Peapod is expanding its meal kit line to include six new recipes. Peapod began offering meal kits in 2014, becoming one of the first retailers to combine the convenience of meal kits and online grocery delivery. The expansion comes as Peapod is seeing a 104 percent increase in new-customer purchases year over year, and the […]
Author Archives: Shelby Report Staff

The Shelby Report newsroom covers the grocery industry for retailers, wholesalers and suppliers. Staff reports include store openings, executive appointments, company announcements and industry event coverage. Since 1967, The Shelby Report has covered supermarkets, grocery chains and independent grocers through five regional editions.
J. Polep Breaks Ground On Headquarters Warehouse Expansion
J. Polep Distribution Services recently broke ground on an $11 million, 37,500-s.f. expansion of its warehouse in Chicopee, Massachusetts, where it is headquartered. The expansion will replace the former 12,000-s.f. freezer cooler with a new 12-bay loading dock and freezer-cooler area, allowing for more product expansion. The overall J. Polep complex on Meadow Street is […]
Eric Polep Named President And CEO Of J. Polep Distribution Services
J. Polep Distribution Services, a broadline distributor based in Chicopee, Massachusetts, recently promoted Eric Polep to president and CEO, reporting to Jeffrey Polep, chairman of the board of directors. “Eric has proven time and again he understands how to grow with the industry and as the business dictates. He represents J. Polep with pride, and […]
Soper Returns To Conveyco Technologies As Sales Engineer
Ken Soper has returned to Conveyco Technologies, a Bristol, Connecticut-based integrator of automation systems for fulfillment and distribution centers, as a sales engineer. Soper brings more than 30 years of experience in the materials-handling industry. Conveyco works with industries including e-commerce, apparel, beauty and personal care, omnichannel, food and beverage, convenience store, medical and pharmacy and […]
Guiding Stars Changes Algorithms To Reflect FDA Nutrition Changes
Guiding Stars has updated the formula it uses to assign stars to thousands of foods in North America. The changes align with the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) updated recommended Daily Values (DV) for vitamins, minerals, sodium and fiber and reflect consensus of nutrition science regarding omega-3 fatty acids, DHA, EPA and artificial colors. Guiding […]
PFMA Names New Vice Chairman, Six New Board Members
Lou Mola, loss prevention (LP) manager for Wawa, will take on the role of vice chairman of the Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association (PFMA), succeeding Wawa’s Rich Wood, who has resigned his position on the PFMA board of directors. Mola currently chairs PFMA’s LP committee as well as LP committees for the Delaware Food Industry Council and the […]
New Mass. Whole Foods Market Features In-Store Restaurant
Whole Foods Market opened the doors to a new store in the central Massachusetts town of Shrewsbury on Jan. 30. The new location offers a coffee bar and an in-store restaurant, “The Borgatti Bar.” The store is the first Massachusetts Whole Foods location to host an in-store restaurant. The Borgatti Bar, located on the second level […]
Kings Launches Power Bowls To Offer Customers Customized Nutrition
by Mike Berger/editor–Northeast Kings Food Markets has launched Power Bowls in four of its New Jersey stores. The bowls, sold in the stores’ ready-to-eat food departments called Market Square, allow customers to build their own bowls of “power foods”—choosing from fresh greens, grain blends, protein of choice, and roasted or raw vegetables, topped off with […]
KDP Will Be Formed By Merger of Keurig, Dr Pepper Snapple
Dr Pepper Snapple Group (DPS) and Keurig Green Mountain announced a merger agreement on Jan. 29. The new company will be Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP). A completed merger would create a company comprising beverage brands Dr Pepper, 7UP, Snapple, A&W, Mott’s, Sunkist and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters; the Keurig single-serve coffee system; and more than […]
Buehler’s Welcomes Former SpartanNash VP As CFO, Promotes Three
Buehler’s Fresh Foods has brought Peter O’Donnell on board as treasurer and CFO. He joins the company’s senior leadership team after spending 10 years as a VP in the grocery wholesale and retail industry with SpartanNash. His responsibilities include corporate governance, supervision and oversight of Buehler’s financial and accounting functions, IT, compliance, lender relations and […]
