Okay, a short mention about the store, when naming the store, Whole Foods, chose an incredibly smart name because of the nutritious picture it conjures up in one’s mind. They do carry plenty of whole foods, but so do other grocery stores and farmers’ markets.
Whole plant foods are foods that have not been changed from the time they are harvested to when they are purchased (or picked from your own garden). Whole foods are often found on the perimeter of the grocery store and usually do not require any labels with the exception of the organic label that can be found on organic produce. (Look for 5 digit numbers that begin with a 9 to code for organic.)
Animal foods such as meat, poultry, and fish are also whole foods so long as they have not been altered or refined from their natural state. A whole chicken is a whole food while a chicken nugget is a processed (and often refined) food.
Often people think that whole foods are unprocessed foods. However, some foods need to be processed in order to be edible. These foods are still whole foods though. When sold in the store they might or might not be processed. Beans and rice can be purchased both processed and unprocessed but to be eaten, they need to be processed—cooked. The preferred way to purchase beans and rice is in their unprocessed state to avoid chemicals and excessive processing. Animal foods are processed—slaughtered, defeathered, skinned, etc.—and then sold.
Check out The World’s Healthiest Foods book by George Mateljan or go to his site (http://www.whfoods.com) for hundreds of ideas on how to prepare whole foods in simple tasty ways.
Whole foods are for the most part perimeter foods, unrefined, unpackaged, help to build and maintain health, nutritious, and have no additions in the way chemicals, flavor enhancers, or preservatives. A concise definition of a whole food is given by Evelyn Roehl in her book Whole Food Facts as a food that is “as close to its whole, natural state as possible.”
Nutritive Wellness for a Vibrant Full Life 