Market Force Information’s study on America’s favorite grocery retailers found Publix and Wegmans are the most popular. The survey tallied votes from more than 12,700 shoppers with both retailers scoring 77%. Trader Joe’s came in a close second to the two leaders at 76%, with H-E-B ranking third at 69%. ALDI was found to have the best value; Publix the best selection and cleanest stores; and Trader Joe’s the friendliest cashiers. (fooddive.com) US: Permit rule halts 7-Eleven expansion
New tobacco-permitting rules put in place late last year by the Philadelphia Department of Public Health may have led 7-Eleven to drop plans for 35 new franchised convenience stores in the city, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News. (cspdailynews.com) US: Kroger is dropping prices
Kroger has announced that it will discontinue its senior discount program in many of its stores but will also be cutting prices on thousands of items. Kroger says that it has lowered prices on 3,000 items this year. Spokeswoman Allison McGee says customers are paying less on 8,000 items than they were five years ago. (newsplex.com) US: Target aims to grow in NYC
As part of a commitment to invest $7 bn in capital on stores, digital and the supply chain by the end of 2019, Target has revealed plans to open at least five additional locations in New York and to test a same-day delivery service for in-store purchases from its Tribeca location. These store openings are just the beginning, according to Target, which said that it would continue to look at sites across the city and that it planned to have more than 130 small-format locations nationwide by the close of 2019. (progressivegrocer.com) US: Kroger introducing meal kits
Kroger's cooking up a strategy to compete with trendy meal kit companies like Blue Apron, Hello Fresh and Peach Dish. The company has launched its own new line of dinner kits called "Prep Pared.” The kits come with everything you need to create a meal for two, including the recipe. (fox19.com) US: Peapod, Conagra team on Meal Kits
Online grocer Peapod has introduced three meal kits created with Frontera, the gourmet Mexican food line developed by celebrity chef Rick Bayless and Conagra Brands. The new kits, which contain pre-measured, pre-cut and pre-washed ingredients for meals made in 30 minutes or under, are the latest additions to Peapod’s rapidly growing collection of such items. (progressivegrocer.com) CA: Loblaw is planning for prolonged food deflation
There’s no end in sight for Canadian food deflation, according to the country’s largest grocer. Loblaw Cos. is fighting a price war with Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Metro Inc. and other rivals, offering discounts to lure more customers and keep revenue growing. That means there may be little prospect of a pick up in prices that have been dropping since the end of last year, with competition becoming a full-on deflation factor. Loblaw's CEO told analysts: “As a result of this, we do not expect inflation to turn positive in 2017.” (Bloomberg)China: Dairy Farm profits marginal in Q1
For the first quarter, Dairy Farm has reported increases in sales and operating profits for various divisions. However, this was offset by weak sales in their Food Division, particularly in the Southeast Asia markets. Sales were also lower than expected during Chinese New Year, which impacted operating profits. Nonetheless, overall earnings for the Group are slightly ahead of prior year, with the market unlikely to move-away from current trading conditions. (igd.com)Auchan launches health and wellbeing campaign
French retailer Auchan has launched a new campaign to promote 'good, healthy, and local products'. The health and well-being initiative will be introduced in 14 countries. The initiative will include Auchan reviewing its own-brand products to increase nutritional value, supporting sustainable agriculture and launching a health coach app, which will analyse customer's shopping receipts. (esmmagazine.com) Swaziland: farmers cash in over $4m from supplying major retailers
As of December 2016, local farmers in Swaziland pocketed over E56m (US $4m) from supplying large supermarkets or retailers with fruits and vegetables. These include but are not limited to Pick n Pay, Spar and Shoprite. This was disclosed by NAMBoard's CEO during an interview at the sidelines of the Lundzi market led climate smart fruit and vegetable field day held at Lundzi last Friday. (observer.org.sz) UK: Intense competition keeping down prices of everyday groceries
Amid widespread talk of rising food prices due to the fall in the value of the pound, data from price comparison website mySupermarket.co.uk shows that the cost of a basket of popular everyday items still fell slightly during April. It found that the price of a basket of 35 items came to £81.93 compared to the previous month total of £82.15. Some items have continued to fall in price since March including apples (-1.4%), bananas (-1.5%) and peppers (-4%). (kamcity.com)UK's cheapest grocer revealed
Aldi beat rivals to scoop the title of cheapest supermarket, according to analysis of a basket of common household goods. The retailer was found to offer lower prices on 31 out of 33 items, (including fresh produce) than the biggest four supermarkets: Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Morrisons, as tracked by The Grocer magazine. The next cheapest was Asda, while the most expensive basket was Waitrose. (express.co.uk) Lotte Group China facing huge losses
Lotte Group China faces huge losses as its hypermarkets remain closed after nearly two months. The Korean retail group’s management say the closures are an apparent retaliation by Beijing officials against the THAAD US missile defence system set up in South Korea. Chinese authorities ordered Lotte to close its stores following inspections in late February and early March after the company agreed to give the Korean Defence Ministry a site for the THAAD missile system in a land-swap deal. (insideretail.asia) Bennet launches 'drive' service in Italy
Supermarket chain Bennet has launched an online order and pick up service in Italy. The service, initially available at two stores in the greater Milan area (Vaprio d’Adda and Comaredo), is part of a trial that, if successful, will be extended to other stores of the network. (esmmagazine.com) 
