Broad Street Licensing Group Food News

Archive for September, 2011

Surprise! Smoking Ban NOT The End of the World

Friday, September 30th, 2011

When Pennsylvania passed the Clean Indoor Air Act banning smoking in bars & restaurants, the foodservice industry cried like babies.

Now two years later they admit it was actually good for business!

The law has teeth and is enforced by the State Police, who issued 133 citations and 146 warning letters during the first six months of last year alone, down from 150 citations and 229 warning letters during the last six months of 2009. It just goes to show that business owners don’t always know what’s best for their business. Private clubs and locations serving less than 20% food are exempt, as are some locations that have separate smoking rooms and strong ventilation systems. In a related development, a new study by researchers at Penn State University [1] found helping smokers quit saves lives and is good financially for the country.

[1] Source: the American Lung Association.

Posted in Consumer Trends and Habits, Government Regulation | No Comments »

The Wall Street Journal Catches Up!

Thursday, September 29th, 2011

Regular subscribers of our Food Industry Newsletter received a report on France’s Carrefour SA, the world’s #2 retailer, and how its CEO Lars Olofsson has been attempting to shed the chain’s reputation for being expensive.

Apparently The Wall Street Journal reads it: they then wrote about how Carrefour is trying to become the IKEA of grocers selling other companies’ brands leveraged against private label products.

The goal is to have private label products at lower prices (up to 50% lower) using a stock-management system developed in their China division targeted to reduce internal costs than €1bn (a strategy Walmart has used to reach the top of the retail food chain). Last year price cutting and promotions cut Carrefour’s operating profit by nearly €640MM ($830MM), so Olofsson is hoping to use lower prices to goose up sales volume, something that will let him strike better deals with producers and improve margins. At 3.2%, Carrefour’s are the lowest of all major retailers and half those of its competition (Wal-Mart and Tesco PLC).

Posted in Grocery Stores, World News | 1 Comment »

Twin Peaks “Breastaurant”

Wednesday, September 28th, 2011

For those who can’t get enough cleavage with their food, here’s good news:

Cory Brooks, former CEO of Hooters of America LLC and the son of its founder, Robert H. Brooks, has left the company to join forces with a group of five former Hooters execs. Their plan is to grow the four unit chain and challenge the original (Hooters has 425 units). Hooters was sold to Chaunticleer Holdings last January following a family feud after Brooks’ death in 2006.

Twin Peaks was named a “hot concept” by Nation’s Restaurant News in 2010.

Posted in The Restaurant Business | No Comments »

This & That

Tuesday, September 27th, 2011

More Calorie Labeling on the Way

As part of the new health care overhaul enacted in March 2010, most other venues selling food beyond restaurants will soon be required to post calorie counts, including planes, movie theaters, “grocerants,” food courts, train dining cars and c-stores. Grocery stores could have their salad bars, in-store bakeries, pizzas and delicatessens included (though not as yet), while sports stadiums are exempt at this time because they aren’t chains.[1] The goal is to help consumers make healthier choices, and the restaurant lobby accepted the provisions in order to avoid harsher ones or the local ordinances that are cropping up like crabgrass and vary enormously in their “teeth.” Not surprisingly, lobbying groups are decrying the new provisions as excessive or burdensome, while health experts are cheering the move.

Flu Vaccines Declared Safe Despite Egg Scare

The salmonella outbreak in egg production has aroused concerns about this year’s flu vaccine production. The vaccines are produced by growing the virus in chicken eggs, but the Food & Drug Administration and flu vaccine makers have assured consumers the eggs used in the production of vaccines are not from the farms currently under recall.[2] Sanofi-Aventis SA, the biggest supplier of vaccine, has its own egg suppliers, which it claims to monitor for security and hygiene. The FDA has reported finding rodents, flies, wild birds and piles of manure 4-8 feet high during inspections of egg-laying plants associated with a Salmonella outbreak. The disease is spread through chicken manure, and the farms under review did not take proper precautions to keep chickens and workers from tracking manure throughout the facilities.

[1] The law specifies restaurant chains of 20 or more locations.

[2] Additionally, the eggs used in vaccine production are fertilized, while those for eating are not.

