Retail News
Excellence Industries opened a 55,000-sq. ft. warehouse
facility in Brook Park, OH. The facility brings the company's
total warehousing capacity to over 200,000-sq. ft. nationally.
Excellence Industries specializes in developing custom solutions
for the food, beverage, spirits and foodservice industries
including innovation, logistics, distribution, leasing, national
service dispatch and recycling. Full
Story
Dollar Tree will install freezers and coolers at 325 stores
this year, reported Morningstar. The company offers
perishables and frozen foods at 2,220 stores, about half of
its total. Food, snacks and beverages were among the company's
top performing segments in its fourth quarter. Full
Story
Wawa is looking to add stores in Washington DC, Baltimore
and Northern Virginia. Meanwhile, Sheetz is focusing on
its existing markets, as well as regions in North Carolina,
reported Washington Business Journal. Full
Story (Free Registration Required) In other Wawa news,
the company has a half-dozen stores under construction
around Orlando, FL slated for a July 18 opening and a
half-dozen more locations lined up in the Tampa Bay area to
open by this time next year, reported Tampa Bay Times.
Full
Story
Seven & I Holdings Co. expects to open as many as 14 more
7-Eleven Inc. stores in Manhattan this year, reported
Crain's New York Business. The company plans to add
20 locations, ranging in size from 1,500-sq. ft. to 3,000-sq.
ft., every year until 2017. Full
Story (Free Registration Required)
New Store News: Save-A-Lot is opening three
stores in Tennessee
in February; four stores in Pennsylvania
in February and March; three stores in Ohio
in February and March; and three stores in New
York in February. ... Nugget Market will open a
45,000-sq. ft. grocery store in Sacramento, CA in 2013, reported
The Sacramento Bee. Full
Story (Free Registration Required) ... Reasor's
will break ground on two stores in Oklahoma, reported Tulsa
World. Full
Story
Pittsburgh, PA-based Wholey's sells 40,000-lbs. of fresh
seafood each week in addition to tons of frozen, canned,
smoked and prepared seafood, reported Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
The 100-year-old store sources many of its items locally.
Full
Story
Manufacturer News
The gluten-free industry grew 27% since 2009
and exceeded $6 billion in 2011, according to Mintel.
Product launches with a gluten-free claim nearly tripled in
2011 to roughly 1,700 products as compared to 2007, according
to Mintel's Global New Products Database. Gluten-free menu
items increased 280% from the third quarter of 2008 to the
third quarter of 2011, noted Mintel Menu Insights. Full
Story
It is "unrealistic" to expect food
prices to come down anytime soon, according to ConAgra's
CEO. The company is seeing commodities costs moderating over
the year or so but the executive does not see it declining,
reported CNBC.com. Full
Story
Campbell is creating new products and product
platforms aligned with what the company's CEO described
as the New American Family: nontraditional, multi-generational,
single-parent and multi-cultural. Campbell plans to introduce
five to six varieties of pouch soups to its Campbell's Go!
Soup line, along with contemporary packaging, graphics and
global flavors. The company will also introduce a new line
of Campbell's Skillet Sauces; a new line of aseptically-packaged
soups called Campbell's Gourmet Bisques; and a broadened range
of soups, stews, chilis and chowders under the Slow Kettle
brand. Full
Story
The American Heart Association (AHA) certified
almonds as a heart-healthy food. The AHA's Heart-Check
mark will appear on almond product packaging. Full
Story
Hormel's Jennie-O Turkey Store was responsible
for 19% of the company's net sales and 38% of the total
segment operating profit, while sales grew 4% and were led
by retail fresh tray pack items and turkey burgers. The Refrigerated
Foods segment declined 44%, due primarily to lower pork operating
margins, and was responsible for 53% of net sales and 26%
of total segment operating profit while the Grocery Products
segment operating profit declined 9%, due primarily to lower
volumes and higher raw material costs. Full
Story
New Product News: Pinnacle
Foods Group's Mrs. Paul's and Van de Kamp's brands launched
ParchmentBake tilapia fillets.
Full
Story ... Inventure
Foods, Inc. added Orange Dream Machine to its line of
Jamba All Natural Smoothies. Full
Story
About 35% of parents report that their children
ages one to five consume two or more cups of juice on
a typical day, according to the The C.S. Mott Children's
Hospital National Poll on Children's Health conducted
by the University of Michigan. Of parents whose household
income is less than $30,000 annually, 49% report that their
children drink two or more cups of juice per day. Some 23%
of parents with household incomes of $100,000 or more report
that their children drink two or more cups of juice per day.
Full
Story
Ferrara Pan Candy Co.
is reportedly in talks to become a part of Farley's & Sathers
Candy Co., according to a source familiar with the talks.
The plan is currently to have Ferrara's CEO in charge of the
merged firm at the end of the deal, reported Chicago Tribune.
Full
Story (Free Registration Required)
Kona Ice has grown into more than 200 franchises
across 41 states; ten new trucks will roll out in nine
states in the beginning of March, reported The Cincinnati
Enquirer. The company is looking to grow internationally.
