LOS ANGELES, CA - After becoming one of summer’s buzziest new snacks, Joolies Date Sours are heading into fall with their biggest retail expansion yet.

The sour, chewy whole-fruit snack is rolling out across major retailers including Target, Costco, H-E-B, Meijer, Hy-Vee, and ShopRite, and other Wakefern banners, alongside specialty and independent retailers nationwide including Erewhon, Laurel Supply, and Lunds & Byerlys — bringing the candy-inspired date snack to more shoppers across the country.

The expansion follows the launch of Date Sours at Sprouts Farmers Market earlier this year, where Joolies introduced a completely new way to experience the ancient date: sweet, sour, and chewy, with the craveability of gummy candy but made from real fruit.

Date Sours aren’t the only Joolies product gaining ground. Date Pops, the brand’s date-and-walnut snack bites, are also expanding into H-E-B and Meijer this fall, giving shoppers even more ways to discover dates beyond the traditional whole fruit.

“The response to Date Sours has been incredible, but what’s most exciting is seeing them go from something people discovered online or at Sprouts to a snack they can now find at major retailers from coast to coast,” said Amanda Sains-Harris, head of marketing at Joolies, in the recent release. “And we’re seeing that momentum beyond Date Sours. With Date Pops also expanding into H-E-B and Meijer this fall, we’re giving people more ways to discover dates and showing just how much opportunity there is for this fruit beyond the traditional produce aisle.”

Made from organic dates and just five simple ingredients, Joolies Date Sours deliver a soft, gummy-like chew with a punch of sour flavor — with no added sugar, sugar alcohols, or artificial ingredients. The line comes in four candy-inspired flavors: Watermelon, Cherry Cola, Peach, and Blue Raspberry.

Joolies Date Pops keep things just as simple, made with only organic dates, walnuts, and natural flavors. The soft, chewy bites put a better-for-you spin on three dessert-inspired favorites: Brownie Bite, Cinnamon Bun, and Lemon Bar.

As families settle back into school routines and Halloween approaches, Date Sours offer a whole-fruit option for fall snacking, from lunchboxes and after-school snacks to road trips, game days, and candy bowls.

What began as a playful reinvention of a fruit often associated with an older generation is quickly becoming one of Joolies’ fastest-growing products.

Grandma’s fruit? Not anymore.

Joolies is changing the date-ing game. To find Joolies products or shop online, visit joolies.com.

CARLISLE, PA - The GIANT Company, known locally as GIANT and MARTIN’S, announced that renovations are now underway at its GIANT store located at 176 W. Street Road in Feasterville, PA. The store will remain open during renovations, which are expected to be completed early next year.

“As the needs of our customers continue to evolve, our store offerings must too,” said Kevin Bane, Feasterville GIANT store manager, in the recent release. “This remodel will allow us to enhance the shopping experience for our customers, while staying focused on GIANT’s commitment to value and freshness.”

The store’s fresh offerings – produce, bakery, meat and seafood, and dairy – in addition to the center store aisles, will be updated with improved efficiencies for shoppers and an enhanced assortment of products. Understanding the needs of today’s busy customers, the deli and prepared foods department will undergo an overhaul to offer more Grab ‘n Go items.

Open daily from 6 a.m. – 10 p.m., the Feasterville GIANT opened in 2018 and currently employs approximately 159 team members.

For greater shopping convenience during the remodel, Feasterville customers are encouraged to try GIANT Direct, an opportunity to order their groceries online at giantdirect.com for easy curbside pickup.

GREENSBORO, NC - The Fresh Market, Inc. is celebrating a standout year in the 2026 USA TODAY 10Best Readers' Choice Awards after being voted Best Grocery Store and earning five first-place honors overall.

In addition to taking the top spot for Best Grocery Store, readers also named The Fresh Market No. 1 in four more categories:

• Best Grocery Store Bakery
• Best Grocery Store Deli
• Best Grocery Store for Produce
• Best Grocery Store Prepared Food

This marks the fifth time readers have recognized The Fresh Market as the country’s best grocery store, underscoring the specialty grocer’s continued reputation for exceptional food, service and shopping experience.

“What makes these awards so special is that they come directly from the guests we have the privilege to serve every day,” said Brian Johnson, CEO of The Fresh Market, in the recent release. “This recognition belongs to our Team Members, whose passion for great food, genuine hospitality, and attention to detail create a memorable shopping experience. Being honored across five categories tells us our guests feel that care in every part of the store, and we are thankful to have earned their trust.”

