ralphs feeds flowers, lets hungry starve
The following is a guest post from reader Laura Evans. Please leave your comments below.
RALPHS SUPERMARKET TO THE STARVING: “I’D RATHER FEED THE FLOWERS.”
One late evening, my husband, Drew, was shopping at the new, convenient, high-end Ralphs Fresh Fare supermarket at Ninth and Flower in Downtown Los Angeles.
He noticed the copious amounts of prepared food that had gone unpurchased and asked the Ralphs employee what was to become of it all at the end of the day. The employee replied that it all gets thrown in the garbage. It was a LOT of food.
I did some research and discovered that the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank has a person, Clarissa Velasco, whose job it is to arrange for product donation pick-ups from companies that have donations. They accept, among other things, prepared food and will pick up the food for free.
What about liability? Gifts to Los Angeles Regional Foodbank are covered by national Good Samaritan laws which encourage the donation of food and grocery products for distribution to needy individuals by protecting donors from liability when donating to a nonprofit organization. Also, donation to the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank generates tax benefits for participating companies.
I called Clarissa and she said she would be happy to arrange for distribution of the Ralph’s prepared food. I also sent an email to Jeanna Kindle, Chief Product Acquisitions Officer for the Foodbank, who wrote that the Foodbank could put Ralphs on the Foodbank’s regular pick-up schedule.
But Ralphs would have to contact Clarissa to begin the process.
I called Ralphs and was transferred to a woman named Alma who evidently is the Operations Manager. She said she was busy and I had to call back three times before she would speak to me. She finally told me there is not much food left at the end of the night and anyway she couldn’t donate what was there. When I began telling her about the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank, she put me on hold and ultimately hung up on me.
I found the phone number for Terry O’Neil, public relations spokesperson for Ralphs. I called and he picked up. I asked Terry about Ralphs donating its prepared food at the end of the day.
He gave me a lot of reasons why Ralphs should not donate the food. He told me the food does not get thrown away, but instead gets composted. I told him there are people in the city who are hungry. He told me he was concerned about liability. I reminded him of the Good Samaritan Food Donation Act.
He voiced concern over “it getting out of hand.” I told him the Foodbank helps coordinate with the agencies who accept the donations. He told me Ralph’s already donates money to various food banks. I suggested that had nothing to do with the perfectly good food that gets thrown out every night.
He told me the Foodbank would have to call Ralphs to get the ball rolling. I told him Ralphs would have to call the Foodbank. Terry finally promised he would call Clarissa and I gave him her phone number.
I thought I could hear him writing it down.
I wrote to Clarissa and Jeanna to tell them the good news. I felt proud of myself for taking action, for not listening to that little voice inside my head telling me, “Someone else will take care of it, the problem is so obvious.” I told Clarissa and Jeanna I would follow up.
It has been nearly a month since my conversation with Terry O’Neil, so I wrote to Clarissa today asking if Terry had called her. Her response was simple, “No.”
On January 21, 2008, an article by Susannah Rosenblatt appeared in the Los Angeles Times titled “Food Shortage Hits Charity Pantries.” A quote from the article reads, “[T]hose who run food banks say they are struggling. The supply of donated food is at its lowest level in recent memory, largely because of a steep decline in government surpluses. Many who work in the field are concerned that low-income people like Jacques may go hungry — a worry they say is heightened by a growing number of households, particularly those with children, who report that they do not always know where their next meal is coming from.”
I do not think it is overly dramatic to say that the prepared food that Ralphs is presently turning into fertilizer every night could potentially save the lives of hungry men, women and children living within blocks of the market. Any amount of food could benefit these hungry people and all it would take is one telephone call to start the process.
Is there really such a disconnect between the new loft-livers who so appreciate the convenience of a local supermarket and the existing poor and needy who do not know where their next meal is coming from?
