled him in the middle of the street, ground his face into the pavement, used what I considered excessive force in handcuffing him. The security officer then yanked him by one arm to sit but didn't assist him at all in getting up. The man was elderly. This was a brutal practice and I will never go to Whole Foods again.

Ah, NYC: the "best city in the world", most dense multi-cultural/international hub, etc. It's so diverse and people are more exposed to differences that racial ignorance/mistreatment will be less than say the South, right?

Today, I (female, 5'2'', racially categorized as "black") went into the Union Square Whole Foods to get aloe vera gel. I went down the stairs to the beauty section and approached a WH employee about the whereabouts of aloe vera. She points me to it and I selected one that I want and decided to peruse the almost infinite-smell-good items on stock. Within 5 minutes of perusing, I "sense" (you know the 3rd sense) eyes on me.

By this time I was near the scented oils, giving my advice to a fellow shopper on the array of oils to choose from. The first "eyes" was the hired security in all-black attire who was just lingering literally right next to me. Then I walked to the soaps (all the while trying to tell myself that it's pure "coincidence"), and as I was smelling the soaps, I noticed what I thought was another customer staring at me. But he was just aimlessly standing in the walkway and not looking at products. He smiled when I looked towards his way, and then I knew.

Also the department manager (Regine or Regina) was the other set of eyes to "observe" me all by pretending to chat with staff members behind me. I approached Regine (or rather turned around), asked where I can make a complaint and she replied, "Oh what's wrong" I'm a manager", in which I told her I need someone over her.

She told me to go to the information desk upstairs and I then lingered in the beauty section to solidify my speculation. And sure enough, all three gathered speaking to one another. I went upstairs and I was directed to speak to Mike (thanks to Tammy). The 3 "crew" members followed me upstairs, I suppose, to ensure I did not get lost finding the front desk. I told Mike everything that happened and he apologized for it saying, "That department has "x" number in loss". I say, "That's not my problem. I come in to purchase an item, what led your prized staff to point me out as a thief and follow me around?" To which he answered: "You probably resemble someone who has stolen before." Ah, perfect, I look like a thief.

I don't want to say I'm the only one with my looks but I am quite, um, let's just say unforgettable. And I find it damning for anyone to say you may resemble another when in actuality it was only my skin color that made me a target for profiling (by other non-"white" employees. Good job!). Mike did mention that another reason as to why I may have been "selected" for following, was because I came in with a Whole Foods canvas bag (which by the way, I used as a purse and which I did not put any items I wanted to purchase within, since as I said I use it as my purse).

Oh, and look who just passes by me as he mentions my canvas bag being the reason for the "extra security" an elderly white woman with a shopping bag. Though not a Whole Foods bag like mine to mark my "loyalty" or stupidity. I turn to Mike and say, "Oh, look she has a bag also, and quite larger than mine, but I just can't see her being a profiled and/or targeted."

One just can't win. You try to conserve/help the earth by way of reusable bags but then if you are the "wrong demographic" to be shopping in a specific store... No matter how much money you make, your education, your family affluence, what skin you are in is the first and final way to judge you in 2011. This is a mental disease. Be on guard: your "blackness" (or any other legions of concocted reasons to demonize you) can equate to thievery in the Union Square Whole Foods.

Yesterday (March 30, 2011), my daughter, myself and two friends made a trip to the Whole Foods on Canal Street in Chicago. We have never shopped to that Whole Foods branch before. We usually go to Willowbrook. My daughter is disabled. She has a disease called cystic fibrosis, which is a genetic lung disease that causes her to have trouble breathing, use oxygen, take multiple medications and use insulin.

We parked in a handicap spot at Whole Foods clearly displaying the handicap placard. We went into Whole Foods and shopped for about an hour. My daughter began to feel like she needed her inhaler and some pills and went out to the car to get them. The car was gone. Turns out, Whole Foods had towed the car because they claimed that they watched all four of us walked into the store, walked around and that they felt that no one was disabled. They stated because it was private property, they had the right to make the determination to tow if they felt that someone was "misusing" a handicap spot.

Of course, this is illegal. You cannot tow a legally parked handicap vehicle from its spot and no company has the right to decide that just because someone can walk that they are not disabled. Four hours later and over $200, I got my car back. This means that my daughter was without her medications for over four hours. I have talked with everyone from the store manager to the district manager's office to the regional president and no one seems to care or be willing to do anything.

No offer to pay for the towing or even give out a gift certificate for the inconvenience. No apology for repeatedly telling my daughter who was clearly suffering without her medicines that "she didn't look sick." I am disgusted. I have been a loyal customer of Whole Foods for over a decade, spending thousands of dollars a year with them and they do not care at all. I am sad, hurt and sickened by all of this. Not even a gesture of goodwill. I guess I didn't know this company as well as I thought. Please feel free to contact me for any further information.

