THE FRIDAY 5: Grocers Grapple With Salmonella Outbreak; Food Lion President Retiring

1. New Salmonella Outbreak Hits Walmart, Wegmans, Others

News came this week of a new Salmonella outbreak, this time linked to cucumbers grown in Mexico. SunFed Produce, LLC, announced a recall of whole cucumbers that were sold in 26 U.S. states and five Canadian provinces between Oct. 12 and Nov. 26, due to the risk of Salmonella contamination.

As of Nov. 26, 68 people had been infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella across 19 states, with 18 reports of hospitalizations. No deaths have been reported.

Walmart, Wegmans and Albertsons Cos. were all affected by the recall, with the latter recalling select store-made deli and produce items that contained the recalled cucumbers from Albertsons, Randalls and Tom Thumb banner stores in Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas.

This is the latest in a slew of food safety recalls that have impacted the food retail industry in recent months. On Nov. 16, Grimmway Farms issued a recall of select organic whole carrots and organic baby carrots due to potential E. coli contamination. In late October, TreeHouse Foods, Inc. recalled certain waffle products being sold under Walmart’s Great Value brand, Target’s Good & Gather brand, Kroger’s Simple Truth private label, and many others.

Progressive Grocer recently conducted two webinars on the top of food safety in retail that can be seen on-demand: "Safety: A Team Approach to Unmasking Hidden Threats" and "The High Stakes of Food Safety: Keeping Customers Safe and the Cost of Inaction."

2. Food Lion President Announces Retirement

Ahold Delhaize USA shared this week that Food Lion President Meg Ham will retire on May 2, 2025, after more than 35 years with the organization. Ham led Food Lion for more than a decade, and her successor is set to be revealed before the year’s end.

“Meg has been an outstanding leader at Ahold Delhaize USA and has led Food Lion during one of the brand’s most exciting times as it repositioned itself to better serve customers, while staying true to its core attributes of low prices and convenient locations,” said Ahold Delhaize USA CEO JJ Fleeman. 

“Under Meg’s leadership, the brand has experienced tremendous growth, all while remaining true to its purpose of nourishing the towns and cities Food Lion serves,” continued Fleeman. “Not only did the Food Lion business thrive, but under Meg’s leadership the brand is on track to deliver 1.5 billion meals by 2025 through its Food Lion Feeds hunger relief platform. She has been a strong leader for the brand, with a remarkable passion for building strong customer and associate experiences, and we wish her all the best as she transitions to retirement.”

3. Thanksgiving, Black Friday Shopping Trends

The Thanksgiving holiday brought with it opportunities for grocers to capitalize on shopper needs, and this year’s Turkey Wednesday did not disappoint. According to a report from location analytics and insights firm Placer.ai, grocery stores saw visits rise by 81% on Nov. 27 compared to a year-to-date daily average. Total grocery store visits on Nov. 27 were up 0.7% compared to last year’s Turkey Wednesday, which occurred on Nov. 22.

Traditional grocery stores like The Kroger Co., Albertsons Cos. and others experienced bigger pre-Thanksgiving visit boosts than limited-assortment value chains such as ALDI and Trader Joe’s, though the best-performing chains this year were regional players like Schnuck Markets and Jewel-Osco, which saw foot traffic surges of 103.9% and 92.6%, respectively. 

As for Black Friday, analytics provider RetailNext found that overall in-store foot traffic dipped 3.2% from last year, with researchers concluding that high grocery prices and other living costs are putting pressure on shoppers and affecting their discretionary spending.

4. Walmart Officially Takes Over Vizio

Readers were interested in the news that Walmart completed its acquisition of Vizio on Dec. 3, along with its SmartCast Operating System, for $11.50 per share in cash, equating to a fully diluted equity value of approximately $2.3 billion.

The acquisition of Vizio and its SmartCast Operating System will allow Walmart to become even more competitive in the retail media space. 

“Vizio offers great products at great prices that customers love. They’ve always put customers at the center of their business – and that’s core to Walmart’s values and the omnichannel experiences we’re excited to roll out,” said Seth Dallaire, EVP and chief growth officer, Walmart U.S. “Vizio has also expertly changed their business over time, like building and quickly scaling a profitable advertising business. Pairing it with Walmart Connect will be impactful and allow us to invest in our business even further on behalf of our customers.” 

5. Grocers Start Making Holiday Magic

Several grocers are getting into the holiday spirit, starting with Whole Foods Market, which is getting ready to kick off its popular 12 Days of Cheese promotion. The event will run Dec. 13 through Dec. 24, and the 2024 lineup encompasses exclusive selections created especially for Whole Foods, a range of global options from France, Spain, Switzerland and Italy, and other domestic offerings. 

Speaking of cheese, PG Senior Editor Lynn Petrak visited ALDI’s Charcuterie Chalet in Chicago this week to check out the retailer’s immersive sampling experience. The event included seven charcuterie board examples, each of which provides inspiration for budget-friendly entertaining at home, from a board set up to resemble a Christmas sweater, to mini round boards set atop glasses of red wine, to a sweets board with cookies, chocolates and other mini-desserts. 

Finally, PG Editorial Director and Associate Publisher Gina Acosta had an exclusive chat this week with Walmart U.S. EVP of Food John Laney, who shared insights into the company’s new Holiday Ham Basket. According to Laney, the offering is based on Walmart’s customer-centric approach in its grocery assortment, omnichannel offerings, private brands, and even community partnerships — all of which are very appealing to an inflation-weary but hardy shopper who is ready to celebrate.