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Industry
News
Food-at-home prices rose 0.5% during
October from the prior month, but were only 2.3% above
the comparable month last year. Food away from home
prices rose 0.3% during the month and were up 3.4% from
October 2005, according to just released government
data. Full
Story
Pathmark Stores, Inc. joined Topco Associates LLC,
a privately-held national cooperative that helps its
members leverage their collective volume in realizing
cost efficiencies in the area of product procurement.
Pathmark will participate in Topco's private label programs
involving Grocery, Health and Beauty Care, General Merchandise,
Frozen, Dairy and Bakery. Full
Story
Taco Bell Corp. will convert all of its more than
4,200 single brand U.S. restaurants to a new zero grams
trans fat canola oil for frying from a partially
hydrogenated soybean oil. The transition to zero grams
trans fat canola oil is already complete in more than
100 restaurants. All Taco Bell restaurants nationwide
are expected to be transitioned to zero grams trans
fat frying oil by Apr. 2007. Full
Story
 According
to McDonald's Corp., the chain is making "very good
progress" toward developing a healthier oil for french
fries in its U.S. restaurants, however there is
no timetable for when a switch will be made. If New
York passes a proposed ordinance to ban eateries from
serving food containing trans fat, McDonald's will be
ready to comply, reported AZcentral.com. Full
Story
Meanwhile, McDonald's Corp. is focusing on breakfast
for growth. In the U.S., the company is developing
specialty coffees, a breakfast burrito and cinnamon
bun offerings, chief executive Jim Skinner said. Also
in the pipeline are new chicken salad and chicken snack
wrap offerings. Full
Story , McDonald's
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The Asmussen Waxler Group and Venture
Marketing, Inc. - also doing business as The Foodservice
Connection and Perimeter Marketing - intend to merge
into a single entity, Venture Marketing LLC. The new
company is expected to be operational in January. Full
Story
AllergyKids products will be available in all 75
Wild Oats stores across the country. AllergyKids
created a universal symbol for food allergies and an
associated product line to identify children with food
allergies in order to prevent accidental allergic reactions.
Full
Story
The Hartman Group's Hartbeat identifies
four major aspects of an effective retail experience
including: having a critical mass of the right products
that are uncomplicated, ease of movement through the
store, information integration and aesthetics that stimulate
and convey a sense of relaxed elegance. Full
Story
To spur sales, Tully's is offering new pastries
from Alki Bakery and switching from Hershey's to Ghirardelli
chocolate in its drinks. New chief executive John
Buller doubts Tully's can turn a profit until it has
more than its current stable of 123 stores, but it can't
afford to add new stores without more cash. So, Buller
aims to drive sales up quickly to prove it can be done,
then find more investors to propel store growth, reported
The Seattle Times. Full
Story
Through a wholly owned subsidiary, One Liberty Properties
Inc. acquired a portfolio consisting of eight gas stations
with related convenience stores located in Louisiana
and Mississippi. Full
Story
Latest
sales & earnings for food related companies
(Updated Daily)
The majority of participants in PARADE magazine's
2006 "What America Eats" survey have made
healthful changes in their food choices. More than
half are consuming more vegetables, fruits, salads and
chicken and cutting back on sweets. At least four in
10 of the survey respondents are choosing smaller portions,
reducing total calories, eating low-fat foods or eating
smaller meals. Full
Story
Noble Roman's, Inc. signed a 40 unit area
development agreement for its Noble Roman's Pizza
and Tuscano's Italian Style Subs concept. The units
will be developed in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky over
the next six years. Full
Story
More than 70 restaurants in Oregon and Washington
joined 175 restaurants in California in supporting The
Humane Society of the United States' boycott of Canadian
seafood. The Humane Society launched the boycott
in March 2005 to encourage ending the annual Canadian
seal hunt, reported Portland Business Journal.