I am just one person and cannot force Ralphs to do anything it does not want to do. But perhaps Ralphs could be persuaded if it knew its customers care just as much about feeding their hungry neighbors as they do about enjoying the convenience of fresh sushi at the sushi bar or weekly wine tastings at the wine bar.
Laura Evans
Feel like helping out? Let Ralphs spokesperson Terry O’Neil know what you think: 310-884-4680
This post and all subsequent comments will be forwarded to Ralphs’ corporate office. Please sound off in the comments below.
48 comments
wow—excellent reporting.
GREAT timing. I literally just had this conversation with a few of the deli workers. They told me Ralphs won’t do it due to “liability”. I quickly dispelled that as an excuse which they agreed to. They said management had no intention to do donate the food whatsoever.
Thank you for reporting on this— it’s a really sad thing that so much food gets wasted. I’ve volunteered with Second Harvest Food Bank in Orange County and the amount of food that can be collected is astounding. It’s ugly that companies have policies like this about their food.
Laura already did a lot by contacting these people, does anyone want to organize and try to take this further?
I do not understand though why Ralph’s has to make the first move.
Shouldn’t it be the one who needs it need to initiate the call?
Interesting, I was just talking to a friend about this the other day. I told her most places don’t donate the food because of “liability”, sad but true that “no good deed goes unpunished”. But I was not aware of the Good Samaritan laws which seem to make “liability” a non-issue. Hopefully this gets some more press and Ralphs volunteers to change their ways.
Maybe if you shared the number of Terry O’Neil people could call and ask that he follow through with his original promise.
i live a block away from that ralphs and i’m in there a lot, especially after work around 9 when they start breaking the prepared foods down. THERE IS A LOT OF IT. not so much the hot food in the deli section, but there is a buttload of the asian food and baked goods left over EVERY NIGHT.
now i have another reason to speak to a manager - besides the fact that the lines in there at night are out-of-control-long.
The Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act was signed into law in 1996 - this removes all liability for a store such as Ralphs when it comes to food donation (with the exception of gross neglegence). When you go to Ralphs website, under FAQ’s, it states that individual stores handle smaller donation requests.
It seems the main problem isn’t liablity, it is money. This donated food would have to be packaged (which costs money) and empoyees would have to spend time to package this food (again, more money). Any publicly traded company, such as Kroger, isn’t in the market to lose money by being charitable. They have specific grant organizations which specialize in giving money to non-profit organizations. These grants have the tax deductible benefit that donated food does not. In order for food to be donated (or thrown away), it must first be marked out of stock which reduces the value to $0.00. You cannot use donations without value as a tax deduction.
It’d be nice to live in a world where capitalist companies could set aside a part of their operating expenses to include charitable work… but that’s simply not the case. In order to do so would mean a raise in prices - I wonder how many people would be willing to pay MORE than they already do at our rediculously overpriced, convenient, high-end Ralphs.
Picket in front of the store until the food bank confirms that the food is being donated. It’s legal to do an informational picket and leaflet if you don’t block people from entering the store.
Sven, I think you hit the nail on the head. When Ralphs first opened, I remember there being some kind of framed “statement” proclaiming the company’s contribution to the Downtown renaissance - basically positioning themselves as proactive neighborhood advocates.
I think Ralphs has done tremendous good for Downtown, but their reluctance to donate the old food is a much more telling sign of their true disposition.
OMG- this is an outrage! I cannot believe all that food is wasted when it can feed so many hungry families. It would only help their reputation if Ralph’s participated in food dontation. What do we need to do to convince this Terry guy? I will write a letter, sign a petition, make a phoen call…you name it. What do we have to do??
we can do the following…each time you go to ralphs ask to speak with someone from management and state the case. There are already 12 comments in this blog, that represent 12 people asking ralph’s management about the same thing over and over. If that doesn’t work…well a picket sounds good!
Anyone in the mood for a good old fashioned boycott?
I am going to forward this post and all subsequent comments to Ralphs corporate.
Just left him a message. I’ll also be forwarding this post to others.
