FOODSERVICE NEWS

Some Reason For Travel Rebound In R.I. In 2010
Leisure travel will be the first in the hospitality channel to rebound in Rhode Island, according to a hospitality expert. More than 60 hospitality professionals attended the recent Economic Outlook Breakfast, hosted by the Rhode Island Hospitality Association (RIHA). This year’s guest panelists included Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of research and information, National Restaurant Association; Rachel Roginsky, President of Pinnacle Advisory Group; and Shane Norton, Senior Consultant for Global Insight.
These hospitality experts shared their insights on the economic status of the hospitality and tourism industry from a local, regional and national perspective.
The most promising outlook came from Mr. Norton who discussed the state of the tourism industry in Rhode Island and the nation and also presented his economic outlook through 2011.  The travel and tourism sector brought in roughly $771 million to Rhode Island in 2007, but has steadily decreased to $743 million in 2008, and $672 million in 2009. Leisure travel has remained relatively steady in RI and is projected to grow by 1.4 percent in 2010, which is especially important since 80 percent of visitors to Rhode Island are leisure travelers compared to 75 percent for the rest of the nation.
Mr. Riehle concluded that the economic recovery will be patchy and prolonged but in 2010, it is expected that there will be modest growth in national gross domestic product. In light of the soft economic climate restaurants will continue to emphasize value, and growing menu trends will include healthy kids’ meals, local produce, mini- desserts, and artisan spirits.

Steak n Shake To Merge With Western Sizzlin Corp.
The Steak n Shake Company and Western Sizzlin Corp. late last week announced a merger. Closing of the merger transaction is subject approval by Western's stockholders. The Steak n Shake restaurant chain, founded in 1934, is a classic American brand serving premium burgers and milkshakes through its chain of 485 restaurants. Western Sizzlin Corporation is a holding company which owns a number of subsidiaries, with its primary business activities conducted through Western Sizzlin Franchise Corporation and Western Sizzlin Stores, Inc, which franchise and operate restaurants.

Centerplate Debuts 100 Percent Biodegradable Food Service Solution For Fla. Convention Center
Centerplate which services North America's premier convention centers and sports stadiums has launched a 100 percent biodegradable food service solution for the Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) in Orlando, Florida. Under the new program, all of the facility's disposable food service items -- from cups to flatware to napkins -- will be 100 percent biodegradable, significantly reducing the environmental impact of the site's menu operations. The biodegradable products are currently being phased in to the OCCC's operations with a targeted completion date of January 2010 for all of the new items to be fully implemented.
Further contributing to the OCCC's overall 'Orange to Green' program, Centerplate recycled more than 270,000 gallons of grease solids and used cooking oil last year and also recovered 33 percent of the facility's food and beverage waste to be used for recycling.
"When the nation's second largest convention center operation commits to this level of change, the benefits to the overall environment and to the health of the immediate community are substantial," said George Wooten, executive vice president of operations at Centerplate. "As part of our commitment to becoming the number one in hospitality and a leader in sustainability, we intend to extend this biodegradable food service solution to all our clients."
Among the new biodegradable products being introduced are cutlery made from cornstarch; clear colored, corn-based cups; plates and bowls made from sugarcane fiber; and hot cups that are lined with plant-based plastic. As part of the 'Center of Excellence' structure, Centerplate is currently evaluating suppliers with the goal of integrating a biodegradable solution across all of its clients' venues.

Food Service Latest Word…
Sam Adams will partner with the world’s oldest brewrery (German’s Weihenstephan Brewer) to unveil a new style of a collaboratively brewed beer next spring.

Starchefs will host The Rising Stars Reveue (up and coming chefs and culinary professionals) Tuesday, Nov. 3 at the State Room, 60, State Street, Boston. at 7:00 p.m.

The Stars of the Industry Awards Dinner will be held on Nov. 2 at the Mt. Washington Resort beginning at 5 p.m. The next day, the New Hampshire Lodging and Restaurant Assn. will host its annual trade show and convention.