Posted in Government Regulation, Health | No Comments »

Tasty Marketing Tidbits

Monday, September 26th, 2011

Trying to reach consumers concerned about too much sodium in their diets, Sunkist is pushing S’alternative, a campaign that urges them to switch from salt to Sunkist lemons. As part of the effort, the company is running a recipe contest with a $1,000 grocery card as the grand prize.
While its biases are evident, the Fairtrade Labeling Organization (FLO) representing 23 certifying organizations and owns the Fairtrade trademark claims that its efforts have improved the lives of 1.2MM workers worldwide.[1] Fairtrade’s primary success has been in coffee with a half million farmers worldwide pegged to Fairtrade prices, and currently selling 68% of the total sales volume through its channels. Honey is the second most-important category (82%) followed by bananas (71%).The organization is concentrated in East Africa where 47% of the 850,000 farmers & small producers belong, and 38% of workers are employed by registered plantations. Growth in the rest of the world averaged 25% while in S. Asia that rate exceeded 50%.
Do they count re-gifting? The market for food gifts grew from $16bn in 2007 to $18bn last year, a 9% increase.[2] It will surpass $21bn by 2014.
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters was #2 on Fortune’s “100 Fastest-Growing Companies 2010.”
In a sad note, another small grocer is locking up the store and quitting the business: E.L. Davis & Bro. has been in continuous existence since 1913 serving Norway, SC. Named for the brother that loaned its uneducated founder the money to open the store, which took eggs and other products in trade during the Depression and even cut glass and sold other hardware store items.

[1] Source: The report entitled The Benefits of Fairtrade based on data from audits conducted in 2008 showing 1MM workers & producers benefitting, with the figure of 1.2 figure calculated based on growth rates for 2009.

[2] Source: Packaged Facts’ Food Gifting in the U.S., 2nd Edition.

Posted in Marketing Trends, Tasty Tidbits | No Comments »

Health & The Environment

Friday, September 23rd, 2011

Just a food allergies turn out to be overstated by consumers who think they have them when they don’t, or the wild nutritional claims for organics, another “better for you” health myth has been exposed: gluten-free foods are necessary for those rare individuals with celiac disease, but are if anything worse for the average consumer. Not only do they have no added nutritional value, energy-boosting capabilities or weight loss advantages, they are likely higher in calories, sugar and fat, and lower in iron, vitamins and fiber.[1]
The benefits and risks of alcohol consumption in women continue to confuse: the latest research[2] shows former breast cancer patients who are postmenopausal or overweight/obese 1.5x more likely to suffer a recurrence of the disease if they drank moderately (3-4 drinks per week). However, drinking moderately was not linked to increased risk for “all-cause death,” and researchers pointed out moderate consumption may lower risks for dying from a non-breast cancer-related health issue. Those who consumed less than 3-4 drinks so no increase.
No surprise here: bottled teas contain fewer of the coveted antioxidants than home-brewed green or black teas. Six bottled teas tested had 3-81 milligrams of polyphenols per 16-ounce bottle; home-brewed tea contains 50-150 milligrams per cup.

[1] Source: Shelley Case, a registered dietician on the medical advisory board of the Celiac Disease Foundation.

[2] Source: The August 30, 2010 online edition of the Journal of Clinical Oncology from research by a team led by Marilyn L. Kwan, a researcher at Kaiser Permanente in Oakland, CA.

Posted in Consumer Trends and Habits, Health | No Comments »

BREAKING NEWS: Yum! to Sell Long John Silver, A&W

Thursday, September 22nd, 2011

Yum! Brands, the owner of KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and other chains has decided to sell the Long John Silver and A&W banners to two groups of its franchisees.

The company has directed more and more of its strategy towards international operations, especially in China and with a focus on Pizza Hut and KFC which have done spectacularly there. Taco Bell has struggled recently, and remains a work in progress.

Posted in The Restaurant Business | No Comments »

UK Grocery Retailing: “Son of Asda”

Thursday, September 22nd, 2011

British grocery chain ASDA has opened 26 smaller-footprint stores (8-9,000 square feet) with 10,000 mostly food products instead of the usual 35,000 in its huge 42,000 sq. ft stores that carry everything.

While small, the new stores have an in-store bakery and “dot com” pick-up location for online shoppers. Wags have dubbed the new stores “Son of Asda,” “Asda Lite” and “Asdiddy,” but if regulators pass on Asda’s purchase of the Danish chain Netto’s 193 locations this past May, all will be reopened in the new format (Netto stores average 8,500 sq.ft).

