US: Teamsters at Safeway.com ratify life-changing new contract
Teamsters delivering groceries for Safeway.com throughout the Puget Sound area have unanimously ratified a strong new three-year contract, successfully beating back an effort by the company to outsource the entire grocery delivery business to third-party subcontractors. The life-changing new contract will solve many of the previous challenges for more than 120 members at Teamsters Locals 174, 162, and 313 who are covered under the agreement.
Source: prnewswire.com
US: ShopRite owners serve it up Fresh to Table
A pair of ShopRite owners have rolled out Wakefern Food Corp.’s “Fresh to Table” meal solutions sections to more stores. RoNetco Supermarkets Inc., based in Ledgewood, New Jersey, and owned and operated by the Romano family, said it has launched Fresh to Table at its ShopRite locations in Newton, Sparta, Byram Township, Mansfield Township and Succasunna, New Jersey.
Source: supermarketnews.com
US: Food Lion expands its pickup service to 15 more stores
Looking to help its customers make grocery shopping easier, Food Lion expanded its Food Lion To Go grocery pickup service to 15 more stores in the Carolinas, Georgia and Tennessee. To kick things off, Food Lion is offering shoppers their first pickup for free, the Ahold Delhaize’s Salisbury, North Carolina-based banner said in a statement.
Source: winsightgrocerybusiness.com
Puerto Rico: MegaFresh Supermarkets on track for continued growth
Some two years after opening shop, MegaFresh Supermarkets has continued growing as new stores are being incorporated, while implementing an “aggressive marketing plan” with the goal of expanding its consumer base. With sales exceeding $100mln, MegaFresh Supermarkets “has positively impacted the island’s food industry”, MegaCoop and MegaFresh Supermarkets President Francisco Pérez Santiago, recently said.
Source: newsismybusiness.com
UK: Sainsbury’s latest labelling changes could save up to 17mln food products going to waste each year
The retailer has already removed best before dates from over 1,500 lines including bananas, apples and indoor plants. Now, Sainsbury’s has begun removing ‘best before’ dates from fresh fruit and vegetables and dairy from 276 additional products. From the end of August, produce including onions, tomatoes and citrus fruits will not include best before dates.
Source: about.sainsburys.co.uk
Ireland: ‘Kids will be asking in a few years, what’s a greengrocer?, because they will disappear’
The Fox family of Delvin, Co Westmeath, have been providing fresh Irish fruit and vegetables to the people of Mullingar for almost 70 years. It started in 1953 when Paddy Fox returned from England to the home beef farm and bought a van to sell wholesale fruit, vegetables and fish. He sourced produce from North Dublin growers at the capital’s Victorian Fruit and Vegetable Market where, in the early morning hours, he joined long queues of farmers on their tractors and trailers waiting to deliver the day’s staples.
Source: independent.ie
UK: Asda eyes deeper push into convenience with £450mln Co-op fuel retail swoop
Asda is preparing to accelerate a long-awaited move into Britain’s convenience store market with a £450mln swoop on the Co-op Group’s petrol forecourt business. Sky News has learnt that Asda is the leading contender to buy the mutual's fuel retailing arm, which includes a sizeable convenience operation. Sky News revealed that the Co-op was working with bankers at Rothschild to explore a sale of its estate of roughly-130 petrol forecourt sites.
Source: news.sky.com
SPAR Hungary invests about €2mln in new store in Szigetszentmiklós
SPAR Hungary has opened a new SPAR store in Szigetszentmiklós, a city close to Budapest. The store features a modern food-to-go area, energy-saving equipment, and self-service cash registers to speed up the payment process. Innovative equipment has been installed, including cutting-edge refrigerators, fresh produce racks, bakery displays, cash desks, and self-service cash registers.
Source: spar-international.com
Australia: Coles recognises suppliers for innovation, sustainability and action in response to floods and pandemic
Coles has recognised Australian businesses which have driven innovation, sustainability and community support in a year punctuated by floods, supply chain challenges and the COVID-19 pandemic. At the 2022 Coles Supplier Partner Awards held in Melbourne, Coles recognised 16 businesses for excellence in providing merchandise and services across Coles’ business amid often difficult circumstances. One of the winners of the 2022 Coles Supplier of the Year Awards: Costa Vertical Farming, which won the Coles Fresh Produce Supplier of the Year Award for driving consumption of mushrooms and tomatoes at a time when both products have been in short supply.
Source: colesgroup.com.au
Continente introduces products from UK-based, plant-based brand Gosh!
Portuguese retailer Continente has launched plant-based products from British startup Gosh!, which it claims is a first for a retail chain in the country. The retailer will offer eight products (five refrigerated and three frozen), comprising 100% natural, plant-based ingredients as the retailer seeks to respond to national consumption trends. The retailer is offering beet hamburgers, sweet potato falafel, and veggie bites from the Gosh! range, priced at €3.99.
Source: esmmagazine.com
The largest Lidl in France will open this month
On August 31, Lidl opens the doors of its largest supermarket in France, with an area of 2,350 m². Among the 103 Lidl employees mobilized to welcome Nanterre residents to their new local supermarket, 20 are from new recruitments.
Source: internationalsupermarketnews.com
Meesho lays off 300 employees, shuts down grocery arm ‘Superstore’ in India
Meesho, India’s fastest growing internet commerce company, reportedly closed its supermarket chain Superstore in more than 90% of Indian towns (apart from Nagpur and Mysore), leading to the loss of numerous jobs. Meesho Superstore was available in six states Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. After Meesho Superstore closed, approximately 300 employees lost their employment. The business declined to comment on the situation when contacted.
Source: startupstorymedia.com
Bid to boost Thai goods in Saudi stores
The Commerce Ministry has teamed up with luxury retailer Manuel Market and LuLu Hypermarket to boost Thai exports to Saudi Arabia. Thai products available at Manuel Market's branches include rice, vegetables, fruit, canned seafood, canned fruit, sauces, condiments, and pet food. LuLu Hypermarket, under LuLu Group International, is well known for importing consumer products from Europe and Asia. The retailer imports more than 1,700 products from Thailand, such as rice, vegetables, fruit, canned seafood, canned fruit, sauce, seasoning, pet food, household items, and clothes.
Source: bangkokpost.com
China: Pinduoduo beats revenue estimates, eyes overseas growth
Shanghai-based e-commerce giant Pinduoduo Inc reported quarterly revenue above Wall Street estimates, buoyed by a major shopping festival and price promotions to lure China’s increasingly reluctant consumers to open their wallets. “We saw a recovery in consumer sentiment in the second quarter, especially during the 618 shopping festival”, said Chief Executive Chen Lei. He cited agricultural produce, fast-moving consumer goods, consumer electronics and beauty products as standout sales performers, and said promotions had also driven up sales. Pinduoduo’s total revenue stood at 31.44bln yuan ($4.55bln) in the quarter to June 30, compared with estimates of 23.68bln yuan, according to Refinitiv data.
Source: reuters.com
Meta and Jio launch grocery shopping on WhatsApp in India
Meta and an e-commerce venture between India’s Reliance Retail and Jio Platforms are bringing grocery shopping to WhatsApp in what they said was a global-first end-to-end shopping experience on the popular instant messaging platform.
Source: techcrunch.com