Industry News

Foodservice and drinking place sales were up 8.8% during June versus a year earlier, and were up 1.2% from May. Meanwhile, grocery store sales during June, were up 5.4% from May and were 0.7% less than a year ago. Full Report

PepsiCo Beverages North America division saw a 23% increase in volume of noncarbonated beverages such as Gatorade and Aquafina water, which led to a 12% increase in revenue for this quarter. At Frito-Lay, operating profit grew by 7% and the division's revenue was up 8%, largely on strong gains in healthier snacks such as Sun Chips, which saw 20% growth, reported Dallas Morning News. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

A&P continues to focus on the "fresh market" concept, featuring service departments and natural foods, and its no-frills, discount Food Basics stores. In addition, A&P is upgrading its Food Emporium stores to appeal to the most affluent shoppers in select markets and will introduce upscale Food Emporium-branded products, such as $30-a-bottle balsamic vinegar, to its other stores, reported NorthJersey.com. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Tyson Foods, Inc. will implement approximately $200 million in cost reductions, including the elimination of some positions, as part of a strategy to return to profitability. Savings will be generated from reductions in such things as staffing, recruiting, relocation, consulting fees, sales related expenses and supplies, as well as travel. Full Story

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

Today's consumers are less interested in food with a long shelf life, and more attracted to healthful produce that tastes good. Conventional hybridization, rather than genetic modification, is the new trend. Business Week Online examines some of the latest foods crafted to catch the eye and please the palate, such as oversized lettuce and Colorful Harvest's carrots, in red and yellow. Full Story

Three Tampa Bay area Krispy Kreme stores closed on July 3 without notice - New Tampa, Carrollwood and Clearwater.The company continues to re-evaluate its growth and positioning in the U.S., reported Tampa Bay Online. Full Story

Grocer Carter's Inc. shut its 14 Michigan stores and filed for bankruptcy, reported Lansing State Journal. Full Story

The Just Fresh restaurant chain was purchased by The Front Four, a group of Charlotte investors, reported The Charlotte Observer. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Delek US Holdings, parent company of c-store chain MAPCO Express, completed the $42 million acquisition of 40 Fast Petroleum stores throughout northwest Georgia and southeast Tennessee. Full Story

Thousands of beef processing plants opted out of exporting beef rather than submit to inspections by Japanese auditors. While many of the small and mid-sized processing plants want to be in the export market, most smaller plants lack the resources needed to comply with international regulations, reported The Charlotte Observer. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

Three Target stores planned for underserved areas in Chicago are on hold pending the fate of a proposed minimum wage ordinance for employees of "big-box" stores. One city official believes that if the big-box ordinance is passed, Target will cancel the projects or "take a wait-and-see approach" before they come to underserved areas, reported Chicago Tribune. Full Story

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In response to a recent Stagnito Daily Brief survey, 45% of respondents agreed with the statement, "Organic foods are more of a marketing and positioning tool for retailers than a long-term growth category," while 55% disagreed.

Ground was broken for the new State Farmers Market in Columbia, SC. The South Carolina Department of Agriculture will oversee and manage the new market in partnerships with the University of South Carolina which will buy the current market property, reported Southeast Farm Press. Full Story

St. Louis Post-Dispatch examines the Griesedieck Brothers Brewery Corp. Though sales are still small, the company hopes for a big boost when it rolls out bottled beer to bars and restaurants later this year, with an eye toward supermarkets. Full Story

AZCentral.com profiles Berto's, which produces about 45,000 gallons of gelato and sorbet a week of about 200 flavors. The company produces custom flavors such as a strawberry chipotle, prickly pear with rose hips, lavender-crème-fraiche, green tea wasabi and cucumber vodka. The company provides gelato to over 300 restaurants in Phoenix, AZ, and will be sold in 40 states by year's end. Full Story

Eli's Cheesecake Co. will create a Frango mint cheesecake exclusively for Macy's, reported The Chicago Tribune. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

International News

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency confirmed bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in a 50-month-old dairy cow from Alberta. The animal was first reported on Monday, July 10, based on preliminary test results. The entire carcass has been incinerated and did not enter the human or animal feed systems. Full Story

Sobeys Inc. will open six of its locations in Nova Scotia on July 16 in defiance of the province's Sunday shopping ban. Full Story

Unilever's genetically modified fish antifreeze protein for ice cream is being challenged by scientists who represent the Independent Science Panel. They claim the GM protein should not be approved without further tests because of health and safety risks that have not been taken into account, reported FoodNavigator.com. Full Story

The average British male spends £1,144 per year on beer and post-drink snacks, equating to 5% of the average take home pay. The study, by private medical insurer PruHealth, found salesmen are the biggest drinkers spending £1,560 per year on alcoholic drinks and snacks, reported BBC News. Full Story

Health News

A report earlier this week by Defenders of Wildlife, the Center for Science in the Public Interest and the Mercury Policy Project "promises to add to widespread consumer confusion about the safety of seafood and, in the process, do more harm to public health than good for the environment," stated Anne Forristall Luke, President, U.S. Tuna Foundation concerning Defenders of Wildlife survey of canned tuna. Full Story

Washington News

Coca-Cola Co. and its largest bottler began shipping Minute Maid drinks last month to a Texas warehouse run by a major convenience-store chain, deepening a split with other Coke bottlers that sued to block a similar delivery method at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. The plaintiff bottlers, which handle less than 10% of Coke's U.S. volume, filed a subpoena on Valero seeking a deposition and documents about the Minute Maid deliveries, reported The Wall Street Journal. Full Story (WSJ Subscription Required)

H-E-B has issued a recall for all H-E-B brand and Mi Tradicíon brand white and yellow corn tortillas purchased at H-E-B. The voluntary recall is the result of an equipment malfunction, reported Houston Chronicle. Full Story

Market News

NMFS is modifying the timing for harvesters and processors to match harvesting and processing shares and the timing for initiating arbitration proceedings to resolve price and other delivery disputes, to increase resource conservation and economic efficiency in the crab fisheries that are subject to the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Crab Rationalization Program. Full Notice

The 577 allowed trips for general category scallop vessels into the Nantucket Lightship Scallop Access Area are projected to be taken by July 13. The area will be closed to general category vessels until it reopens on June 15, 2007, according to NMFS. Full Notice

NMFS is prohibiting directed fishing for Pacific ocean perch in the Central Aleutian District of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands management area, to prevent exceeding the 2006 Pacific ocean perch total allowable catch. Full Notice