Whole Foods killed its 'Meatless Mondays' discount in several states - and some people are fuming
- Amazon-owned Whole Foods has ended its "Meatless Mondays" promotion, which was offered in several states including New Jersey, Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
- Meatless Mondays allowed shoppers to pay a flat rate of $8 for as much food as they could fit on a single plate, as long as it didn't include meat.
- Some shoppers earned a discount of up to 70% using the deal.
- "For me, this was the nail in the coffin for Whole Foods," said Kristen Angelucci, who spent about $200 weekly at Whole Foods before the end of Meatless Mondays. "This company no longer has a brand identity."
Whole Foods stores have ended a beloved promotion called "Meatless Mondays" that offered steep discounts on vegetarian options from the grocery chain's prepared-food bars.
The deal allowed shoppers to pay a flat rate of $8 for as much food as they could fit on a single plate, as long as it didn't include meat. It was available at Whole Foods stores in several states including New Jersey, Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
The discount was a steal.
Whole Foods charges shoppers by the pound for prepared foods. In Richmond, Virginia, shoppers pay $8.99 per pound of food from Whole Foods' hot bars.
Read more: Whole Foods halts growth of its cheaper '365' stores
The grocery chain's plates can hold more than three pounds of food, which means shoppers could get a discount of up to 70% off a plate of food on Meatless Mondays.
That's all coming to an end now. Signs posted in Whole Foods' stores announce: "A change is on the way. As of December 31, 2018, the $8 flat rate Meatless Monday Program will come to an end. We are excited about the fresh new Meatless options we are working on that will be rolling out in 2019."
Whole Foods declined to comment on this story.
Some shoppers are fuming over the change.
Kristen Angelucci said her family ate dinner at Whole Foods every Monday to take advantage of the deal, then spent about $200 on groceries for the week.
She said she was shocked to find a sign announcing the end of Meatless Mondays at the Whole Foods in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, in December. Shoppers around the hot bar seemed similarly surprised by the news, and some blamed it on Amazon, which acquired Whole Foods in 2017, she said.
"Everyone was saying: 'This is what happens when Amazon buys Whole Foods,'" she said.
Angelucci said she has stopped shopping at Whole Foods as a result of the change. She's now buying her groceries at Wegmans instead.
"Maybe Meatless Mondays wasn't always profitable, but it said Whole Foods stood for something - that it believed in a lifestyle - whether it was profitable or not," she said. "For me, this was the nail in the coffin for Whole Foods. This company no longer has a brand identity."
Pennsylvania Whole Foods shopper Alicia Uhl said she's also disappointed by the news.
"I went to Whole Foods on Mondays a few times a month," she said. "I also hosted a monthly dinner there with my meet-up group for Meatless Mondays. ... I wish instead of discontinuing the program they had simply revised it or updated it in some way."
