Japan: Lawson invests in fresh produce - H1 better than anticipated
Lawson has revealed its financial results for the first half of 2016, with net sales increasing to US$10.3bn, up 4.5% from previous year, and operating profit dropping by 5% to US$0.38bn. The group has also been investing in Lawson farms, located in 23 different areas nationwide, which supplies safe, fresh fruit and vegetables to Lawson stores and factories that produce and Lawson Select private label products. The number of directly operated Seijo Ishii stores, a high-end supermarket chain offering quality foods, reached 127 as of the end of August 2016. (igd.com)SA: Pick n Pay profit rises
Pick n Pay Stores Ltd. said first-half earnings gained 18% as the South African supermarket chain attracted shoppers with discounted goods and opened new stores. Profit increased to 381.8m rand ($27m) in the six months through Aug. 28, from 322.5m rand a year earlier, the Cape Town-based company said in a statement on Tuesday. Sales rose 7.2% and the retailer opened 74 Pick n Pay and mostly rural Boxer stores in the period. Pick n Pay “is encouraged that the high levels of food inflation seen in recent months are beginning to alleviate,” the company said. (Bloomberg)US: Supervalu to sell Save-A-Lot for $1.37bn
Supervalu said it would sell its Save-A-Lot business to Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp for $1.37bn. Supervalu has been looking to separate the more profitable division, which also generates about a quarter of the company's sales, from its slower-growing grocery wholesale and food retail businesses, as bigger rivals such as Wal-Mart Stores, increase their focus on groceries. Supervalu will enter into a five-year agreement to provide Save-A-Lot with some services and support functions as part of the deal, the company said on Monday. Save-A-Lot has a network of about 1,370 company-owned and licensed stores across 37 states in the United States, the Caribbean and Central America. Onex made the best offer in an auction for Save-A-Lot, Reuters reported in September. (Reuters)Organic Food sales at Finland’s K-Group
Finland’s K-Group has said that it expects sales of organic food products at its stores to grow by 10% this year. Currently, there are some 2,000 organic products available in the group’s stores, which together account for around 1.6% of sales. However at some K-food stores, this percentage is as high as 7%. (esmmagazine.com)Online produce sales click with consumers
Consumers are displaying an increasing willingness to buy produce online, panelists at the Produce Marketing Association’s Fresh Summit told attendees on Friday. “Consumers are very willing to shop across a variety of channels,” Sherry Frey, SVP at Nielsen Perishables Group said at panel on online produce shopping that included Eric Stone, VP for fresh at FreshDirect, and Loren Zhao, co-founder of Shanghai-based Fruitday.com. (supermarketnews.com)USA Pears names Sprouts Pear Retailer of the Year
On the show floor of the 2016 PMA Fresh Summit, USA Pears presented Sprouts Farmers Markets Produce Warehouse with the 2016 Pear Retailer of the Year award for its pear category improvements in merchandising performance and sales increase. “On behalf of nearly 1,600 fresh pear growers of Washington and Oregon,” says Kevin Moffitt, Pear Bureau Northwest CEO, “we congratulate the Sprouts produce team and appreciate their effort in building a strong pear category. This year, USA Pears also recognizes Costco Wholesale, Publix Super Markets, Defense Commissary Agency, Giant Eagle, Inc., Tops Friendly Markets and Walmart Stores as 2016 Pear Category Leaders. (Source: Pear Bureau Northwest)Plot to poison Lidl customers in Germany, Netherlands exposed
German supermarket chain Lidl was extorted for €15m during the last months of 2015, EenVandaag reported on Monday. If the company did not pay, the perpetrator threatened to poison its products, including in branches in the Netherlands. It was not mentioned whether fresh produce was at stake. (info-europa.com) US: Giant Eagle plans to offer buyouts to corporate employees
Citing low food prices and other industry pressures, grocer Giant Eagle says it plans to offer buyouts to a number of corporate employees. “Like many food retailers regionally and nationally, Giant Eagle has recently been impacted by various industry factors, including, but not limited to, deflationary trends in food pricing,” Dan Donovan, director of corporate communications, said in a statement. “The company has realized a need to maximize cost efficiencies, reduce overhead costs and streamline our supply chain,” Mr. Donovan said. “These efforts include a voluntary separation offer, made available to a number of team members in its corporate offices.” (post-gazette.com)Ireland ‘won’t surrender its position on UK supermarket shelves’
The Minister for Agriculture, Michael Creed, has warned that the Irish food and drinks sector will not surrender its position on supermarket shelves in the UK. Speaking in Paris on Monday, the Minister said that UK’s decision to leave the European Union will be a challenge for the sector’s Food Wise 2025 strategic plan. (agriland.ie) Merkel calls for solution to save German supermarket chain
German Chancellor Angela Merkel stepped up the pressure Monday on the nation‘s leading supermarket chains to find a compromise to save up to 8,000 jobs threatened in a long-running battle over their smaller rival, Kaiser‘s Tengelmann group. Talks between supermarket groups Edeka, Rewe Markant and Norma over hammering out a solution to the crisis that has engulfed Kaiser‘s Tengelmann collapsed last week, resulting in the group‘s owners announcing plans to proceed with breaking up the firm. (en.europeonline-magazine.eu)Palmer & Harvey appoints former Tesco CEO
Leading UK delivered wholesaler, Palmer & Harvey has appointed former Tesco executive, Tony Reed as its new CEO. The appointment to succeed Chris Etherington, who has led the business since 2006, is effective immediately.(igd.com)US: Weis rapidly completing Food Lion conversions
Weis Markets has completed its fourth round of conversions of acquired Food Lion stores and is on track to reopen all 38 locations under the Weis name by early November, according to a company spokesperson. The Sunbury, Pa.-based retailer announced that the latest conversions — in Millsboro, Lewes, Millville and Rehoboth Beach, Del., and Easton, Md. — reopened on Friday. To date, Weis has finished converting 21 former Food Lion stores in Maryland and four in Delaware. (supermarketnews.com) 
AU: Caltex Australia confirms offer for Woolworths' fuel businessCaltex Australia said on Tuesday it had made a proposal to buy Woolworths petrol station chain, which analysts expect to sell for more than A$1.5bn. (Reuters)