Supermarket & Grocery Industry News

ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- Earth Fare has committed to selling only fresh eggs from cageless hens, the chain said yesterday. The natural foods supermarket chain's decision will freeze out the only supplier of "caged-hen" eggs it had: a local Abbey.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- After being informally investigated in 2004 for certain accounting practices, Ingles Markets, Inc. here is now the subject of a formal investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the supermarket chain revealed in its latest 10-Q filing with the SEC.

NATICK, Mass. -- BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc. yesterday reported that sales for July grew 9.3 percent to $582.3 million from $532.6 million in the year-ago period, with grocery categories playing a significant roles in the gains.

LONDON -- The UK's largest supermarkets caught a break yesterday when the Office of Fair Trading, an independent organization that promotes and protects fair and competitive UK business practices, concluded that the Supermarkets Code of Practice should remain unchanged.

RUTLAND, Vt. -- Vermont's biggest food show, the 71st annual Vermont Grocers exposition, hosted by the Vermont Grocers' Association (VGA), will take place Friday, Sept. 16 to Sunday, Sept. 18 at the Wyndham Burlington Hotel in Burlington, Vt. and the Robert E. Miller Exposition Center in Essex Junction, Vt.

EDMONTON, Alta. -- Planet Organic Health Corp., based here, which owns and operates large natural food supermarkets under the Planet Organic Market banner, in addition to a chain of natural health outlets across Canada under the Sangster's Health Centres banner, said yesterday that it has completed its acquisition of health food store chain Newfound Health, also based in Edmonton, which has 14 franchise locations in the province of Alberta.

WILSONVILLE, Ore. -- Oregon grocers are furious with the Meth bill passed by the state senate last Saturday, claiming that, if signed into law, it will hurt the retail industry and do little to fight the state's methamphetamine abuse problem.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. ¿ After dealing with its share of bankruptcy-related challenges, Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. got a major break on Friday, as the U.S. Bankruptcy Court approved a trade creditors payment program that will free up credit and provide the retailer with about $100 million in liquidity.