July 14, 2008

Operator News

Starbucks will roll out Vivanno, a $3.75 fruit smoothie made with one whole banana, juice, ice, and protein and fiber powder. It has no artificial colors or flavors, and no added sweeteners, and it contains 250 to 270 calories, depending on the flavor, reported USA Today. Full Story

Meanwhile, Stabucks revealed the list of stores that will close by the end of July. Full Story

Ice cream truck businesses are trying new tactics to adapt to higher fuel costs. Kansas City, MO-based Frosty Treats is buying smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles and posted signs on its trucks that encourage customers to give tips. An ice cream truck operator in Dundas, MN, is finding events where the truck can be parked instead of selling ice cream by driving around the neighborhoods, reported TwinCities.com. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Retail News

The keep-it-basic formula has worked well for Save-A-Lot, allowing it to expand to more than 1,000 stores, mostly serving lower-income neighborhoods. "They have a message that's right on point, given today's economic environment," said Jim Hertel, Managing Partner, Willard Bishop. Although Save-A-Lot does not release specific sales or earnings figures, Mr. Hertel estimated that same-store sales figures are up in the high single digits, as much as 9%. While the chain hopes to expand its core customer base, it also hopes to attract higher-earning shoppers who are being pinched by high prices, according to St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Full Story

The first collaborative store between A&P and Best Cellars opened in Westwood, NJ, incorporating key elements of Best Cellars' novel, taste-based approach to marketing wine, beer and spirits. The store organizes most of its 1,500 bottles by taste, using instantly understandable words, icons and colors, rather than by place of origin or grape type. The next such stores slated to open is in West Orange, NJ, followed by Fort Lee, NJ, where the format will be presented within an A&P supermarket. Full Release

Aldi is moving aggressively into Central Florida with the opening of its first outlet in St. Petersburg. The store is set to open this fall along with seven other locations in Pinellas County, reported the St. Petersburg Times. Full Story

The economy changed many Toledo-area shoppers' grocery-buying habits, and stores are catering to them. For example, Meijer Inc. stores use specials and reductions on higher-priced staples, like milk or bread, to lure customers, reported The Toledo Blade. Full Story

Tesco may launch a new range of its own-brand products in the fall. The retailer currently sells Value and Finest branded products, but is reportedly looking at ways to lower the price of its standard ranges without affecting the taste, reported The Press Association. Full Story

Industry News

InBev and Anheuser-Busch reached an agreement to combine the two companies. Anheuser-Busch shareholders will receive $70 per share in cash, for an aggregate equity value of $52 billion. The combined company will be called Anheuser-Busch InBev. Full Story

Latest sales & earnings for food related companies (Updated Daily)

There is a small, but persistent new consumer demographic called the "Never Greens," who either do not care or are not interested in America's new passion for sustainable, green products, reported Brandweek. About 10% of the population are Never Greens, according to a survey by Mintel International. The Never Greens do not buy green products, do not remember green advertising when they see it and are irritated by it even if they do, according to Mintel. Full Story

G. Willi-Food International Ltd.'s U.S. subsidiary, WF Kosher Food Distributors Ltd., ceased operations effective immediately. Full Story

A new food-delivery service, Pure Food 2 U, prepares meals for more than 100 customers using locally grown, organic foods. Revenue for Pure Food's first year is projected at $550,000, as the company continues to find a growing market of customers that demand fresh and healthy meals, according to a profile of the operation by Crain's Detroit Business. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

In June, British manufacturers raised prices 0.9%, the fastest annual pace in at least two decades to combat record cost inflation, according to the Office for National Statistics. More than half June's rise was attributed to soaring food and petrol costs, up 11.8% and 34.2% respectively over the year, reported The Herald. Full Story

China is set to become one of the world's largest producer of bulk wine as well as a major force in fine wine, experts are forecasting. Chinese wine currently has a low profile outside of Asia, but this is all set to change, claim wine merchants Berry Brothers & Rudd, as investments and technical expertise increases, reported BBC News. Full Story

