Grocery Stores Help Make Healthy Choices

The second largest food retailer in the nation, Kroger Co., has adapted a new system to help their customers make healthier food choices. In Kentucky, some Kroger Grocery Stores have begun to implement a new nutritional scoring system developed by health experts from Yale University and other institutions. The scoring system rates foods on a scale of 1 to 100, the higher the number, the healthier the food. The system takes into account certain aspects of the foods, such as protein and saturated fat, and either docks points or awards points. These scores are then posted in the aisles of choice grocery stores for all the customers to see.

Certain food retailers, such as Hy-vee, Kroger, and Wegmans Food Markets Inc., are also doing their part to help with nutrition by hiring dietitians to walk around their respective stores and help customers make healthy choices. These dietitians are often also available for hire to help make personalized shopping lists and take clients on personalized tours of the store. Safeway, the third largest food retailer in the nation, is going one step further and allowing customers to sign up for an online program that allows them to view the nutrient levels of the household purchases over the last six months. This is made possible through the use of "loyalty cards", which track customers purchases and allow for discounts.

The actions taken by these businesses and corporations are perfect examples of companies in the Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure industry that have taken on corporate social responsibility. In response to the growing obesity epidemic, corporations such as Kroger, have taken it upon themselves to help the nation understand how to make healthier choices, without forcing it upon them. They are creating opportunities for people to educate themselves on how to stay healthy, and creating opportunities for people to apply this education and live healthier lifestyles.

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