I agree Whole Foods Market is filled with **. I am totally ** with Whole Foods after having my car towed at their location at 1101 S. Canal in Chicago, Illinois. I was parked in their lot and went to get some money from my girlfriend in Panera Bread. I was gone a total of about 3 minutes and then went to Whole Foods Market to purchase a few items. Upon completing my shopping in Whole Foods, I found out that my car had been towed. Whole Foods hired a towing company to scam its customers out of towing fees.

When I went into the store to request a manager, I was told that the manager was not talking to customers about tows. I called the store manager and the regional manager and to this day, neither has returned my calls. I called the corporate office in Austin and I got the same response that they where going to uphold the tow. I personally am appalled at the way this matter has been handled. After the Manager refused to address me and the situation, I returned my groceries and I refuse to shop there anymore. I will shop at the Dominick's that's located across the street from them. They have organic food and the prices are less expensive.

Whole Foods charges premium prices, but have low class service. Any establishment that doesn't have the common courtesy to come speak to me about their policy and tells me that they know the policy is funky and they have no respect for me as a customer. With that said, they don't deserve to receive another dime out of my pocket. It cost me $170 to get my car from the tow facility and I had to borrow money to buy my groceries because of this incident. Whole Foods would not even offer me free groceries. I think it's disgusting to do this to someone. Because of this incident, I had to pay $170 in towing fees. I had to borrow money to buy food. Now I have to try to file a small claim to get my tow fees recovered.

Why did Whole Foods stop accepting checks as a form of payment? All of the other grocery stores in my area, even the Farmer's Market, accept checks as a valid form of payment. I will shop at the "other" local health food store from now on. After many years of being a WF customer, I now think the company has little regard for the needs of its customers.

I have been noticing for many years now that on a very regular basis, the prices as shown with the product differ from those when scanned and for some reason, they are always in Whole Foods favor. Just yesterday a number 3 bag of apples with a price displayed at $5.99 was charged to me at a price of $7.99. This is an ongoing and reoccurring problem at both of these store and as it always seems to come out in their favor. They charge more than was shown at display, I am suspecting that this is in fact intentional.

This is a complaint against Ken, the chef, and Emily, the manager, on Tuesday June 22, 2010 at 12 noon in Lakeland, N. Ashland Ave Chicago, IL 60657. I was a loyal customer at Whole Foods. I was spending about $150 every 2 weeks in groceries there. This was my first time visiting the Lakeland location and I was appalled by the way I was treated.

1) The sandwiches in the deli department looked stale and spoiled. The bread, cheese, and meat looked hard (I should have left the store when I saw the condition of the food at the deli). 2) I asked to sample the sandwich and Chef Ken was rude and said he was out of samples. 3) The manager Emily was pretentious. She said the sandwiches are not samples and the entire time I was in the store she followed me around. 4) I felt victimized because Emily stalked and watched my every move as if I was going to steal something. She made me feel very uncomfortable. I left without buying anything.

When I went to a different grocery store, I saved $40 and bought the exact same items that I would have purchased at Whole Foods. The other store also let me sample anything I wanted at the deli. I didn't realize I was spending so much money at Whole Foods. "Rodent infestation at Whole Foods in Lincoln Park" was posted on July 9, 2008 by Matthew McClure. Thinking about picking up pecan encrusted salmon cakes from Whole Foods in Lincoln Park on your way home tonight? Think again. The Chicago Department of Health shut down the store this afternoon after discovering a rodent infestation. "More than 100 [mouse] droppings" were found in one cooler, according to a Crain's article.

I am a loyal customer at Whole Foods. I usually spend about $150 every 2 weeks in groceries there. This was my first time in visiting this particular location and I am appalled by the way I was treated. 1) The sandwiches in the deli department looked stale and spoiled. The bread looked hard and the cheese and meat looked hard. 2) When I asked to sample a sandwich your Chef Ken was rude and refused to allow me to taste the sandwich. 3) The manager Emily was pretentious. She said the sandwiches are not samples and in the entire time I was in the store, she followed me around. 4) I feel victimized because the manager Emily stalked and watched my every move as if I was going to steal something. She made me feel very uncomfortable and harassed. 5) Maybe I should feel grateful that Emily saved me approximately $150 because she prevented me from completing my shopping for the week. I felt like she wanted me to leave, therefore, I felt compelled to take my business elsewhere. 6) Is it Whole Foods' policy not to give out samples, stalked customers and treat them like common criminals?

