Wal-Mart & How Punxsutawney Phil Ate My Locally Sourced Produce

Source: Fast Company

Some time ago, November 8, 2008 to be exact, I wrote a blog post, Wal-Mart: Alien Resurrection in the Local Food Movement. There I examined Wal-Marts announced goal to provide more local food within their stores. Along with many others, I raised the question: Is this real?  Or is it pure environmental marketing?

At the time, I was generous in my review of their efforts.

The traffic of readers into that post has been somewhat of a barometer to me of the the kick-up of PR activities from Walmart's Heritage Agriculture Program, their pilot local food sourcing program.  So I wasn't too surprised last week to see folks mulling around again when NPR carried the story, "WalMart Helps Small Farms Supply Local Food".

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NPR's story evoked deja vu.  We all agree on the vast impact Wal-Mart could have on the local food movement and, more importantly, the overall food distribution system in the U.S.   As NPR stated so well,

As the world's largest retailer, Wal-Mart greatly influences the products people buy at its own stores as well as other retailers. And a move toward locally grown produce by the retail powerhouse could impact the produce offerings at smaller grocers and supermarkets across the country.

More so than in 2008, the environment and food-miles are a growing part of mainstream consciousness.  And from a corporate perspective, Wal-Mart is deeply aware of the merits of local food sourcing in terms of a critical expense.  From NPR's well-balanced article,

A surprising percentage, on many crops, of the cost of the goods is the freight," says Ron McCormick, the head of Wal-Mart's Heritage Agriculture program.

Admittedly, the challenges are great for even a vast entity like WalMart: The market reality is that only a  minority of local farms have the food safety, legal and business infrastructure to interact with large-scale distributors and the likes of Wal-Mart.

NPR's story and detail rings far too similar to 2008 when Wal-Mart originally mounted their power behind the Heritage Agriculture program.  In fact there's so much deja vu, it feels like Bill Murray's Ground Hog Day movie.

How Punxsutawney Phil Ate My Locally Sourced Produce

Beleive me, I checked the alarm clock and date by my bed again. 

Just like in the movie, there's odd discrepancies that give you a clue that something's awry.  In July 2008,  a Wal-Mart press release cited that 20% of their local produce in summer season was from local sources.  And now here in June 2010, some two years later, NPR reports that Wal-mart says just 6% of its produce is grown in the same state it's sold.

Obviously, I cannot untwine the statistics for summer 2008 vs. WalMart's 2010 (full year? state average?) statistic. However, on the face of it, it looks like not much has happened.

My direct experience verifies little has happened to justify chest-thumping to at least my state within the national audience.  When i visit my local Walmart here in Ocoee, Florida, there's no evidence of any effort whatsoever.  I cannot find that local produce. If it is there, it is not labelled.  For instance, where's the local Zellwood corn that's so fabulous this time of year here in Florida?

Now, unlike a state like Connecticut, here in Florida, we have a long growing season: At least 8-10 different vegetables - cucumbers, eggplants, strawberries to peas and potatoes - many available for seven months of the year. 

But then perhaps Florida is not on WalMart's Strategic State Partners map for this project? It turns out Florida is not. (See second to last slide at Heritage Agricutlture's powerpoint.) It turns out Florida was not there two years ago either when I looked.

When is Bentonville Bustin' a Move toward Real Local Food Sourcing?

Maybe my skepticism is shared and the reason NPR ends its  article on the somewhat diplomatic note, "Wal-Mart won't say what its long-term goal is for the Heritage Agriculture program." 

When a program, such as the Heritage Agriculture Program, stays disconnected from corporate Bentonville's activities over nearly a 2-year span, I  find it difficult to believe it is more than a pure environmental marketing ploy. The same  powerpoint (seemingly not updated or scarsely so) resides on Wal-Mart's oft-used link to the Heritage Agriculture Program that I saw in 2008.

I'd welcome the  counter-views from those of you who live in the program's strategic states. Are you seeing the local, even state-based, food in your local Wal-Mart produce section?  

My friend Punxutawney Phil sez its a few years down the road.