France: Auchan aims to focus more on fresh produce and warns about high inflation
In an interview with ‘Apolline Matin’ on RMC and RMC Story, Pascale Cartier, director of food supply at Auchan has talked about her Group’s strategy in the next coming phase. Auchan’s spokesperson highlighted the significant expected inflation that will effect the fresh produce market next month due to the increasing demand for price rises from suppliers and said that the group is aiming to decrease its margin to face this inflation.
Source: internationalsupermarketnews.com
Greece: Wikifarmer uses its agricultural knowledge base to bring people to its marketplace
Meet Wikifarmer, an agriculture-focused startup based in Athens that has an interesting two-sided strategy. On the one hand, Wikifarmer is a source of knowledge with high-quality content translated into 16 languages to help farmers all around the world. On the other hand, Wikifarmer is a B2B marketplace to buy and sell agricultural products. Farmers on Wikifarmer mostly sell fruits, vegetables and some packaged goods from the Mediterranean area like olive oil, honey and pastas.
Source: techcrunch.com
France to get new discount supermarket chain
A new French discount supermarket chain - Toujust - is set to open its first store in Alès, in the Gard region, mainly selling private-label products, according to media reports. Toujust is the brainchild of Fabrice Gerber, an experienced manager in the retail trade, formerly of E. Leclerc, Système U and Aldi.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Oddbox launches the world's first vegetable dating service
Fruit and veg delivery company Oddbox has unveiled the world’s first vegetable dating service ‘Soilmates’. The tool aims to combat food waste by finding a recipe match for lonely or leftover vegetables.
Source: vergemagazine.co.uk
GrabMaps to power location-based services for AWS customers in Southeast Asia
Grab, Southeast Asia’s leading superapp, announced GrabMaps has become a data provider for Amazon Location Service, an Amazon Web Services (AWS) location-based service that is designed to help developers easily and securely add maps, points of interest, geocoding, routing, tracking, and geofencing to their applications.
Source: grab.com
Germany: Edeka gives away expired products
The Edeka store in Osnabrück, Lower Saxony, has established a special station this year to allow items that have expired or are thought to have expired to stay on the shelves. Any customer can come and pick up a variety of products, from fruit and vegetables to packaged goods. “The most important thing is to get as many shops as possible to stop throwing away food”, said manager Guido Hartmann in an interview with German broadcaster NDR. At Edeka, a special ‘Gold bin’ offers shelves filled with food that, for various reasons, is no longer fit for purpose. The refrigerated section is filled with fruit and vegetables that would otherwise be thrown away.
Source: internationalsupermarketnews.com
ALDI will open its first supermarket in Lanzarote on 22nd February
The German supermarket chain ALDI will open its first store in Lanzarote on February 22nd in Arrecife's Rambla Medular. ALDI's expansion plans for 2023 include the opening of new stores in Galicia, the Balearic Islands, Madrid, Catalonia, Andalusia, and Valencian, as well as more in the Canaries.
Source: canarianweekly.com
Waitrose becomes first UK supermarket to stock Juicy Marbles filet steaks
100% plant-based whole cuts Juicy Marbles is launching in Waitrose for the first time as part of the supermarket’s Valentine’s Day Meal Deal. Juicy Marbles plant-based steaks will be available alongside a starter, side, dessert and bottle of fine wine for £20. With demand soaring over 100% for key vegan items at Waitrose, the supermarket is ensuring no one compromises on choice on Valentine’s Day.
Source: johnlewispartnership.media
Switzerland: SPAR opens new Express store at railway station
SPAR Switzerland opened a SPAR Express store at the railway station in Winterthur, northern Switzerland. A daily lunch menu with a variety of freshly prepared sandwiches, salads, fruit bowls, muesli, savoury snacks, and a variety of desserts is offered.
Source: spar-international.com
Germany: Metro AG posts first-quarter gains, despite cyber attack
Wholesale giant Metro AG has reported a 5.2% increase in sales in the first quarter of its financial year, despite a cyber attack that impacted the business during the period. Total sales were up 6.6% to €8.1bln, while adjusted EBITDA reached a total of €465mln.
Source: esmmagazine.com
UK: 30mln meals rescued through Tesco’s partnership with waste-busting app Olio
Tens of thousands of ‘Food Waste Hero’ volunteers have now stopped more than 30mln meals from going to waste, thanks to a pioneering partnership between Tesco and the leading free sharing app Olio.
Source: tescoplc.com
Irish farmers are ‘struggling to stay’ in the horticulture sector
The launch of Supervalu’s ‘Let’s GROW‘ campaign saw Ireland’s horticulture sector, and the struggles it is currently facing, put under the spotlight, with Grow It Yourself (GIY) founder Michael Kelly saying farmers are “struggling to stay” in the industry. The initiative, which was launched at Scoil Mhuire gan Smál in Inchicore, Co. Dublin by Supervalu and GIY, aims to educate primary school children on food literacy and give them the tools to grow fruit and vegetables at home.
Source: agriland.ie
US: Flashfood appoints grocery industry veteran Nicholas Bertram as president and chief operating officer
Flashfood, a digital marketplace that connects consumers to heavily discounted food nearing its best-by date, announced the addition of Nicholas Bertram to the leadership team in a newly created position of president and chief operating officer.
Source: prnewswire.com
US: Raley’s partners with Instacart for online SNAP integration in California
The Raley’s Companies is expanding its e-commerce functionality with the help of Instacart. Customers using Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) can now place orders online at 83 Raley’s banner locations across California.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
US: BJ’s to open 1st Tennessee club
BJ’s Wholesale Club’s continued expansion of new locations this year will include its inaugural club in the state of Tennessee by the first half of 2023. The Volunteer State’s first BJ’s Wholesale Club will be located 20 miles southeast of downtown Nashville in La Vergne, a city in Rutherford County. As well as the La Vergne opening, BJ’s has plans to open clubs in Davenport, Florida, and McDonough, Georgia, later this month.
Source: progressivegrocer.com
What changes are US consumers making to their diets?
According to a recent survey, US consumers have cited eating more fruits and vegetables and less sugar as highly ranking potential changes to eating behaviours relating to New Year’s resolutions. The January Consumer Food Insights Report was put together by Purdue University’s Center for Food Demand Analysis and Sustainability with the aim of assessing food spending, consumer satisfaction and values, support of agricultural and food policies and trust in information sources.
Source: newfoodmagazine.com
Walmart edges out Amazon as most-preferred online grocer
Walmart beat out Amazon as consumers’ most-preferred online grocer in a survey for Chicory’s 2023 Online Grocery Shopping Report. Nearly 1,000 e-grocery customers were polled about their shopping preferences in the annual online grocery study from New York-based Chicory, a CPG/grocery digital commerce platform. Though Walmart came in at No. 1 among online grocery retailers, e-tail giant Amazon had two of the top banners, including Amazon Fresh at No. 2 and Whole Foods Market at No. 10.
Source: winsightgrocerybusiness.com