Full
Story (Free Registration Required)
The pipeline of potential acquisitions
for fiscal 2007 appears very promising for The Pantry,
Inc. and it expects to acquire at least as many
stores this year as in fiscal 2006 when it acquired
113 convenience stores. Full
Story
Maines Paper and Food Service plans to build
a 76,655-sq. ft distribution facility in Conklin,
NY, according to Press & Sun-Bulletin. Full
Story
Oceanport, NJ-based Silkworth's Salsa
is now sold in about 40 stores, most of them in Monmouth
County, NJ, and is profiled by the Asbury Park
Press. Full
Story
Willy Wonka launched WonkaZoid, a
handheld refillable candy dispenser with a one-of-a-kind
video game that features Wonka characters. Full
Story
As the bulk of South New Jersey's cranberry
business goes towards juicers and canners, Mary Ann
Thompson's farm reintroduced native heirloom varieties
marketed to local fresh markets, reported The
Philadelphia Inquirer. Full
Story (Free Registration Required)
International News
European
health ministers from 53 countries approved the world's
first charter to fight obesity, vowing greater action
against the epidemic of expanding waistlines across
the continent. Full
Story
Hong Kong and Mainland media reported that the major
shareholder of Wumart is under the probe of Chinese
government for a number of possible offenses involving
property dealings. The authority is also scrutinizing
the start-up funding of Wumart, which operates 500 retail
outlets including hypermarkets, supermarkets and convenience
stores in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebe, reported Forbes.com.
Full
Story
 Nissin
Food Products Co. will launch a public tender offer
for Myojo Foods Co. to stop a hostile takeover
by a U.S. investment fund. Steel Partners Japan
Strategic Fund announced last month it would launch
a public tender offer of 700 yen per share for all of
Myojo's outstanding shares. Myojo's board of directors
has approved Nissin's takeover bid, according to The
Japan Times. Full
Story
Canadian retailer, Provigo Inc. is preparing to
close 19 unprofitable supermarkets in Quebec as
part of a long-term strategy to strengthen its network.
These changes, which will go into effect early in 2007,
apply to 19 Maxi and Provigo supermarkets in Quebec.
Full
Story
UK-based grocery retailer, Sainsbury's, touts its
focus on selling fresh and healthy food that set it
apart from rivals like Tesco and Wal-Mart-owned Asda,
and posted a 60% jump in underlying net income of $356.8
million for the six months to Oct. 7. Despite the healthful
approach, Sainsbury's plans to launch special offers
on beer and chocolate for the holiday period, reported
Forbes.com. Full
Story
Canadian supermarket chain, Metro Inc., expects
to exceed its target of $61.5 million in 2007 synergies
from the acquisition of A&P's Canadian operations.
The retailer has been combining purchasing and financial
systems since the acquisition to reduce costs, allowing
it to lower food prices as competition intensifies from
larger rivals Loblaw Cos. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc.,
reported Bloomberg.com. Full
Story
Canada-based Weston Bakeries, launched Wonder+
Square Bagels in Canada. The
product is available in two varieties, one made from
enriched wheat flour, and the other from 100% Whole
Wheat flour. Full
Story
Health News
People
who eat a vegetarian diet for at least one year will
lose more weight than those on a standard low-fat
diet, according to researchers from the University of
Pittsburgh. Additionally, levels of LDL "bad" cholesterol
dropped after six months on the vegetarian diet, although
they started to rebound when people went back to their
normal eating habits a year later, reported CBS News.