USA TODAY’s 10Best nominees were determined by a panel of local experts and contributors, who selected their favorite American grocery stores based on value, selection, and service. Winners were then chosen by popular vote during a 28-day voting period on the 10Best website.

“The Fresh Market has always been a destination for people who truly love food,” Johnson added. “Our guests come to us for carefully curated meals and ingredients, Team Members who know and love what they do, trusted value on the items they reach for most, and the joy of shopping in a store that feels inspiring from the moment they walk in. Whether they are planning a simple weeknight dinner or a meal they will talk about for years, we are proud to be part of those moments.”

RHOME, TX - Why celebrate dips for just one day when an entire week is packed with reasons to snack? ¡Yo Quiero! is kicking off its first-ever Dip Week, a week-long celebration designed to fuel snack season with fresh inspiration for everything from award show watch parties and college football tailgates to Hispanic Heritage Month and two of the dip category’s biggest food holidays - National Guacamole Day and National Queso Day.

Running September 13-20, Dip Week brings together the brand’s broad portfolio of guacamole, queso, salsa, bean dips and specialty dips through a coordinated campaign spanning social media, influencer partnerships, broadcast appearances, recipes, consumer engagement and retail-focused content.

“September is really the beginning of snack season, and there are so many different occasions bringing people together around food,” said Tara Murray, Vice President of Marketing at ¡Yo Quiero!, in the recent release. “National Guacamole Day and National Queso Day gave us the perfect bookends, but we wanted to think bigger. Dip Week is about showing just how many ways there are to gather, celebrate and snack together with something for every taste and occasion.”

The celebration begins Sunday, September 13 with the launch of the ¡Yo Quiero! Snack Season Party Pack Giveaway, inviting consumers to enter through a dedicated landing page for the chance to win a collection of products and entertaining essentials. To amplify Dip Week across social channels, a select group of influencers will also receive the Ultimate Dip Week Mailer featuring an array of ¡Yo Quiero! dips and inspiration for the week’s celebrations.

On Monday, September 14, the brand will celebrate television’s biggest night with its own lineup of award-winning dips, including Good Housekeeping Snack Award winners Black Bean Dip and Grab & Go Hatch Chile Guacamole, Mindful Awards-winning Queso Blanco and Food & Beverage Magazine-recognized Chunky Guacamole. Influencer Brittney Winbush (@voguebritt) will share Emmy watch party inspiration, while registered dietitian and television personality Diana Mesa will help officially kick off snack season during a Miami broadcast segment featuring several days of dip inspiration.

Tuesday, September 15 marks the start of Hispanic Heritage Month, with ¡Yo Quiero! and influencer partner Madison Barbosa (@madisonleblanc_barbosa) spotlighting Cantina-Style and Mexico-Inspired varieties, including Cantina-Style Roasted Salsa, alongside recipes inspired by traditional flavors.

For National Guacamole Day on Wednesday, September 16, the entire ¡Yo Quiero! guacamole portfolio takes center stage through lifestyle content, recipes, and influencer gift box coverage. Influencer Lindsey Eaton (@itslindseyeaton) will highlight a selection of ¡Yo Quiero! products, including Elote Dip, Queso Blanco and Chunky Guacamole, while driving additional awareness for the Snack Season Party Pack Giveaway.

Dip Week then rolls directly into the weekend, beginning with National Cheeseburger Day on September 18, when Smoke House Onion Dip, Jalapeño Ranch and Candied Jalapeños will inspire recipes such as Quesadilla Burgers and other twists on the classic burger.

On Saturday, September 19, the focus shifts to college football and tailgating, showcasing the convenience of ¡Yo Quiero! Grab & Go products alongside game-day recipes and entertaining content. The celebration culminates Sunday, September 20, with National Queso Day, featuring the brand’s queso varieties across Sunday football spreads, soft pretzels, mac and cheese, and other snackable applications.

“Consumers aren’t snacking around just one occasion anymore,” Murray added. “There’s football on Saturday, football again on Sunday, an awards show, a family get-together, or simply an afternoon when everyone wants something good to eat. Having a portfolio that stretches from guacamole and queso to salsa, bean dips and bold new flavors lets us be part of all of those moments.”

Through Dip Week, ¡Yo Quiero! will deliver a steady stream of content and inspiration across multiple consumer touchpoints at a time when entertaining, sports and holiday gatherings begin accelerating. These can all be found on the brand’s social pages @yoquierobrands.

For more information about ¡Yo Quiero!’s products, contact Jay Alley at [email protected].

