SPAR Austria announces Hans K. Reisch as new CEO
The Supervisory Board of SPAR Austria has appointed Hans K. Reisch as the new CEO of SPAR AG with immediate effect. He will be the Chairman of the Management Board, which includes another three senior executives, Markus Kaser, Paul Klotz and Marcus Wild.
Source: spar-international.com
Jack Ma halts plans to cut his Alibaba stake after shares in the Chinese e-commerce giant drop
Alibaba founder Jack Ma held off on plans to trim his stake in the Chinese e-commerce giant after the share price fell. Ma has not sold a single share, Alibaba’s Chief People Officer Jane Jiang told employees in an internal memo seen by CNBC. Alibaba’s regulatory filings revealed Ma is looking to sell 10mln shares at a value of around $870mln.
Source: cnbc.com
Bulgaria: Billa sees 16% sales growth in first ten months
Billa Bulgaria has seen significant growth in the first ten months of 2023, achieving a turnover of BGN1.1bln (€562mln), representing an increase of 15.8% compared to the same period in 2022.
Source: esmmagazine.com
Campaign to secure special aid package for NI potato growers
The Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) is confirming no let-up in the campaign to secure a special aid package for potato growers in Northern Ireland. A recent survey confirms that up to 50% of potato crops have been destroyed in recent floods, with many vegetable crops also impacted.
Source: agriland.ie
British food industry: A cornerstone of economic strength and innovation in 2023
The British food sector is increasingly becoming a cornerstone of the nation's economic development. A recent analysis by the Institute of Grocery Distribution (IGD) titled "Powering the Everyday Economy - the role of the food system" highlights this trend. As the largest private sector employer in the UK, the food industry plays a crucial role in generating employment and driving retail sales. It is responsible for one in eight jobs in the country and accounts for 40% of all retail sales in the UK.
Source: fpcfreshtalkdaily.co.uk
Aldi Scotland partners with Gary Maclean to create festive dishes on a budget
Scotland’s National Chef Gary Maclean has partnered with Aldi Scotland to create tasty winter warmer recipes for the whole family to enjoy this festive season, that are easy to make and won’t break the bank. MasterChef: The Professionals winner and father-of-five, Gary’s inspiration for his three mouth-watering creations is to spotlight locally sourced produce from Aldi Scotland’s variety of Scottish suppliers while highlighting ways in which customers can be savvier with their shopping and make use of their seasonal leftovers.
Source: retailtimes.co.uk
Cust2Mate’s new deal to bring 20,000 Israeli smart carts to Southeast Asia by 2025
In a strategic move, Israeli smart shopping cart developer Cust2mate is set to bring its cutting-edge smart shopping carts to Southeast Asia, marking its expansion into the lucrative markets of Malaysia and Thailand. Approximately 20,000 smart carts are poised to make their way into leading retail chains across the region by 2025.
Source: jpost.com
Healthy diets project announced at UK Global Food Security Summit
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced the launch of the UK-CGIAR Centre at the UK Global Food Security Summit in London. The launch of the new UK-CGIAR Centre includes LSHTM’s FRESH-EN UP project focused on increasing consumption of fruits and vegetables in Tanzania.
Source: lshtm.ac.uk
Polish retail sales rise for first time in 2023 in October
Polish retail sales were in positive territory in October for the first time this year and were also higher than expected, potentially signalling a rebound in consumption and a positive factor for economic growth. Retail sales rose by 2.8% year-on-year at constant prices in October. “This is due to the late arrival of the (more expensive) autumn-winter collections in stores (after a warm September) and increased fuel sales (due to still low prices)”, wrote analysts from Pekao SA bank on the X platform.
Source: jp.reuters.com
UK's summer 2023: BBQs took a hit as sunshine hours lower in August
AHDB reported: "We also saw change in what was being cooked at BBQs, with reductions in both total Meat, Fish and Poultry (MFP) and red meat. However, these losses in MFP didn’t appear to be movement into meat alternatives or vegetables, and we instead saw share growth in bread buns and salads."
Source: ahdb.org.uk
Slovenia: Retailer Mercator in the red in 2022
Slovenia's largest retailer Mercator reported a EUR1.81mln loss for 2022 despite a 2.6% increase in revenue to EUR1.26bln. The company attributed the loss to rising costs and a limited translation of higher purchase prices and costs into retail prices.
Source: english.sta.si
Austria: BILLA’s online store expands plant-based range by 50% in 3 years
BILLA, an Austrian supermarket chain operational throughout Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe, reports that its online plant-based offering has doubled in the last three years and currently features 2,300 products.
Source: vegconomist.com
US: Dollar General adds produce at 314 location
Dollar General has announced it recently remodeled its store at 229 Highway 314 in Oxford and now offers produce. Dollar General’s produce set offers the top 20 items typically sold in traditional grocery stores and covers approximately 80% of produce categories most grocery stores carry. It will include fresh fruits and vegetables: tomatoes, onions, apples, strawberries, potatoes, sweet potatoes, lemons, limes, salad mixes and more.
Source: oxfordeagle.com
Walmart is widening the gap with Amazon in grocery e-commerce, report finds
The retailer’s share of the online grocery market will expand to nearly 27% by the end of 2024, while Amazon’s slice of the business will slip to 18.5%, according to Insider Intelligence.
Source: grocerydive.com
Canada: Fresh food carts bring local food to more schools
More students can enjoy fresh, local food at lunchtime with the arrival of fresh food carts at their schools. A provincial pilot project that supports farmers by promoting locally grown or produced foods has started at eight schools in the Strait Regional Centre for Education. The food carts are large, portable salad bars offering Nova Scotia-grown carrots, cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, onions, apples and other seasonal produce.
Source: novascotia.ca
Publix is donating fresh produce to 34 Feeding America partner food banks for Thanksgiving
As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, Publix is purchasing and delivering more than 1.3 million pounds of fresh produce to 34 Feeding America partner food banks. This donation of fruits and vegetables is meant to help put nutritious food on the tables of people facing hunger during the holiday.
Source: businesswire.com