Supermarket & Grocery Industry News

WASHINGTON - The House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted this week to block frivolous obesity lawsuits against the restaurant and food manufacturing industries.

WASHINGTON - The House Education and the Workforce Committee today voted to reauthorize the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program for the next four years with reforms long sought by the Food Marketing Institute (FMI) to benefit both consumers in the program and the retailers that serve them.

FRANKLIN, Tenn. - Point-of-sale (POS) technology shipments jumped by 8 percent in 2003 and are poised for double-digit growth moving forward, reports a new research study conducted by IHL Consulting Group.

BOISE, Idaho - Albertsons Inc. announced on Friday that it is launching a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) program and will be using the technology to improve efficiencies in consumer demand chain management. The company expects its top 100 suppliers to be participating in the program at the case and pallet level by April 2005.

SAN FRANCISCO - The following announcements were presented at FMI Marketechnics this week:

ANN ARBOR, Mich. and SAN DIEGO, Calif. - NSF International, an independent, not-for-profit company specializing in public health and safety risk management solutions, has acquired Quality Assurance International, Inc., which offers organic certification services.

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Customers in four Piggly Wiggly stores here and in Columbia, S.C. will be able to purchase their groceries with just a touch of the finger by August. The rest of the chain's locations will get the $50 scanners later this year, according to the Post and Courier here.

SHENZHEN, China - Wal-Mart announced here today that it would hold its annual worldwide board of directors' meeting in the Chinese mainland for the first time, the Xinhua News Agency reports. Shenzhen City in southern China's Guandong Province will be the location of the meeting. The first Wal-Mart in the Chinese Mainland opened in 1996.