Citizens Bank in Bellingham, Mass., is testing a Dunkin Donuts kiosk at its facility.

C-STORE NEWS

Snyder’s Of Hanover Plans To Purchase Utz Quality Foods
Snyder's of Hanover last week announced its intention to acquire Utz Quality Foods, Inc., pending clearance from the Federal Trade Commission.
"We'll be playing on the strengths of both companies as we move forward," said Mike Rice, Utz Quality Foods chairman and chief executive officer. "Our two companies have a lot of similarities: we are both privately held, family owned and operated businesses, and we have tremendous community involvement and support local initiatives for the betterment of our community. The Rice family is excited to be an important part of the new merged entity and to partner with the Snyder's team to create an innovative company focused on growth." Mr. Rice will serve as a director on the Snyder's of Hanover Board of Directors.
Snyder's of Hanover plans to continue operations in all four of the Hanover, Pa., Utz plants. There are no anticipated job losses and in fact the merger could lead to additional sales and manufacturing jobs over time as both brands continue to grow. Utz will be kept as a Hanover, Pa. based brand.
Currently, Snyder's of Hanover produces pretzels under it's flagship "Snyder's of Hanover" brand, but also owns Krunchers Kettle Chips, O-KE-DOKE popcorn, and Jays Potato Chips. Utz Quality Foods, Inc. is well-known for its line of potato chips: Regular Utz Potato Chips and other lines of Grandma Utz,, Kettle Classics, Home style, Mystic, and Baked Crisps. Utz also produces a natural line of potato chips, as well as pretzels, tortilla chips, multi-grain sunflower chips, cheese curls and popcorn. Utz. distributes its brands primarily throughout the East Coast.

Pepsi Cola Expands Allince With Ocean Spray On Juice & Juice Drinks
Pepsi-Cola North America Beverages (PCNAB) and Ocean Spray have expanded their long-term U.S. sales and distribution agreement to include a broader array of single-serve juices and juice drinks.
Beginning in February, PepsiCo, will produce, distribute and market, under license from Ocean Spray, several more flavors of Ocean Spray beverages. The agreement includes five Ocean Spray brand juices - 100% Apple; 100% Orange; Ruby Red Grapefruit; Pineapple Peach Mango; and Strawberry Kiwi. In conjunction with Ocean Spray's 2010 blueberry innovations, PCNAB also will distribute a 15.2-ounce Blueberry juice cocktail, the first nationally distributed of its kind.
PepsiCo and Ocean Spray teamed up in 2006 to forge a strategic alliance that brought Ocean Spray's highly regarded single-serve cranberry juice products to Pepsi bottlers. The expanded product line will be distributed in convenience and gasoline stations, club stores, drug, grocery, mass merchandise and food service channels across the United States.

NACS Announces New Initiatives At Convention
Two initiatives — a new program to nurture and grow foodservice excellence among convenience retailers and a massive advocacy effort on interchange credit card fees — were unveiled by NACS President and CEO Hank Armour at the NACS Convention last week in Las Vegas, Nev.
To help retailers achieve their sales potential, NACS is launching the NACS Center for Achieving Foodservice Excellence, also known as the NACS CAFE. NACS CAFE, which debuts in early 2010, will provide certified training programs for foodservice managers, supervisors and corporate directors through a series of online computer-based training modules and on-campus educational programs, as well as through a Web-based resource center.
The second major initiative is a NACS advocacy campaign that will integrate industry and consumer frustration over outrageous credit card interchange fees with congressional action.
“Successful political action requires two things: skillful lobbying on Capitol Hill and dramatic grassroots activity,” said Mr. Armour. “We now need to light grassroots fire around the country” and get customers to speak out over credit card interchange fees via a new NACS-sponsored petition campaign, similar to those that have already resulted in millions of signatures at 7-Eleven and Circle K stores.

C-Store Latest Word…
Phil Chisholm, former Petroleum Marketers Assn. of America executive vice president passed away on Oct. 16.

Quick Chek, a chain of 120 fresh food stores in New Jersey and southern New York is offering flu shots to each of its 23,300 employees.