Thanks for the story: it’s important for people to know about the bad choices Ralph’s is making here.
I can’t blame Ralph’s for wanting to protect themselves from lawsuits. Also, like sven said above, it would be much more of an undertaking than just handing over leftovers. I imagine the amount of left over food varies greatly depending upon sales. If they choose to do it great, but they have the right to run their company profitably, and to donate in the ways that work for them.
And it’s also our inherent right as consumers to complain, and tell other people of our complaints, and try to effect change.
Why do we need to assume that running the company profitably and donating the food are mutually exclusive propositions? I agree that it’s not as simple as handing over the food and there’s no reason why Ralph’s should necessarily have to cover the costs. What if the cost of disposing of the food is the same (or lesss?) than preparing it for pick up? I think everyone can agree that there is something wrong with the idea of the food being thrown out when people are going hungry literally blocks away. I think there is an opportunity here, for the Foodbank to have a new donation source and for Ralph’s to be a good corporate citizen. (P.S. Chicken breasts don’t compost.)
I actually seen the Operations manager Alma in action. All I can say is that she treated a customer very very rudely and would not give her the time of day. The customer ended up leaving with a look of “did she really say she wouldnt help me”.
Her actions over the phone does not surprise me at all.
I went to fill out a complaint card but yah I never mailed it back.
(btw shes the brunette running around the store counting the money in the afternoon/everning)
Give me a break… why do people feel the need to guilt other’s into doing their charitable work for them? If you want to help the homeless, go make some sandwiches and pass them out. I can’t think of anything more offensive than trying to force your beliefs and ways on others…
I love how everyone assumes its “no big deal” to have ralphs just give their leftovers to the foodbank as if its just that simple. As others have pointed out, there are obviously costs involved in doing so. Why should Ralphs have to foot the bill or go through the hassle if it’s not in their best interest?
it can be done with out much extra work, i used to work for Costco in the food court and we would donate when we had extra food. im pretty sure that most of the food is ALREADY PACKED in ready to go boxes and bags. all you need to do is put it in the BACK, and tell the food bank when to pick it up. they come pick it up and are gone in less than 5min. no big deal or need for employees to do extra work. pass this on through you myspace as a bulletin if you got one i know i did.
mike i do feed the homeless i’ve organized skid row sandwich give aways with my school and local church. the biggest disapointment is when you have to turn people away becuase you dont have any more food to give out. especially when there kids :(
I worked at a cafe for a year and can also attest that boxing up prepared food takes about as much time as dumping it into a trash bag. You don’t even need to individually wrap or box the food, though it’s a nice gesture.
The food bank picks it up at a specified time after closing and takes all of five minutes. Come on, it’s not that hard. I don’t understand how so much food can be wasted every night.
I called Terry and spoke to him. It seems there are a few misunderstandings but when it comes down to it, sounds like they have stopped DIRECTLY contributing to food banks from each store because of company losses and employees throwing or giving out more food than was meant to. However, they are working on putting a program in place so that they can start doing this again, that would be beneficial to both parties. Until then, I still think the “extra” food should be given out but I guess compliance issues are more important than contributing to the community for now.
Sven is exactly right about the Good Sam law, however he is wrong about Kroger and money. I live in Oregon and the food bank here has aclose relationship with a local Kroger store - Fred Meyer. the food bank picks up literally thousands of pounds of food every single day. the store has some very small costs associated with storage and pulling food that is near to date - but obviously this happens anyway. the actual labor of sorting the food is done by volunteers at the food bank. you might try a different tack with Ralph’s - food banks in oregon find that when they start picking up this food from stores that the stores actually begin to SAVE money, not lose it. the reason is simple really - giving to the food bank allows stores to actually SEE how much waste they generate. this helps them develop better ordering systems and otehr efficiencies to help reduce waste. so in the long run, the store actually wins out. it is really a no brainer.
