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Industry News
Blount Fine Foods broke
ground on a 58,000-sq. ft. expansion to its Fall
River, MA headquarters. The expansion allows for more
production space, the installation of a large soup chiller,
new soup fillers and improved packaging capabilities.
Blount will build cold processing rooms to expand into
the dip, spread and salad business. Full
Story
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Shearer's Foods, Inc. signed a definitive
agreement to acquire Snack Alliance, Inc. and its
Canadian affiliate.
Full Story Register
Today! The Food Institute will
host a webinar, A Look at Merger & Acquisition Activity,
Past, Present and Future, on Thursday, Mar.
11 at 12 p.m. (EST). Featured speakers include David
Schoeder of The Food Partners and Karen G. Bokat, antitrust
lawyer and Consulting Counsel, Wiley Rein LLP. To sign
up and learn more, click
here.
Coca-Cola was named No. 1 on UTEK
Corporation and The wRatings Corporation's quarterly
Strategos/wRatings Innovation Index. Cadbury
was No. 2, the American Italian Pasta Company was No.
3, Unilever Group ranked No. 5 and Lifeway Foods, Inc.
came in at No. 6. Full
Story
Quiznos
is looking to have 700 outlets in c-stores by the  end
of 2012, up from 175 locations currently, according
to The Wall Street Journal. The company plans
to open just as many traditional outlets over the next
two years, reported
CSP Daily News. Full
Story
Bubba
Foods, LLC entered into an agreement to purchase the
Armour- Eckrich production plant in Hastings, NE. Full
Story
PepsiCo
Inc.'s bottler acquisitions will give it a competitive
edge in North America despite
Coca-Cola Co.'s recent plans to enter into a similar
deal, according to company management. PepsiCo also
stated the bottler acquisitions will allow it to pair
its beverage and snack offerings when  distributing
them to retailers and food-service outlets and allow
for more joint promotions, shared display space and
product bundling, reported The Wall Street Journal.
Full
Story (WSJ Subscription Required)
International News
The
European Commission intends to come up with a proposal
by summer to allow Member
States more choice in  deciding
whether to cultivate genetically modified organisms.
Under the current legal framework, the Commission also
adopted two decisions concerning the genetically modified
Amflora potato: the first authorizes the cultivation
of Amflora in the EU for industrial use, and the second
relates to the use of Amflora's starch by-products as
feed. Full
Story
Japan's
government may cut agricultural tariffs to promote
free-trade agreements and reduce corporate taxes to
make Japan more competitive and enticing for foreign
investment, according to a draft report, reported The
Japan Times. Full
Story
Health News
 U.S.
children snack almost three times a day
and get about 27% of their daily calories from snack
foods, according to a study published in Health Affairs.
Dessert foods and sweet drinks
remain the most popular foods between meals. About 98%
of children reported snacking in 2006, compared with
74%
in 1977, reported Bloomberg.com. Full
Story
Washington News
"New regulations on sodium content
of processed and prepared foods might be necessary"
if the food industry does
not voluntarily reduce salt content in processed foods,
stated CDC director Thomas Frieden in an editorial published
in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Full
Editorial
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A
Look at Merger & Acquisition Activity, Past,
Present and Future
A
Food Institute Webinar
There
have been over 2,500 divestitures involving
the food industry over the past decade.
Following tepid activity last year due to
economic conditions, many analysts see an
increase in activity this year and beyond.
This webinar, scheduled for Thursday, Mar.
11 at 12 p.m. (EST), will review recent
activity in M & As, which The Food Institute
has been tracking since 1928. You will also
hear from The Food Partners about how companies
are evaluated in this process and what makes
them appealing to sell and to buy. To sign
up for the webinar or learn more, click
here.
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USDA introduced the Trade Adjustment
Assistance for Farmers Program to help American
agricultural producers adjust to the challenging economic
environment. Full
Story
Market News
Maine lobstermen caught 75.6 million-lbs.
last year, up 8% from 2008, according to the Maine
Department of Marine Resources. However, the value of
the catch fell $23 million to $221.7 million, reported
The Associated Press. Full
Story
U.S. ports should receive normal
shipments of Chilean fruit until the second week of
March, but after that, the effects of the earthquake
could severely cut access. Cold storages have broken
down and vineyards and other infrastructure suffered
damaged, reported The Packer Online. Full
Story (Subscription Required)
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