Spain: DIA to open five new stores in Andalusia
Spanish retailer DIA plans to open five new supermarkets in the Andalusian region this year in Motril, Bonares, Seville, Rociana and Puente Genil. The move will see the retailer expand its franchises to more than 300 and add 3,437 square metres of sales area to its network, reports www.distribucionactualidad.com.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Amazon Business to expand in Europe
Ecommerce giant Amazon is planning to expand its b2b division, Amazon Business, in Europe. It is unclear which countries it will target. The company is currently investing in its logistics, to supply European businesses with office supplies in bulk.
Source: ecommercenews.eu
Royal Punnet: Co-op first to announce move to 100% British strawberries in time for Coronation
Co-op reported: "The leading convenience retailer predicts sales of 89 punnets per minute across their British strawberries during the royal celebrations. This May (4 May) Co-op will bring summertime joy to Brits as it becomes the first retailer to announce nationwide move to 100% British strawberries across its 2,400 stores. A move anticipated to drive bumper sales during the Coronation celebrations."
Source: co-operative.coop
Japan: Aeon to raise stake in Inageya
Japanese retailer Aeon Co. said that it will raise its stake in Inageya Co., a food supermarket chain based in the Tokyo area, from about 17% at present to 51% possibly in November. Inageya will then be merged with Aeon unit United Super Markets Holdings Inc. in November 2024, with a goal to create a group of supermarkets collectively earning 1tln yen in annual sales in the Kanto eastern Japan region, including Tokyo.
Source: jen.jiji.com
UK: It’s Fresh Ltd secures £6.7mln to grow its innovative food waste reduction technology business
It’s Fresh! has secured a £6.7mln investment led by BGF - one of the largest and most experienced growth capital investors in the UK and Ireland - and Zintinus, a German-based venture capital fund, alongside existing investor Praesidium. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Burntwood, Staffordshire, It’s Fresh! is a global food technology business that helps extend the shelf-life of fresh fruit and vegetables throughout the entire food supply chain to reduce waste and optimise produce quality.
Source: lovebusinesseastmidlands.com
Retailer Carrefour confident as Q1 sales growth accelerates
Carrefour, Europe's largest food retailer, said it was confident of more profit and cash flow growth this year despite high inflation, after sales growth accelerated in the first quarter. Sales reached 22.071bln euros ($24.24bln), marking like-for-like growth of 12.3% and an acceleration from 10.9% sales growth in the fourth quarter of 2022.
Source: reuters.com
UK's Ocado to close its oldest warehouse, 2,300 jobs at risk
British online supermarket and technology business Ocado Group said it planned to close its oldest automated warehouse, putting about 2,300 jobs at risk. The site at Hatfield, north of London, serves Ocado Retail, the online grocery joint venture of Ocado Group and Marks & Spencer.
Source: reuters.com
SPAR saves 3.5mln meals with TooGoodToGo
SPAR's partnership with social impact company Too Good To Go, has saved 3.5mln meals from going to waste in 14 countries. Since the launch of the international partnership in 2020, over 3,000 SPAR stores have actively been curbing food waste with the innovative digital solution across 14 SPAR countries. This has supported Too Good To Go’s recent global milestone of having saved 200mln meals worldwide.
Source: spar-international.com
Sweden: ICA Gruppen’s report for first quarter 2023
ICA Gruppen’s operating margin and earnings decreased in Q1 2023. The margin dropped to 3.7% (Q1 2022: 4.1%), and operating profit was SEK1,293mln (Q1 2022: 1,298). Q1 sales increased to SEK34,605mln (Q1 2022: 31,600), driven by high inflation. The grocery retail business in ICA Sweden reported a sharp decline in earnings and the margin for the quarter owing to lower volumes and inflation-driven price increases.
Source: icagruppen.se
Amazon could look to acquire Kroger, Albertsons storesIf Amazon wants to improve its grocery reach in the U.S., it might want to look at what is already there. According to Business Insider, analysts at Bernstein have put together a comeback strategy for the deliver giant based in Seattle, Washington, and the main component is purchasing existing stores that are on the chopping block due to the proposed Kroger, Albertsons merger.
Source: supermarketnews.com
Pairwise and Partnership for a Healthier America unite in shared mission to increase access to fruits and vegetables
Pairwise, a health-focused food and agriculture company, and Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA), the nation's leading nonprofit working to improve the food system, announced a three-year partnership to support a joint goal of increasing access to healthy, fresh, and affordable food. “We are pleased to partner with PHA, whose impactful work aligns so closely with the Pairwise vision of reducing barriers to fruit and vegetable consumption”, said Tom Adams, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer at Pairwise.
Source: businesswire.com
US: ALDI adding West Coast stores
ALDI is expanding its presence out west with the opening of new locations in communities previously not served by the discount grocer. On Thursday, April 27, ALDI will celebrate the opening of the Glendale, Arizona, and El Cajon, California, stores.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: Little Red Box Grocery introduces SNAP EBT online, Double Up Food Bucks
Houston-based community market Little Red Box Grocery (LRB) has joined forces with Forage to offer SNAP EBT as a payment option on the independent grocer’s website, and with Grocerist and Texas’ Sustainable Food Center (SFC) to launch Double Up Food Bucks (DUFB) in the store, allowing SNAP recipients to double every dollar spent on fresh and frozen fruits and veggies.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
Brazil’s Arado (née Clicampo) secures $12mln to streamline the country’s agribusiness supply chain
Brazil-based agribusiness marketplace Arado (formerly known as Clicampo) has raised $12mln in an oversubscribed Series A round. Acre Venture Partners led the round with participation from Syngenta Group Ventures and Globo Ventures as well as Maya Capital, Valor Capital and SP Ventures. Arado will use the new funding to expand its existing markets in Brazil and continue developing its technology offerings for farmers and retailers.
Source: agfundernews.com