The Alabamification of Greenwise
Photo Credit: Oreo.com
As published on AL.com
In response to Greenwise’s recent decision to make its grocery selection more traditional after opening last year in Mountain Brook, Alabama, a previously unsatisfied customer told the cashier, “We’re not California.”
No, We’re not California. We’re Alabama, ranked as one of the top five unhealthiest places to live in the United States. The flagship organic store is situated in two of the wealthiest zip codes in the state, or country, for that matter. Yet, the new store experienced an immediate pushback from an indignant community after its initial ribbon cutting ceremony.
When the Publix chain bought the longstanding Western Supermarket, the adjacent neighborhoods mourned. After the loss of their favorite local market with its wonderful staff, fabulous wine section and sumptuous meat cuts, the switch to organic, healthier, and sometimes more expensive, alternatives was too much to stomach. Despite the fact quite a few doctors and healthcare professionals live in the area, unhappy Greenwise customers wanted to know, “Where’s the Coke?” Selling Paul Newman’s crème cookies in place of real Oreos? Blasphemy. And God Forbid where was the fried chicken? This is the South after all. We prefer fried Twinkies over Kind Bars.
It’s ironic that Birmingham has such an amazing foodie culture with Frank Stitt, chef of the nationally recognized Highland’s Bar and Grill and winner of the 2018 James Beard Award for Best Restaurant, at the helm. He and so many other creative and well-known chefs support and sustain organic farms throughout the state by using their non- GMO produce and humanely raised meat in their kitchens. But many Greenwise customers, who frequent these same award-winning restaurants, seemingly have no interest in eating better at home. Maybe that’s not entirely true. Maybe those who prefer a more conventional fare were simply louder than the rest of us.
A significant community who cares about eating well does, in fact, live here, but in a fast food culture and a city with food deserts, the struggles are real, and people often simply don’t know where to go or what to do. Places like Atlanta and Nashville, teeming with juice bars, organic sandwich shops and vegan food trucks, are also cities full of transplants or people who may have been born there, but have moved and returned after having been exposed to other places.
We all live where too many children go hungry. Thousands of school children rely on school lunches daily for their one “good” meal. But look at what’s served in the cafeterias. Especially after the current administration gutted the school lunch program. Ketchup is a vegetable again and a healthy choice means nutritionless white lettuce and tomatoes soaked in pesticides. The hormone laden “mystery meat” remains a mystery. Kind of like hospital food. Forget your ailment. Just eat the food and die from too much red dye in the Jello. This is precisely why we need Greenwise: institutionalized food and most of the processed selections on grocery store shelves aren’t real food.
It’s a challenge to eat well for a variety of reasons. Access and awareness are the first two key components to choosing a healthier life. When I first heard Greenwise was coming to Mountain Brook, I was ecstatic because food for me is more than comfort. It’s medicine. I’ve radically changed my diet as a result of a health crisis and have spent hours learning about nutrition and what sustenance I need to thrive. But I was soon dismayed when I realized that Greenwise was returning to its Publix roots to stay in business and cater to a crowd who stubbornly believes there’s no reason to change in a world in which agribusiness is destroying both our planet and food sources.
When we’re given a grocery store that supports a more beneficial way of life, it doesn’t make any sense to water it down for more Coke and Oreos. But all is not for naught. Good change is happening in Alabama as more local farms prosper despite the challenges, more farmer’s markets have popped up, and a smattering of organic eateries have opened their doors.
I promise you, this isn’t a leftist, liberal attempt to shame you into drinking camel’s milk and becoming a Californian. This is America. Eat your Moonpies, but please, when there’s a Publix (77 in Alabama to be exact) or Winn Dixie on every other corner, let Greenwise be Greenwise for those of us who need a different choice.
Lanier Isom is co-author of the Lilly Ledbetter memoir “Grace and Grit: My Fight for Equal Pay and Fairness at Goodyear and Beyond."