India: Mizoram's ginger, chili, and passion fruit hit Mumbai's Jio World Drive and Reliance stores
In a big push to the farmers of Mizoram, the Mizoram State Rural Livelihood Mission signed an MoU with Reliance Retail. Under the MoU, five fruits and vegetables from Mizoram will be sold at Reliance retail outlets. These fresh products will also be available at the Reliance Freshpik outlet at Jio World Drive, Mumbai. Initially only ginger, chili, and passion fruit will be available. Dragon fruit and pineapple will soon be added to the product offerings later.
Source: sentinelassam.com
SPAR Gran Canaria introduces new range of ready meals
SPAR Gran Canaria launched a new range of food-to-go ready meals in stores, offering more convenience to customers. The 'Fresh To Go' assortment includes a variety of hot and cold dishes which will vary based on the season, including meat, pasta, rice, fish, salad, and desserts. Additionally, a selection of local Canarian recipes will be included.
Source: spar-international.com
UK: 90% of adults not getting enough fibre as Lidl leads sector on setting strategic targets
Lidl GB reported: "With its ambition to align with the Planetary Health Diet by 2050, Lidl's new overarching commitment is first-to-market and sets out to increase the proportion of plant-based foods sold, including plant-based protein sources, wholegrains, fruits, and vegetables, by 20% by 2030. Lidl has been working to ambitious targets, in addition to its fibre and wholegrain goals: to support a 35% increase in fresh fruit and vegetable sales by 2026, Lidl works closely with suppliers to enhance quality and freshness, prioritising British produce and local sourcing where possible, whilst offering weekly discounts on six fruit and veg lines. Additionally, it has introduced dedicated fruit and veg specialists across all its stores to ensure customers are getting the very best quality".
Source: corporate.lidl.co.uk
UK: Morrisons takes legal action to stop farmers' protests
Supermarket chain Morrisons has taken out a High Court injunction preventing anyone from protesting at its sites - amid what it calls a "serious threat" of further action. It comes after dozens of farmers angry at inheritance tax reforms and food prices used tractors to block roads outside the chain's distribution depot in Bridgewater, Somerset, on 10 January.
Source: news.sky.com
UK: Rappers Krept & Konan to open new 'diverse and inclusive' supermarket
UK rap duo Krept & Konan have launched their own supermarket with co-founder Kaysor Ali, which offers a "unique shopping experience tailored to meet the diverse needs of the local community". Unveiling the venture on LinkedIn, Casyo Johnson, who is also co-founder of Nala's Baby, said the "15,000sqft 2 floor large-scale diverse and inclusive world foods" supermarket will open its doors on 1 February at 12pm. Located on Beddington Lane, Croydon, Saveways offers items including fresh halal meat, fresh and frozen "exotic" fish, a fresh bakery section, fresh fruit and vegetables, World foods, wholesale, "top brand" household essentials, hair and beauty products, as well as onsite parking.
Source: grocerygazette.co.uk
India: Mistry Ventures leads $4.5mln round in KisanKonnect
Direct-to-consumer (D2C) brand KisanKonnect has raised $4.5mln in a Series A funding round led by Mistry Ventures. The round also saw participation from Times Group's Brand Capital, Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty, VC-Grid, Vishwang Desai, and prominent family offices. Co-founded in 2020 by Vivek Nirmal and Nidhi Nirmal, KisanKonnect is a farmer producer company with an integrated farming system that delivers fresh, hygienic fruits and vegetables sourced locally from over 500 farms, directly to customers' doorsteps at fair prices.
Source: entrackr.com
UK: Iceland forecasts surge in popularity of frozen food
New research from Iceland Foods suggests that British shoppers will be following in the footsteps of their American counterparts and making frozen a big focus in 2025. Frozen food sales in America increased by 54% towards the end of last year, and Iceland's Chief Commercial Officer Paul Dhaliwal expects the UK to follow suit as households face rising costs and demand for sustainable and cost-effective grocery options grows. The frozen food retailer's research revealed that almost half (44%) of consumers in the UK are unaware that frozen fish, meat, fruit, and vegetables can be more affordable and nutritious than fresh alternatives.
Source: kamcity.com
Five ways to give your produce department a boost
A great produce section is essential for attracting and retaining customers. Fresh fruits and vegetables contribute to a positive overall shopping experience, but one bad apple can spoil it all. Here are key tactics grocers should consider to help take their produce departments from ordinary to outstanding. 1. Commit to freshness and quality. "The most critical element is the quality of the product; good-looking produce can sell itself", says Christy McMullen, co-owner of Summerhill Market in Toronto. "We are at the Ontario Food Terminal every day choosing products and making sure they are of the highest quality." 2. Clean and cull; 3. Cater to diverse tastes; 4. Talk the TikTok; 5. Engage the community.
Source: canadiangrocer.com
US: Grubhub expands delivery services with Olo Dispatch to support merchants across direct ordering channels
Grubhub, a leading U.S. food ordering and delivery marketplace, and Olo, a leading restaurant technology provider, have expanded their partnership to integrate Grubhub with Olo Dispatch. With Dispatch, restaurants can outsource delivery for orders generated through their own website and apps leveraging a network of third-party delivery service providers, now including Grubhub. This integration builds on Grubhub and Olo's existing relationship where Grubhub orders are directly sent to restaurants' point-of-sale system via Olo Rails.
Source: about.grubhub.com
FreshDirect on dire path amid financial losses, leadership vacuum: 'Clock is ticking'
The Bronx-based company, whose colorful trucks have weaved through New York City traffic for more than two decades, has been scrambling to hire a new CEO since November after the previous two bosses resigned within months of each other - leaving a leadership vacuum and creating "a lot of uncertainty for FreshDirect", according to a source with knowledge of the situation. FreshDirect - which quietly inserted a 50-cent congestion pricing fee on all deliveries to below 60th St. in Manhattan to help offset the cost of recently installed tolls, as The Post exclusively reported - is losing at least several million dollars a month on about $600mln in annual sales, multiple sources said.
Source: nypost.com