....the following are the criterion used to identify, screen and rate regional retail natural food and non-gmo (NoGMO) stores as a part of the Smart Shelter "Sol-Solutions 2002" innitiative....a separate list of those stores follows......(for further information about GMO's and food issues see the resource list provided on the index link)...(all ratings were done independently and prior to any contact with store owners on a "walkin" screening basis)
The list was compiled by Smart Shelter from observations and customer comments from organic food shoppers regarding what they found usefull, necessary or recommendable in a store. No store we found displayed all of these ingredients, all of the ingredients were found in many of the stores surveyed...making this list a reasonable place to start in assuming what the operating criterion for a NoGMO food store should be........

***Are at least 60% of all store stocked items certified organic?
***Are GMO-containing food products destocked as they are listed or identified?
***Are irradiated foods destocked as they are identified?
***Does the Store provide a fresh organic produce section?
***Is Produce at least 60% local or regional sourced (not plastic packaged from california)?
***Are milk substitutes (rice milk, soy milk, soy/rice cheeses, etc) stocked side by side with milk products (not sabatoge stocked in another part of the store)?
***There are usually sufficienct local/regional organic chicken and egg producers to expect those products to be locally sourced...are they?
***Are organic juices, etc. available in glass (versus plastic)?
***Are produce, baked and other locally produced goods labled with the maker's name?
***Is produce labled with its state of origin?
***Is store labeling clear and undeceptive regarding which products are
organic and which are not?
***Are there information sheets available in the store aiding the customer's
education about NoGMO's, etc?
***Are there political action petitions and allerts regarding erosion of safeguards for food posted for participation?
***Is the average store staff more knowledgable about food quality, sources and issues than the average customer?
***Are baked goods handled when available from community bakers?
***Is plastic packaging discouraged for organic products?
***Is coffee organic and fair traded (certified)?
***Is water filtration provided?
***Are bulk oils, etc. available to refil customer's returned containers?
***Does the store reuse clean, returned jars and glassware?
***Is an adequate bulletin board provided for legitimate community, non-profit use (not necessarily the advancement of personal business enterprises)?
***Can specialty items be ordered in a reasonable time?
***Is there prepared food available (deli-restaurant) on the premisis or nearby?
***Are prices within reason for quality food in the area?
***Is food quality kept up...produce freshness, etc?
***Do local organic growers feel that they are supported by having their products handled by the store (store's community reputation)?
***Do the owners live in the community?
***Are all profits from the store kept within the community?
***Does the store train youth and provide adequate food education for the next generation?
***Bulk bins for products are prefferable to arbitrarily sized and priced packages...are they available?
***Does the store engage in sabatoge stocking practices to disappear or disadvantage a highest quality product to secure market for its own brands? (locally refered to as "the Kroger's/ City Market trick")
***Does the store stocking arrangement stay consistent for shopper familiarity and ease (City Market Montrose completly gutted and rearranged their stock twice in one year...not even the staff can find anything)?
***Is all deli produce, soup, foods produced on site? (Kroger's /City Market now ban all local store delis from preparing soup---it's imported from Denver in 5 gallon plastic buckets....and our local soup makers are out of work)

.....got some critereon we need to add here ???...drop an email (address is on our home page.....)