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Panera Bread Co is in talks to open its bakery-cafes in retail stores. "We understand that there are a lot of big-box retailers that may be willing to shrink part of their box ... We're talking to some people ... we may test that," stated Panera co-COO William Moreton. The executive declined to identify potential partners, but stated any agreement would be with a retailer of "similar quality." The company is looking to open new locations in urban areas and California, reported Reuters. Full Story

Flavor developers such as Symrise AG claim orders are rising for exotic vanillas and Brazilian citrus as cash-strapped consumers trade down to less expensive products. In vogue for 2009 will be exotic fruits, including persimmon and starfruit, according to Mintel. Fresh, soothing aromas with a touch of spice will become popular in many home and personal products. For flavorings, chicken tikka masala, based on one of the most popular Indian curry dishes in the UK, could attract consumers across the globe, reported Bloomberg.com. Full Story

The nutraceutical soft drinks segment is expected to maintain growth, with sales expected to rise at high single digit rate until 2013 due to a growing international focus by multinationals, according to a report released by Zenith International. The segment demand rose by 9% in 2008, with the momentum expected to remain stable. Full Story

Unilever Foodsolutions will close its Wichita, KS plant this summer as the company transitions away from its custom-produced foods business, reported Wichita Business Journal. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Mergers are not a current focus at Constellation Brands Inc, according to CEO Robert Sands. However, Mr. Sands noted the company would look at the wine business Altria Group Inc gained through its purchase of UST if those properties came up for sale, reported Reuters. Full Story

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

New Product News: Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market will introduce larger sized products including family-sized egg cartons with 18 eggs, a jumbo-sized fresh pizza, larger packs of fish and family-sized snacks and hot dogs. In addition, the company launched six new prepared meals priced at $8, including a 44-oz. Lasagna with Meat Sauce. Full Story ... Manufacturers of Weight Watchers retail food products introduced 13 new products in categories including baked goods, frozen products and cheeses. Full Story ... Applegate Farms introduced Gluten-Free Breaded Chicken Nuggets. Full Story ... Applegate Farms also introduced Antibiotic-Free Chicken Patties, available in packages of four. Full Story ... Hilton Soy Foods developed Soybutter, a peanut-free peanut butter replacement. Full Story ... FreshDirect added three new entree choices to its Tabla line of 4-Minute Meals: Masala-Spiced Macaroni with Creamy Spinach & Paneer, Vegetable Curry with Pistachio Brown Rice and Chicken Coconut Curry with Basmati Rice. Full Story

While not offering specifics, Andrew H. Madsen, president and COO of Darden Restaurants Inc., noted that its prices in the first half of their fiscal year that begins this May are "likely to be in the lower half of (the) 2% to 3% range...given the environment that we're in with the value cautiousness on the consumer side," reported Seekingalpha.com. Full Story

Hormel Foods Corp is registering some signs that customer traffic trends at restaurants are improving. "We're seeing in our results and hearing from some of our customers that their local-based businesses, the [comparisons] aren't as negative as they were," stated CEO Jeffrey Ettinger, reported Reuters. Full Story

Hot Stuff Foods will offer hot food options and fast food items at more than 200 Mansfield Oil Co. convenience stores, reported CSP Daily News. Full Story

Shari's Management Corp acquired four Bakers Square restaurants from VICORP Restaurants Inc. Full Story

Beverage Code Blue and its creators were profiled by Crain's New York Business. The drink was introduced in New York City in January and has since expanded to the Boston area. The three owners, Michael Sachs, Jeff Frumin and his brother Steven, worked with Gatorade co-developer Sumner Katz to develop the drink, which contains electrolytes, vitamins and minerals as well as a blend of agave nectar and prickly pear juice, which the executives claim have anti-inflammatory properties. The drink is currently sold in Duane Reade stores in New York City. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Ecolean created an aseptic beverage package that is made of a flexible multi-layered polymer film consisting of 60% polyethylene and polypropylene and 40% calcium carbonate. The package weighs 14 grams, which is a 40 to 50% reduction on a conventional liquid food carton or bottle, reported Food Production Daily. Full Story

