Archive for July, 2008

Retail pioneer new concept starts to blossom

Wednesday, July 30th, 2008

Sunflower Sprouts Fresh Stores and Consumers

Mike Gilliland, Wild Oats’ founder, has big plans for his fast-growing Sunflower Farmers Market
by Jessie Scanlon

Page Morgan-Draper still shops at her local Albuquerque Whole Foods (WFMI). But, says the mother of two: “We’re not made of money.” That’s one of the reasons she stops at a Sunflower Farmers Market on her way home from work three days a week. The fast-growing chain of grocery stores in five Western and Southwestern states specialize (more…)

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Organic V’s Local: It’s show time…

Wednesday, July 23rd, 2008

Organic once the favourite for foodies, now maybe loosing ground to an increasing preference to locally sourced food.
(more…)

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Farmers true to their word?

Wednesday, July 16th, 2008

Price warning on farmers’ markets

By Kevin Peachey
Consumer affairs reporter, BBC News

Some operators insist on stallholders identifying their produce’s provenance

Shoppers at farmers’ markets are paying over the odds as they are confused by the source of “local” produce, a survey has claimed.

Nearly eight in ten people asked were unaware of the guidelines for classifying locally-sourced foods, trading standards officers found.

An industry body defines local as preferably with (more…)

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New research proves Local Produce valued twice as much as national lines…

Wednesday, July 16th, 2008

Average shoppers are willing to pay a premium for locally produced food

New research suggests that the average supermarket shopper is willing to pay a premium price for locally produced foods, providing some farmers an attractive option to enter a niche market that could boost their revenues.

The study also showed that shoppers at farm markets are willing to pay almost twice as much extra as retail grocery shoppers for the same locally produced foods. Both kinds of shoppers also will pay m (more…)

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How high can prices go?

Wednesday, July 16th, 2008

Food prices are going through the roof – fair or foul?

Click this link to view the CNN clip and post your thoughts:
http://www.cnn.com/video//video/world/2008/04/25/boulden.uk.food.nightmare.cnn (more…)

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Food verses Fuel

Wednesday, July 16th, 2008

Growing crops for fuel sounds like a simple solution to replacing fossil fuels. Unfortunately, it couldn’t be further from the truth.

Watch this clip and post your thoughts…
http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/tech/2008/04/25/intv.food.vs.fuel.cnn (more…)

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Can we feed the world?

Wednesday, July 16th, 2008

Hype or reality? Is there enough food to feed the world?

Click this link to watch the CNN clip:
http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/us/2008/04/24/snow.rice.shortage.cnn (more…)

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Pick Your Own – saving the planet or just affordable food?

Wednesday, July 16th, 2008

This is a CNN news feed from USA on why they think Pick Your Own is going to make a come back.

Click this and watch the clip -
http://www.cnn.com/video/video/us/2008/04/24/lavandera.pick.your.own.produce.cnn (more…)

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USA Fancy Food Report

Wednesday, July 16th, 2008

This a report from the Fancy Food show in New York in July:
There are a number of useful incites that may surprise you…

IN THE KITCHEN: Fancy Foods 2008 — ‘all natural,’ ‘gluten-free’ emerge among this year’s trends
Friday, July 11, 2008 5:25 PM EDT
By Pat Tanner Special Writer

With the economy spiraling downward, it would be understandable if the mood at this year’s Fancy Food Show, which ended its run at the New York’s Javits Center on June 30, had been relatively subdued. To th (more…)

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‘Millennials’ (16 to 31 year olds) eat out more than they eat in

Wednesday, July 16th, 2008

“We’re in a highly competitive market, one in which many consumers are shifting what were formerly discretionary dollars toward the purchase of necessities. It’s more important than ever for restaurant operators to understand what their consumers are looking for in the dining experience and tailor their offering to it,” noted Darren Tristano, Executive Vice President of Technomic Information Services. “To do that, operators and suppliers must have information that lets them get into the heads of (more…)

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