Mars Chocolate North America’s manufacturing plant in Topeka is scheduled to open later this year and, earlier this month, approximately 50 Mars associates participated in the Mars Volunteer Program by volunteering with Habitat for Humanity of Topeka to build a home. The effort was part of M&M’S effort to “M’Prove America,” a program designed to […]
Category: Suppliers
Posted in, Beverage News, National, Suppliers
Budweiser’s Brewmaster Tour Will Visit Dozens Of U.S. Cities
Since 1876, Budweiser has been brewed by skilled brewmasters using techniques and processes that have been passed down from generation to generation. Now, the brewmasters behind every bottle, can and keg of the American lager are launching a mobile brewing experience to provide consumers their own taste of the art, science and passion that goes […]
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Chobani, Cornell Univ. Join Forces For Food Science, Dairy Innovation
Chobani Inc., maker of America’s No. 1-selling Greek yogurt brand, and Cornell University are partnering to promote innovation in dairy and food science. Made possible by a $1.5 million gift from Chobani to the university, the partnership marks an important step in elevating the broader dairy industry and New York State’s role as a Greek […]
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Smithfield Shareholders Approve Merger With Shuanghui International
Smithfield Foods Inc.’s shareholders have voted overwhelmingly to approve the proposed strategic combination with Hong Kong-based Shuanghui International Holdings Ltd., according to the company. At a special meeting of Smithfield shareholders held Tuesday, more than 96 percent of the votes cast were in favor of the transaction, which represents approximately 76 percent of Smithfield’s total […]
Posted in, Suppliers, West
Alvarado Street Bakery Named A 2013 Great Place To Work
Great Place to Work Institute named Alvarado Street Bakery No. 23 on its annual Best Small & Medium Workplaces in the U.S. list, which is published in Fortune magazine. The Petaluma, Calif., company was selected from hundreds of businesses across the country in a process that consisted of employee questionnaires and a workplace audit. Great […]
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GMDC Recognizes Top 10 General Merchandise Products
The Global Market Development Center’s (GMDC) GM13 Conference held in Phoenix, Ariz., earlier this month was a big success for both retailers and suppliers, according to event organizers. The Showcase, where suppliers have the opportunity to highlight their new products and/or packaging to retailers and wholesalers, was particularly helpful for conference attendees. “The Showcase was […]
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Karoun Dairies Wins Big At American Cheese Society Conference
Karoun Dairies’ yogurts and cheeses won several awards at the American Cheese Society (ACS) conference last month in Madison, Wis. Turlock, Calif.-based Karoun Dairies received the following at the event: • Yogurts with No Additional Ingredients 1st place—Karoun Yogurt • Fresh Un-ripened Cheese 2nd place—Fresh Basket Cheese • Hispanic Un-ripened Style 3rd place—Karoun Queso Fresco […]
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First Lady Asks Marketers To Target Kids In Healthy Food Ads
The Let’s Move! champion and First Lady Michelle Obama held a food marketing summit Wednesday with representatives from food, beverage, media and entertainment companies. Obama noted progress that has been made in the country’s ongoing fight against rising obesity rates and said she’s open to a “lively and constructive dialogue about how we market food […]
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Kellogg Co. Recognized As ‘100 Best Companies’ By Working Mother Mag
With progress in the areas of company culture and work life programs, Kellogg Co. has been recognized by Working Mother magazine as a “100 Best Companies of 2013.” Companies are selected for the Working Mother 100 Best Companies honor based on an extensive application that ranks organizations in the areas of paid time off and […]
Posted in, Midwest, Suppliers
Cargill Building $29M Feed Mill In Hedrick, Iowa
Cargill’s pork business broke ground this week for construction of a new $29 million, state-of-the-art feed mill in Hedrick, Iowa. The new feed mill, capable of producing 350,000 tons of pelletized hog feed annually, is strategically located in proximity to feedstock raw material supplies; hog finishing operations in southeast Iowa and northern Missouri; as well […]
