The U.S. wine market continued to show strength in 2016, growing 2.4 percent to 341.1 million 9-liter cases led by a 6.6 percent upsurge in the consumption of total sparkling wines, according to the Beverage Information Group’s 2017 Wine Handbook. A strong U.S. economy, employment and wage gains, and larger discretionary incomes all contributed to the […]
Category: National
Posted in, Amazon Fresh, Home Page Latest News, National, Store News, Whole Foods
UPDATED: Amazon/Whole Foods Merger Will Close Monday; Industry Leaders Respond
Updated 8/25/17 11:36 a.m. Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods Market will close on Monday August 28, 2017, and the two companies will “together pursue the vision of making Whole Foods Market’s high-quality, natural and organic food affordable for everyone.” Whole Foods Market will offer lower prices starting Monday on a selection of best-selling grocery staples […]
Posted inEquipment & Technology, Corporate Store News, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, National, Online Grocery Technology
Walmart Expands Delivery Pilot, Partners With Google Assistant
Walmart is stepping up its online ordering and delivery programs. The retailer is expanding its home delivery pilot program to Dallas and Orlando, and is partnering with Google to offer voice shopping via Google Assistant. See statements from Mike Turner, VP of ecommerce operations, and Marc Lore, president and CEO of Walmart U.S. ecommerce, below. […]
Posted inAssociation News, Executive News, Home Page Latest News, National
NGA Hires VP Of Government Relations And Counsel
Christopher Jones, former legislative director and counsel for U.S. Representative Rick Crawford (R-AR), a member of the House Agriculture Committee and Nutrition Subcommittee, is joining the National Grocers Association (NGA). He will serve as VP and counsel for the government relations department at NGA, which represents the independent supermarket industry. Jones will oversee the association’s […]
Posted in, Health & Wellness, Home Page Latest News, National, Organic Natural, Private Label Brands, Specialty
Trader Joe’s Marks 50th Anniversary With Customer Celebration
Trader Joe’s marked its 50th anniversary with in-store customer celebrations on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 19-20. Festivities included special product tastings and giveaways, and a limited edition 50th anniversary reusable bag was offered to customers for 50 cents. Trader Joe’s introduced its first reusable bag to customers 40 years ago. The first Trader Joe’s store opened on Aug. […]
Posted inNonfood Items, Amazon Fresh, Corporate Store News, Equipment & Technology, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, National, Store News, Whole Foods
Walmart Reports Strongest Food Comp Jump In Five Years, GMV Up 69 Percent
Walmart reported today that it continued to gain traction in both food sales and its e-commerce business in its second quarter. Walmart U.S. traffic increased 1.3 percent and comparable-store sales grew 1.8 percent. It marks Walmart’s 12th consecutive quarter of positive comp sales. “The grocery business continued to improve as food categories delivered the strongest […]
Posted inPrivate Label Brands, Home Page Latest News, National
ICSC Survey Finds Low Prices Raise Customer Loyalty
The competition for the consumer wallet is more intense than ever as consumers are setting the agenda for retailers and brands. An International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) survey on brand loyalty has found that the majority of U.S. adults are loyal to both product brands (82 percent) and retailers (84 percent). Driving loyalty to […]
Posted inAssociation News, National, Packaging News, Sustainability News
Registration To Open Soon For Corrugator Conference
Registration soon will open for the Fibre Box Association (FBA) Corrugator Conference, to be held Nov. 1-2 in the Charlotte, North Carolina, area. The conference will include a plant tour of Southeastern Packaging Co. in Concord, which has a state-of-the-art BHS corrugator running at 1500 fpm with an integrated defect detection and rejection system. The […]
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PMMI Report: Consumer Demand For Personalization Creates Operational Challenges For CPG Companies
Consumer demand for customized products that enable their own supply chain is creating challenges for consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies, according to the Vision 2025 report produced by PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies. CPGs are looking at various solutions to these operational obstacles, chief among them improved relations with OEMs and other suppliers. […]
Posted inStore News, Aldi, Equipment & Technology, Home Page Latest News, National, Online Grocery Technology
Aldi Pilots Grocery Delivery With Instacart In Three Cities
Aldi is partnering with Instacart to pilot grocery delivery from its stores in Atlanta, Dallas and Los Angles. The new partnership allows customers to complete their grocery shopping by ordering Aldi products for delivery in as little as one hour. The service will launch in the three cities later this month, with potential for future expansion, […]