Full
Story
Manufacturer
News: Bebida Beverage Company was accepted into the McClane
Distribution System. Full
Story ... ConAgra Foods awarded its Hispanic
Shopper Marketing and Consumer Promotions business to marketing
agency MarketVision, which will be involved in all Hispanic
efforts from strategy to execution, across all Hispanic-focused
brands and retail customers. Full
Story ... ExtenData and Intermec
partnered to develop and deliver direct store delivery
solutions for Consumer Goods suppliers. Full
Story
Foodservice
News
Sysco Corporation reached an agreement to purchase European
Imports, Ltd. The company is a full-line specialty food
distributor to the central U.S. with concentration in the
Midwest, Texas, Arizona, Colorado and Atlanta. The acquisition
is expected to be completed in the coming weeks. Full
Story
Restaurant Roundup: Papa
John's International, Inc.'s development pipeline includes
approximately 1,550 restaurants (350 units in North America
and 1,200 units internationally), the majority of which are
scheduled to open over the next six years. Full
Story ... Caribou Coffee Company, Inc. plans to
open between 55 and 70 units in its fiscal 2012, with about
20 being company-owned. Full
Story ... Schlotzky's
Deli signed a franchise agreement with Sac-N-Pac for stores
in Texas, reported San Marcos Mercury. Full
Story ... Panera Bread Co. will open more Panera
Cares Cafe locations after seeing success at the initial Dearborn,
MI restaurant, reported USA Today. Full
Story
Bon Appetit Management Company will roll out a comprehensive
farm animal welfare policy to its more than 400 cafes
in 31 states. Initiatives include: requiring all pork served
to be produced without gestation crate confinement systems;
switching all of its pre-cracked eggs to hens living in cage-free
farms; and entirely eliminating foie gras and veal from calves
confined in crates. Full
Story
Health News
Individuals who drink black tea throughout the day may
get the benefit of a slight reduction in their blood pressure,
according to a study funded by National Health and Medical
Research Council of Australia and Unilever Research and Development,
Vlaardingen, The Netherlands. Full
Story
Heating frying oils may increase the presence
of certain aldehydes in food, according to researchers
from the University of the Basque Country. The oils are believed
to release aldehydes, which can pollute the air and cause
neurodegenerative diseases and some types of cancer, reported
Science Daily. Full
Story
Washington News
Fiscal 2012 agricultural exports are forecast at $131
billion, down $1 billion from the November forecast and
$6.4 billion below fiscal 2011. The forecast for livestock,
poultry and dairy is up $1.9 billion. The fiscal 2012 import
projection is raised to $106.5 billion, a 13% increase from
2011. USDA
Report
Seed companies will get speedier regulatory reviews of
their genetically modified crops under forthcoming rule
changes, according to USDA. The goal is to cut by half the
time needed to approve biotech crops from the current average
of three years. The changes are expected to be published in
the Federal Register in March, reported Bloomberg.com.
Full
Story
Connecticut state lawmakers are considering a bill
to require the labeling of genetically modified foods.
Connecticut is among nearly 20 states considering such a mandate,
reported The Boston Globe. Full
Story (Free Registration Required)
Starting Mar. 15, nearly two-thirds of U.S. agricultural
exports to South Korea will become duty-free under
the bilateral free trade agreement agreed to last October.
The pact is expected to be a boon for California producers
of fruits, vegetables and nuts, reported The Produce News.
Full
Story
Afriplex earned National Organic Product certification
from USDA. Afriplex is Baobab Foods' processing partner
in South Africa, and the certifications the status of Baobest
brand baobab as an organic food. Full
Story
Global News
U.S. agricultural exports to Cuba declined 6% last
year. U.S. sales to Cuba dropped by over 50% since
hitting a peak of $710 million in 2008, according to U.S.-Cuba
Trade and Economic Council, reported Reuters. Full
Story
Massmart Holdings Ltd. is going ahead with implementing
Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s acquisition of a majority stake
in the company while it waits for a ruling from a competition
appeals court. The integration includes adopting the Wal-Mart
greeting standard in the South African stores and aligning
product sourcing, reported The Wall Street Journal.
Full
Story (WSJ Subscription Required)
Market
News
Total frozen fruit stocks were down 9% from last month
but up 2% from a year ago. Total frozen vegetable stocks
were down 8% from last month and down slightly from a year
ago. USDA
Report
Despite reports of some rain damage, Mexico is on
track for another record year of mango shipments,
with excellent quality and brisk movement at the beginning
of the deal. Companies expect to continue receiving ample
volumes of Peruvian mangoes through early March, but volumes
will decline after that with Mexico taking over the deal,
reported The Packer Online. Full
Story
California beekeepers reported that bee losses are
not as devastating as they have been in past years,
but still are around 25%. Nearly one million hives are trucked
into California each winter for pollination services for the
state's multi-million dollar almond industry. California's
more than 750,000 acres of bearing almonds need two strong
colonies per acre to achieve proper pollination, reported
Western Farm Press. Full
Story
Bayer is initiating a global "Bee Care Program"
to further promote bee health. As part of the program,
two dedicated Bayer Bee Care Centers, one in North Carolina
and one in Germany, will be established. The centers will
serve as a scientific and communication platform to consolidate
existing and future bee health projects from Bayer companies
in cooperation with external partners. Full
Story
A mild winter may impact maple syrup production, which
is underway in some states, reported USA Today.
Small amounts of syrup already have been produced in southern
and central Maine. Full
Story
A small Sierra snowpack prompted federal officials to forecast
that growers in California's Fresno Valley this year will
get about a third of the water supply they would normally
receive, reported The Fresno Bee. Full
Story (Free Registration Required)
The International Trade Commission determined that revocation
of the countervailing duty order and antidumping duty order
on fresh and chilled Atlantic salmon from Norway would
not be likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of material
injury to an industry in the U.S. Full
Notice
| 
IGA
Marketing Perspective 
"Thank
you so much for the neat Kitchen Sweepstakes prize. My husband
and I had a ball looking through all the IGA products that
I won." Marcia D. 
