that is written like an advertisement . please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view . may 2015 learn how and when to remove this template message united natural foods incorporated unfi type public traded as nasdaq unfi industry naic 42211 wholesale grocery founder michael funk and norman a. cloutier headquarters providence rhode island united states area served united states canada key people michael s. funk chair of the board ; steven l. spinner ceo products wholesale natural organic ethnic and gourmet grocery produce perishables personal care and supplements . revenue us 8.185 billion 2015 operating income us 241.96 million 2015 number of employees 7 300 divisions unfi natural and specialty distribution albert s organics blue marble brands woodstock farms manufacturing natural retail group select nutrition distributors unfi canada slogan driven by nature website www.unfi.com united natural foods incorporated also known as unfi is the leading national distributor of natural and organic foods specialty foods and related products in the united states and canada . the company provides services for retailers and manufacturers including marketing and promotions merchandising category management and store support services . unfi s product line includes dry refrigerated and frozen groceries personal care products supplements fresh produce perishables and non food items such as household cleaning products . unfi s customers include food cooperatives supermarkets natural food stores and niche retailers such as whole foods market in the united states canada and more than forty other countries . unfi has a focus on corporate social responsibility . examples include construction and renovation projects that achieve leed certification use of alternative fuels green teams 1 and purchase of renewable energy from eco electrons . 2 the corporation supports the just label it movement that calls for the labeling of genetically modified and engineered foods . when discussing its philosophy mission and priorities unfi foundation states that it is committed to promoting healthy sustainable and organic food production and consumption and educating people about healthy food choices . contents 1 history 2 organization 3 see also 4 references history edit unfi was founded in 1996 by the merger of two regional distributors mountain people s warehouse founded in 1976 serving the western u.s. and cornucopia natural foods founded in 1977 serving the eastern u.s. forming the first natural products distributorship with national scope . since 1996 other regional distributors have merged with unfi filling in the distribution footprint and making unfi the largest distributor of natural products . in 2007 unfi added specialty products distribution through the acquisition of millbrook distribution services . in 2011 unfi signed a distribution agreement with safeway inc. for the distribution of non proprietary natural organic and specialty products making safeway their second largest customer after whole foods . 3 this agreement was terminated by safeway in july 2015 4 leading to a drop in share price and two rounds of layoffs their first in the history of the company . in 2012 unfi partnered with buyer s best friend to create a unified reordering system . 5 organization edit unfi s distribution operations are divided into seven principal units unfi eastern region unfi western region albert s organics select nutrition unfi canada formerly sunopta distribution group includes aux mille et une saisons honest green tony s fine foods in addition to distribution operations unfi also operates the following divisions blue marble brands earth origins market woodstock farm manufacturing see also edit references edit green initiatives . retrieved 2010 08 02 . commitment to renewable energy . retrieved 2010 08 08 . vosburgh robert . unfi signs up safeway . supermarket news . retrieved september 14 2014 . http www.bloomberg.com news articles 2015 07 21 united natural foods plunges after albertsons contract canceled http www.progressivegrocer.com % 25cat % 25unfi buyers best friend create reordering system retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title united natural foods & oldid 716083839 categories companies listed on nasdaqcompanies based in providence rhode islandorganic foodcompanies based in rhode islandcompanies established in 1996hidden categories articles with a promotional tone from may 2015all articles with a promotional tonepages using infobox company with unsupported parameters navigation menu personal tools not logged intalkcontributionscreate accountlog in namespaces article talk variants views read edit view history more search navigation main pagecontentsfeatured contentcurrent eventsrandom articledonate to wikipediawikipedia store interaction helpabout wikipediacommunity portalrecent changescontact 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