An article from the New York Times, February 22, 2007, writted by Andrew Martin.

"Whole Foods Market yesterday he surprised investors by announcing a proposed merger with Wild Oats Markets, a similar though much smaller chain.

"The demand of natural foods has increased sharply in recent years as consumers have tried to eat healthier, and competition has grown as larger retailers like Wal-Mart and Target have aggressively added organic products. At the same time, new competitors like Trader Joe’s have offered the products at lower prices.

"The companies would save money by eliminating corporate duplication and that Whole Foods would gain access to markets where it is now weak, particularly the Pacific Northwest, the Rocky Mountain region and Florida.

"Wild Oats is the biggest acquisition yet for Whole Foods. Started in Boulder, Colo., in 1987, it has 110 stores in 24 states and in British Columbia and $1.2 billion in annual sales. By contrast, Whole Foods, which was started in 1980 in Austin, Tex., has 193 stores in the United States, Canada and Britain and had sales of $5.6 billion in 2006.

"From 1998 to 2005, the organic food industry in the United States grew 15 percent to 21 percent each year, according to the Organic Trade Association. In 2005, sales of organic food was $13.8 billion.

"But the market for natural products is much broader and harder to define. According to The Natural Foods Merchandiser, natural and organic product sales in the United States grew 9.1 percent in 2005, with more than $51 billion in sales.

"Whole Foods’ stock has tumbled by nearly 40 percent in the last year because of increased competition and the chain’s inability to keep pace with its lofty financial goals.

"Whole Foods defined the market for natural and organic foods, but nearly every major retailer has scrambled to replicate Whole Foods’ success, by making their produce more aesthetically pleasing or by offering more organic and natural products."

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/22/business/22foods.html
or search for "Whole Foods Makes Offer for a Smaller Rival"

Tags: health
Current Mood: plagiaristic
Current Music: just the hum of the computer fan

Mary and I have been on Weight Watchers since Sept. 1, 2006. I am getting very close to my goal after getting the award for 35 pounds lost as of today's meeting. Mary is not too far behind me and she also got an award today.

We both backslid big time at the holidays, what with two different Christmases (her family, then mine), then the New Years Eve square dance at Cook's Barn, then Disneyland for a few days with the Bachos. But we've lost verything we gained during those two or three weeks, then some.

I may be reaching my final goal soon with about four more pounds to go. Then if I can maintain that weight for six weeks (on a revised maintenance program instead of a weight-loss program), I can become a life member, for whatever that is worth. I'd definitely like to stay with it for as long as Mary is still on, because we are able to encourage each other.

This post is a test of post via email ... something I longed for in an earlier post.

(OK, after viewing the result, I see that I must make a conscious effort not to insert line feeds into my emails.)

Tags: health
Current Mood: curious