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Pilgrim's Pride Corp., which holds about a quarter of the U.S. chicken market, may not meet the terms of its loan agreements, which means it could be forced to repay its debts faster than expected and possibly be subject to penalties. Pilgrim's Pride Corp. expects to post a "significant loss" in its fiscal fourth quarter caused by high animal feed costs and is trying to negotiate new terms with its lenders, reported The Associated Press. Full Story  Nearly 47% of fast casual operators plan to start other fast casual concepts, according to the 2009 Fast Casual State of the Industry Report, published by Fast Casual magazine and FastCasual.com. Nearly 55% of operators expressed concern about QSRs entering the fast casual marketplace, and more than 40% of operators spend 4% to 5% of gross sales on marketing efforts. Full Story Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company's stockholders approved the merger agreement with Mars, Incorporated. Wrigley will become a subsidiary of Mars, Incorporated in a move that will create a $27 billion food company. Full Story
Saxbys Coffee Worldwide will acquire 16-unit Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. committed to reduce its global plastic shopping bag waste by an average of 33% per store by 2013, a move that is expected to eliminate more than 135 million pounds of plastic waste globally. Wal-Mart will reduce the number of bags given out by its stores, encourage the use of reusable bags and give customers the ability to continue recycling plastic shopping bags. Full Story
The Hong Kong government found traces of melamine in baby cereals and crackers
made in China, reported Excite News. Full
Story
Meanwhile, Heinz is taking the precautionary measure of recalling 270 cases
of baby food in Hong Kong because of trace levels of melamine. All other
Heinz varieties were found to be melamine-free. Full
Story Moderate consumption of dark chocolate can help to decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease, according to an Italian study published in Journal of Nutrition. Consumption of small or moderate amounts of dark chocolate was associated with a decreased CVD risk by 33% among women and 26% among men, reported LiveScience. Full Story
U.S. Sens. Tom Carper (D-DE) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) introduced the Labeling Education and Nutrition Act, which would require restaurants and grocery stores that serve prepared foods and have 20 or more locations to disclose calories for each menu item. Under the bill, calories will be posted directly on the menu, menu board or in one of the approved alternative ways, such as a menu insert or a sign directly next to the menu board. Full Story FDA's efforts to combat food-borne illness are hampered by infrequent inspections, not enough staff and the failure to implement a program devoted to the safety of fresh produce, according to a Government Accountability Office report reviewed by The Associated Press. Only 1% of produce imported into the U.S. is inspected, according to the report. From 2000 to 2007, FDA detected food safety problems at more than 40% of the 2,002 plants inspected, yet half of those plants were inspected only once during the period. The plants with food-safety problems received only warning letters from FDA, and those ended in 2005. Full Story
There were 4,685 farmers markets in the U.S. in August 2008, reported USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS). This represents a 6.8% increase since mid-August 2006, when AMS reported 4,385 farmers markets nationwide. Full Story Horseradish yields are above average in California's Tulelake region, although only one load of horseradish is going to eastern markets this year due to high shipping costs, reported California Farm Bureau.  |
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