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Latino Food Industry Association Forms
The Latino Food Industry Association (LFIA) has formed to serve members and educate the public and policymakers on the contributions and economic impact being made by Latino-owned food businesses. “Given the Hispanic market’s $1.5 trillion in annual buying power and the rapid growth of Hispanic-owned businesses in the food and beverage segment, many of our […]
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Ag Secretary Announces $16.8M To Encourage SNAP Participants To Purchase Healthy Foods
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue on Monday announced 32 grants totaling $16.8 million to help Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants increase their purchases of fruits and vegetables. The program is operated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). The funding comes from the Food Insecurity Nutrition […]
Posted inBeverage News, Amazon Fresh, Center Store, Grocery News, Home Page Latest News, National, Whole Foods
Coffee Brands Ranked Top Selling On Amazon Grocery
One Click Retail data and sales measurements find that three out of five of the top selling brands on Amazon Grocery are coffee. According to One Click Retail’s, the top 5 highest-selling grocery and food brands on Amazon are: 1. San Francisco Bay Coffee (~2 percent of Amazon grocery and food share) 2. KIND (~2 percent of […]
Posted inBakery News, Home Page Latest News, National
CSM Bakery Solutions Sells BakeMark Business To Private Equity Firm
CSM Bakery Solutions, a supplier of bakery ingredients, products and services, has agreed to sell its BakeMark business to Pamplona Capital Management. CSM President & CEO Marianne Kirkegaard said the sale is an important step in advancing the company’s strategy to focus on its core business in Europe and North America. “We have always had great […]
Posted inBakery News, Home Page Latest News, National
Biscuit & Cracker Manufacturers Merge With American Bakers Association
The American Bakers Association (ABA) and the Biscuit & Cracker Manufacturers’ Association (B&CMA) have officially merged. As a result, the new ABA welcomed 116 B&CMA member companies, including U.S. and international bakers and allied companies. Additionally, ABA welcomed the B&CMA professional staff, including: • Dave Van Laar, senior advisor to the president and CEO: B&CMA transition […]
Posted inMarketing News, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, National, Shelby Content, Shelby Signature Content
Best Practices For Supermarket Advertising Budget Allocation
To entice consumers to shop in-store or online, supermarkets must set aside a budget for advertising. With a range of 0.02-4.0 percent, food retailers spend an average of 1.25 percent of sales (excluding pharmacy and gasoline dollars) on advertising. The recently released “2017 Promotional and Advertising Practices Study Among U.S. Grocery Retailers,” published by Aptaris […]
Posted inStore News, Deli News, Food Service News, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, National
House Advances National Menu Labeling Bill
The National Grocers Association (NGA) on Thursday praised the House Energy and Commerce Committee for advancing the Common Sense Nutrition Disclosure Act (House Resolution 772). The bipartisan bill, introduced by U.S. Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Washington) and Tony Cardenas (D-California), would clarify the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) final rule on menu labeling to “create […]
Posted inNonfood Items, Guest Contributors, Home Page Latest News, National, Shelby Content
Getting SMART About Back-To-School
by Naomi Sleeper/director of business development, Imperial Distributors As the summer season comes to a close, families are starting to do their back-to-school (BTS) shopping. According to a National Retail Federation (NRF) study, BTS and college spending is the second highest shopping season for retailers, after the winter holidays. Total BTS spending accounts for more than […]
Posted inGrocery News, Home Page Latest News, National
Study: Men Becoming More And More Engaged In Shopping For Food
According to the latest research from Men’s Health, men are taking more control over grocery shopping and cooking than ever before, with 84 percent of them saying they’re the primary grocery shoppers in their households (a 19 percentage point increase over the past decade). The Rodale Inc. brand has released the fourth iteration of “How Men Shop for Food,” […]
Posted inPackaging News, Home Page Latest News, National
Pack Expo Showcase To Feature Award-Winning Packaging Designs
Highlighting top packaging designs from around the globe, The Showcase of Packaging Innovations, sponsored by The Dow Chemical Co., will return to Pack Expo Las Vegas (Sept. 25–27; Las Vegas Convention Center), according to Pack Expo producer, PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies. The packages featured in the showcase are winning entries from […]