The Trader Joe’s Diet

What is the TJ’s Diet?

I have already introduced you to my friend (“do not call me a cook”) Jill who is on the Trader Joe’s (TJ’s) Diet. What is that? It is a diet consisting of food mainly bought at TJs. The food often comes pre-washed, pre-cut, and pre-prepped so all she needs to do is assemble or heat up her meal per the package instructions. In fact, this is a very popular diet that attracts people who want quality without high costs, and perhaps feel pressed for time or cannot cook, yet are interested in putting healthy food on the table. Additionally, it sells items in portions that can serve 1-4 people without a lot of food waste. So, my curiosity lit up and I found out more about the store.

A Bit About TJ’s, the Store

Trader Joe’s (TJ’s) is a California native company that has blossomed into a nationwide phenomenon. It started in 1958 or 1967 depending upon who and how you ask (1), and is now a subsidiary of German supermarket chain ALDI Nord (a German family owned brand of discount supermarket chains). The bottom line for TJ’s is that, per square foot, they make more money than Whole Foods, according to market news reports.

But not everything is rosy, according to Mother Jones and Wikipedia (2). Because of business secrecy about its operations and branded foods, questions and conspiracies have cropped up that you can research if interested. I did not go into all the details at depth, because it is not related to my topic today.

What is TJ’s Vibe?

The main competitors for Trader Joe’s customers are Whole Foods, Sprouts, Amazon, regional grocery chains, and local natural grocery stores. Unlike some of these stores, TJ’s does not collect customer data, and does not sell online or wholesale (3). Rather than trying to be all things to everyone, TJ’s appears super focused on and appears to know its customers well.

TJ’s has the aura of foodie roots and a quirky in-store culture according to Fortune. They attempt to maintain the “neighborhood market” feel with homey decorations, a small packed footprint, comfy store graphics, very friendly staff, and fewer stocked items. Similar sized stores may stock tens of thousands of items, TJ’s would stock ~5k for instance. Since it carries fewer products, it can sell higher volumes of what they do carry, which means volume discounts that can be passed on to its customers.

The store is kept fresh by introducing (sometimes quirky, many international) new products nearly each week, and keep customers returning by letting popular items phase out, only to be brought back later. While they do not seem to have “sales,” they appear to have everyday low costs. One way they lowered costs is by purchasing directly from national manufacturers or local growers, thus removing distributers as a cost factor. This gives TJ’s a “straight from the field” vibe.

They also sell lots of food under their own brand, in fact, it is reported that up to 80-90% of the items sold in their stores are actually their own brand (4). On the positive side (5), their brand is trusted by TJ’s customers and are cheaper than buying the “real” thing.

What is it about the TJ’s Brand?

While generic company labels are often considered “less than the original,” the TJ’s label has been very successful. Part of their success is related to the secretive nature of their relationships with suppliers. TJ’s brand is trusted by its customers, so when we think it is from them, we trust the product.

We know about some big, well known companies that make many of the foods packaged under TJ’s own brand, based on investigations by news and food reporters (6) (7). For example:

• PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay makes the Pita Chips my household loves
• Naked Juice is a subsidiary of beverage giant PepsiCo; they and TJ’s Juice use the same third-party supplier to create the same smoothie drinks
• On the East Coast much of its yogurt is supplied by Danone’s Stonyfield Farm (8)

This does not matter to most people, as they look at retail quality and price. To me it does matter, for it shows the hidden nature of our homogeneous food production. So Trader Joe’s, like others, have their branded foods created by a few large companies that manufacture or grow nearly all the foods we eat. These type of monopolies have a large role in our unsustainable food environment.

Does this mean we should not buy TJ’s brands? Of course not. The role of our retail food needs must also be taken into account when evaluating what we do with our money and health.

Is it Cheaper?

The TJ’s Diet is cheaper than the box delivery of food and instructions that are available now; cheaper than using GrubHub or DoorDash; and cheaper than some better known grocery outlets. A study in 2016 by the MarketWatch website in the San Francisco Bay Area [noted]— Trader Joe’s was easily the cheapest compared to Safeway, Target, and Whole Foods. It was 32 percent cheaper than Whole Foods. (9)

How Does TJ’s Help Non-Cooks?

