Whole Foods Market® will open its new Leaside store, located at 1860 Bayview Ave. in Toronto, Wednesday, April 26, at 9 a.m. The 45,100 square-foot store marks the sixth location in the greater Toronto area.
“Whole Foods Market Leaside will be a one-stop-shop for kitchen creators, featuring the best tasting natural and organic grocery staples as well as that hard-to-find ingredient,” says Cristina DosSantos, Store Team Leader, Whole Foods Market Leaside. “For shoppers on-the-go, we’ll have a variety of delicious meals from our chef-driven prepared food options such as seasonal salads, custom sandwiches, traditional and modern tacos and Neapolitan-style pizza, all made without artificial colours, preservatives and sweeteners.”
The new Whole Foods Market features a variety of delicious prepared foods venues as well as classic Whole Foods Market favourites for shoppers to choose from, including:
- Taco Station will feature custom tacos, burritos and bowls made with the freshest ingredients.
- Sandwich and Burger Station will highlight delicious burger creations and crispy fries; as well as signature, handcrafted sandwiches piled with the best tasting natural and organic offerings.
- Neapolitan Style Self-Service Pizza will offer slices made with unbleached and unbromated flour and cooked in less than seven minutes.
- Coffee Bar will feature light, medium and dark roasted coffees, espresso drinks and blended beverages, and smoothies.
- Freshly made sushi will offer a variety of specialty rolls, including those made with brown or whole grain rice created in-house by experts.
- Salad and Hot Bars will emphasize freshly prepared salads, build-your-own salad fixings and seasonal hot entrees.
- Bulk Department will provide dried back-to-basics pantry items to meet all novice and experienced chef needs.
- Full Scratch Bakery will highlight a wide variety of freshly baked breads and pastries, including croissants, muffins, cookies, cakes and more.
With a large variety of custom-cut meats, organic and local produce, and pantry staples, Whole Foods Market Leaside is the go-to grocer for every level of food explorers. Highlights include:
- More than 100 varieties of natural, organic and local cheeses.
- A vast selection of fresh seafood and shellfish, all harvested using sustainable practices.
- A large variety of custom-cut meats from in-house butchers.
- An expanded offering of vegetarian and vegan choices.
- A large selection of luxurious natural body care items and cosmetics including bulk soaps.
- Advanced nutritional supplements and vitamins made with only natural ingredients.
- A beautiful selection of Whole Trade fresh-cut flowers and plants.
- Essential grocery staples, including Whole Foods Market’s own 365 Everyday Value® signature line of products, offering the same high standards for taste and quality at everyday low prices.
To celebrate opening day, Whole Foods Market will host its version of a ribbon cutting called a “Bread-Breaking Ceremony” with Whole Foods Market Team Members and Leaside neighbours beginning at 8:45 a.m. Doors open and shopping officially begins at 9 a.m. The first 500 customers through the doors will receive a Whole Foods Market gift card with a mystery value between $5 and $500 with one lucky customer winning the $500 amount.
Whole Foods Market Difference
Whole Foods Market’s unparalleled Quality Standards ensure that the food, supplements, body care and cleaning products sold meet a higher standard — one that bans more than 400 ingredients commonly found in other stores as well as numerous manufacturing, farming, fishing and ranching practices that don’t measure up; Whole Foods Market standards aren’t standard anywhere else.
Organics beyond one aisle. Whole Foods Market does more to promote organic agriculture and products than any other grocer. With clear expectations for food producers of all scale throughout the supply chain, Whole Foods Market fostered the growth of the natural and organic food industry as a whole; increasing production and availability of organic products to shoppers.
Responsibly Grown farming practices. We worked with scientists and growers to develop our Responsibly Grown program. This program addresses some of the serious challenges facing agriculture today. It bans the use of eight of the most hazardous neurotoxins commonly found in conventional agriculture, rewards growers for sustainable farming practices and helps shoppers make more informed produce and floral choices.
Animal Welfare standards and transparency. From how animals are raised to freshness and flavour, Whole Foods Market works with producers to continually assess and improve standards. Ranches and farms producing meat for Whole Foods Market must meet these rigorous animal welfare standards, and processing facilities must pass annual third-party audits that assess animal welfare and food safety. In addition to species-specific standards, Whole Foods Market has general animal welfare standards that ensure animals have enough space to perform normal behaviours and that prohibit confinement or tethering that prevents freedom of movement.
Wild-Caught Seafood, sustainably sourced. Working with scientists, fishermen, government agencies and environmental organizations such as the Marine Stewardship Council to gather information about fisheries, Whole Foods Market experts ensure customers can make the best environmental choices when purchasing seafood. To promote responsible fishing, the wild-caught seafood is certified sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council or rated either “Green” or “Yellow” by Monterey Bay Aquarium and The Safina Center. Whole Foods Market does not sell seafood from red-rated fisheries and prohibits treating seafood with preservatives. It looks fresh, because it is fresh.
Farmed seafood, done right. Recognized by the Responsibly Farmed logo, Whole Foods Market provides a consistent, high quality, year-round supply of healthy and delicious protein, raised by farmers who are leaders in environmentally responsible aquaculture. Created after intensive, multi-year processes that included extensive research on fish and mollusk farming, review of all the best available science, consultation with the top scientists and environmental organizations, and visits to farms worldwide, Whole Foods Market Responsibly Farmed seafood program requires traceability from farm to store, allowing shoppers to make conscious choices when purchasing farmed seafood.
Whole Foods Market has five other locations in the Toronto area: 3997 Hwy No. 7 in Markham, 155 Square One Drive in Mississauga, 301 Cornwall Road in Oakville; and 4771 Yonge Street and 87 Avenue Road in Toronto.
