Walmart Revives Wild Oats Brand

The U.S.’s largest grocer, Walmart, will re-launch the Wild Oats organic brand with a range of more than 100 food products.

The original Wild Oats brand, which was launched in 1987, was an operator of natural and organic food stores and farmers markets. The company also had a range of branded food items throughout North America until a merger withe Whole Foods in 2009 fell through and the brand and its stores disappeared.

Now Wild Oats is returning to shelves in a broad variety of products from salsa and pasta sauce to quinoa and chicken broth that will be available exclusively at Walmart beginning this month.

Wild Oats products will appear in three ranges: Wild Oats Marketplace Organic (making up nearly 90 percent of the line), which adhere to USDA guidelines for organic certification; Wild Oats Marketplace, which includes products with simple and real ingredients such as ready-to-prepare skillet meals; and Wild Oats Marketplace Originals, which will include uniquely formulated items available later this year.

And, because its Walmart, cost savings are involved as well, with the company saying that customers will save 25 percent or more when they compare Wild Oats to other national organic brand products.

“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, grocery, 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.”