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Dear Folks

I read through all the eMails both onlist and 
offlist. That's 21 as of this evening. My thanks 
to all who responded, both pro and con. The laws 
of statistics dictate that the average response 
rate to a survey is 3-10%, with 10% being an 
outstanding response. So I feel safe in assuming 
that a goodly number of people have read both my 
original post and Shimme's response as well as 
possibly responded on their own through email or 
direct contact with their local Whole Foods 
Market. Sometimes Guerilla Celiac Tactics are the 
only way for us to make ourselves heard.

I would like to correct my request that people 
contact Shimme as the person responsible for this 
chain of events. After talking to our friend at 
Whole Foods, it was made clear to me that the 
decision was enacted at the national level. The 
way to make ourselves heard is to call your local 
Whole Foods Store (however local that is, five 
miles or 250 miles) and request the email or 
mailing address of the Regional Bakery Manager. I 
suggest email or written mail so that there will 
be a discernable trail of opinion.

I have some more information, as well as a 
response to Shimme's email. My response is to 
this list... I do not feel that I have a 
responsibility to engage in a debate of the 
interpretation of corporate-speak with Shimme at 
this time. Please jump past my 'snipped' section 
of Shimme's email to my comments.

>-------------- Forwarded Message: --------------
>From: "Shimme (NA NNY)" <[log in to unmask]>

>(snip)
>Subject: Gluten Free Bakehouse
>Date: Mon, 3 Oct 2005 13:51:52 +0000
>st1\:*{behavior:url(#default#ieooui) }
>
>Hello,
>
>I have gotten a few emails this morning about 
>the discontinuation of some of the offerings 
>from our Gluten Free Bakehouse.  I have a 
>feeling a concerned customer has sent my email 
>out to a group, so if you wouldn’t mind 
>forwarding this email on, I would appreciate it.
>
>The decision to temporarily discontinue some of 
>our gluten free items was made by the Bakery 
>Group on the national level.

>(snip)
>Sincerely,
>
>Shimme
>
>SHIMME
>
>NORTH ATLANTIC/ NORTHEAST REGIONAL BAKERY DIRECTOR
>
>-905 RIVER RD-EDGEWATER, NJ 07020
>
>'201.941.4000 EXT. 235 7201.941.9576
>
>  :<mailto:[log in to unmask]>[log in to unmask]
>

My wife spoke to a representative of Whole Foods 
today in an effort to clarify the current 
situation. I won't name this person as he/she 
supports our needs but is not in a position to 
set corporate policy. When asked directly, on the 
phone, "will these items be discontinued or 
brought back into production?" the response was 
neither yes nor no. We were only told that these 
8 items are discontinued and that there are no 
current plans to re-introduce them. Due to 
preparations for the holiday season, it would be 
May of 2006 at the latest before any brand new 
items would appear on the shelves.

In reviewing Shimme's statements it is clear to 
me that we are the recipients of a nice bit of 
corporate prevarication. His comment that Whole 
Foods "will most likely bring some of these items 
back in a seasonal nature and possibly tweak some 
of the formulas..." bears examination. "Will most 
likely", "Seasonal", "Possibly" are not 
assertions of any intent to increase the product 
line or to re-introduce discontinued products. 
Rather it is side-stepping the question. Any 
sizable business has to plan ahead for 
production. If there are no concrete long term 
plans, what does that say to us?

"We thought long and hard about this... our 
slowest moving items..." only demonstrates the 
poor communication within this company. Many of 
the responses to me noted the absence from the 
store shelves of these very same items that where 
earmarked for discontinuance due to "poor sales". 
To sum it up... if you don't market the item, if 
you hide it behind a counter or in the freezer, 
how can you determine the true sales figure of 
any given product line? At two of our local 
stores we had the same problem. Items where kept 
in the freezer without any note to customers that 
this was the policy. When we asked customer 
service people, their response was "oh yes, we 
keep them in the freezer for freshness" but no 
one responded to our comment that if you don't 
tell people the items are in the freezer, how can 
you sell them?

I must say that I object to Shimme's contention 
that in being Vegan, he appreciates the situation 
we find ourselves in as Celiacs. His is a 
life-style of choice. Ours is a lifestyle of 
necessity, dictated to us by a genetic condition 
from which we can neither escape nor recover. 
Need I say that if Shimme decides one day to eat 
something non-vegan, he will not find his celia 
damaged? Ok, enough grumbling on that point.

I firmly believe that Whole Foods does not 
appreciate the dollar volume that has been 
initiated in their stores by people who must buy 
gluten-free.

I plan on finding the proper way to contact John 
Mackie, the CEO of Whole Foods. I should be able 
to come up with either his email or his office 
address through a little bit of research this 
week. I will post a time limited Petition Letter 
to the list once I have this information. This 
petition will state, in polite but firm terms, 
our dissatisfaction with this decision and 
request that Whole Foods re-consider their future 
plans in light of this 'hidden' but extensive 
market. I'll invite anyone in support of the 
Petition to provide their full name. I will not 
include email addresses or any other personal 
information. Once the Petition is completed, I'll 
send it to John Mackie.

Take care
Gary
--

Gary Roberts <[log in to unmask]>
Dedham, MA...Antique tools, Old Books, Art 
Pottery, Hong Kong cinema, what else is there?

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