After facing a social media backlash, Whole Foods has pulled one of its products off the shelves: pre-peeled oranges.
“Definitely our mistake,” Whole Foods tweeted. “These have been pulled.”
The kerfuffle was kicked off when twitter user Nathalie Gordon tweeted out “If only nature would find a way to cover these oranges so we didn’t need to waste so much plastic on them” with a picture of the oranges (seen above).
“We hear you, and we will leave them in their natural packaging: the peel,” Whole Foods replied.
Not everyone agreed with the decision to pull the oranges.
“What about the people that actually have problems and cannot peel the oranges themselves? This was apparently useful for them,” wrote @L_Trovato.
Whole Foods sells plenty of vegetables and fruits that are “prepared.” I’m a regular shopper at the store and, when feeling super lazy, have purchased zoodles (although now I have Paderno spiralizer), cauliflower florets, “cole slaw” cabbage, pepper strips and probably other prepared food. On the fruit front, they sell sliced kiwis, strawberries, berries and cut melon.
So why only pull the oranges?
In fact, if a customer is so concerned about the plastic waste, just walk on by the oranges and purchase an orange that is still in tact. Or just buy Snickers bar if you are looking for something to snack on — that’ll show ’em.
