Raley's Takes Shelf Labeling to New Heights

Raley’s has expanded its Shelf Guide transparency program to include 23 icons that can be printed on shelf tags to inform customers about everything from which diets an item is compliant with to whether it contains GMOs. 

The Shelf Guide is backed by science and nutrition experts, as well as real customer data to help shoppers determine which products fit into their diet restrictions and lifestyles, the company said.

The retailer said it spent a year conducting an analysis of Nielsen and customer data to pinpoint consumer demand for healthier products. Raley’s also partnered with Label Insight to review product information, including ingredient certification. 

Photograph courtesy of Raley's

More than two-thirds of the items in Raley’s center store have at least one icon. The retailer has also made recent efforts to better monitor expiration dates, and it cleaned up its private label chicken to be antibiotic-free and use only recyclable packaging. 

Yvette Waters, Raley’s nutrition strategist and brand influencer, said consumers have the right to know what they’re eating, so Raley’s is “looking into a more holistic wellness approach when navigating the aisles.” 

“Raley’s has enhanced standards of what customers should expect from their local grocer,” she said. “We want to give customers easy access to better options for a healthier lifestyle and provide greater transparency in labeling of products on our shelves and online.”

The shelf guide is available both in-store and online. In-store labels can include as many as nine attributes on a single shelf tag and online shoppers can use all icons as filters to search for their preferred items when ordering pickup or delivery. 

Ronak Sheth, Label Insight’s CEO, called Raley’s a “true retail innovator in product transparency,” adding that it is “maximizing the intersection of Label Insight’s rich data set with the consumer’s dual need for convenience and product insights.”

The new labels include:

Raley’s initiative includes a customer education campaign that utilizes animated videos to help customers navigate the shelf labels.