Sprouts Farmers Market Sets Opening Date For Haddon Township Store

HADDON TOWNSHIP, NJ — You can officially count down the days until you can shop at Sprouts Farmers Market in Haddon Township. Sprouts set an opening date for Sept. 8.

The nationwide grocery chain currently only has one New Jersey store — in Marlton. But Sprouts plans to grow its Garden State presence, with locations planned for Washington Township in Gloucester County and Aberdeen on the Jersey Shore.

The Haddon store will be located at 640 W Cuthbert Blvd.

Founded and headquartered in Arizona, Sprouts has about 380 stores nationwide. According to its website, Sprouts opened its first store in 2002 in an effort to make fresh, organic foods less expensive or difficult to find.

"We wanted to be different!" the website says. "No more weaving through a maze of narrow aisles without anyone offering to help. No more ingredient lists featuring 40 unpronounceable chemicals. And most of all, no more spending an entire paycheck for food from the honest effort of a farmer — not a factory."

The chain emphasizes a commitment to "zero waste," participating in a waste-diversion program to provide food for people in need, feed for animals and nutrients for soil. Sprouts, however, has received criticism from farmers who say the "farmers market" label should denote goods that come directly from local farms.