I was walking through the deli area and a chef (Ken according to his name tag) was standing behind a table holding a huge knife that had 2 exposed subs on it. The subs had no wrapping, plastic or anything. They were just sitting on a cutting board uncovered. When I saw the exposed subs I thought that's not very sanitary. I requested to taste the sub that had meat. I wanted to taste the sub before buying it because it looked dried out and stale. It was only 12 noon and I thought it was odd that the sub would look spoiled that early in the day. That's when Ken said, "I don't have any samples. They are all gone. "

I have never experienced this at any other Whole Foods. I went to customer service and asked the employee about the store refusing to give customers samples. The employee at the service desk said that he had never heard of that before. That's when Emily (according to her name tag) ran up to me and said the store just started a new program today called "subs to go". I thought that it was a coincidence. Then I asked her what does that have to do with the chef refusing to give me a sample? She said the subs are not there for samples. That's when I decided to buy a bottle of carrot juice and leave. When I saw the price of the carrot juice I literally almost passed out. They were selling a 1/2 gallon of Odwalla carrot juice for $9.99. At Jewel Osco and Dominick's, it sells for only $6.99.

Also the entire time I was in the store, the manager Emily was following me. I ended up leaving without buying anything and had to go to one of your competitors to buy groceries. Usually my shopping experience at Whole Foods is very pleasant but this specific location is terrible when it comes to customer service. I will never shop at Whole Foods again. This store is tiny, overpriced and their attitude is "we are not giving away anything for free". I have never been treated so poorly. It is bad enough that they price gauge but even worse when they treat their customers like common criminals. I will never spend another penny at Whole Foods.

I was constantly called a Muslim terrorist by an employee, who was a lady. I was also defamed by this same employee. She told her employees that I was taking fruits and tasting which is allowed whenever they set it out to taste. Others were tasting and nothing was said to anyone but me by this person. As a matter of fact, she followed me around the store to make sure that I would not do so. On many occasions she had called me this name. I reported her several times. I even mentioned it to some of her coworkers because I was not getting any satisfaction. They would just say, "I have taken care of it." This employee harassed me so much that I would only go there when she was not there. I even stopped going to whole foods markets for four months to avoid this lady. She called me names.

She even cussed me a few times. I ignored her because they did not do anything to her. I avoided her as much as I could when she was there. I mentioned this to some of her team members, but nothing was done. This is just half of the story, but I have to go. Please contact me. She really tried to attack me, but her employee continued to push her back in the store. I need to finish this but I do not have time. This lady even threatened on some occasion. My wallet was stolen or lost when her supervisor took the basket and product from me. There was camera on also. But they refused to look back at it. I do not have my money because the supervisor refused to look for it. He was rude and spoke to me in a very nasty tone. He said that if I came to look for my wallet, he was going to have charges against me. I don't have my wallet the day after. I am in so disturb right now.

My father, an 83-year old man, was shopping in Whole Foods yesterday afternoon when he was confronted by a security guard. He was told that he was being placed under arrest. My father then told him if he was being arrested, they should call the police. He was asked to wait outside, later the manager of the store came outside and told him he was no longer under arrest. He went home feeling violated and humiliated. The customer outside the store were more concerned and compassionate than the staff who treated him abominably.

I have serious issues when a store claims to have an organic product which is a GMO! The terms organic and GMO are in total contradiction.

When I shop for organic products, I would expect to get natural products which have not been tampered with by mankind. By definition, organic foods have not been grown with toxic pesticides. Yet a GMO food can have a man made patented built-in herbicide in the DNA and still be classified as organic (by Whole Foods)! No wonder the US is loaded with cancer and endocrine disorders. It makes me sick to see companies lie to consumers every day. Whole Foods didn't even offer a reimbursement or replacement to me (and I spend a lot of money there) but that is unimportant to me. Nobody seems to care or pay attention because they are all busy slaving to pay medical bills or marching off to their chemotherapy, heart, or thyroid surgeries. Or as in my case, busy attending the funerals of young folks who died for unknown reasons.

It is wrong for corporations to advertize GMO foods as organic. GMO foods have not been tested on human trials and the future health implications are unknown.

Unfortunately, my family will not be shopping at Whole Foods any longer thanks to a supposed company policy that prohibits budget-conscious customers from attempting to stretch their dollar to better feed their families. My wife and I traveled 20 miles roundtrip to visit the only Whole Foods in our region to comparison shop in hopes of giving the company our weekly business. We have been shopping at a local big box grocery store and wanted to support what we believed was an integral enterprise.