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New Store News: BJ's Restaurants, Inc. opened a restaurant in Gainesville, FL. Full Story ... Organic To Go opened its first grab & go location franchise within San Diego International Airport. Full Story ... Two SuperFresh stores in Philadelphia, PA that were not converted to the Pathmark Save-A-Center banner will reveal new updated looks later this month, reported Supermarket News. Full Story ... A 17,000-sq. ft. Save-A-Lot opened in Richmond, VA, reported Washington Business Journal. Full Story (Free Registration Required) ... PriceRite will open a 42,000-sq. ft. store in Buffalo, NY on Mar. 22, reported Business First of Buffalo. Full Story (Free Registration Required) ... Foster's Grille will open a 2,628-sq. ft store in Falls Church, VA, reported Washington Business Journal. Full Story (Free Registration Required) ... Steak Escape opened its first location in Bahrain. A second Bahrain location is scheduled to open in April, reported QSR Magazine. Full Story

RECORDING NOW AVAILABLE!!! Where are food prices headed in 2009, and what impact will they have on your business? The Food Institute explored this issue in its Where Are Food Prices Headed In 2009 Webinar. The webinar featured USDA economist Ephraim Leibtag and Kenneth Zaslow, CFA, Managing Director Food & Agribusiness Research BMO Capital Markets. To purchase a recording of this webinar, click here.

The share of private label brands in the European Union is as high as 48% in traditional retailers and 94% in discounters, according to the Confederation of the Food and Drink Industries of the EU. Further, almost every top 30 retailer in Europe saw an increase in private label share between 2006 and 2007, reported Food Navigator Europe. Full Story

Swiss exports of cheese and chocolate fell by almost 20% and 30% respectively, according to the country's Federal Customs Administration, reported International Herald Tribune. Full Story

Executives from Campbell Soup Co, Hormel Foods Corp and Sara Lee Corp detailed their international expansion efforts. Hormel, for example, is planning to develop a "mid-tier brand" in China, stated CEO Jeffrey Ettinger, reported Reuters. Full Story

Japan should aim to become an exporter of rice in the next decade, according to Masayoshi Honma, a professor at the University of Tokyo and member of a government advisory panel. Japan must reform its agricultural policy and aim for global competitiveness in rice exports, which could ignite its agricultural sector and make the country less import dependent, Mr. Honma claimed, reported Reuters. Full Story

Kellogg Company CEO David Mackay is urging lawmakers to overhaul the nation's food safety system. Mr. Mackay wants food safety placed under a new leader in the Health and Human Services department and called for new requirements that all food companies have written safety plans. The executive is also calling for annual federal inspections of facilities that make high-risk foods, reported The Associated Press. Full Story

U.S. officials are assessing the cost of the new Mexican tariffs that apply to 36 agricultural and 53 industrial products, including onions, strawberries, pears, potatoes, soy sauce,shampoo, toothpaste, and pet food. The only item facing a 45% tax is fresh grapes. Some 55 other products will be taxed at 20%, and the remaining 33 items at 10 to 15%, according to The Associated Press. Full Story, Mexico's DIARIO OFICIAL (See Pages 50 and 51)

The U.S. needs to do more to prevent contaminated products from being imported into the U.S. food supply from China, according to Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, head of the appropriations subcommittee that oversees USDA and FDA. Ms. DeLauro also stated that Washington needs to urgently update its own food safety laws after a series of food recalls and consumer deaths, reported Reuters. Full Story NEW FROM THE FOOD INSTITUTE! The Food Institute is making available for purchase the Food Products Recall Manual - 3rd Edition, authored by Olsson Frank Weeda Terman Bode Matz PC. The all-new and completely updated publication includes a discussion of the USDA/FSIS new recall directive, new reporting and recordkeeping requirements under the Bioterrorism Act, the FDA Amendments Act, and the Dietary Supplement and Nonprescription Drug Consumer Protection Act. For more information and to order a copy of this just-released book, click here.

Drug Fair Group, Inc. and its parent company CDI Group, Inc. filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. In connection with the Chapter 11 filing, Drug Fair entered into an agreement with a subsidiary of Walgreen Co. to sell all of its assets associated with 32 of its stores. Full Story

Georgia lawmakers moved quickly on a bill to make Georgia the first state to require food makers to swiftly alert state inspectors if their internal tests show their products are tainted. The proposed food safety regulations, which would require the food processors to report the results within 24 hours, empowers the Georgia Department of Agriculture to order more tests at the processor's expense if necessary. It also sets up regulations aimed at encouraging more regular testing of the products, reported MSNBC. Full Story

The list of manufacturers who are voluntarily recalling peanut butter items in association with Peanut Butter of America's Salmonella outbreak expanded. Full Story ... FDA's searchable database for the recalled products can be found here.

