Industry News

Rosina Food Products, Inc. acquired the assets of the San Rallo Pasta business from Mitsui Foods, Inc. Rosina Food Products, Inc. operates facilities in Cheektowaga, NY and West Seneca, NY and produces foods including frozen meatball, sausage and pizza topping products and frozen pasta, eggplant and entree products. Full Story

View Today! The Food Institute reports on economic adulteration in the Dec. 22 edition of the Lempert Report, featuring "Supermarket Guru" Phil Lempert. Football and fresh meat are also discussed. Click here to view.

Bay Grove Capital LLC acquired a cold storage warehouse facility located in Santa Maria, CA. The property is located on a 27 acre site and consists of approximately 335,000-sq. ft. of cold storage and processing space. Full Story

Global Foods Processing Inc. is spending $10 million on building a new plant, which is scheduled to open in 2013. The plant will allow Global to expand its porkloin and other value-added pork products; the company does more than 85% of its business overseas, reported Sioux City Journal. Full Story

Land O' Frost signed an agreement to buy Wimmer's Meats, a provider of specialty sausages and hot dogs. As part of the transaction, Land O'Frost will acquire all of Wimmer's assets including its entire brand portfolio which includes the Wimmer's, Basset's, Fairbury and Ambassador brands and the company's Nebraska manufacturing facility. The purchase is expected to close before the end of next month, reported Southtown Star. Full Story

DeMoulas Supermarkets Inc. plans to operate two stores in Westford, MA within a half mile of each other. One location will be 20,000-sq. ft. larger and have amenities that cannot fit at the Westford Valley Marketplace site, such as prepared foods like panini sandwiches, fresh sushi, cold and hot sub sandwiches and brick-oven pizza, reported The Lowell Sun. Full Story

Latest sales & earnings for food related companies (Updated Daily - FI Membership Required)

Food Institute News

NEW!! The Food Institute's 234-page 2011 edition of Almanac of Dried Fruit and Nuts reports yearly data through the end of 2010 and the 2010/2011 marketing year. A variety of data is included, such as acreage, consumption and production, as well as imports and exports. This new edition contains exclusive Food Institute price trend data collected directly from industry sources as well as data from the U.S. Census Bureau and various industry associations. The book includes data on: almonds, apples, apricots, berries, Brazil nuts, cashews, coconuts, dates, figs, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, peaches, peanuts, pistachios, prunes, raisins, walnuts and several tropical fruits. To view the Table of Contents, click here. To purchase, click here.

* Members only

International News

Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s Asda Supermarkets are performing well during the holidays while other UK retailers warn of below-par holiday sales. Asda's CEO stated that food sales, which account for around 80% of Asda's revenue, are making good progress, reported The Wall Street Journal. Full Story (WSJ Subscription Required)

Britain's food retailers are building or planning to build an additional 44.4 million-sq. ft., according to an analysis of planning applications across the country, reported The Guardian. If all the plans are approved, the UK's supermarket chains' trading space will increase by almost 50% to about 3,000 acres. Scotland is on course for the biggest increase, with plans for 16.7 million-sq. ft. of space. Full Story

Washington News

The National Labor Relations Board finalized a rule accelerating the pace of union elections, with the regulation to take effect Apr. 30. Full Notice

FDA will receive a $50 million increase in funding in fiscal year 2012 to help the agency decide protocols on fresh produce safety. FDA will receive $2.51 billion in appropriations for fiscal year 2012, up $49 million from fiscal year 2011, reported The Packer Online. Full Story

Market News

California grower-shippers reported tepid demand for high-quality celery heading into the winter holidays. Cooler-than-usual weather in mid-December was keeping California celery volumes in check, but markets were still sluggish. On Dec. 20, USDA reported prices of $8.75 to $11.45 for cartons of 2 and 2 1/2 dozen from California, down from $14.45 to $16.65 last year at the same time, reported The Packer Online. Full Story

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