The Grand Central Market has a vendor who does not give food away but discounts the food to $2 at 5pm. The market closes at 6pm. If Ralphs won’t donate at least they can discount. I’ve seen several meat packages with manager’s special stickers offering deep discounts on steaks and other products. They have a rack at the back of the store near the employee entrance where bread and other grains are discounted.
The Farmers Market’s food vendors also offer discounted food when they close. Usually $2-$3 for a full plate.
Yes, our corporations should be more charitable, as I’m sure I could be, but they have stock holders to answer too. Discounting would be a good compromise.
Huh?
Let me get this straight. My neighbors are in a tizzy because the local grocery store doesn’t donate food it will throw out? Can anyone tell me who are these teeming masses who are suffering from hunger? I was under the distinct impression that one of the major health problems confronting our society is obesity. A walk down the street certainly confirms this. I don’t recall news reports of unfortunate citizens starving in the streets. Could someone show evidence that people going hungry is an actual problem in L.A. County?
Yes, I agree it would be charitable of Ralphs to donate product which it is going to dispose of. But, if management has decided the legal risks are unacceptable, so be it. They have a business to run. They are not a social service agency. Their mandate is to make a profit. The grocery business has notoriously narrow profit margins (1% is my understanding). Incidentally, I’m all for tort reform. Alas, I won’t hold my breathe that my well-meaning neighbors will rally to this arcane cause.
I suspect this incident reveals more about the mindset of the affluent residents of downtown. They seem to be unaware that they live in the most affluent society that has ever existed. We live in a world which scarcity effectively doesn’t exist. For most of history, famine was an ever present danger. Our civilization confronts a crisis of obesity. We suffer not from too little food available, but too many calories which are too easily consumed. There is a collective fantasy going on here which is about people feeling good about themselves. So they imagine there are people in L.A. County who are starving and they are determined to take action! Give me a break. This is all theater.
Anyone in L.A. County who can’t get enough to eat is most likely incapable of taking care of themself (and ought to be institutionalized) or has problems of character which prevent them from living responsibly and within their means and almost certainly has an aversion to hard work. Yes, there are occasions where people experience temporary hardship. That’s why we have various social service agencies and charities to assist those in need. But, to deduce because Ralphs has made a legitimate business decision on how to make a profit, that is not indicative of a social crisis. To paraphrase one of our neighbors, asserting something to be true doesn’t make it true.
As for people like Mr. Atomic dumping on Alma because she couldn’t care less about this situation, please! She’s a smart cookie in my books for not giving the time of day to people making demands that have nothing to do with her job. She busts her ass managing a grocery store. Talking nice to people about their social agendas is not in her job description. She’s got plenty more important work to do which contributes to the company’s bottom line. Frankly, I think she’s handling it just right. There’s no pleasing some customers and it is not worth the time or hassle to placate them. It is better for Ralphs to send those customers to their competitors. Yet, for some reason I don’t these malcontents won’t be taking their business to Food For Less or Liboreo or Numero Uno.
Meantime, I look forward to empirical data documenting the hunger crisis in L.A. County. Ha!
I’ll have you know, David, that I was a recipient of much-needed food donations as a child living in the city of Los Angeles, one of the wealthiest economies of the world.
In addition, the reason you do not see people starving in the streets is because of the food banks. People in skid row do have enough to eat for this reason.
There is no harm done coaxing Ralph’s into a community-responsible position. But they really ought to have input, rather than be shamed into it, or publicly humiliated (as a first step).
David, is comment serious? Wow, I’m speechless.
^ The part where David says his “that one of the major health problems confronting our society is obesity” certainly is serious.
The following is from an article in the Los Angeles Times last year, written by Kelly D. Brownell, a professor of psychology, epidemiology and public health at Yale University, and who serves as director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity.
