City Council lowered the boom on Macrapolis convenience stores Monday by passing legislation that prohibits establishments from claiming to be organic without selling actual organic food.
The passing of Local Law 714 aims to tighten requirements on local convenience stores seeking to go organic. Previous standards for going organic only required establishments to install long clear glass windows, add a fancy awning, and sell hummus and chips in healthy looking packaging and containers.
The new organic standards now require establishments to offer actual fresh organic food. Each store is required to carry at least four fresh vegetable and fresh fruit items, and at least five other non-genetically modified products.
Clarkelyn Councilwoman Melanie Selah, a co-sponsor of the bill, says the legislation will bring justice to the thousands of Macrappers who have been duped by deceptive storeowners.
“With the passing of this law, Macrapolis finally has an opportunity to begin healing from the wounds caused by this predatory practice,” Selah tells The Bluffington Roach. “Macrapolis citizens have the right to know that blue chips and hummus alone do not make someone a healthy vegan. Neither does soy ice cream.”
Most importantly, Selah hopes that the bill will help people overcome the self-deception caused by the explosion of inorganic organic stores.
“Under the old rules, many people felt peer-pressured into shopping at stores with nice awnings, nice glass doors and clear windows — just so they could try and fit in with popular health fads,” Selah says. “People no longer have to pretend to be health conscious by buying extremely over-priced junk food in natural-looking wrapping.”
While the new legislation should offer some relief to consumers, many store-owners say that the bill will have a devastating effect on business.
“This food is expensive. They’re driving us out of business with this madness,” Hamid Al Saud, a local store owner in Found Heights, tells BluffRo. “This is what the people want. How are we going to keep up?”
Al Saud says his corner store enjoyed a huge spike in profits after installing blue chips and clear glass windows two years ago.
He fears that he may be forced to go back to identifying as a regular convenience store. And, he contends that such a move would damage the good reputation that his store has gained with the new demographic of people who have moved into the neighborhood.
“I understand that business owners are worried. But, our first priority is the consumer,” Selah says. “Besides, our committee thoroughly researched the impact of the legislation. And, we found that many people will stop pretending to be super healthy, once so many of these stores stop pretending to be organic.”
Local Law 714 is set to go into effect in September. Businesses will have until January 2015 to adhere to the law’s ordinances before violations will be subject to penalty.
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