KENNEWICK, WA - Protect the yield. Start any conversation in fresh produce this way, and people are immediately on the same page. As companies continue to find solutions for bridging the gap between today’s challenges and modern solutions, companies like Skysense are emerging with capabilities that anticipate the needs of today’s growers. Speaking with Chief Executive Officer Justin Clune, you get a strong sense that his dedication to his craft comes from both a personal and professional place, and that combination has made his commitment to the grower a tangible, beneficial service model.

“Ultimately, we are just really passionate problem solvers. I have seen firsthand what farmers have to manage day to day, and so helping them protect their crop is essential to our service solutions,” Justin begins. “Skysense addresses the needs of today’s growers on three fronts with its drone technology: lowering costs, increasing yields, and food safety. Skysense’s targeted, drone-based deterrence protects farms from bird and wildlife loss, repelling birds and reducing crop loss in a way falconry services can, but with consistency that doesn't succumb to habituation. In the end, farmers harvest more of what they grow.”

With remotely supervised drones that can fly day or night without added on-site labor, the solution becomes continuous and thorough, giving growers another set of eyes over the crop when and where they need them.

Skysense’s patent-pending autonomous wildlife deterrent system uses AI to improve effectiveness and help keep birds and wildlife from getting used to it.

“The experience we’ve gained over many seasons helps us protect crops more effectively and efficiently than simply flying a drone to chase birds away. We provide the equipment, expertise, and ongoing management so Skysense clients can focus on farming while keeping more of what they grow,” Justin adds.

Skysense also carries liability insurance and can legally fly remotely without personnel on-site under its unique FAA authorization, so farmers don’t need to fly drones themselves.

From fall to winter, Skysense is focused on winter lettuce, where birds threaten seedlings and wildlife can introduce food-safety concerns, and West Coast table and wine grapes, where wild hogs and birds can cause significant damage. Regions served so far span Yuma and Imperial through Central California, Salinas, Oregon, and Washington, as well as the Southeast: Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.

More broadly, Skysense protects blueberries, cherries, strawberries, peaches, and other high-value fruit approaching harvest, as well as direct-seeded leafy greens during establishment.

“Something as simple as protecting the farm from forces of nature or taking a digital inventory with stand counts—these really simple but strategic elements are still hard to do in practice for many companies,” Justin explains. “Skysense is part of a unique wave of robotics and AI companies that are truly changing the way farms think about and execute efficiency and sustainability.”

The same system Skysense developed for crop protection can also use its drone cameras for stand counts, weed maps, and berry maturity maps—a service currently reserved for university partners with plans to roll it out to farmers as an optional add-on.

“Labor scarcity, oversight, and coverage are all driving forces for automation on farms. While there are many types of solutions out there, this is really the first time that Skysense is creating a new market for automated pest control for birds and wildlife,” Justin reflects.

That drive toward automation is rooted in Justin’s own connection to agriculture and an early recognition that AI and robotics could address practical problems on the farm.

“Both my parents were born on farms, and the first idea for Skysense was born on my dad’s farm when I saw an opportunity to reduce labor with AI drones. We really work on the farm and are very hands-on to make sure that with every customer, we’re delivering value and understanding the real problems farmers face,” Justin adds.

The execution is simple, yet comprehensive. Drone cameras paired with Skysense’s proprietary AI identify areas of highest wildlife pressure, giving growers greater intelligence into wildlife patterns and movement across the farm.

“We make maps of where we had every observation of birds, deer, or hogs or whatever it is, so the farmer could see the hot spots and orchestrate other efforts as well,” Justin details. “It’s a service model that is really easy to integrate. The farm manager doesn’t need to spend time or mental effort figuring out how to get it to work. Skysense does everything from install to flying, and the farm manager just tells us what schedule they want and which fields they want protected.”

While Justin does not call himself a farmer, agriculture is woven into his family history. He went to college at the University of California, Berkeley, and holds a master’s in engineering from the University of Tokyo. His two Co-Founders serve as Chief AI Officer and Chief Technology Officer. The company’s first key hire was an agronomist with 20 years of precision agriculture sales experience at Simplot, respected across Washington and Oregon for integrating ag tech on working farms.

That combination of agronomy, engineering, and firsthand understanding of the farm is where Skysense finds its footing: using autonomy not for technology’s sake, but to give growers another tool to protect what matters most—the yield.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - GrubMarket, an AI-powered technology enabler and digital transformer of the American food supply chain industry, as well as one of the largest private food eCommerce companies globally, announced the release of its latest specialized AI Analyst to join the GrubAssist AI platform: the USDA Pricing AI Analyst. This new AI Analyst gives produce distributors and wholesalers immediate, conversational access to USDA market pricing data for fruits and vegetables, enabling them to quickly understand current market conditions, compare prices across regions, and evaluate their own selling and purchasing prices against the market. GrubMarket's USDA Pricing AI Analyst represents the latest addition to its growing lineup of specialized GrubAssist AI Analysts, which includes the Business Analyst, Inventory Analyst, and Cash Flow Analyst. Together, these AI Analysts are designed to bring intelligent, data-driven decision-making capabilities to critical functions within food distribution businesses.