Mars Snackfood announced the addition of five new chocolate candies at the NACS Show.

PepsiCo announced a Chairman’s Circle of Champions Program that recognizes the company’s outstanding operations associates in safety, quality, service, cost, sustainability and people skills.

NEW CHANNELS

Hannaford Supermarkets Named Climate Champion
Hannaford Supermarkets was presented last week with a “Climate Champion” award for its use of innovative technologies and business practices that help protect the environment. Clean Air – Cool Planet presented Hannaford with the award because the company proved it is one of the most effective retailers in the country at reducing energy use and pollution “Hannaford Supermarkets has long been a leader in recognizing the need for action on climate change,” said Adam Markham, chief executive officer of Clean Air – Cool Planet. “Its recent opening of the most environmentally advanced supermarket in the country is a capstone to this history of corporate climate action.”
To achieve this award Hannaford installed photovoltaic solar arrays at five stores; collected data as the first step in plans to build a wind turbine at its Schodack, N.Y., distribution center; equipped its fleet trucks with energy-saving "hybrid" refrigeration units that run on battery power and allow the tractor engine to be shut off while stopped, thus saving energy and reducing air pollution. New tractors and trailers are outfitted with air curtains that enable the vehicles to move down the road with less air turbulence and less drag, increasing fuel efficiency. Hannaford has also helped customers avoid using 56 million single-use bags through the promotion of reusable bags in 2008.

Duane Reade Extends More Store Hours to 24 Hours, Seven Days A Week
Duane Reade of New York has extended the hours of operation in 55 of its 256 store locations. The changes announced today will increase the number of stores open 7 days a week in the New York metro area to 248 locations, and stores open 24-hours to 70 locations
Last week announcement is part of Duane Reade's overall commitment to transform its store experience for customers, Duane Reade also launched its own exclusive brand of food and beverage items under the DR Delish(TM) brand name. Additionally, the Company has updated many of its stores and is making major improvements to its customer service and pharmacy operations.

NRF Says Serious Bargain Hunting Will Impact Holiday Season
According to National Retail Federation, U.S. consumers plan to spend an average of $682.74 on holiday-related shopping, a 3.2 percent drop from last year’s $705.01.
 Americans’ eagle-eye for bargain hunting is adjusting the priorities of many shoppers. According to the NRA survey, more than half of holiday shoppers say that sales and price discounts (43.3 percent) or everyday low prices (12.7 percent) will be the most important factor when deciding where to shop. Factors like selection (21 percent), quality (11.8 percent), convenience (4.9 percent ) and customer service (4.4 percent) declined from last year.
 Not surprisingly, the majority of holiday shoppers (70.1 percent ) will purchase from discounters this year, though more than half (55.8 percent ) will also shop at department stores. Grocery stores (45.percent), the Internet (42.4 percent ), clothing stores (33.8 percent ) and electronics stores (31.8 percent) will be popular destinations. In addition, one in ten holiday shoppers (11.4 percent) will buy gifts or other holiday-related merchandise at thrift stores or resale shops.
 Retailers are compensating for soft sales this holiday season by cutting back on inventory.  “In anticipation of weak demand, many retailers scaled back on inventory levels to prevent unplanned markdowns at the end of the season,” said NRF President and CEO Tracy Mullin. “Once the most popular items are gone, retailers won’t have anywhere to get them, so if there was ever a holiday season to buy early, this is it.” Candy and food spending may be one bright spot this year, with the average person planning to spend $10 more in that category than last year ($90.26 in 2009 vs. $80.28 in 2008).

New Channels Latest Word…
Plum Organics is taking a precautionary measure of voluntarily recalling a batch of Apple and Carrot Portable Pouch baby food. The recall is caused by a risk of potential contamination with botulism.

Joy Gay has been named executive director and chief executive officer of the Natural Products Assn. which is the largest and oldest non profit organization dedicated to natural products.

CVS Pharmacy’s Transportation Dept. recently received two national safety awards.

Target has announced it has sent $12.8 million in funding to schools nationwide.