It is a mistake to think that obesity is a problem only in certain social or racial groups. It is rampant in all races, in both genders, and across all ages. It would be mistake as well to believe that race and social class do not matter. The prevalence of significant obesity (body mass index over 30) in the U.S. population is 29% for Caucasians, 34% for Hispanics and 40% for African Americans. Fully 78% of African American females are overweight or obese.
Social class is also a big deal. The likelihood of being overweight in the poorest 25% of the population is twice that of people in the highest quarter of economic class. With obesity comes a wide array of serious diseases, including some, such as hypertension, that strike particularly hard at some ethnic groups. Children born into poverty will have illnesses far in excess of what confronts others, both in their childhood and later in life.
These stark effects of race and poverty on diet, activity and obesity might seem counterintuitive — poverty should lead to food deprivation, plus poorer people are more likely to be engaged in hard physical labor.
Toss away intuition. People living in poverty find it hard to be physically active. Leisure time is rare and concerns with neighborhood safety keep both children and adults indoors. Poor individuals are less likely to work for companies with fitness facilities, and there is no discretionary income to join health clubs, have personal trainers, etc. Poor schools have worse facilities and fewer organized sports, and safety issues prevent children from walking or biking to school.
Food is a major issue as well. Studies have shown that poor individuals have limited access to healthy foods and considerable exposure to high-calorie, nutrient-poor foods. Declining numbers of supermarkets in inner cities is part of the reason. In 1963, there were 34 full-service supermarkets in inner-city Los Angeles; that number had dropped to 14 in 1991. By 2002, there were only 5. If one does not own a car, a trip to a supermarket might require several transfers on a bus and then the task of carrying groceries on the return trip.
Poverty not only complicates access to stores with healthier foods, but drives people toward cheap foods. This encourages purchase of packaged snack foods, sugared drinks and fast foods, and discourages purchase of the more expensive fruits and vegetables.
Bert, I just find the assertion “the reason you do not see people starving in the streets is because of the food banks” risible. Really? I’d like to see some empirical data supporting the contention. It is taken for granted here that food banks giving away food to anyone who asks is good policy. I’m simply asking, “Really?”
Frankly, I wish the dynamics of skid row were better documented. Unfortunately, because they are not, discussion devolves into dueling narratives of self-interested parties. I wish public policy decisions were more driven by more than people’s perceptions and feelings. Asking the right questions and evaluating the effectiveness of existing policies ought to be at the heart of these discussions. I don’t see this happening and it makes me uneasy. Here the problem is defined and promptly a solution is presented. I wonder whether the definition of the problem is accurate and whether the solution presented is effective. No one seems to care. I wonder why?
The ‘homeless’ people who I know and have known for years are a pretty fat and happy bunch. Fat being the operative word. But, this discussion treats them as objects of pity not as complex and fallible human beings. This dynamic makes me uneasy.
David, if you’re going to demand empirical evidence, shouldn’t you do the same? What percentage of people living on the street do not go hungry the majority of the time?
nothing to see here, folks! all the “homeless” people that david kennedy knows are fat. his anecdotal evidence trumps yours, so just shut the hell up.
No, Jim. I’m not telling anyone to shut up. No, Jim, I’m not asserting my that my anecdotal evidence trumps everyone else’s. To the contrary, I’m simply asking questions and asking for data before policy is enacted. Seems perfectly reasonable to me.
I’m trying to be fair-minded here. But, yes, my personal experience contradicts the received wisdom about the ‘homeless’. So I ask questions. Seems to be a perfectly normal response to cognitive dissonance. I’m sure you’ve had the same experience in life. I sense you find my questioning to be exasperating.
Frankly, I’d have no problem if the data trumped my experience. If it led to effective policy changes to deal with the social disaster which is skid row, that would be a welcome development for me personally, downtown as a neighborhood, and the people who live in skid row. I find it amazing that people seem to simply accept the situation on skid row, expect to proclaim that just more resources need to be allocated. Basically, reinforce failure. Color me skeptical.