By analyzing USDA market reports alongside a distributor's own sales and purchasing transaction records, the USDA Pricing AI Analyst transforms fragmented pricing data into actionable market intelligence. Distributors can use natural-language prompts to identify pricing opportunities, uncover margin leakage, evaluate supplier bids, and make faster, more informed pricing and purchasing decisions.

For produce distributors and wholesalers, understanding the market is critical to making profitable pricing and purchasing decisions. However, obtaining market pricing can be time-consuming, and many distributors do not have the necessary resources and capabilities to identify the right data sources and metrics, aggregate and normalize the data, and build comparative analyses.

The USDA Pricing AI Analyst transforms this process by allowing users to ask questions about the produce market and receive answers in real-time. It is powered by USDA market pricing data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service, covering a broad range of fruits and vegetables sold across the United States. Rather than manually searching databases, downloading files, and analyzing spreadsheets, users can simply ask the AI Analyst questions about market prices, trends, and their own pricing performance.

For example, a distributor could ask, "What is the trend on avocado pricing for this week?" or "What are strawberries selling for in California compared to New York right now?" The USDA Pricing AI Analyst can also analyze the distributor's own sales and purchasing data, enabling questions such as, "Are we selling above or below the USDA market on romaine this week?" or "Show me every order from this month where we sold below USDA shipping point prices by more than 5%."

The USDA Pricing AI Analyst delivers value through five core capabilities:

• Instant Market Pricing Intelligence: Users can ask questions about current USDA produce pricing in plain, natural language, including both shipping point and terminal market prices, without having to navigate government databases or reports.
• Market Trend Analysis: The AI Analyst can identify price movements over time, helping distributors understand which commodities are increasing or decreasing in price and how quickly market conditions are changing.
• Geographic Market Comparison: Users can quickly compare produce prices across markets to understand which geographies are commanding higher or lower prices and use that information to drive smarter sales strategies.
• Selling Price Performance Analysis: By combining USDA market data with internal sales data, the AI Analyst can identify where a distributor is selling above or below market, evaluate pricing performance by customer and sales rep, and uncover potential margin leakage.
• Purchasing and Supplier Analysis: The AI Analyst can compare a distributor's purchasing prices against USDA market benchmarks and identify suppliers whose prices may be above or below market. The distributor can also compare purchasing prices against market benchmarks by buyer.

The USDA Pricing AI Analyst can answer a wide range of questions about the produce market and a distributor's own pricing performance, such as:

• "How are tomato prices trending this week?"
• "What products should we raise prices on?"
• "Are our delivered prices competitive in Chicago?"
• "Which sales reps are consistently beating the market?"
• "How much of a premium are customers paying us for organic strawberries?"
• "Are we paying above or below USDA shipping point prices for iceberg lettuce this week? Show me each supplier ranked by variance."

Getting started is simple. In the GrubAssist AI chat interface on mobile or desktop, users can type or speak their questions. The USDA Pricing AI Analyst retrieves and analyzes the relevant market data and, when connected to the distributor's ERP, compares market pricing against the distributor's actual sales and purchasing data.

GrubAssist AI is built on GrubMarket's proprietary enterprise AI architecture, combining large language models, natural-language processing, semantic data mapping, generative AI, predictive analytics, and agentic workflows. The technology is purpose-built for the complex data, terminology, and operational workflows unique to the food supply chain industry.

"The U.S. produce industry operates in highly dynamic markets, where prices can change quickly and vary significantly by variety, size, packaging, and geography," said Mike Xu, CEO of GrubMarket, in the recent release. "With the USDA Pricing AI Analyst, we are making powerful market intelligence immediately accessible to produce distributors through a simple, conversational interface. Instead of manually gathering data—or worse, having to make pricing and purchasing decisions without reliable market information—distributors can simply ask questions in natural language and get the insights they need to make faster, more informed decisions. This is another major step forward in our vision to apply AI across every critical workflow in the food supply chain and create meaningful value for our customers."

