May 16, 2011

IFDA News

Wallace McCain, the mogul and philanthropist who helped turn a small New Brunswick french fry plant into the McCain Foods multibillion-dollar frozen foods empire, died Friday night in Toronto after a 14-month battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 81. "What he built in business is now part of our history. But what should be known as well was his infectious sense of humour, his compassion and his generosity to so many causes dedicated to making the lives of Canadians better," said former Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin in a statement. Full Story

Operator News

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is looking to reshape its billion-dollar food and beverage concession business to emphasize Southern cuisine, reported Atlanta Business Chronicle. The airport will begin holding discussions on future plans this summer. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Escape Enterprises Ltd. signed a franchise deal with CMH Hospitality Inc. to put 10 more Steak Escape restaurants around Central Ohio. The additions will be Steak Escape Grilles, the chain's newest design with a drive-through service window and an expanded menu that includes burgers and other dishes, reported Business First of Columbus. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Habit Burger Grill plans to open three restaurants in metro Phoenix this year with long-term development plans for as many as 15 locations, reported The Arizona Republic. Full Story

Retail News

Companies including Target and Supervalu are testing a new type of refrigerant designed to reduce leakage from coolers and freezers, lower greenhouse gas emissions and reduce the cost of operations. The technical name of the new refrigerant is 1,1,1,2-tetrafluoroethane, but it is more commonly called R-134a. Target is testing the R-134a refrigerant in 11 of its stores in six states with the help of EPA, reported The Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Responding to a question about the ethics of supermarket shopper cards, The New York Times Magazine column The Ethicist stated: "Your supermarket is not ... tracking you without your knowledge. The card reflects a contract of sorts between you and the store, whereby you accept payment for your data - 25 cents off bananas, or a two-for-one deal on conditioner." Full Story (Subscription Required)

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. may abandon efforts to buy control of Massmart Holdings Ltd. if South Africa forces local procurement conditions on the retailers, reported Bloomberg Businessweek. Full Story

Industry News

Quick response (QR) codes can be read by about 30 million U.S. smartphone users, and with nearly one-third claiming they use them, an increasing number of food firms are implementing the technology. For example, Pacific Foods is rolling out QR codes on its Soup Starter products that offer a recipe and ingredient list. The top motivation for users is getting a coupon (53%), followed by getting more information (52%), reported The Wall Street Journal. Full Story (WSJ Subscription Required)

General Mills is considering building a 1.5 million-sq. ft. distribution and warehouse operation in Fort Wayne, IN, reported Journal Gazette. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Campbell Soup is moving away from discounting its products to put more emphasis on innovation and advertising, according to its CEO, reported The Wall Street Journal. The executive noted, "except for a blizzard, advertising is the next best way to get people to think of soup again." Full Story (WSJ Subscription Required)

Hormel Foods plans to expand its SPAM plant in Fremont, NE beginning this summer, reported KGWN.com. Full Story

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

Asian consumers are willing to take the time to visit a number of retail outlets to fulfill their shopping needs. Hypermarkets are typically a monthly destination, where consumers stock up on essentials, while visits to supermarkets tend to occur weekly. Convenience stores are impulse destinations, places to buy a beverage or food to go. Mini-marts tend to be the places where consumers shop to "top up" groceries, reported Nielsen. Full Story

China's central government is allowing the press more latitude in reporting on food safety as it tries to crack down on illegal additives, reported The Washington Post. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Washington News

Functional foods and health claims are scrutinized by The New York Times on the Web. "If people can't rely on even the most trusted food brands to have good science backing up their claims, who can they rely on?" asks the director of the advertising practices division at FTC. Meanwhile, Pomegranate juice marketer Pom Wonderful filed a lawsuit, contending that FTC is overstepping its authority and setting new standards for advertising of foods and dietary supplements. FTC filed its own claims, which an administrative law judge in Washington is scheduled to hear on May 24. Full Story (Subscription Required)

Melatonin is the prominent ingredient in at least a half-dozen baked goods under names including Lazy Cakes, Kush Cakes and Lulla Pies, reported The New York Times on the Web. The products are sold online and at retailers including like 7-Eleven and Walgreens. Although FDA has not approved melatonin as a food additive or deemed it safe, products are being promoted as a harmless way to promote relaxation. An FDA spokesman noted the agency "has not made a determination on Lazy Cakes' status as either a food or a dietary supplement." Full Story (Subscription Required)

The National Labor Relations Board will hold a union election at a Target store in Valley Stream, NY in June. The election will reportedly be the first at a Target store since 1990, when a union drive failed at a Detroit store, reported Crain's New York Business. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Market News

The 13 major potato states held 65.7 million cwt of potatoes in storage May 1, down 27% from a year ago, noted USDA. Potatoes in storage accounted for 19% of the 2010 fall storage states' production, four percentage points below the year prior. Processors in the nine major states used 144 million cwt of potatoes this season, up 1% from the same period last year. Dehydrating usage accounted for 22.7 million cwt of the total processing, down 15% from last year. Potato Stocks

ATO/Sao Paulo forecasts the Brazilian coffee production for marketing year 2011/12 at 49.2 million 60-kg bags, down 10% from last season, due to the off-year of the biennial production cycle of the Arabica trees. In 2011/12 coffee exports are forecast at 28 million bags, down six million bags compared to 2010/11, due to likely lower availability of the product. FAS Report

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