Supermarket & Grocery Industry News

BOULDER, Colo. - Wild Oats Markets, Inc. today released its preliminary third-quarter 2003 sales and earnings results. The national natural and organic foods retailer also announced that it has reached a decision with distributor Tree of Life, Inc. that mutual expectations under the two companies' primary distribution agreement were unlikely to be met and that Tree of Life would relinquish the primary distribution role.

WASHINGTON - After presiding over numerous fact-finding discussions with more than 70 different trade and producer groups, the U.S. Agriculture Department yesterday issued its proposed rules for the congressionally mandated country-of-origin labeling (COOL) program that was required by the 2002 Farm Bill.

SCHAUMBURG, Ill. - ACNielsen U.S., an operating unit of ACNielsen, a VNU business, this week announced plans to more than double the size of its Homescan consumer panel, the single largest expansion in the history of this industry-leading service.

ELMWOOD PARK, N.J. - As the countdown begins for the Food & Drug Administration's new bioterrorism rules that go into effect Dec. 12, the Food Institute here has added a condensed half-day version of its "Complying With FDA's Final Bioterrorism Rules" seminar, to be held Nov. 6.

Still busily blanketing the U.S. with stores, the largest retailer is also becoming a major presence in countries around the globe. So far, its prospects are bigger than its problems.

Grocers still have plenty of supply chain options while waiting for RFID to happen.

WASHINGTON -- Although producers have a favorable opinion of country-of-origin labeling, a study released today shows that nearly two in three (62 percent) of the nation's meat, vegetable, and fruit producers oppose the country-of-origin labeling (COOL) law in its current form and want Congress to change or repeal the law before it goes into effect.

Enticing customers with a host of new flavor combinations and heat levels, hot sauces are burning up the shelves of the condiment aisle.