We decided to pick up some lunch at the Short Pump, Virginia location and do a little comparison shopping while there when no more than 2 minutes in the store, we were approached by a young employee who sternly told us we were not allowed to record the prices for "fear of competition". He said that he hoped it wasn't a problem and we insisted it was a problem and asked to speak to the general manager. Joey, GM, was the most pathetic excuse for a manager that I have ever experienced and could do no more that parrot the same reasoning we were given by the adolescent store employee.

We explained, not that we should have to, that we were cost-conscious customers on a tight budget and wanted to make Whole Foods our primary grocery store even though the distance we had to travel was significant. His only consolation was in acknowledging that his mother liked to write down prices as she shopped! This automaton was unable to draw the line between his example and what we were attempting to do in his store!

I have gone to bat for Whole Foods on several occasions in the past when they were embroiled in controversy—the political affinities of their CEO in opposition to the health care bill and the whole scandal of many of their products being made in China and passed off as "Californian", etc. No longer will I defend this corporation; furthermore, I will go out of my way to broadcast the discrimination and prejudice with my family was mistreated while attempted to make Whole Foods a part of our lives.

As a point of reference, I have contacted all of the local grocery chains to ask for their policy on comparison shopping as I was told by Joey that they all prohibited it. So far, no one else does. And it will be those chains which will receive our business from now on. Joey, GM for Short Pump's Whole Foods told my wife and I on Saturday that we could go to all the area supermarkets and ask if they had the same comparison shopping policy and he insisted they would. The first email response I have received back from our local supermarkets is from Trader Joe's:

"We do not have a policy that prohibits our customers from writing prices down. We encourage our customers to compare our prices. We think that they will find quality and fair prices when they do."

My wife was humiliated by the experience and we were both made to feel like deviants for simply comparison shopping for a few items.\

I work at a Whole Foods Market and have been feeding my 5 cats Pet Promise Daily Health Dry Food for 6 years. I am very upset to hear that Purina bought them out and has discontinued the line. What am I going to feed my cats now? That was the best food I have ever found for cats. They have healthy coats and are healthy and happy. Now they are not satisfied when they eat and have terrible gas. What to do?

In late October we purchased Quorn meatless chicken cutlets from Whole foods. The product states that it is made from mushrooms so my husband and I thought we would try it. I cooked the cutlets according to the directions and about an hour later my husband started throwing up a lot, I felt completely fine. I cooked the cutlets with eggplant and bok choy and I thought maybe there was something wrong with some aspect of the dinner I made. We really thought nothing of it.

The week of 11/9/09 we went shopping again this time for my husbands up coming birthday dinner. He wanted taco salad and I saw that Quorn has a product called "grounds" meatless ground meat. I thought perfect this is what I will use on the taco salad. On Sunday 11/15/09 I made him taco salad for his birthday dinner and about an hour later he started throwing up but this time it was really scary. He threw up for slightly over 2 hours, it was violent, he was pale he was shaking and he began to wheeze.

A light bulb went off in my head and I ran to the Internet and typed into goggle "Quorn products making people sick" and was horrified to read all the people who had the exact same reaction as my husband. It turns out that it is an allergic reaction to the product and it is not made from mushrooms but mold created in vats. There is nothing on the package that says if you are allergic to mold to not eat their product.

I sent them a message via there website and received an email and then a phone call from Wendy M.-G. During the phone call I asked her why there product does not have a warning that if you are allergic to mold to not eat their product and she stated, "because it is such a small population of people who have the reaction your husband did we do not want to alarm the general public."

I went on to tell her that if her husband or partner or child had the reaction my husband did she would want a warning on the package. I asked her why he was so much sicker when he ate the grounds verses the cutlets and she told me it is because the grounds has a higher amount of "Mycoprotein" which is the mold that makes up their product. Below is the email I received from her

"Private & Confidential. Thank you for your e-mail via the contact page of the Quorn website. We were most concerned to hear of you and your husband's reaction after eating a meal including Quorn Cutlets. For any reaction such as this after eating a food, there are three
possible causes: 1) a spontaneous illness coincidental to eating the food, 2) mild food poisoning and 3) an intolerance-type reaction to a

component of the meal consumed. Regarding mild food poisoning, our manufacturing plant and processes are operated by trained personnel and are continually audited by the quality assurance personnel from local authority. We also take extensive samples during manufacture to verify the quality and safety of all our products - no products are released for sale unless all tests are completed to agreed specifications. Therefore it is highly unlikely that this product caused you and your husband to suffer illness due to food poisoning.