The Nation Pork Producers Council claimed that legislation that was introduced in Congress banning the use of animal health products would be detrimental to the health and well-being of pigs, would increase pork producers' production costs and the price consumers pay for pork. Full Story

Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) claims that bisphenol A (BPA) does not cause cancer and low levels of the packaging chemical do not pose a significant health risk. Officials at the North American Metal Packaging Alliance urged U.S. legislators to consider the FSANZ findings when addressing legislation aiming to ban BPA in food and drink containers, reported Food Production Daily. Full Story

FDA is seeking comments on its Voluntary Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point Manuals for Operators and Regulators of Retail and Food Service Establishments, according to a Federal Register pre-publication notice. The Operator's Manual contains information and recommendations for operators of retail and foodservice establishments who wish to develop and implement a voluntary food safety management system based on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles. The Regulator's Manual contains recommendations for state, local, and tribal regulators on conducting risk-based inspections of retail and foodservice establishments, including recommendations about recordkeeping practices that can assist operators in preventing foodborne illness. Full Notice The Food Institute recently launched online HACCP training. Click here for details on the course.

The broiler production estimate for 2009 is now 35.8 billion-lbs., down 3.1% from 2008. First-quarter 2009 turkey meat production is estimated at 1.46 billion-lbs., down almost 5% from a year earlier, according to ERS. Ending stocks for January showed a doubling in whole turkey stocks. Table egg production rose for the second consecutive month after declining in 22 of the previous 23 months. ERS Report

Despite price increases of 20-25% on some seed products, farmers are purchasing seeds at a good pace ahead of the spring planting season for corn and soybeans, according to Brett Begemann, executive vice president of Monsanto's global commercial business. However, U.S. farmers were slower to buy seed this year than in the past, and Monsanto was expecting to see a decline in U.S. corn plantings this spring, noted Mr. Begemann. The company is expecting an increase in soybean acres, reported Reuters. Full Story

Competition is increasing in the U.S. corn market, with Monsanto Co. and DuPont Co's Pioneer Hi-Bred introducing new seed products and increasing their focus on the crop. Monsanto, seeing less revenue from its herbicide business, is pushing drought-tolerant corn while Pioneer is attempting to breed corn with a greater tolerance of weed-killing treatments and insect resistance, reported Reuters. Full Story

The California blueberry harvest will be a bit later than expected in the wake of a cold front that effected some bushes in full bloom. Fruit damage, however, was minimal, grower-shippers stated, reported The Packer Online. Full Story (Subscription Required)

Constellation Brands Inc expects its 2009 Australian grape harvest to fall about 10% to 1.6 million metric tons, an estimate that could help the industry, according to chief executive Robert Sands. The U.S. grape harvest for last year declined about 10%, leading to a balance in supply and demand, and a smaller Australian harvest would help reduce the grape surplus pressuring prices, Mr. Sands claimed, reported Reuters. Full Story

Cylindrocladium black rot (CBR) continues to slowly spread across the Southeastern peanut production belt, threatening Virginia type peanuts. Yield losses from CBR can be severe, in some cases in excess of 50% yield loss. On Virginia-type peanuts CBR can have a devastating impact on peanut quality, reported Southeast Farm Press. Full Story

The Department of Water Resources will increase the 2009 California State Water Project delivery allocation to 20%. Late winter storms increased snowpack to near 90% of normal, but water storage in the state's major reservoirs and runoff projections remain well below average. The precipitation was only enough to allow a 5% increase from the initial allocation of 15% in December 2008. Full Story

Community-supported fisheries (CSF) are becoming more popular throughout the Northeast U.S. CSFs work in much the same way for fishermen as CSAs (community-supported agriculture) do for farmers, with many of the same benefits. Participants sign up, pay a flat fee for the season, then receive a weekly share of all seafood caught, reported The Boston Globe. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

USDA offers to purchase canned carrots, corn and spinach. Offers are due by 1:00 p.m. (CT), Mar. 27. View Details