Asia Edition
Belgium: Jef Colruyt quits as CEO, Stefan Goethaert succeeds
End of an era at Colruyt Group: Jef Colruyt hands over the day-to-day management to Stefan Goethaert after more than 28 years, but remains chairman. Revenue rose 7.4% to 10.8bln euros, operating profit fell 25.8% to 279mln euros.
Source: retaildetail.eu
SuperValu’s Signature Tastes Irish Strawberries signal summer’s return
SuperValu’s Signature Tastes Irish Strawberries have proved a firm favourite with Irish customers, and the flavoursome fruit is now back in-store. Only available at the height of the season, SuperValu’s Signature Tastes Irish Strawberries are known for their sweet, vibrant flavours, and quality taste and texture. The strawberries are produced by Keelings in North County Dublin, who have been operating and innovating in the fresh produce industry since 1926, and now employ over 2,700 people. With sustainability at the heart of their operations, Keelings grow, source, and market high-quality produce, farming over 2,000 acres.
Source: retailnews.ie
New Zealand: The peak of food inflation
Chris Quin, Foodstuffs North Island CEO, the 100% New Zealand-owned co-operative behind New World, PAK'nSAVE, and Four Square, commented on the latest food price inflation figures released by Statistics New Zealand. Quin said produce such as pumpkin had been impacted by quality issues due to the wet weather, with the co-operative expecting supply to be tighter than in a usual winter. However, Foodstuffs would continue looking at imports to ease supply constraints where produce is unavailable locally. "Produce that has been better value for customers include gold kiwifruit, green cabbages and broccoli. Avocados will also shortly be coming into season in early to mid-June".
Source: supermarketnews.co.nz
UK: CMA action on supermarkets protects competition and choice for shoppers
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has taken action to protect supermarket shoppers by securing agreements from Sainsbury’s and Asda to stop using unlawful anti-competitive land agreements. These unlawful agreements include placing restrictions on land they own from being used by a rival supermarket, or imposing restrictions lasting 5 years or more that stop landlords from allowing competing stores on land in the same block as an existing supermarket.
Source: gov.uk
South Africa: Spar's interim earnings slump 30%
Food retailer Spar posted a 30.3% fall in its half-year earnings, led by inflationary pressures on consumers and increased operational costs arising from rolling blackouts. The company said its headline earnings per share - the main profit measure of corporates in South Africa - fell from 642.6 cents to 447.9 cents in the six months ended March 31. South Africa is facing its worst rolling blackouts on record, costing Spar retailers over 700mln rand ($37.59mln) on diesel for generators over this period alone.
Source: reuters.com
UK: Asda to freeze prices on more than 500 products
Asda reported: "The price lock, which runs until the end of August, includes: Asda Mild Tender Baby Spinach (180g) £1.00; Asda Strong Baby Leaf & Herb Salad (75g) £1.00; Asda Shredded Iceberg Lettuce (130g) £0.50; Asda Watercress (85g) £1.00".
Source: corporate.asda.com
Israel: Rami Levy seeking deal with international supermarket chain for discounted products
Rami Levy Hashikma Marketing, one of Israel’s largest supermarket chains, announced that it is seeking to tie up with an international supermarket chain, possibly French retail group Auchan. The discount supermarket chain said that is mulling cooperation with international retail chains, among them Auchan, French food retailer Casino, and Dutch-owned international supermarket SPAR.
Source: timesofisrael.com
Croatia: No binding offers for Fortenova Group MidCo
No potentially interested parties submitted a non-binding offer during the sales process of Fortenova Group MidCo, a Dutch holding company that fully owns the Croatian retail and food group. This emerges from a letter that the company’s management sent to unsanctioned co-owners and whose content was revealed by the online portal N1.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Why Takeaway.com will deliver iPhone cables as well as pizza
Takeaway.com is expanding from home delivery of restaurant meals to delivering groceries or even non-food orders. “We have the knowledge, the vehicles and the people”. Takeaway.com has already been delivering groceries from Carrefour’s city shop on Anspach Avenue in Brussels since autumn 2022: customers can choose from more than 500 products, ranging from fruit and vegetables to personal care products.
Source: retaildetail.eu
US: Grocery inflation continues rapid descent
Food-at-home prices rose in May at a 5.8% annual rate, down from 7.1% during the prior month, according to Consumer Price Index data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Fruits and vegetable prices were up 1.3% in May compared with April, leading the way among the main food-at-home categories the agency tracks. Prices for apples rose 1.9% month-to-month in May, while lettuce prices surged 5.3%. By contrast, prices for citrus fruits and bananas lost steam.
Source: grocerydive.com
US: United Natural Foods announces regional restructuring
United Natural Foods, Inc. (the “Company” or “UNFI”) announced actions it is taking to enhance profitability, speed decision-making and reduce administrative layers, primarily by consolidating from four operating regions to three. The three new regions will be called East, Central, and West. In total, the Company will eliminate approximately 150 roles as part of this announced restructuring effort, primarily in management or supervisory positions.
Source: businesswire.com
US: Instacart unveils the most popular herbs and spices
The top 10 dried and fresh herbs and spices sold via Instacart: 1. Cilantro; 2. Dried garlic; 3. Flat-leaf parsley; 4. Dried onion; 5. Cinnamon; 6. Thyme; 7. Ground paprika; 8. Dried basil; 9. Dill; 10. Chili powder. Instacart determined the top herbs and spices by taking the number of orders containing each spice divided by the total number of orders that contained any herb or spice in 2022.
Source: instacart.com
US: Dr. Praeger’s launches a brand-new line of feel-good fries packed with a full serving of vegetables
Dr. Praeger’s Sensible Foods, the leader in the all-natural, vegetarian, vegan, gluten free, and kosher frozen food categories for over 25 years, is launching a brand-new product line: Veggie Fries. With this launch, the frozen food pioneer is bringing to market the only frozen fries that are packed with a full serving of vegetables, furthering its mission of making healthier living more delicious.
Source: businesswire.com
US: Fresh Connect expands network to include Albertsons, Kroger and Walmart
Nonprofit organization About Fresh has leveraged the Filtered Spend platform from global financial services technology provider FIS to expand the Fresh Connect food prescription program across a national network of more than 10,000 grocery retail locations, including Albertsons, Kroger and Walmart. Program enrollees can easily shop for fresh fruits and vegetables at their preferred local store and use the prepaid debit card at checkout, with the cost of eligible healthy foods automatically deducted from the total purchase price.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
Canada: Introducing Truffle Kings, the online Italian fine foods grocery store
Marco Tallarico, a Canadian-Italian entrepreneur, has announced the launch of his new online fine foods grocery store, Truffle Kings. The marketplace brings the best of Italy to Canada through a collection of olive oils, vinegars, truffle-infused foods and fresh truffles - one of the rarest and most sought after ingredients in North America. Truffle Kings' truffles are uniquely priced at market value and can be reserved now at trufflekings.co, with weekly subscriptions available.
Source: newswire.ca
