Wal-Mart Promotes Healthy Fare
By Peter Berlinski

Above: GV fruit preserves are now available in sugarfree varieties that are sweetened with Splenda. Below: GV Altern is Wal-Mart’s alternative to Splenda. Altern is available in granular form as well as in individual packets.?

The Great Value brand finds it’s kosher to shed calories, trans fats, and become gluten-free.

“This year we are focusing on introducing more healthy food lines including sugar-free, low-calorie, and trans-fat free items,” says Bob Anderson, vice president, proprietary brands, for Wal-Mart Stores, Bentonville, AR. Anderson oversees the management and development of Wal-Mart’s Great Value grocery line of products that is reported to be the largest selling brand in the U.S. grocery market according to the Boston Consulting Group. In 2004, the group reported that the Great Value brand represented $5 billion in sales.

In addition to Anderson, also serving on the great Value team are Great Value buyers Randy Reeves and Les Shufelt, packaging manager Sheryl Baker, and quality assurance manager Jubal Hausam.

Focus on Health

Under the Great Value label, Wal-Mart has introduced a new line of fruit preserves that are sugar-free and sweetened with Splenda. Products like red raspberry preserves contain 80% fewer calories than regular preserves. In fact the sugar-free version contains 10 calories per serving.

Speaking of sugar alternatives, Wal-Mart has introduced its version of Splenda under the Great Value label with the sub-brand Altern and the tag line “No Calorie Sweetener.” Altern is available in both a granular form and in 9.7 ounce reclosable package and in individual packets in a 200-count container.
Another new line under the Great Value label is the sub-brand Healthy 4 You condensed soups that are low in sodium, 100% fat free and no cholesterol. Varieties include cream of mushroom, tomato and chicken noodle.

Other lite products introduced this year include no-sugar added ice creams, sugar-free chocolate syrup, and 10-ounce six-packs of lite apple juice.

Consumer-Friendly Packaging

“This year under the Great Value label we are focusing on introducing more healthy food lines including sugar-free, low-calorie, and trans-fat free items.” -Bob Anderson

“We are looking to make our Great Value packaging more educational and provide the kind of information that our customers are telling us is important to them in selecting what products to buy,” points out Anderson.

One major label change undertaken this year has been the identification of all Great Value items that are “gluten-free.” Of the nearly 1,300 items in the Great Value portfolio, about 900 are labeled gluten-free.
In addition to gluten-free, Wal-Mart also identifies which of its food products are certified as Kosher which in the Great Value line includes more 1,100 items.

Anderson notes that other label changes include enlarging the type size and improving graphics to make Great Value labels more reader-friendly for senior citizens.

Call-outs on package fronts for a number of Great Value items indicate the number of calories per serving and the number of grams of trans fat per serving.

Another packaging innovation is single-serve microweable plastic bowls of shelf-stable vegetables such as beans, corn, and mixed vegetables. “We are ahead of the national brands with this line,” says Anderson. He notes that Wal-Mart is working on a number of other food items to introduce in single-serve packaging

Wal-Mart is working with packaging suppliers to develop microwaveable packaging for many of its Great Value products. A new microwaveable package that is worth noting under the Great Value brand is its microwaveable bottle Pancake & Waffle Syrup in a 24-ounce size. The front label contains a temperature indicator that “tells you when it’s hot!”

Wal-Mart Facts

Worldwide, Wal-Mart posted sales of $312 billion in fiscal 2006 with a store count of 5,743 units including 2,000 Supercenters and 560 Sam’s Clubs. Groceries account for 30% of total sales. One-third of its store force is now located outside the U.S. with stores in Asia, Europe, Central and South America.

In the United Kingdom, Wal-Mart operates 300 Asda supermarkets plus 5 Asda Living Stores (non-food products) and 10 George Stores (apparel). In Germany it operates 88 Wal-Mart Supercenters. In China, Wal-Mart operates 55 stores including both Supercenters and Sam’s Club. It is interesting to note that Wal-Mart imports about $15 billion in goods annually from China.

In partnership with GE Finance and Discover Card, Wal-Mart has introduced its own private label credit card-The Wal-Mart Discover card, which made its debut in 2005.