Research & Analysis

BOISE, Idaho - Albertsons, Inc., based here, intends to open low-price or price-impact grocery stores in several cities across the country, indicating a growing shift toward low-cost formats in the supermarket industry, the Daily Herald in Utah reports.

NEW YORK - Safeway, Inc. today reported a significantly lower first-quarter profit as it worked to revitalize its business in the wake of an expensive Southern California strike, according to Reuters.

CHICAGO - Starbucks Corp. is considering a distribution deal with Northfield, Ill.-based Kraft Foods, Inc., under which the latter company would distribute Seattle's Best Coffee to grocery stores nationwide, Reuters reports.

BRUSSELS - Supermarket chain Delhaize, based here, said yesterday it might be interested in buying stores from Winn-Dixie, which announced last week that it would close 156 stores in an effort to cut costs, according to Reuters.

CHICAGO - If consumers in financial straits have to choose between buying gasoline or groceries, gasoline often wins out, a Food Marketing Institute study has found.

LARGO, Fla.- Breakthrough Engineered Nutrition, a wholly owned subsidiary of Innovative Companies, Inc., announced today that it has launched CarbSlim Bites with Boise, Idaho-based Albertsons, the second-largest food-drug retailer in the United States, with about 2,300 stores in 31 states.

The paper goods aisle absorbs consumers with innovation, catchy graphics, and new products, despite competition from other classes, and a pending price hike.

Following a successful pilot, United Supermarkets rolls ahead with a knowledge-based computer-automated ordering system.