Washington News

Hired farmworkers make up a third of the total agricultural labor force and are critical to U.S. agricultural production, particularly in labor-intensive sectors such as fruits and vegetables, notes a just-released report from USDA's Economic Research Service. The hired farmworker labor market is unique because it includes a large population of relatively disadvantaged and often unauthorized workers, a portion of whom migrate to, and within, the U.S. Recent economic and demographic trends, such as changing agricultural production methods that permit year-round employment, expanding immigrant populations in nonmetropolitan counties, and growing concerns over U.S. immigration policies, have elicited increased interest in hired farmworkers. This 2008 profile serves as an update to the 2000 Economic Research Service analysis of the 1998 Current Population Survey using current data with expanded sections on legal status, poverty, housing, and use of social services. Full Report

USDA is making available $28.4 million for research and extension projects in fiscal year 2008 to address the critical needs of the specialty crop industry by developing and disseminating science-based tools to address needs of specific crops. Full Story

USDA is proposing to amend its Organic National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances to reflect one recommendation submitted by the National Organic Standards Board to allow Methionine for use in organic poultry production until Oct. 1, 2010. The move was prompted by a petition to extend its use because the organic poultry industry was unable to develop suitable non-synthetic alternatives for synthetic Methionine in organic poultry diets. Full Notice

Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) requested USDA's inspector general investigate why the Bush administration claims biofuels were a minor factor in rising food costs when a former USDA economist maintains that biofuels caused a 23% - 35% increase in food costs, noted The New York Times on the Web. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

As new energy standards mandated by Congress will eliminate low efficiency light bulbs from store shelves in favor of more energy efficient products, Congress asked FTC to consider the effectiveness of current lamp labeling and alternative labeling disclosures to help consumers understand new high-efficiency lamp products. As the initial step in this effort, FTC is seeking comments on existing lamp labeling requirements and possible alternatives and will hold a public roundtable meeting on Sept. 15. FTC Release, Federal Register Notice

Market News

In June, volume in the overall tomato category decreased 17% compared to a year-ago, while dollar sales fell 5.4% to $136.3 million, according to data collected nationwide from 15,000 traditional supermarkets by the Perishables Group. Meanwhile, volume of field-grown roma and red, round tomatoes, varieties implicated by FDA in the outbreak, decreased 46.1%, while dollar sales dropped 36.2%, noted the Perishables Group, reported The Packer Online. Full Story (Subscription Required)

Mexico's Agriculture Department claims its tests found no salmonella in Mexican tomatoes, reported The Associated Press. Full Story

New Mexico's jalapeno crop is a month away from harvest and therefore not part of the latest salmonella warning. But some in the pepper business worry negative publicity could hurt an already struggling industry, as New Mexico's farmers are working to stay in business amid increased foreign chili imports and high production costs, reported The Modesto Bee. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

The price California dairy farmers earn for milk will drop about 23 cents per gallon on Aug. 1, which more than offsets the 20-cent increase that went into effect at the start of this month. Declines in cheese, dry milk and whey markets led to the reduced milk prices, according to the California Farm Bureau.

Peruvian asparagus exports to the U.S. are forecasted to increase by 8%-10% for the 2008-09 season, according to the Peruvian Asparagus Importer's Association. In 2007, the U.S. imported more than 273 million-lbs. of fresh- market asparagus, of which Peruvian asparagus represented over 56% of the total world supply, reported The Produce News. Full Story

EPA will require new mitigation measures for several soil fumigants to increase protection for agricultural workers and bystanders. The fumigants, which include methyl bromide, chloropicrin, dazomet, metam sodium, and metam potassium, are used on a wide range of crops, primarily potatoes, tomatoes, strawberries, carrots, and peppers. Full Story

Oils from herbs and spices like oregano, thyme, cinnamon and clove contain powerful antimicrobials, which may be strong enough to help stop such foodborne pathogens such as E. coli O157:H7, according to Agricultural Research Service chemists. Full Story

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