Nonfoods

NEW YORK -- As they finally shake off old associations with substandard "brand x" items, private label or store brand food and beverage sales are climbing steadily, according to "Private Label Food and Beverages in the U.S.," a report from market research firm Packaged Facts here. The report puts 2006 sales at over $48 billion, and forecasts that sales will pass $56 billion by 2011.

ALBANY, N.Y. -- A coalition of New York state grocers, labor groups, and other businesses is preparing to do battle against a new grocery tax proposed by Gov. Eliot Spitzer in yesterday's budget announcements, in an effort to get him to focus efforts on what the group calls "real recycling reform."