Wal-Mart stages marketing appearance to promote locally-grown produce

Not too long ago, I wrote about Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) and the entrance of the world's largest retailer more heavily into locally-grown fresh produce. As a way of differentiating itself, Wal-Mart is really on the right track here. Partnering with local merchants near each community it serves could help repair the rift between small-town merchants and the retailing behemoth that has steadily grown for the last two decades.

The retailer may finally be heeding the advice of many critics. That is, when it does good, it needs to actively market and promote that effort as much as possible. Last week, one of the retailer's locations in Manteca, California along with local growers, put the positive word out about how Wal-Mart is joining with the local merchants to ensure customers can buy produce with confidence. This is great -- but Wal-Mart needs these "workshops" at every location where it has a significant and growing relationship with local food suppliers.

Tiffany Moffatt, Wal-Mart's corporate affairs director for the western U.S. region, stated that "In the (West Sacramento, Calif.) store, we carry more than 120 locally grown products .. our partnerships with local farmers have grown by 50% over the last two years." This is great PR, and Wal-Mart needs even more of it moving forward. When you have local food suppliers describing Wal-Mart as a "a demanding but loyal customer," then one has to guess that Wal-Mart is indeed sowing the seeds to forming new relationships with communities outside its rather boring big-box store presence. Alerting the buying public is the next phase in Wal-Mart's efforts -- and it can't happen soon enough.