| Industry
News  About
1.25 billion chicken wing portions, more than 100 million-lbs., will be consumed
this Big Game weekend, according to the National Chicken Council. In 2011, more
than 13.5 billion chicken wings (over three billion-lbs.) will be marketed as
wings. Of these, about 9.5 billion wings will be sold through foodservice channels,
while four billion wings will be sold in retail grocery stores. Full
StoryNew!
The Food Institute reports on what is coming up for the Big Game in the
Feb. 3 edition of the Lempert Report, hosted by Phil Lempert. Global warming
and rising food prices are discussed as well. Click
here to view. BJ's Wholesale Club,
Inc. will explore and evaluate strategic alternatives including a possible
sale of the company, and engaged Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc. as a  financial
adviser. Full
Story About 26% of female Valentine's Day shoppers
will purchase candy for the holiday, according to a PriceGrabber survey. About
18% of men plan to purchase candy for Valentine's Day. Full
Story The Nashville Bun Co. began a $7 million
25,000-sq. ft. expansion project, which is slated to begin production in June.
The company's clients include Kentucky Fried Chicken and Odom Tennessee Pride,
which makes sausage biscuits. It also makes English muffins, biscuits and dinner
rolls for McDonald's restaurants in the Southeast and all O'Charley's restaurants,
reported The Tennessean. Full
Story International
News  World
food prices rose to a historic peak in January for the
seventh consecutive month, according to the updated FAO Food Price Index. The
Index averaged 231 points in January and was up 3.4% from the month prior. Full
Story
Asda was ordered to withdraw television
and newspaper advertisements in the UK for a price guarantee promotion that
the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) alleged were "misleading."
The advertisements, which promised that a basket of goods would cost at least
10% less than at Asda's major competitors, cannot be shown again in their current
form, reported Bloomberg.com. Full
Story, ASA
Judgment Health News An
adult on a 2,000-calorie diet could satisfy recommendations for vegetable and
fruit consumption in the 2010 Dietary Guidelines
for Americans at an average cost of $2.00 to $2.50 per day, or approximately
50 cents per edible cup equivalent, according to ERS. The lowest average price
for any of the 59 fresh and processed fruits included in the study was for fresh
watermelon, at 17 cents per edible cup equivalent. Full
Report Washington
News The
national SNAP participation rate was 66% in 2008, with
state rates varying from an estimated low of 46% (Wyoming) to a high of 94% (Maine),
according to a USDA report. Overall, 20 states had significantly higher rates
than the national average, and in each year from 2006 to 2008 the District of
Columbia, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Oregon, Tennessee, Washington
and West Virginia had significantly higher participation rates than two-thirds
of states. Full
Story, State
Participation Rates 
Pryslak
Growers Inc., Sweet Ones Inc. and V and L Custom Cut Produce Inc. are currently
restricted from operating in the produce industry for failure to pay reparation
awards issued under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act. Full
Story Market News Sugar
fell in New York and London after Tropical Cyclone Yasi
caused less crop damage than first estimated in Australia. Australian raw-sugar
production may drop by 500,000 metric tons because of the storm, claimed an analyst
at Rabobank. Raw sugar for March delivery slid 1.5% to 34.8 cents a pound in New
York after reaching a 30-year high of 36.1 cents on Feb. 2, reported Bloomberg.com.
Full
Story 
Wheat
prices rose Feb. 2 on speculation that a massive storm may have damaged the
Great Plains crop. Farmers' concerns about a dry winter were compounded by subzero
temperatures that may have seriously hurt the quality and quantity of the wheat,
along with worries about the global wheat supply following devastating floods
that damaged Australia's crop, reported The Associated Press. Full
Story |
