People are mad about empty shelves at Whole Foods

People are going bananas over the lack of fresh produce in some Whole Foods stores across the country.Rogelio V. Solis/Associated Press/File 2017

People are going bananas over the lack of fresh produce in some Whole Foods stores across the country and are posting photos of empty shelves in what has become a rather bad batch of publicity for the grocery chain.

Many shoppers are pointing to Amazon as the culprit for the inventory shortage, assuming the online retailer’s focus on cost-cutting is undermining the efficiency of its recently acquired grocery store. But store employees told Business Insider on Thursday that a new inventory management system was actually to blame.

The logistics platform, which is called order-to-shelf, means food is unloaded directly from trucks onto the store shelves. The goal was to bypass stock rooms and eliminate waste, but its rollout has been both unsuccessful and frustrating for employees.

“Entire aisles are empty at times,” one Brooklyn employee told the publication. The story also included a photo of a Boston store with empty shelves.

Local Whole Foods representatives did not respond to a request for comment, but many Massachusetts shoppers voiced their frustration online (and some have gotten responses from the stores).

@WholeFoods @amazon the prices are still incredibly high and the quality is painfully diminished - I don't understand how it's acceptable to sell rotten produce, assuming it's ever in stock anymore.

— Araxie Miller (@andzayn) January 18, 2018

Noticed this in dedham, mass...

— Lee Gesmer (@gesmer) January 18, 2018

Was at Whole Foods Cambridge, MA Friday. Low produce, rotten produce, no Chandrika soap, no Smartjuice--both great items discontinued!!!! Very upset! ☹️😡
I called the manager and gave them a bad review on Yelp! https://t.co/lDgUHAnFhM

— 🌊Mariel in Boston (@MARIELinBOSTON) January 18, 2018

Have you noticed inventory issues at your local Whole Foods Market? E-mail your experiences or photos to [e-mail].