Walmart and Wild Oats Launch Effort to Drive Down Organic Food Prices

Walmart announced that it will carry Wild Oats organic food items. Originally introduced in 1987, Wild Oats will relaunch at Walmart starting this month with a new, more affordable price point on quality products covering a broad variety of categories – from salsa and pasta sauce to quinoa and chicken broth. Customers will save 25% or more when comparing Wild Oats to national brand organic products, say company officials. Wild Oats will feature the following lines at Walmart:

“We know our customers are interested in purchasing organic products and, traditionally, those customers have had to pay more,” says Jack Sinclair, executive vice president of grocery at Walmart U.S. “We are changing that and creating a new price position for organic groceries that increases access. This is part of our ongoing effort to use our scale to deliver quality, affordable groceries to our customers.” The Wild Oats brand meets customer demand for more affordable organic foods. In fact, internal research found that 91% of Walmart shoppers would consider purchasing products from an affordable organic brand at the retailer, say company officials. “By partnering with Walmart, Wild Oats is starting a movement that makes it easier than ever for customers to access affordable organic and natural products,” says Tom Casey, CEO of Wild Oats. “Our availability at Walmart will allow us to finally pass along scalable savings directly to consumers. We are reinvigorating our brand by bringing great tasting Wild Oats products to more customers than ever before.”

Walmart and Wild Oats will introduce nearly 100 products as part of the line, including:

With more than 4,000 stores across the nation selling groceries, Walmart offers a broad assortment of fresh produce, dairy, meat and packaged foods. In addition to growing its organic product offering through Wild Oats, the retailer is expanding its assortment in categories including yogurt, produce, deli and bakery. “At Walmart, we are focused on offering customers choice,” adds Sinclair. “We know our customers count on us to provide them with affordable access to all of the groceries they are looking for. Organics are no exception.” Wild Oats product assortment will vary by store. Walmart.com will also offer Wild Oats later this summer. More information can be found starting today at www.walmart.com/wildoats.