Jordan, I’m no policy expert. Frankly, I’m wary of the experts because they have designed the nightmare which is skid row. I’m simply a citizen who lives in downtown. I’ve got my hands full providing for my family and raising three children. I just find this groupthink pervades these discussions. No one seems to want to ask basic questions like defining ‘homelessness’; ‘How did we get here?’; ‘Is this the best our society can do to deal with the situation?’ I’m just being skeptical. I sense my questions are unwelcome by some of our neighbors since the general response is to dismiss them out of hand.
I was under the impression democracy was about the clash of ideas. It seems some would prefer I simply shut up. Shutting down dissent never struck me as a helpful in formulating better public policy.
I find it fascinating that concern for stockholders inevitably comes up in discussions of corporations doing charitable work. Somehow I believe that donating leftover food might be a better alternative than composting it (and from what I know about composting, meat and other cooked foods are actually not good for compost). I’ve never heard of a large company folding from giving to charity too much. I know that it’s not as simple as “if they’re going to throw it away anyway, someone should make use of it instead of letting it just become more garbage,” but I can’t help thinking— shouldn’t it be? Particularly with Good Samaritan laws in place to protect them?
Doug made an excellent point a few posts ago:
Over production and waste is always a huge issue when it comes to prepared food, and I find it hard to believe that a store would begin to purposely waste food simply because it goes to charity. As I see it, profit motive encourages the reduction of waste, not the increase of it.
I’m not sure it’s productive in this particular instance to get into a grander analysis of What Causes Homelessness. The matter at hand is that edible food is going into the garbage or compost heap instead of into bellies. It’s reminiscent of the way the publishers force bookstores to strip the covers off of the books and throw them out— no one gains any real value from that kind of practice other than the monetary value of producing yet another batch.
To me what we are discussing is the ethics of waste-for-profit and not homelessness itself. We are not saying that we want to force these poor businesses to risk their profit margin for the sake of the homeless, we’re asking them to avoid wasting resources.
Yes, Bert, I agree. It seems like inciting the public here was a poor first choice. Even if there were flippant service workers on site, where is the dialogue? Where is the communication? Did you guys try to get in touch with Terry first before getting everyone into a tissy? How about a statement from him?
This blog is a public forum for any who wish to express their views, personal experiences and/or participate in a public discussion. Laura’s intentions were to gather support for a cause she believes in, after talking with Mr. O’Neil herself.
She has every right to seek community support. Any subsequent debates or prompts of action are purely individual.
If anyone wants a statement from Mr. O”Neil then I suggest picking up the phone - we’ve provided the number.
Mr. O’Neil’s input and rebuttal is welcome.
While I find David’s assumption—that being that simply because he personally doesn’t know any starving homeless people, none therefore exist—offensive, I agree with him that we should rely on empirical data above all else in assessing policy initiatives or in attempting to cajole a particular capitalist entity to do charitable work. He’s asked repeatedly for such evidence. Ask, and you shall receive.
http://www.healthpolicy.ucla.edu/pubs/publication.asp?pubID=92
http://www.news-medical.net/?id=2261
Each of these articles details a 2004 study undertaken by my alma mater, UCLA (specifically the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research), which I hope we can agree is a relatively neutral party (they are neither in the pockets of lobbyists nor in an of themselves a homeless advocacy group). Here’s the critical paragraph:
“Compiled with data from the 2001 California Health Interview Survey, this study found that more than three-quarters of a million low-income adults in Los Angeles County have a difficult time reliably putting enough food on the table and thus are considered “food insecure.” Among these adults, 214,000 suffer from hunger and another 561,000 live at risk for hunger day to day. Most importantly, the study found that food insecurity and hunger are found in all parts of the county. Food insecurity among low-income adults is most likely to affect African Americans (36.1%) and Latinos (33.2%), while one out of four low-income Asian adults (25.4%) and one out of five Whites (20.9%) are estimated to experience food insecurity.”
