US: Food at home sales falling, food away rising
Food at home index fell 0.3% over March - the first decline in that index since September 2020 - according to the latest consumer index report. Three of the six major grocery store food group indexes decreased over the month. The index for meats, poultry, fish, and eggs decreased 1.4% in March as the index for eggs fell 10.9%. The fruits and vegetables index declined 1.3% over the month, and the dairy and related products index decreased 0.1%.
Source: supermarketnews.com
US: New Whole Foods Market in Rochester now open
Whole Foods Market opened a new 50,000-square-foot store, located at 2740 Monroe Avenue. The location in the town of Brighton is the first store in Rochester, New York, for the global natural and organic foods retailer. Features of the Rochester store include: an array of organic, conventional and Sourced for Good produce, with an in-house Veggie Butcher cutting fruits and vegetables to order. Offerings from more than a dozen local farms, including greens from Agbotic Farms, tomatoes from Intergrow, beets from Stick and Stone Farm, and apples from Hudson River Fruit.
Source: media.wholefoodsmarket.com
America's favorite grocer? It's Walmart
This year's top grocery brands were Trader Joe's, H-E-B and Woodman's Markets, according to a study released by Market Force Information. According to consumers, Walmart is the winner in terms of wallet share, Kroger, and Aldi rank second and third, although there is a considerable gap with Walmart leading by a factor of almost 2x over Kroger.
Source: supermarketnews.com
How plant-based meat is evolving for the future
Total retail sales of plant-based meat, dairy and egg alternatives last year hit $8bln, a 7% increase from 2021, despite a 3% decline in unit sales, according to a report from the Good Food Institute. SPINS data included in the report, which was commissioned by GFI and the Plant Based Foods Association, showed retail sales of plant-based meat alternatives dipped 1% to $1.4bln last year, and unit sales were down 8%.
Source: corp.smartbrief.com
US: Fresh Thyme introduces in-store pickup
Fresh Thyme Market now offers Fresh Thyme Market Pickup, a solution which provides online goods at in-store prices. Each online pickup order is picked fresh and packed by a store associate who is fully trained to pick the best quality products.
Source: chainstoreage.com
US: Palm-reading checkout hits Denver Whole Foods Markets
The Amazon One palm-recognition service is now available at Whole Foods Market stores in Belmar, Cherry Creek, Colfax, Colorado Boulevard, Governor’s Ranch, Highlands Ranch, Ideal Market Denver, SouthGlenn, Tamarac, Union Station and Washington Park.
Source: winsightgrocerybusiness.com
EuroCommerce and NRF release white paper supporting transatlantic data privacy framework
Ahead of next week’s expected European Parliament resolution on an EU-U.S. agreement covering transatlantic data transfers, EuroCommerce and the National Retail Federation released a white paper on the issue and urged institutions on both sides of the Atlantic to swiftly adopt and implement the framework.
Source: nrf.com
Ocado: 70% of Brits want to eat seasonal produce following fruit and veg shortages
Over two thirds (70%) of Brits want to eat more seasonal produce this year, following recent nationwide fruit and vegetable shortages, according to a new study by Ocado. However, despite this sharp rise in interest, 47% admitted that they don’t know when produce is in season both in the UK and abroad.
Source: grocerygazette.co.uk
Australia's Wesfarmers sells remaining stake in Coles Group
Australian retailer Wesfarmers Ltd said it has sold its remaining 2.8% stake in supermarket chain Coles Group. The company did not disclose the price at which the stake was sold, but local media reports peg the deal value at A$688mln ($457.93mln), or A$18.50 per share.
Source: reuters.com
UK: No jobs cuts as plans for logistics overhaul affect 7,000 Sainsbury’s staff
Sainsbury’s has announced a major restructuring of how its logistics operations work, affecting around 7,000 staff throughout the country. The business said this will mean that 3,000 staff who currently work for Sainsbury’s will transfer to one of the three companies it works with: DHL, Wincanton and GXO Logistics. An additional 4,000 who currently work for one of the three will move to another one of the partner businesses.
Source: standard.co.uk
India: Aavishkaar Capital invests Rs16crore in INI Farms
ESG First Fund, managed by Aavishkaar Capital, an Aavishkaar Group company and set up in partnership with KfW, a German state-owned development bank, has announced its first investment of ₹16crore ($1.95mln) from the ESG First Fund into INI Farms. Founded in 2009 by Purnima and Pankaj Khandelwal, INI Farms is an exporter of fruit and vegetable crops with pan-India operations spanning contract farming, aggregation, supply chain management and serving food retailers globally.
Source: thehindu.com
Yango Deli Tech partners with Saudi's Nana to level up MENA e-grocery market
A UAE-based tech company, Yango Deli Tech, which provides technology and expertise to retailers has partnered with Nana, the Saudi Arabia online grocery and commodities delivery platform. Nana will implement Yango's technologies into its current operations in the kingdom, as per an agreement.
Source: yourstory.com
Plastic-free produce: Are supermarkets and shoppers ready for loose fruit and veg?
Many convenience stores and discount grocers are unable to offer loose products, with just 15% of fruit and veg sales currently coming from loose products. This is for a number of reasons; not least the lack of weighing facilities. It’s a different story at the larger supermarkets though, where a Waitrose spokesperson told Grocery Gazette that it remains on target to meet Wrap’s 2030 ambition. “Our loose fruit and veg remain a popular choice. We’re working hard to increase our packaging-free selection, whilst also offering great value products that meet our high standards on quality and taste”.
Source: grocerygazette.co.uk
Top 10 supermarket retail chains in Lithuania
Here's an overview of the top ten supermarket retail chains in Lithuania, according to their most recently-available full-year turnover. All data is supplied by Retail-Index (www.retail-index.com) 1. Maxima turnover: €1.76bln (2021); 2. IKI turnover: €719mln (2021); 3. Lidl turnover: €673mln (2022); 4. Norfa turnover: €587mln (2021); 5. Rimi turnover: €395mln (2021); 6. Silas turnover: €68mln (2021); 7. Cia turnover: €45mln (2021); 8. Kubas turnover: €32mln (2021); 9. Express Market turnover: €25mln (2021); 10. Gruste turnover: Unknown.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Spain's leading food retailer to cut prices of 500 basic products
Spain's leading supermarket chain Mercadona will lower the prices of at least 500 basic food products, it said, amid a cost of living crisis that had prompted the government to seek concessions from retailers. The cheaper products include fresh fish, some cheeses and yoghurts, dried fruit, oil and household cleaning products, it said.
Source: reuters.com
Britain's Tesco expects flat annual profit after inflation hit
Britain's biggest retailer Tesco forecast flat profit in its new financial year, stemming the 6.3% decline from 2022/23 when soaring inflation battered customers and suppliers alike. Tesco made retail adjusted operating profit of 2.49bln pounds ($3.11bln) in the year to February 25 - in line with guidance of 2.4-2.5bln pounds but down from the 2.65bln pounds made in 2021/22.
Source: reuters.com