Your Personal Shopper Has Arrived!

Have you ever wandered the aisles of your local supermarket, confused by food labels and nutrition claims, and wondered to yourself "Can't someone just tell me what to buy?" or felt despair at the thought that "I can't figure out what's healthy and not healthy on my own"? If you've been wishing for a personal shopper at the grocery store, someone to sort through your shopping cart and help you determine whether you are making healthy choices, or someone who can offer nutrition advice right in the place where you purchase most of the foods that you bring into your home, you are in luck.

Supermarket Dietitians are a fast-growing subset of the field of Nutrition & Dietetics. Supermarket RDs (Registered Dietitians. Official definition from the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics: "...a food and nutrition expert who has met the minimum academic and professional requirements to qualify for the credential 'RD.'" ) offer a number of services in their stores and communities, including:


Supermarket tours and tasting events
Cooking demonstrations
Guided shopping trips
Group classes and educational events that feature ingredients and products offered in the store
Private counseling sessions
Community outreach events

Whether you are learning how to shop for a specific medical condition that you or a family member are dealing with, or just want to know whether you should focus more on carbs, calories, fat or sugar, a Supermarket RD may offer exactly the guidance you are looking for.

This month's New York Times article by Stephanie Strom, "Employing Dietitians Pays Off for Supermarkets," reports on the growing profession of Supermarket Dietitians and highlights some of the grocery retail chains that are getting in on the action. Read more to find out if your local grocer is offering this invaluable service. Not mentioned in the article is ShopRite, a cooperative of supermarkets located in six states across the Northeast, which boasts a Corporate Dietitian as well as Dietitians on staff at individual sites.

Image: Lydia Perez DeJesus

Have you ever wandered the aisles of your local supermarket, confused by food labels and nutrition claims, and wondered to yourself "Can't someone just tell me what to buy?" or felt despair at the thought that "I can't figure out what's healthy and not healthy on my own"? If you've been wishing for a personal shopper at the grocery store, someone to sort through your shopping cart and help you determine whether you are making healthy choices, or someone who can offer nutrition advice right in the place where you purchase most of the foods that you bring into your home, you are in luck.

Supermarket Dietitians are a fast-growing subset of the field of Nutrition & Dietetics. Supermarket RDs (Registered Dietitians. Official definition from the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics: "...a food and nutrition expert who has met the minimum academic and professional requirements to qualify for the credential 'RD.'" ) offer a number of services in their stores and communities, including:


Supermarket tours and tasting events
Cooking demonstrations
Guided shopping trips
Group classes and educational events that feature ingredients and products offered in the store
Private counseling sessions
Community outreach events

Whether you are learning how to shop for a specific medical condition that you or a family member are dealing with, or just want to know whether you should focus more on carbs, calories, fat or sugar, a Supermarket RD may offer exactly the guidance you are looking for.

This month's New York Times article by Stephanie Strom, "Employing Dietitians Pays Off for Supermarkets," reports on the growing profession of Supermarket Dietitians and highlights some of the grocery retail chains that are getting in on the action. Read more to find out if your local grocer is offering this invaluable service. Not mentioned in the article is ShopRite, a cooperative of supermarkets located in six states across the Northeast, which boasts a Corporate Dietitian as well as Dietitians on staff at individual sites.

Image: Lydia Perez DeJesus