Consumer Affairs & Relations

Two of the nation's leading supermarket retailers avoided a potentially crippling strike over the weekend when more than 22,000 employees of Albertson's and Safeway agreed to extend their contracts until midnight Sept. 8.

The Union representing workers at the Zallies and Ravitz Shop Rite supermarkets in southern New Jersey today hand delivered a seven-day strike notice to the company, as required by law. If no agreement is reached by midnight on Thursday, September 6, 2001 thousands of supermarket workers could be walking picket lines instead of checking out customer grocery orders.

Aug. 30--A Utah lawmaker wants to restrict or labelforeign meat coming into the state -- a move he saidwould protect consumers.

The Board of Directors of Philip Morris Companies Inc. on Wednesday announced that William H. Webb was elected to the position of Vice Chairman, Philip Morris Companies Inc., effective immediately.

PCRM, a national health organization dedicated to promoting preventive medicine and higher standards in medical research, education, and practice, on Wednesday filed a petition calling on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to protect consumers against feces-contaminated poultry and meat. The petition coincides with PCRM's release of a survey that shows that 84 percent of adults have no idea that the primary source of foodborne pathogens on poultry and meat is animal feces.

Nash Finch has filed a lawsuit alleging that "person or persons unknown--possibly employees--posted confidential information" about the company on a Yahoo! message board. The Edina, Minn.-based company's suit claims "breach of contract and misappropriation of trade secrets" and stipulates that if "the defendants turn out to be current or former employees, they would have violated Nash Finch's Code of Ethics and Business Conduct and Associate Handbook."

workers at Rice Epicurean Markets walked off the job and marched in picketlines Monday after contract negotiations with the supermarket chain collapsed.

The United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1776, representing over1,100 workers at Laneco stores in eastern Pennsylvania today announced that it was willing to recommend that the workers whowere recently laid off accept a severance proposal made by Supervalu.