"Produce distributors have always needed to understand what is happening in the market so that they can benchmark themselves against it," said Genevieve Wang, Chief Software Product Officer at GrubMarket. "The challenge is that answering even a seemingly simple pricing question often requires pulling data from multiple sources and conducting time-consuming manual analysis. The USDA Pricing AI Analyst significantly simplifies this process. It gives distributors a clear view of market conditions, makes intelligent comparisons, and—when connected to the distributor's ERP data—identifies specific opportunities for pricing optimization. We're turning market data into actionable intelligence that can help distributors improve their profitability every day."

As GrubMarket continues to expand its portfolio of specialized AI Agents and Analysts, the company remains at the forefront of bringing practical, high-impact artificial intelligence solutions to the food supply chain industry, helping businesses operate more efficiently, make smarter decisions, and compete more effectively.

Leveraging its deep operational insights and expertise in industry dynamics, GrubMarket continues to pioneer valuable AI solutions tailored to the unique demands of this critical industry, solidifying its role as a leading innovator building the future of AI-powered food supply chain management. To learn more about GrubMarket's suite of AI products, visit: https://www.grubmarket.ai/.

Tampa, FL - IFCO, the leading provider of reusable packaging solutions for fresh grocery supply chains, introduces Floris, the IFCO reusable floral bucket designed to replace traditional single-use plastic buckets used in bouquet retail operations.

Built around IFCO's SmartCycle share, reuse, and recycle business model, Floris integrates seamlessly into existing operations, giving floral suppliers and retailers a practical path to move beyond throwaway plastic and toward a circular model designed for reuse.

Rethinking the single-use flower bucket

Every year, millions of plastic buckets are used to transport and display cut flowers – often just once before being discarded. Single-use plastic buckets remain the outdated industry standard, creating a stream of packaging waste largely hidden behind the beautiful bouquets consumers see in stores.

IFCO Floris offers a different approach. Designed for the complete journey from floral provider to retail floor, the same reusable flower bucket can be used to transport cut flowers and bouquets, enhancing in-store floral displays.

Once empty, Floris is returned through the IFCO SmartCycle for professional washing, inspection, and preparation for another journey. And unlike traditional single-use buckets, the IFCO Floral Bucket is digitally enabled, supporting asset tracking and shrink management for greater visibility across the supply chain.

It means one flower bucket can do much more than make a single trip.

“Single-use buckets have long been the standard across the floral supply chain, but it’s high time to change this outdated approach. With Floris, we’re applying the reusable model that IFCO has built across fresh grocery supply chains to a new category, giving floral suppliers and retailers across North America a practical way to move from single-use to reuse. It’s a simple change with the potential to make a meaningful difference at scale," said Mike Pooley, Chief Executive Officer of IFC, in the recent release.

Designed for the journey from floral provider to retail floor

Floris has been designed around the practical demands of the floral supply chain – from transporting bouquets efficiently and presenting them beautifully in store to making the return journey simpler.

Key features include:

• Seamlessly integrates into existing operations: Designed as a direct replacement for standard 8L and 10L single-use buckets, Floris fits into existing freight flows, making the switch to reuse simple and non-disruptive.
• Built for transport and merchandising: Rigid sides and a stable octagonal base provide durability and stability during handling, while the distinctive wavelike rim is designed to enhance bouquet merchandising at the point of sale, allowing the same bucket to move from transport to retail display.
• Digitally enabled and automation-ready: IFCO Digital solutions support transparent asset tracking and shrink management, while Floris’s smooth exterior is designed for easy movement over conveyors in automated systems.

Bringing circularity to the floral supply chain

Beyond fitting into existing operations, the IFCO Floral Bucket unlocks the benefits of a circular pooling model for floral providers and retailers that simply aren’t possible with single-use buckets.

Built around the IFCO SmartCycle pooling model, Floris replaces the traditional take-make-waste approach with a managed system designed for repeated reuse. After use, buckets are collected and returned to IFCO, where they are professionally cleaned and inspected before being prepared for their next cycle. The pooling model enables floral suppliers and retailers to benefit from reusable flower buckets without having to own and manage their own bucket pool.

Flower packaging ready for reuse in North America

The shift to reuse is already underway. Floral providers and retailers in North America are beginning to introduce the IFCO Floral Bucket into their operations, putting reusable flower buckets to work across the supply chain. From quick stacking and easy handling to automation-friendly surfaces and digital traceability, Floris makes reuse practical at every step.

For retailers and floral providers looking to move beyond single-use without disrupting the way flowers already move, Floris fits seamlessly into existing logistics, helps boost operational efficiency, and offers a practical way forward – one bucket, used again and again.

It’s time to rethink the flower bucket.

Modernize your floral packaging with a reusable solution designed to control costs, boost operational efficiency, and work with existing logistics.