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Hillshire Brands Co. To Acquire Golden Island Jerky Brand
The Hillshire Brands Co. has signed an agreement to acquire the maker of Golden Island gourmet jerky products, which allows the company to gain entry into a lucrative product category. Terms were not disclosed, and the transaction is expected to close by the end of September, pending closing conditions. “We are excited to add Golden […]
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Hershey Helps Remote Peruvian Village Rebuild Through Cocoa Farming
In 2008, The Hershey Co. was introduced to a village of indigenous people tucked deep in the mountains of the Junín region of Peru. This village was using cocoa farming to rebuild its community following years of devastation by guerilla warfare. Hershey says it decided to support the community—San Juan de Cheni. The company committed […]
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J.M. Smucker Co. Acquires Enray, Maker of TruRoots Products
The J.M. Smucker Co. has completed an acquisition of Enray Inc., a privately held company headquartered in Livermore, Calif. Enray is a leading manufacturer and marketer of premium organic, gluten-free ancient grain products, including sprouted and non-sprouted grains, pasta and cookies, which are primarily sold under its flagship brand, truRoots. Enray generated net sales of more […]
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Pepsi, Coke, Hershey’s Top Year’s Most Respected Corporate Brands List
CoreBrand today released its report on the most respected corporate brands, and PepsiCo, Coca-Cola and Hershey’s top the list. This latest report in CoreBrand’s BrandPower Series (Brand Respect) identifies the top 10 most and least respected corporate brands based on the company’s proprietary familiarity and favorability data. Rounding out the top 10 most respected brands […]
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Pinnacle Foods To Acquire Wish-Bone Salad Dressings
Pinnacle Foods has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the Wish-Bone salad dressings business from Unilever PLC for $580 million, in a transaction that is expected to be immediately accretive to Pinnacle. The acquisition, which is subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to be completed in the late third quarter or early fourth quarter […]
Posted in, Northeast, Suppliers
Blount Fine Foods Adds To Sales Team
Blount Fine Foods, a leading manufacturer of handcrafted artisan soups, sides and entrees, has added Caitlin Sewall to its sales team in the Northeast. She will hold the title of retail sales for that territory and will report to Lisa Fecera, director of retail sales. Sewall joins Blount after graduating from Assumption College in Worcester, […]
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Post Holdings To Buy Premier Nutrition Corp. For $180M
Post Holdings Inc., a leading manufacturer, marketer and distributor of branded ready-to-eat cereals, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Premier Nutrition Corp. (PNC). PNC is a growing marketer and distributor of premium protein beverages and foods under its Premier Protein brand and nutritional supplements under its Joint Juice brand. This acquisition provides Post a […]
Posted in, Suppliers, West
Day-Lee’s Gyoza Eating Contest Hosting Championship Eaters Next Month
Day-Lee Foods Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Nippon Meat Packers Inc. and a leader in high-quality frozen Asian foods, is back as the title sponsor for the world famous Nisei Week Gyoza Eating Championship. The annual Day-Lee Foods World Gyoza Eating Championship, co-sponsored this year by Kikkoman, challenges eaters to chow down as many […]
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Sunsweet Receives PepsiCo’s Hot Fill Co-Packer Of The Year Award
PepsiCo has named Sunsweet Growers Inc. as Hot Fill Co-Packer of the Year for exhibiting superior achievements in quality and overall effectiveness across PepsiCo’s beverage supply chain. This marks the third time Sunsweet has been recognized as Co-Packer of the Year. The two previous awards were for the Yuba City, Calif., facility in 2007 and Fleetwood, […]
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General Mills Unveiling Gobal Lineup Of 200 Products
General Mills executives today will share the company’s new product innovation plans during the company’s annual Investor Day meeting at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). “Product innovation is the fuel that creates category growth,” says Ken Powell, chairman and CEO of General Mills. “We have a robust new product plan, with more than 200 […]