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Last Chance to Register!!! The Food Institute will host a labeling seminar, Food Labeling in Four Easy Pieces: The Basics & Beyond, on May 20, 2009 from 8:30AM - 5PM (EST) at the Marriott Airport Hotel in Newark, NJ. Four sessions will address subjects including The Basics of Food Labeling from A to Z and Label Claims. Featured speakers include Robert A. Hahn, Esq, Principal, Olsson Frank and Weeda; Robert C. Post, PhD, MEd, MSc, USDA's Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion; Regina Hildwine, Senior Director, Science Policy, Labeling and Standards, Grocery Manufacturers Association; and Beatrice Greenberg, Senior Consultant, EAS Consulting Group. To learn more and register for the seminar, click here.
Retail food-at-home prices fell for the third consecutive month during April, driven by lower pork, dairy and cereal prices. This put the annualized inflation rate through May 1 at 4.3%. Food away-from-home prices, meanwhile, rose 0.3%, according to exclusive Food Institute analysis of government data. Full Story (FI Membership Required)
Supermarket industry sales increased 5.2% in 2008, and identical-store sales rose 4.5%, but these gains were offset by the 5.7% food-at-home inflation rate last year, according to the 2009 Food Retailing Industry Speaks: Annual State of the Industry Review released by the Food Marketing Institute. Adjusted for inflation, sales declined 0.5% and identical-store sales 1.2%. Industry net profits decreased to 1.43%, from 1.82%, as companies competed more intensely for fewer consumer dollars in a recessionary economy. Full Story A few Kroger supermarkets rolled out a "Refreshment Center" department, developed by Dr Pepper Snapple Group, that arranges the chain's beverage category into a four-aisle destination. The program designates categories by color: red for carbonated beverages, green for juice and blue for water and sports drinks and in-line headers carry lifestyle images and phrases. Meanwhile, some Kroger stores also installed a similar category management program in the snacks aisle, where color-coded graphics identify six categories - "Fun Favorites" (yellow), "Sensible Snacks" (green), "Kroger Snacks" (blue), "Family Size" (red) and "Multi-Pack" (orange), reported InStore Marketer. Full Story The Pepsi Bottling Group, Inc. signed a Letter of Intent to acquire Pepsi-Cola Bottlers for the Merrimack Valley, Inc., a franchised bottler serving northeastern Massachusetts. Full Story MAPCO Express sold 24 of its Virginia-based convenience stores. An unnamed regional convenience store chain purchased 10 locations, while the remaining stores were sold to various other parties, reported Convenience Store News. Full Story Latest sales & earnings for food related companies (Updated Daily - FI Membership Required)
Supermarket group Asda is set to launch its first virtual store in the UK later this year to exclusively serve its online customers. This is not the first virtual supermarket store to open in the UK. Tesco already has two dot-com shops, based on the same fulfillment model. Full Story China Resources Vanguard will acquire the supermarket chain Yong'an. Upon completion, expected by the end of May, China Resources Vanguard will have 35 outlets in Wuxi, reported China Retail News. Full Story
Daily supplements of a multi-species probiotic food may reduce the risk of eczema by 58%, according to a study published in European Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, reported Food Navigator Europe. Full Story, Study Abstract
President Barack Obama appointed Dr. Thomas Frieden, currently Commissioner of the New York City Health Department, as Director of the CDC. Full Story Amigo's Mexican Food, Inc. initiated a voluntary recall of 4,594-lbs. of red pork tamale products because they may contain undeclared wheat. Full Story
U.S. holdings of fresh-market apples were at 35.5 million bushels on May 1, down from 48.8 million reported on Apr. 1, according to the U.S. Apple Association. The fresh market holdings reflect a 42% increase over May 2008 holdings and 32% more than the five-year average. Processing apple holdings of 14.1 million bushels were 2% below year earlier levels and 2% below the five-year average for the May 1 reporting period. Full Story Exports of Chilean apples to the U.S. fell 17.4% versus last season, according to the Market Intelligence System. To date, 26,707 tons of Chilean apples were shipped to market, compared to 32,614 tons in 2008, reported Fresh Plaza. Full Story
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