So, in LA County alone, we have at a bare minimum over 200,000 people who go hungry regularly. I think it is a small thing to ask that food which is literally thrown away instead be handed off to people who are willing and able to distribute it to those in need. We’re not asking Ralphs to make huge expense outlays here. It would be a simple, inexpensive—and possibly cost-saving—change in current store policy, and it would solidify their status as a good neighbor not just to those of us who can afford to shop there, but to the downtown community as a whole. If nothing else, certainly the good PR that would result is in and of itself worth the marginal supposed cost of food donation rather than disposal.
Re “As for people like Mr. Atomic dumping on Alma because she couldn’t care less about this situation, please! She’s a smart cookie in my books for not giving the time of day to people making demands that have nothing to do with her job.”
…I wouldnt not have said anything about this employee but the customer gave her a simple request while Alma was at the register, which was “Hi!” and handed her her pre packaged sandwich. After that this customer must of disapeared into thin air cause thats the treatment she got…as if she didnt exist.
Now as for the way she handled the phone call come on … shes working as a face and voice for the company and atleast needs to realize shes part of the community now (like it or not). Doesnt sound like a smart cookie to me.
End point … Ralph’s is part of the community and our request should be taken into consideration and it just makes sense to provide good food to people who need it no matter how big or small they are.
I guess this company (or location rather) would rather not use good judgement to help out when it can easily be done and get brownie points for their actions.
:( -V
David, your comments are admirable, if misguided. No one’s trying to “solve” the homeless problem with this solution. We can talk about the best way for society to completely solve the homeless problem tomorrow. Today, why don’t we at least see if we can get a few people some food? One step at a time.
> So, in LA County alone, we have
> at a bare minimum over 200,000
> people who go hungry regularly.
Between all the low-income residents in Los Angeles County who actually suffer from obesity, to the folks described in the research below, the issue of people not being able to fill their stomach to the top may not necessarily be the worst thing imaginable.
> The Associated Press
> Jan. 13, 2006
> Researchers at Washington University in St.
> Louis on Thursday released findings of what
> they called the first-ever human study to
> demonstrate the cardiac benefits of a restricted
> calorie diet. The findings, they said, confirmed
> earlier studies of mice and rats—-a very low-
> calorie yet nutritionally balanced diet helps
> the heart age more slowly.
> The study looked at the heart function of
> [Joe] Cordell and 24 other members of an
> organization called the Caloric Restriction
> Society, all ages 41 to 64, and all of whom
> consume 1,400 to 2,000 nutritionally balanced
> calories per day. They were compared to 25
> people who eat a typical Western diet, consuming
> 2,000 to 3,000 daily calories on average.
> The result: Those limiting caloric intake had the
> heart functions of much younger people —
> typically about 15 years younger than their
> ages. Ultrasound exams showed members of
> the group had hearts that appeared more
> elastic than most people their age. Their
> hearts were also able to relax between beats
> in a way similar to hearts in younger people.
> Research on mice and rats indicated that life
> span can be stretched by about 30 percent
> with stringent and consistent caloric restriction,
> researchers said. That research also suggested
> that restricting calories can help prevent cancer.
Ronald Burkle is the billionaire supermarket mogul who built Ralphs from the ground up. Burkle wrote a large check to bring the Democratic convention to LA and wrote a multi-million dollar check to get the convention out of the red. I always thought Ralphs was a socially responsible company until I found out they committed fraud during the grocery store strike. Thank you Laura for writing this article to make us all aware.
I am grateful Donald Sterling is going to build a $50 million homeless center in the heart of Skid Row. Though he is a controversial figure, he lived in Boyle Heights as a boy and wants to give back. Besides calling Ralphs to complain, maybe we should give thanks to Mr. Sterling at the same time.
What if we suggested that they extended their deli hours up to 12 am for a 3 month period so that they have additional opportunity to sell the food. That they can effectively sell their food and then whatever food they have left can be given to the food banks. From the profits of this store, they could open 24 hours in the future so there may not be anything left to give if they start doing this now which would mean they’re making more and gaining less out of it.
