Posted inCorporate Store News, Featured News, News, Southeast

The Fresh Market Reopens Store One Year After Hurricane Helene

The Fresh Market recently reopened a store in Hendersonville, North Carolina, following more than a year of repairs and renovations after Hurricane Helene damage in 2024. The reopening included a $5,000 donation to MANNA Food Bank and a bread-breaking ceremony with the Hendersonville High School marching band. Mayor Barbara Volk and Chamber of Commerce President […]

Posted inIndependent Store News, Featured News, Hy-Vee, Midwest, News

Hy-Vee Opens Food Pantry At Kansas City Elementary School

Hy-Vee, Harvesters – The Community Food Network and KC Dream Center have opened a revitalized food pantry at M.E. Pearson Elementary School, marking the first on-site school food pantry in Kansas that Hy-Vee has launched with a Feeding America-affiliated food bank. The pantry is expected to serve about 150 families each month in Wyandotte County, […]

Posted inSustainability News, Corporate Store News, News, West

Sprouts Invests In AZ Solar, Battery Storage Project

Sprouts Farmers Market has signed a tax credit transfer agreement with Schneider Electric, U.S. Bank and Longroad Energy to help finance the Sun Pond Solar + Battery Energy Storage System project in Maricopa County, Arizona, where the grocer is headquartered. The 111 MWdc solar and 85 MWac / 340 MWh storage project is operational. It […]

Posted inIndependent Store News, Corporate Store News, Featured News, Grocery Research, National, News

Study Finds 81% Of Americans Open To Switching Grocery Brands

Loyalty in the grocery aisle is softening, according to a new national study from Reach3 Insights that found 81 percent of Americans are open to trying new brands – a signal that routine, habit-driven CPG purchases are giving way to more deliberate in-store decision-making. The study, “Rethinking Routine: What’s Really Happening in the Grocery Aisle,” […]

Posted inProduce News, Association News, Featured News, National, News

IFPA Calls On Congress To Fund Produce Incentives, Expand School Programs

International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) CEO Cathy Burns testified March 11 before the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, urging lawmakers to expand federal produce incentives, modernize nutrition programs and increase investment in U.S. growers. Burns argued that closing America’s fruit and vegetable consumption gap is a public health and economic imperative. Nine […]

Posted inOnline Grocery Technology, Grocery Store Equipment, National, News

Birdzi Launches Natural Language BI Tool, AskKea

Birdzi has released AskKea, a generative business intelligence (BI) assistant that lets grocery retailers query their data using plain-English questions and receive decision-ready answers in minutes instead of days. AskKea is designed for non-analysts. Store managers and marketing teams can ask questions directly and receive clear answers, visual summaries, exportable data files, methodology explanations and […]

Posted inBakery News, Midwest, National, News

Puratos To Acquire MI-Based Dawn Foods

Belgian bakery ingredients group Puratos has begun an agreement to acquire Jackson, Michigan-based Dawn Foods, bringing together two family-owned companies that have each operated in the professional bakery industry for more than a century. The combined company would connect Dawn Foods’ large-scale North American distribution with Puratos’ international subsidiary network, and pair Dawn’s application-focused creativity with […]

Posted inIndependent Store News, Featured News, Natural Grocers, News, West

Natural Grocers Plans New Store In Walla Walla, WA

Natural Grocers has begun preparations for a new store in downtown Walla Walla, Washington, marking the family-operated chain’s sixth location in the state and first in the Walla Walla Valley. Ahead of the spring opening, the company is hosting a community meet-and-greet March 24 and a two-day hiring event March 25-26 at the Courtyard by […]