Some of what TJ’s sells include: already peeled hard boiled eggs, salad kits (veggies, dressing, toppings), dinner kits, riced food bowls, soups, and all sorts of snack and frozen foods — all geared for the fast meal assemblers who may not be cooks but want flavor, variations, and most of all quick, inexpensive foods.

How Does TJ’s Help Cooks?

When crunched for time, TJ’s has the items that can help you create a “dinner in a hurry.” They have bags of mirepoix ready to go, bags of riced cauliflower, frozen organic rice, shaved Brussel sprouts, steamed lentils, pre-cut beets, crushed garlic, and so on. TJ’s has a bunch of pre-washed and pre-cut veggies which makes meal prepping very easy.

In summary, TJ’s carries lots of the little things that, as cooks, we know we can do ourselves, but if we are in a hurry having them ready to use can save time. Do other stores have these things too? Yes probably, but it is all right there at TJ’s and most likely cheaper.

What to look out for

The issues, cautions, and concerns I have with TJ’s are:

• The store emits the image of a neighborhood grocer specializing in organic, healthy, and unique goods, even though Trader Joe’s rarely, if ever, explicitly affirms these things (10)
• Do not shop there thinking it is a health food store, it is not, so be selective (11)
• Read labels carefully as many foods are full of sodium, sugar, saturated fat, etc.
• The food that may appear “natural” may not be, some are actually highly processed foods
• Buy the food with the least number of ingredients, so it is as close to the actual veggie, cereal, or fruit as possible.
• One web site notes it is better to shop the outer aisles at TJs as they hold the least processed foods, and that TJs often have flashy, eye-catching labels and packages that incorrectly imply health (12)

In Dec 2018 TJ’s announced it would reduce its plastic packaging for more sustainable options. They still wrap lots of their produce, thereby producing a large amount of “one time use” waste, but I do see some improvements.

What Do I Actually Buy There?

Some of the smarter choices at TJ’s include ready-to-eat salads that are portioned for 1-2 meals: Southwestern Chopped Salad (100c per serving), Organic Mediterranean Style Salad Kit (110c per serving), and Spinach & Riced Cauliflower Salad (140c per serving). I know about these salads, because TJ’s Assembler Jill has brought them in for us to eat. Personally, I buy frozen fruits and berries, and veggies (where it has only 1 ingredient).

But my tendency is to not go very often and when I do, it is to get nitrate free hotdogs (I cannot yet give up that occasional hot dog) and bags of frozen riced cauliflower, other veggies and fruit. I have also used their canned salmon for a salad and have tins of sardines. My household, however, loves their pita chips, dunking chocolate chip cookies, their dark chocolate bars, some of their pasta frozen foods, and nuts. Jill often buys their salads and bags of veggies, but also the packets of Avocado, hummus, rice crackers, and dips.

So Where do I Shop?

The stores I shop at, in order, are 1) Monterey Market, 2) El Cerrito Natural Grocery Store (has a butcher shop), and 3) Lucky. Every few months I will hit 4) Costco and 5) Trader Joe’s. Between all these stores I can purchase the things I use.

Hot off the Press

Just as this post was ready to go, I saw that TJ’s was in the news. According to Consumer Reports, TJ’s was the only national chain to earn their top overall satisfaction score based on customer feedback.

What do you think? Have you heard of the Trader Joe’s Diet before? Is there a TJ’s in your neck of the woods that you frequent?

— Patty

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NEWS: 2/12/2019 Whole Foods price tags are headed back up according to an internal company email announcing price increases for 550 products. I do not shop at this store because of its prices, when I can get good quality and organic foods and meats elsewhere for less cost. It really does show however, that people are willing to spend their hard earned money for the foods they perceive as healthier.

Recipes: Korean Chicken + Ramen and Kale Millet Mushroom Pesto Bowl

News: UPI Movie dates will be pricier this year because popcorn costs are going to raise. Popcorn will be in short supply due to the relentless spring rains and flooding that has prevented planting. Popcorn processors estimate 30-40% of the nation’s popcorn fields went unplanted. Unfortunately, those that were able to plant, are seeing their crops grow poorly. So buy your popcorn kernels now, later this year expect a 10-20% price increase.