"The possibility of food intolerance exists. As stated on the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network's website: "Although an individual could be allergic to any food, such as fruits, vegetables, and meats, there are eight foods that account for 90% of all food-allergic reactions. These are: milk, egg, peanut, tree nuts (walnut, cashew, etc.), fish, shellfish, soy, and wheat." Therefore it may be that you were both experiencing an intolerance-type reaction to an ingredient in the Quorn product, or some other component of the meal. If you believe that Quorn products are indeed the cause of you and your husband's reaction, and you do not suffer reactions to foods in general, then it is possible that you are both reacting to the mycoprotein present in Quorn products. This ingredient is found only in products sold under the Quorn brand name and is therefore not found in any other products sold by retailers. The only caveat in this is that one should always ask the source of a vegetarian product if bought at a restaurant or foodservice establishment. We have no power to insist that products sold through this route are suitably labeled. Whether this is the explanation or not, it may be unwise for you to eat any more Quorn products.

intolerance-type reaction to Quorn products, we suggest that you contact a licensed allergist / immunologist. We will be happy to provide samples of mycoprotein to do the testing, as well as pay all of the testing costs. Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention."

My husbands birthday was ruined our company had to go home and he had to call of sick to work the following day. He could not eat for the next 4 days without getting sick and to this day almost 2 weeks later says his stomach still is not completely normal. We think that their product should have a warning label! We went to Whole Food and told them all about it and still have not heard anything back from them.

This issue has been ongoing for a bit more or approximate to one year. There is pattern of harrassment as per my own person. I've asked repeatedly via email to the corporate offices, telephone calls to the regional offices for an explanation as to why this treatment. I was assured in 2008 by a representative 'Kathy' that this would be a matter of record and resolution for this location of Whole Foods Market, and yet it persists. This morning some time approximate 9:00AM I was followed by an employee from the moment I entered the store, as is unfortunately part of the historical issue citing. The employee at this point I did not know her name. But I was at the breakfast bar containing the food I intended on purchasing, and she approached me and requested that I use another container that the container I was using was going to spill, when in fact the contents were not near the level of excessive within the container. I stated to this person that I was fine, and she stood there waiting and watching as continued. And I'm watching her baffled. I did not say anything further but continued to shop, proceeding to the cheese aisle where I began to review cheeses. This person then followed me over to the cheese aisle and began to circle though there was no one behind the service desk for cheeses. When in fact another customer was began to peruse the cheeses, this person stepped only then behind the service desk of this station and asked the other customer if she needed help. I continued on to the milk aisle, to the Whole body section where I placed soap into my hand -held cart, then over to the fruit section, where this person appeared yet again eyeing the items in my cart and my every item I retrieved.

Finally, I asked her why she was following me, that this is harrassment, and why is it that every time I come into this particular store I feel as if I am being harrassed by these employees here. This person then began to argue stating she was just doing her job, when I terminated the conversation by walking away, this person followed me suggesting that I stated something under my breath. I advised her I have no need to speak under my breath at her. I then proceeded to the check out where she continued to follow me, I then asked the clerk who was the manager, and the clerk pointed to this person stating her name was Patti and she was the supervisor. Outraged I paid for my purchase and exited the store.

At this store of Whole Foods several employees have made comments about my allege orientation (I was purchasing milk in a 2008 incident when an employee from behind the milk rack hurled an insult at me); there was an attempt by an employee engaging a security guard to falsely accuse me of theft which sparked my initial contact with the Regional office; they have refused to wait my order; an employee came from behind the register to scold me about placing my basket on the conveyor; all of these instances have been reported in emails and by telephone (the instance with the conveyor a supervisor was present when I reported this) but nothing has been done. There is a larger, civil issue here that I feel must not go unreported/escalated. I would sincerely appreciate your consideration. No one paying customer after paying an exponential amount at various locations to this business should be subjected to such treatment without discourse, without explanation. I have curtailed shopping at this particular location to mitigate this experience.

We were in your store today, July 5, 2009, at approximately 2pm. We did some shopping through the produce area and then proceeded to the bulk foods aisle. Julie got some bulk sesame sticks and as she stood there, an entire container full to the brim of rice fell out of nowhere on to the top of her head. I am appalled at the way this situation was handled. She clearly was out of it and was stunned at what just happened in pain and crying. A team leader named Cherish went and got her a bag of ice and 2 bottles of water, wrote some stuff down on a blank sheet of copy paper, gave her a business card and said to call her if anything more comes of it. No incident report was made, a medic was not called to make sure there was no further damage, just a "Have a nice day".

So now, the rest of our day is ruined. My girlfriend is laying in bed in pain with a terrible headache. I'm sitting here worried and watching her to make sure she doesn't have a concussion. We had plans today, which included shopping at Whole Foods, and 15 minutes into being in your store, our plans are gone because you have failed to keep your store safe for shoppers. Cherish mentioned that it's not the first time you've had issues with these bulk canisters falling off the wall, even mentioning she had trouble with the pumpkin seeds canister just last week. She also mentioned that sometimes the brackets break and that's why they fall off but that there was no reason this specific canister fell off the wall saying the brackets were not broken or anything.

