Whole Foods Market has always been a kind of health-nut haven, the house on the hill for the organically inclined. The chain is the US and UK’s largest organic and natural foods retailer, which surprised consumers Wednesday when it suddenly cut prices and turned cash-conscious.

Whole Foods has been known as a spend-more-for-quality-less-on-quantity kind of grocer. It has everything from a salad bar to cheeses from around the world (flags included). Free samples of foods may found lining their cozy aisles across the store. Employees are friendly and as wellbeing-prone as the customers they serve. But all of it used to come at a price.

However, this past week, Whole Foods sought to change all that by launching its “Real Steals” programme, literally highlighting discounted foods around the store. Bright signs under the unsuspecting fruits alert buyers to new prices. Only $2.99/€1.89 for a whole pineapple, and even sausages have been lowered to a mere $4.99/€3.15.

New savings booklets of coupons, and newsletters with stretching-the-dollar recipes are now gracing the checkouts as well. Mara Fleishman, Whole Foods’ special projects coordinator, says that money-saving tips, cost per serving recipes, and menu plans for the week are all offered in the new newsletter. “This inaugural issue also includes timely information on how to milk your back-to-school dollar for all it’s worth and meat-buying tips to help shoppers grill out without getting burned,” said Fleishman.

With prices falling, conventional consumers are capitalizing on the savings. But the question remains if these improvements will convert consumers usually found shopping at more traditional grocers. “We want customers to know there are many ways to continue enjoying quality foods on a budget, even during times of worldwide food inflation,” says Bruce Silverman, Whole Foods’ Market “Value Guru” and global vice president of the Company’s private label programme. “These tools are aimed at helping direct shoppers to the best values in every department in our stores.”

With recipes such as the low fat, sugar-conscious and economic friendly Chicken with Grilled Peach and Chipotle Salsa, I guarantee that the health freak (and budget conscious streak) in everyone will be stirred. Perhaps what has now become costly is not taking advantage of this healthy yet economic approach to grocery-shopping.