Update on Udi’s Gluten-Free at Kroger
Subscribe Form
RSS

Get Notified When We Update!

Feb 18 2011

Update on Udi’s Gluten-Free at Kroger

When I wrote about Kroger’s gluten-free list and Udi’s products being carried in their stores last week, I received a lot of comments letting me know that many Kroger stores were not carrying the Udi’s products.   I sent an email to my contact at Udi’s Gluten-Free and wanted to share the response that I received back from them:

Hi Kimberly!

Thanks for the post about the cookies. I just talked to our Kroger rep and we sent cookies to all the Kroger stores that have our bakery rack and this does include the KS, Ralphs, Etc., but two things may be happening here:

1.) People still don’t know to look for our rack in the bakery section and that is sometimes because Kroger stores will carry us on the rack in the bakery and also keep a few skus in the freezer

2.) Some stores that do not have racks will order products because it shows up that they can order the products

The solution:

All Kroger stores and their counterparts have the ability to order the entire line of Udi’s Gluten Free products. If a customer cannot find the cookies in the bakery section either on our branded rack, on the store’s bakery shelf, or in the freezer then they can request that the store manager places an order.

Let me know if anyone comes at you with any further questions!

Thanks,

Jillian Massa
Social Media Coordinator

So, from the email it seems that maybe contact with the store manager may be the only thing that needs to be done for those stores to carry the whole line, or some of Udi’s products.  Consider printing out the information contained in this post to help with any confusion with the manager at the store.

I hope that this helps those of you who are having a problem finding the Udi’s products close by.

  • RSS

Article Written by:

Kimberly Bouldin is a gluten-free wife, runner & blogger with two children in Columbus, Ohio. After her celiac diagnosis in 2006, she has made it her mission to embrace an entirely new approach to nutrition in a gluten-free world, exploring options that run the gamut from "made from scratch" homemade bread to sampling and reviewing the gluten-free prepared foods that are continuously being introduced to the market. While navigating the waters of becoming gluten-free, Kim shares her experiences and passes along valuable product reviews in addition to helping other moms of celiac kids develop healthy menus that are kid-friendly and palatable. Kimberly is a valuable resource for those who are newly diagnosed, as well as for the more seasoned gluten-free veterans. Follow @KBouldin on Twitter

Related Posts

  • Udi’s Gluten-Free Now in Kroger’s Nationwide
  • Kroger’s Private Label Gluten-free List
  • Update on Nature’s Own Gluten-free Bread
  • Panera Bread Menu Update–September 2011
  • Joyce

    After reading your post the other day, I did some investigating myself. Locally we have 2 Kroger stores within 20 miles of each other. One store carries Udi’s and has their display rack in the Nature’s Market section. The other store (which is closer to my home) does not carry Udi’s at all.
    I called that store to inquire about why they don’t carry Udi’s. I spoke with the section manager and he explained why they cannot get some items. My understanding of his explanation is that vendors purchase shelf space in their stores. This is done only through the corporate office. Once corporate approves the vendor, corporate will send someone into that Kroger store to set up the shelves. I think he called this “sets” and the local store has to abide by the corporate “sets”. He told me the local store has no control over what vendors are allowed. He said they cannot just order an item because I asked them to.
    If this is true about corporate (I have heard that same story from more than one person), I can’t understand why one store would carry the product and another store can’t get it. He did indicated that shelf space is a big factor and his store is smaller in display area than the other store.
    It’s not been an easy process here, but I’m going to keep trying until I get some satisfactory results.

    • http://celiac-disease.com Kyle Eslick

      It is my understanding that if they have the product in their system, the local store can carry it. If some Krogers stores carry the bread it should be available to any Kroger store.

      Of course this seems to be the problem with the big supermarket chains or really large corporate businesses in general. It is difficult to actually get things done. You may want to get with your local support group and see if there is any interest in some type of petition or maybe if enough people complained to the management it may be easier to get them to carry the product you want. After all it is in their best interest to carry the products that consumers want.

      In my local area we don’t have a Kroger’s foods but instead have Hy-Vee foods grocery stores. They are employee owned so may work a little different, but they are a huge chain throughout the Midwest with hundreds of stores and they all carry different products, especially in their health foods sections. We’ve had a lot of luck getting them to carry the products we want to buy simply by speaking with the manager of that particular store. They bring it in and if it sells they keep offering it.

      In fact, I would add that the biggest problem we have at my grocery store is that both Udi’s and Rudi’s breads are so popular that they sell out quickly and the store has to put some other product in its place until the next shipment comes in. :)

  • Kimberly K

    Our store didn’t carry udi’s for a while as well. I inquired about it at the customer service desk. They gave me the name and phone number for the head of the bakery department. I called when I got home (she was out to lunch when I was in the store) and she told me they did have the ability to order Udi’s. They weren’t provided with a display rack, ours is a somewhat smaller store. However, they have it out on the shelves in our bakery section of the store. I made sure I passed the word on about it to all my gluten free friends in our town. They’ve been carrying all the products ever since. This was before Thanksgiving. I LOVE it!