Within 5 minutes of the incident, there were already employees cleaning up the mess and taking photos of the wall the canister had just fallen off of. Quick action for a store that cannot even muster the concern for a shopper to even have a store manager come out to fill out an incident report or contact a medic specifically because this is a head injury. I am quite surprised that a retailer of your stature could not handle this type of situation properly, likely because a low level employee was sent to handle an incident that she is clearly not trained to handle properly.

I am carbon copying this message to your regional and corporate offices because your team leader was fully aware there is an issue with the bulk food canisters being a safety concern to shoppers. I will never shop in a Whole Foods market again and I do plan on warning your shoppers of this danger since you have not done so yourselves - allowing shoppers to be clubbed over the head while standing unknowingly in danger. Julie is an electrician construction worker, must wear a hard hat for work and works strenuously throughout the day. If she is unable to attend work in the coming days due to this incident, you will definitely be hearing from me again. Needless to say, the both of us are extremely dissatisfied with our experience at your store this afternoon.

I have been shopping at whole foods for about 16 years, since before it changed from bread & circus. My biggest complaint has to do with their price gauging especially now when people are huring bad. I buy a lot of greens one of them is collard greens and the price for this item has becom rediculously expensive with in the last couple of months there is about 4-5 leaves of it for $2.49. This was previously sold by the pound whichc was better.

second I buy goat milk yogurt because I cannot tolerate cow milk, which sold for 5.99 and now all of a sudden it is 6.39. Does whole foods understan that people are loosing jobs left and right? and they are not able to pay as thy have been? I wonder also if this increase is just because this is the only place we can find these items and we are going to scrounge and buy it any way? really some one needs to look at how their monopoly on the market is affecting their prices.

It is just very hard to keep up with this unexplained price increases when your income is going down.

I shop at Whole Foods twice a week, so I know the store layout really well. I went in this morning just to get some produce and fish, which are both on the right side of the store. The main produce item I was looking for was Clementines (tangerines). I searched the produce section. I searched the bins outside the store. No Clementines, so I phoned my husband and he agreed to take oranges instead. As I was leaving the fish counter, I overheard one produce person tell another produce person to go check the Clementine display in front of the bakery! So I went to the bakery, on the far left side of the store, and there were 30-40 boxed of Clementines.

After returning the oranges and checking out, I went to the customer service counter to complain. The person listened to my story and then asked me why I hadn't asked where the tangerines were. I said that after searching the produce section, the logical conclusion was that there were no tangerines. He pressed his position that it was my fault for not asking about them. He did finally admit that normally when they cross market an item, the will leave at least part of the supply in the normal location, which hadn't happened this time. (But he also acted like he didn't believe me that there were no tangerines in the produce department.) Finally I asked what he was going to do about my complaint (they never volunteer a solution), and he said he would talk to the team leader.

This is the second time I have had a run in with customer service. The prior time I had a special order in for 6 bottles of a shower gel and they were supposed to call me when it came in. They never called. Finally, a couple of weeks later, I checked the shelves where the shower gel is stocked, and there were my 6 bottles on the shelf. I got the same treatment when I complained. I should have asked someone. Their customer service deserves an F. They never apologize, even when it is their fault. Would it kill them to say, I'm sorry you had trouble finding the tangerines? They always make it the customer's fault. They never tell you what they might do to resolve the problem (probably because they don't really believe it's a problem in the first place). After several years of shopping there loyally, I am rethinking my shopping options. There is an excellent Lunardi's just 10 minutes farther away, and they treat the customers with respect.

No damages other than a lot of anger on my part.

I entered the store at approx. 745am. I cruised around, looking for a breakfast to eat, a lunch to take with me, and a place to sit; maybe plug in my laptop for a bit. Every Customer Service (CS) person I saw, I smiled at, but received a swift head turn from the people I walked past, as if not wanting to answer a question I may have. I felt as if everyone in the store was anooyed I was there.

Icing on the cak; I go get a coffee, and the CS woman told me I was killing her, and everybody behind me in line, (both of which were employees and she had their coffees already made!) because I changed my mind on wanting a bag. I had my own bag and realized I could just put my purchased items there. I thought I was helping by saving a bag, but this woman made me feel as if I was a HUGE inconvenience! The whole aura about the store was snooty and pompous.

Whole Foods has Customer Service that acts as if they are better than everyone else. You have to be the right type of person to go into their establishment and treated with kindness and respect.