Thank you so much for reporting on this. I live nearby and go to this Ralphs frequently, but I’ll be taking my business elsewhere until they change this policy. I can’t believe the wastefulness and greed of throwing away that much food.
So, I put a call through to Terri, he picked up right away and I spoke with him for close to 30min. He informed me that Ralph’s re-uses the food all the way through to the sell by date and at that point they send the expired food to compost. He explained that Ralph’s will not donate any food that they would not sell to their customers. Therefore saying that they aren’t going to donate crap if they won’t sell crap.
He also informed me that Kroger (which own’s Ralph’s) has hired specific personnel to devise a plan/program/way to donate “fresh” food to the hungry. It seems as though they are trying to come up with a way to donate the perishable food items- they do not throw out the food at the end of the day if it can be used again.
I went further and asked if, theoretically, Ralph’s could donate the food that had just hit the sell by date, day of, to food organizations- he said, “yes, theoretically we could and I believe that is what Kroger is working on right now.”
If you’d like to take one step further, contact Kroger at:
513.762.1304 Meghan Glynn Media Relations- she works in part of that personnel department to organize a way to donate fresh food.
They also donate all their non-perishable food items to food banks on a daily basis. But this issue was mainly about the fresh food items.
So, FYI- they are working on a solution, only expired food goes to compost, and theoretically they could (if they could create a productive system- because there are several storage factors and employee issues that need to be addressed) donate food at the end of the sell by date, day.
Good day to you, and All the best.
Thanks, Nicole, for caring enough to call Terry and post what you learned. I am not sure what to make of the differences between what Terry told me and what he told you. For instance:
> He also informed me that Kroger
> (which own’s Ralph’s) has hired
> specific personnel to devise a plan/
> program/way to donate “fresh” food
> to the hungry.
I was not told about any such personnel or plan. I would imagine that if such a plan existed, he would have told me about it.
> they do not throw out the food
> at the end of the day if it can be
> used again.
This is not what I was told. I was told that ALL of the prepared food that is not sold at the end of the day gets composted. My husband was told the same thing by the employee at the store. Other people have commented here that they also were told the same thing.
Maybe I am being a pessimist, but it sounds to me like Terry was just telling you what he thought you wanted to hear to get you off the phone.
I suppose I could look at this another way, convince myself that my post was a success…that, in response to the post, comments and calls, Kroger hired specific personnel to devise a plan/program/way to donate fresh food to the hungry in my neighborhood. I suppose I could also relax now and rest assured that the plan/program/way will not only be devised, but implemented, and that a couple of months from now, when I ask a Ralphs employee, “what do you do with all the copious amounts of prepared food that goes unsold?” they will respond, “we donate it to the L.A. Foodbank!”
However, if Terry tells me he will call Clarissa at the Foodbank and then does not call, then I cannot believe anything he says.
I am encouraged by the majority of the posts here supporting action on Ralphs’ part. I applaud those of you who commented here, forwarded the post, or called Ralphs to question the reasoning behind its refusal to donate the food. My intention here was never to bully Ralphs into anything. Rather, I hoped that instead of Ralphs (through its spokesperson Terry) telling people what it thinks will get them off the phone (and off its back), Ralphs would see this as an opportunity to be a responsible member of this community and at least ~consider~ donating the food. I can think of many ways this might be possible and would have welcomed an informed discussion on the subject even if I ended up convinced that donation simply is not feasible.
An old boss once told me that if you need a matter handled, you don’t talk or reach out to someone low in the hierarchy, you go to the top. Basically the CEO won’t want to deal with the issue, so will send it down the line and have one of his team deal with it.
It appears the Chairman and CEO of Kroger, Inc, is Mr. David Dillon
Kroger, Inc.
1014 Vine St.
Cincinnati, OH 45202
513/762-4000
This might be a better route than contacting Terry.
Leave a Comment