In other world news:

As China’s middle class gets wealthier, they want to eat more meat. This should translate into strong growth rates above 16% annually for the food processing industry.[1] From 2008-2008, the sector grew an amazing 345%. The other sectors promising the highest growth rates are dairy and “ready meals,” since the global economic downturn is only now showing up slightly in the Chinese market overall, with no impact in processed foods. Packaging, however, poses challenges to the sector due to the relatively primitive level of technology & automation.[2]
In a related story, the global market for sustainable packaging is predicted to reach $142.42bn by 2015.[3]
With Western eating habits and more emphasis on convenience is resulting in a surge in demand for food & beverage enzymes in India.[4] Novozymes, the leader in such products after its acquisition of Biocon in 2007, says its products “improve sensory attributes” and shelf-life.
Thinking about investing in Croatia? We didn’t think so. And apparently its sluggish economy is dissuading others from investing as well, giving private label a leg up on European brands.[5] Private label accounts for 19.4% of the food market with the top retailers being German-owned Lidl, Billa and Kaufland, along with regional players Agrokor and Obi Trgovina.

[1] Source: Market research organization RNCOS.

[2] Source: Marketing Review.

[3] Source: Market research group Global Industry Analysts (GIA).

[4] The most-common enzyme in food production is brewer’s yeast.

[5] Source: Business Monitor International, which as published its new Croatia Food and Drink Report Q4 2010.

Posted in Grocery Stores, Retailing, World News | No Comments »

It Tastes Like— Chicken!

Wednesday, September 21st, 2011

A new survey of American eating habits shows chicken on the menu—LOTS of chicken.[1]

Over ½ (53%) eat it at least 4x/week. Eighty-six percent buy fresh in the meat dept at their grocer; 53% buy rotisserie chicken; and 53% buy frozen chicken. Chicken eaters are conservative: only 21% had tried a new fresh chicken product in the past 60 days; recipes, store displays and coupons drove trial, with 78% adding chicken to their shopping list because of a promotion or coupon.

Over 1/3 don’t have a “favorite brand,” and only 18% say the brand is important to them. With fresh chicken products, the most-important information on the label was “farm/country of origin.” And finally, “organic” continues to slide in consumers’ eyes: less than 25% purchased organic chicken even “occasionally,” while 40% do not believe it’s worth the extra cost. A further 40% say there are no nutritional benefits to organic chicken.

[1] Source: Market Force Information.

Posted in Consumer Trends and Habits | No Comments »

Zagat Goes Fast Food…

Tuesday, September 20th, 2011

For the first time, the Zagat guides have weighed-in on fast food restaurants.

Zagat Survey, L.L.C. looked at nearly 100 fast-food chains and 40 full-service chains voted-on by 6,500 Zagat.com users divided into four categories: mega (over 5,000 outlets), large (up to 5,000), full-service (with table service) and quick-refreshment (focusing on beverages, ice cream, etc.).

The top “mega” chain was Wendy’s with Subway, KFC, Taco Bell and Burger King following. The best “large” chain was In-N-Out Burger with Papa Murphy’s, Chick-fil-A, Five Guys and Chipotle. Among “full-service” chains, Bonefish Grill was tops for food, with P.F. Chang’s, Maggiano’s, Cheesecake Factory and California Pizza Kitchen the runners-up. “Quick-refreshment” chains were led by Ben & Jerry’s, followed by Haagen-Dazs, Bruster’s Real Ice Cream, Peet’s Coffee & Tea and Rita’s. The Golden Arches won four specific categories (best fries, best value menu, best value and best breakfast sandwiches). Panera had best salad. Other winners:

• Best burger — Five Guys

• Best fried chicken — KFC

• Best grilled chicken — Chick-fil-A

• Best coffee — Starbucks Coffee

• Best milkshake — Dairy Queen

• Top ice cream/custard — Ben & Jerry’s Scoop Shops

• Top smoothies/frozen yogurt — Jamba Juice.

Zagat is also partnering with Handmark, a developer & distributor of mobile applications & services, on the ZagatToGo 4.0 app for the iPhone.

Its three features are Foursquare (an account to access meal tips when dining at Zagat-rated restaurants), Foodspotting (photos of dishes at restaurants to help users decide where to eat), and Zagat Dining Journal (a diary of Zagat-rated restaurants the user has visited). Various methods easily enter the restaurant into the user’s Journal for easy reference.