I have Bells palsy so my face and speech is distorted. They where doing samples in the store and one customer and a worker each had one. They moved the tray right past my face and when I asked for one they laughed. I told them that was rude. They continued to laugh at me since my disbility??? They security came up and asked me to leave. Wouldn't even listen to what I had to say even when I explained I have a disability. Asked for a manager and got the same. Paid for my items and left. Out side of the store the Manager confronted me again and again I pleaded with him that I have a disability and it is hard to speak.

I sat on the steps and cried my eyes out. Seems they don't want my type in the store!!!

I remembered that one time (couple months ago) we found plastic thing in our fish that we got from Whole foods. My husband shared his complains about the quality of the product with the store. Last week I bought sliced whole foods brand country bread from the store and last Friday we had guest for dinner. At dinner, my husband found something (he said hair) in his bread. He did not tell me that until we had another complain related to whole foods.

Here it is: February 21st was my husband birthday and I bought a birthday cake on that day for my husband. I wanted to make surprise for him. After we cut the cake, we started to enjoyed eating our cake but it did not last long. I saw my husband pulling a hair from his cake and I was very upset about it. Then he told me the Friday's story and I said that I will return the cake next day.

My husband want me not to shop from there anymore and I will not shop from the whole foods again. My experiences show me that whole foods do not give enough attention to customer expectations and I also noticed that customer complains does not tell anything to the whole foods market.

On 2/12/09, in Whole Foods, I was charged the wrong price for fish. I went back to the fish counter (after I had was paid for it) and asked the fish server to fix label so I could get a refund. He did so without opening up the sealed package. He put a new label next to the incorrect label. This fish server then told Steve the manager of the seafood department, who was already up front at customer service, that I was due a refund.

When I got to Cust. Service and received the monetary difference from an employee named JR in Cust. Service, Steve then insisted I open up the package of fish so he could see what was inside. I said I don't want to open my fish here in front of everyone to see, it'll feel like other people are playing with my food. Plus, as I stated, I saw the fish server wrap up the right piece. But Steve's tone of voice was threatening and intimidating. He was insinuating there was some wrongdoing on my part. Even JR in Cust. Service said, Why are you doing this? Leave her alone. I felt that if I did not open it up and walked out of the store with my paid purchase, that I would be stopped in the parking lot. I asked why and he said I could not leave unless I opened it. This went on for two minutes.

I knew that if I had to open it, it would be embarassing for me (their Cust. Service is where all the cashiers are located and people waiting on line); it would like like I did something wrong. However, I did not want any trouble and eventually opened it up for everyone to see. Of course, it was the fish. This man was on some kind of power trip. There is no way I gave this man a reason to think I did something wrong. It was as if he did not like me for some reason, or wanted to give someone a hard time and I became his prey. I did not want any trouble so I opened up the fish for him, there in front of many other customers. It was humiliating. I said, There, you see, and he just walked away. I called for the store manager, Carlos O, but he would not have him apologize to me, but he himself did. I wanted a reason why I was treated that way, but all Mr. O could say is that he was sorry.

There is no economic or physical damage, but it was an act of harassment that should not be tolerated.

I broke half a tooth off on one Mary's Gone Crackers, Sticks & Twigs snack. Horrified, I didn't quite know what to do first. I called the Whole Foods store where I purchased it. The assistant manager was unconcerned and very rude. She did not ask any details. As it turns out, she didn't even make a report which she is supposed to do as I later discovered from a higher-up in the company.

So I went to the store itself to try to talk to the manager. Once again, I was met by only the assistant manager who was rude to me and, at one point, glanced over to a coworker of hers and laughed (private joke?) while I was clearly distraught. All the way through our brief conversation, her attitude was one of disinterest and boredom. She never once asked to take any facts or anything. She smiled and laughed all the way through our conversation as I explained that my dentist told me I will need a new crown to the tune of $1100. The manufacturer is responsible as it turns out, because it is their product, but the rudeness I experienced at Whole Foods has made me angry and I will NEVER shop there again.

As for the snack, I am truly concerned that somebody else will break their teeth on this snack that adverises on the packaging, Light and crunchy. It is not light but it is certainly extremely crunchy to the point of endangering any teeth with fillings in them. I doubt Mary's will pay for a new crown for me, judging from a conversation with the CEO, but they may. I just don't know. They were wishy-washy with their reply to my very direct question. Meanwhile, I've contacted various government departments in Canada in attempt to see that this does not happen to anyone else.

$1100 for a new dental crown

I'm a professional food formulator and was shocked to find harmful, causes abortion in pregnant women, unsafe, and non FDA approve, non GRAS, with illegal and misleading label 'agave' syrup on Whole Foods Shelves under their '365' in house brands. When I called them to show them it had been band by the FDA in 2000, the public relations person told me I did not know what I was talking about, and hung up the phone. Whole Foods is knowingly in violation of consumer fraud laws.