New Hannaford Loyalty Program Rewards Store Brand Purchases
Hannaford Supermarkets has launched My Hannaford Rewards, a loyalty program that adds rewards for store-brand items. Shoppers who choose to participate earn a 2 percent reward on every store brand item purchase, including fresh meat, seafood and deli items, as well as thousands of packaged products across the store. About 5,200 fresh and center store items […]
Tops Friendly Markets Slims Down Its Bulk Department
According to Tops Friendly Markets, as Americans are becoming more and more health-conscious, retailers are finding customers are buying fewer food items in bulk and are becoming more conservative in their portion sizes. In an effort to not only adapt to the changing needs of the customer but to also stay abreast of the latest […]
McCormick & Co. Makes Most Sustainable Corporation List
McCormick & Co. Inc. is the 23rd most sustainable corporation, according to the 2018 Corporate Knights Global 100 Sustainability Index released at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. McCormick also was ranked number one in the Food Products Industry category for the second year on the list, which annually is released by Corporate Knights, a Canadian market research company. […]
Big Y Stores Kick Off Rollout Of Frozen Pizza From Papa Gino’s
Papa Gino’s, an iconic New England pizza restaurant brand, has launched its Traditional Thin Crust Frozen Pizza in grocery stores throughout New England, starting with Big Y World Class Markets. The pizzas began selling last week. “At Papa Gino’s, we are always looking to provide our guests with new, innovative ways to enjoy our Traditional […]
Schiel’s Family Market Launches Click & Go Program
Schiel’s Family Markets of Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, is partnering with Rosie to provide its customers with a new online shopping platform called Click & Go. The service will deliver the flexibility of shopping from anywhere and on any device.ways looking for ways to enhance our customer’s grocery shopping experience, and we know that online shopping […]
Asian American Grocer To Offer Western Union Money Transfer Services
iFresh Inc., an Asian American supermarket chain and online grocer, has engaged Western Union Co. for money transfer services. Effective Jan. 16, four of the six iFresh locations in New York City will provide Western Union services, including money transfer, money order and bill payments. The services will be rolled out in the remaining two […]
Stonewall Kitchen Owner Completes Purchase Of Tillen Farms
Stonewall Kitchen, a specialty food manufacturer, marketer and retailer owned by Centre Partners, a New York private equity firm, has completed its acquisition of the Tillen Farms brand of premium cocktail garnishes, including crisp pickled vegetables and Pacific Northwest cherries. “We are very excited to combine our two premium specialty food brands,” said John Stiker, Stonewall […]
Rich’s Foodservice Expands C-Store Bakery Offerings
Rich’s Foodservice in Buffalo, New York, has expanded its bakery offerings for convenience stores with the introduction of Jacqueline’s Premium Filled Shortbreads and Jacqueline’s Authentic Macaroons. Both gourmet lines are made with premium and clean ingredients with no artificial ingredients or high fructose corn syrup. According to Rich’s Foodservice, the new offerings will enable convenience stores […]
Goya Offering Five $20K Scholarships To Culinary, Food Science Students
Goya Foods is offering five $20,000 scholarships, granted annually, to five students entering their freshman year of college with an undergraduate degree in culinary arts and/or a food science. One of the five national scholarships will go to a student enrolled in the Culinary Arts program at County Prep High School in Jersey City, New Jersey. Goya’s Culinary […]
NECSEMA Names Shaer As Its New Executive Director
The New England Convenience Store & Energy Marketers Association (NECSEMA) named Jonathan Shaer, former Mutual Oil Co. Inc. VP, as its new executive director effective Jan. 1. Chris Riley, president of Community Service Stations and the current president of NECSEMA, said, “The New England Convenience Store and Energy Marketers Association is very excited to welcome […]
