After five years of heated lobbying that pitted grocery and convenience stores against preachers, the Georgia General Assembly gave final approval Tuesday to legislation that could lead to Sunday package sales, reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Governor Nathan Deal has already said he will sign Senate Bill 10, which the House approved Tuesday by a vote […]
Category: National
Posted in, National, Northeast
Boston Seafood Show Has Strong Turnout
The 30th International Boston Seafood Show/Seafood Processing America event “has become a cherished tradition for our visitor industry along with Opening Day at Fenway Park, the Boston Marathon and the Boston POPS Fourth of July concert,” according to Pat Moscaritolo, president and CEO of the Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau. The 2011 show was […]
Posted in, Corporate Store News, National
Walmart Bringing Back 8,500 Products
WalMart is bringing back more than 8,500 household products and foods that it had culled from its shelves over the past few years in an effort to reverse a sales slump in the U.S., reports the Phoenix Business Journal. Arkansas-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc announced April 11 that it would be broadening the variety of products […]
Posted in, National, Perishables
Flowers Foods Buys Tasty Baking
Flowers Foods Inc. will buy troubled Tasty Baking Co. in a cash deal worth $165 million, including Tasty Baking’s debt, reports the Atlanta Business Chronicle. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter. Tasty Baking is an iconic Philadelphia company known for its more than 100 Tastykake and Kandy Kake snack products. The […]
Posted in, National
Spinach Warning from Fresh Express
Fresh Express said April 5 that it is voluntarily recalling 2,939 cases of 9-oz. bagged spinach, reports the Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal. The Salinas company said the recall is “out of an abundance of caution due to a positive result for salmonella from random sample testing.” The recalled product has product codes starting with […]
Posted in, Beverage News, Feature, National
Consumers Want to Indulge, But Keep Health in Mind, Too
By Ashley Bates/staff writer Bubbly, fruity and refreshing soft drinks and other beverages have seen hard times in recent years, but many in the beverage industry may call 2011 the year of the beverage. Rebounding nicely this year are sports drinks, bottled waters and water beverages; soft drinks and diet soft drinks are as strong […]
Posted in, Feature, National
Consumers seeking new varieties and flavors in candy, and manufacturers are providing it
M&M’S® Pretzel Chocolate Candies were named the 2011 Product of the Year in the candy and snacks category by Product of the Year USA. “This award is especially gratifying because it was decided by consumers,” Debra A. Sandler, CCO of MMMars Chocolate North America, said in a press release. “We felt confident that the delicious […]
Posted in, Beverage News, C-Store News, Center Store, Marketing News, National, Southeast
Diet Coke Passes Pepsi
As the soft drinks industry tries to recover from a long slide, Coca-Cola Co. has new bragging rights in its rivalry with PepsiCo reports The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Sales of Coca-Cola and Diet Coke dipped by half a percentage point and one point, respectively, in 2010. But sales of Pepsi-Cola fell 4.8 percent. Beyond the sales […]
Posted in, National
Coca-Cola Pledges Financial Aid to Japan
The Coca-Cola Co. system has pledged $7.3 million to help Japan as it continues to confront the aftermath of a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami, reports the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Atlanta-based Coca-Cola said the $7.3 million in cash and product donations will go to the relief effort and includes more than 7 million bottles of needed […]
Posted in, Beverage News, National
US Tops France as Wine Sipping Leader
According to a report in the San Francisco Business Times, the United States supplanted France as the world’s largest wine-consuming nation in 2010, according to wine industry consultants Gomberg, Fredrikson & Associates, by roughly 330 million cases to France’s 320.6 million. Of course, the United States’ population dwarfs that of France, so “per capita, they’re […]
Posted in, National
US Wholesale Inflation Surged in February
According to a report on MSNBC.com, wholesale prices surged last month at their fastest pace in just over 1-1/2 years due to higher energy costs and the steepest rise in food prices in 36 years. Excluding those volatile categories, inflation was tame. The Labor Department said today that the Producer Price Index rose a seasonally […]
Posted in, National, The Independent Perspective
Obamacare: One Year Later
[dropcap]M[/dropcap]arch 23 will mark the one-year anniversary of the enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), often referred to as “Obamacare.” In January 2011 the House of Representatives successfully passed H.R. 2 (245-189), which would repeal PPACA. However, the legislation is largely symbolic and has no chance for consideration in the Senate. […]
Posted in, Another Side, National
Another Side: 4+1=48
Numbers which don’t add up? They do if you are using Shelby math. While some periodicals have been subtracting, we have been adding. Since the first Southeast issue (1967) to the Southwest (1976), we have added The Shelby Report of the West (2008), The Shelby Report of the Midwest (2009), and now The Shelby Report […]
Posted in, From My Point of View, National
What’s Wrong With This Picture?
We are on a path that our government says will leave us $1,500,000,000,000 (one trillion, five hundred billion dollars) in debt for the fiscal year 2011. And in the same breath, our government tells us they need 193,000 new employees (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “Government Needs to Add 193,000 New Hires,” Jan. 16, 2011). Just the […]
Posted in, Marketing News, National, West
Survey Asks: Is Target Cheaper than Walmart?
Target Corp. holds up fairly well in a pocketbook-price battle with rival Wal-Mart Stores Inc., operator of Walmart and Sam’s Club, according to a new retail survey reported on by the New Mexico Business Weekly. Kantar Retail IQ, which does semi-annual price checks at the two retailers, found that Target customers generally paid slightly less […]
Posted in, Marketing News, National, Perishables
Pork Moves Beyond ‘The Other White Meat’
After nearly 25 years of plugging pork as “The Other White Meat,” the National Pork Board’s new “Pork, Be Inspired” tagline seeks a deeper connection with existing pork fans, while positioning the meat as an ingredient for a wide range of meals. In short, the board wants the 82 million Americans who regularly eat pork […]
Posted in, National, New Products
Jimmy Fallon and Ben & Jerry’s Announce New Ice Cream Flavor: Late Night Snack
NBCUniversal Television Consumer Products Group and “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” are teaming with iconic ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s to introduce the new flavor entitled “Late Night Snack.” The unique new flavor features a rich vanilla bean ice cream with a salty caramel swirl and crunchy fudge covered potato chip clusters. The concoction […]
Posted in, National, Suppliers
Skippy Orders Peanut Butter Recall
The company that makes Skippy peanut butter has announced that a limited amount of Reduced Fat Creamy Peanut Butter and Reduced Fat Super Chunk Peanut Butter spread with expiration dates in May 2012 has been recalled because they may potentially have been contaminated with Salmonella. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the 16.3-oz. […]
Posted in, National, Southeast
Ingles Founder Dead at 77
Robert P. “Bob” Ingle, founder and CEO of Ingles Markets, died at the age of 77 Sunday, reports the Asheville Citizen-Times. Ingle, fresh out of college, took out a mortgage on his mother’s house in 1963 and founded Ingles grocery store chain on Hendersonville Road in Asheville. The store did $8,500 in sales its first […]
Posted in, National, Suppliers
Heinz to Acquire Brazilian Firm
H.J. Heinz Co. announced a major gain March 3 in its push into emerging markets—the purchase of an 80 percent stake in a Brazilian food company, reports The Associated Press. Heinz, the world’s largest ketchup maker, has relied recently on emerging markets like China, India and Russia to fuel its growth. Its plan to acquire […]