Every time I go to this Whole foods store someone is very rude to me. They are toooo busy to help or answer questions and make me feel like i am bothering them. Most of the workers are very arrogant. One time i pointed and asked for that whole roast there and the guy said what, you want a whole side of beef? i said no that one there and he really got rude.

Another time i wanted some bbq beef brisket and told the guy the last time i bought it , it was a little greasy and he said i have a great suggestion for you, don't ever buy it again , and walked away. I thought I would die.This is normal there.I have complained several times but it does no good. When they see me coming, they turn and whisper and laugh. It is not my imagination. They never get punished so why should I matter to them. That is the only whole foods in colorado springs or i would go to another one. We eat organic and are limited to where we can shop. They did buy the old wild oats but went there once and it is really far for me to drive and it is a much smaller store and doesn't carry some of the stuff i need.

I am afraid to shop there anymore and 2 workers there have made me cry. We spend a lot of money there and even if we didn't, we should never have to go through this. It weights heavy on my mind because i have never been through this before with any thing. I am not a big baby, i have just never been treated so rude in my entire life.The last time, I thought about getting a lawyer.

I believe I have had a negative side effect from using CLA, which is a stomach ache lasting for several days after stopping the vitamin because of the side effect.

I have been shopping at your stores even before you changed the name from Whole Foods from Fresh Fields. I trusted the quality of your products so much that I did not even care to look at the expiration dates on products anymore. I always bought organic products.

I was shocked to watch ABC I-Team news about your organic products. The show pointed out how you have been deceiving your customers for years including me. Your products stated certified organic Californian etc while it printed with small letters in the back Made in China. We all know the Chinese products are not certified organic by FDA and there is no way you can insist they are.

I could not believe it and went to the store and checked all the products I had been buying. How could I trust you and miss that? Even Californian products are made in China? I would never buy any Chinese products to eat since my 1 year old puppy got so sick a year ago because I was feeding her with food Made in China. I had no idea what was wrong with her kidneys and she kept throwing up until the Pet Food Scare came on surface. (I have vet bills to prove)

I am so angry you violated my right to buy products I believed Organic, but they were not. How can you prove they are organic if FDA doesn't control, can't control, products coming form other places like China?

I was charged $1.49/lb. for rice clearly marked $.99/lb.

Overcharged for product (3.95 lb purchased, tare .01 lb).

I purchased Whole Foods Market store brand, frozen packaged 'Chicken Enchiladas' containing 2 enchiladas with not a sign of chicken anywhere. They were flat with a little paste inside. The picture on the package clearly shows 1-1.5-inch thick filling that is almost entirely chunks of chicken (and some cheese which i found to be nonexistent also). This is outright and total false advertising in the most blatant degree. I paid over $4 for the product.

I am going to attempt to return the product to the store.

I felt sick. Swollowing this meat product is against my religious principles.

In addition to charging tax on all hot and cold TAKE OUT foods they are charging consumers tax on anything and everything that is opened up in the store.

For example: A mother shops with her young children and opens up a package of crackers to pacify them. Tax is charged on the entire box of crackers--they are calling it a TAXABLE FOOD Item.

In addition to the substantial income increase for their stores, their cashiers are incompetent and charged me tax on

raw turkey legs I purchased. I have the receipt to prove it.

Whole Foods is just lining their own pockets with the so called tax money they are charging the customers. Since when is food taxable. This is just another way of increasing their already huge profit margin.

in the past six months, i have purchased two bottles of WHOLE FOODS BRAND PRENATAL VITAMINS, at both los gatos and cupertino whole foods stores. these vitamins plainly stated on the label :suitable for vegetarians. i am a vegetarian, as is my six month old son, which means we do not ingest ANY animal products-meat, fat, bones, enzymes, or otherwise. recently a friend told me she saw these vitamins on a list of products containing gelatin, derived from animal bone, or hooves.

i went into the los gatos whole foods to inquire and the lady there called the company and informed me that there was indeed gelatin in the beta carotene in these vitamins, but not enough to list it. she also mentioned something about changing the product but not the label--is all this even legal??? dont we have the ingredients listed on our foods for a reason-to know what we are eating??furthermore, to label a non-vegetarian productsuitable for vegetarians is downright cruel-an insult to my morality!!!! that is false advertisment and there is no reason why any decent company should lie to its customers like this.

most importantly, both myself and MY INFANT SON, were fed a product that is morally and religiously unclean, something i go to all means to avoid. there is nothing that can take that back. secondly, as a long-time loyal customer and former employee, i feel very betrayed by a company i once sincerely trusted to be the healthiest choice i could make. please help me out!!!!