Full
Story
Massachusetts-based, Food Quality Sensor International,
Inc., launched the SensorfreshQ, a pocket-sized device
that detects spoiled meat. The company hopes a successful
launch of the scanner will encourage the nation's meatpackers
to place its spoilage sensors directly inside millions
of packages of meat. As amines seep from spoiled meat,
the sticker changes color to alert grocers and consumers,
reported The Boston Globe. Full
Story (Free Registration Required)
Washington News
New York City has been sifting
through hundreds of public comments, some from alarmed
fast food chains and industry representatives, and is
considering some changes to the proposal that would
make New York the first U.S. city to outlaw the harmful
man-made ingredient, Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden
said. Full
Story
Philadelphia's Department of Public Health needs to
nearly double its inspection staff to examine the
city's 15,000 eateries as often as the FDA recommends,
according to its interim Health Commissioner. The city
suffers from more than just a shortage of inspectors
because inspectors do not target high-risk restaurants
or repeat violators and do not post inspection reports
for consumers, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Full
Story (Free Registration Required)
A revised bonding policy to collect antidumping
and countervailing duties has helped the U.S. government
collect more of those duties, according to a new
report from the Government Accountability Office, although
implementation was uneven. The GAO used imports of shrimp
as a "test case" and found that the new policy
significantly increased bond amount for some shrimp
importers. Full
Story
Eighty-nine percent of American households were
food secure throughout the entire year in 2005, meaning
that they had access, at all times, to enough food for
an active, healthy life for all household members. The
remaining households were food insecure at least some
time during that year. The prevalence of food insecurity
declined from 11.9% of households in 2004 to 11.0% in
2005, while the prevalence of very low food security
remained unchanged at 3.9% according to a new report
from USDA's Economic Research Service. Full
Story
Timco Worldwide Inc. is recalling its Sundia brand
cantaloupe. The product may be contaminated with
Salmonella. Full
Story
Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. is recalling Wegmans
Italian Classics Lemon and Caper Sauce, 11-oz. jars,
with a use-by date of 11/05/07. The product may contain
pieces of glass which could cause injury or a choking
hazard. Full
Story
Market News
Dow AgroSciences LLC will increase crop production
in 2007 in order to provide more than one billion
pounds of canola oil. The canola oil has zero trans
fat, lower saturated fat, and a high level of heart-healthy
omega-9 monounsaturated fat. Full
Story
Blue Diamond Growers cooperative said sales of its
branded almond products rose 36% in the most recent
marketing year. Almond production is expected to
increase this year, representing an opportunity to introduce
more consumers to almonds, reported California Farm
Bureau Federation.
Imperial Valley, CA melon farmers report that insect
pests have spread a virus into several fields. Whiteflies
carry a plant disease called Gemini virus, which damaged
vines so much that some farmers disked their fields,
because they did not have enough melons to harvest.
However, the Imperial County agricultural commissioner's
office says there will still be plenty of melons available
in supermarkets, reported California Farm Bureau
Federation.
USDA decreased the assessment rate established for
the Administrative Committee for Pistachios for
2006-07 from $0.0014 to $0.0007 per pound of assessed-weight
pistachios. Full
Notice
USDA increased the assessment rate established for
the Walnut Marketing Board for 2006-07 from $0.0096
to $0.0101 per kernelweight pound of assessable walnuts.
Full
Notice
USDA is proposing to increase the assessment rate
established for the Florida Tomato Committee for
2006-07 from $0.025 to $0.035 per 25-lb. container or
equivalent of tomatoes handled. Comments on this proposal
must be received by Dec. 1. Full
Notice
The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation proposes to
add provisions that would provide insurance for cabbage.
This action is intended to convert the cabbage pilot
crop insurance program to a permanent insurance program
for the 2009 and succeeding crop years. Full
Notice
The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation proposed to
add provisions that would provide insurance for mustard.
This action is intended to convert the mustard pilot
crop insurance program to a permanent insurance program
effective for the 2008 and succeeding crop years. Full
Notice
The U.S. International Trade Commission determined
that there is a reasonable indication that a U.S.
industry is materially injured by imports from Argentina
and Mexico of lemon juice, that are alleged to be
sold at less than fair value. Full
Notice
NMFS found that the annual quota for the Maine mahogany
quahog fishery has been harvested. Full
Notice
NMFS closed the 2006 Pacific Whiting Primary Season
for the catcher-processor sector. This action is
intended to keep the harvest of whiting within the 2006
allocation levels. Full
Notice
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