LA CAÑADA FLINTRIDGE, CA - Did you know that we adore promotions here at ANUK? If you didn’t already, you’ll quickly come to realize that it’s a favorite bit of news at the office. Especially as it pertains to operations like the Allen Lund Company, which recently announced the promotion of Kristin Contreras to Assistant Manager of the Carrier Resources department.
“I am thankful for the support and encouragement in regards to this promotion, and for the opportunity to move forward in the company. I look forward to assisting and strengthening my department, and continuing to serve our many offices,” remarked Contreras in a press release.
She joined Carrier Resources in 2016 after pursuing bachelor’s and master’s degrees in History from Occidental College and California State University, Northridge, respectively.
Commenting on the appointment, Carrier Resources Manager Deann Sarr had glowing words to recommend Contreras.
“[Kristin] immediately put her head down and got to work, giving attention to the needs of our customers, the company, and her offices—which was her first priority,” Saar stated. “In the hurricane of activity that occurs in the department on a daily basis, Kristin remains serene and pleasant. The department has experienced many changes and extreme growth in the last few years, and Kristin has shown herself to be someone that steps up with good ideas and supports the good ideas of others. She is proving to be both a leader and a mentor, and I am looking forward to having her as my Assistant Manager.”
Congratulations to Kristin Contreras on this appointment!
TRAVERSE CITY, MI - There’s a first for everything, and North Bay Produce is crossing off another milestone on its list. Though the company is no stranger to trade shows, the team will be strutting their stuff at Texas International Produce Association’s Viva Fresh Expo for the first time.
“We are excited to present our amazing crop of Mexican berries along with North Bay’s increasingly popular vegetable program out of Guatemala. Besides our Central American growers, we also have farms throughout the United States and Canada as well as South America,” began Sharon Robb, National Marketing Manager. “This allows our customers to have the best crops available from around the world every day of the year.”
Also at the North Bay booth, Sharon will be sampling sautéed shrimp with a tasty blueberry pico de gallo, showcasing those beautiful blues in a new and exciting format. Further demonstrating North Bay’s regional prowess, I also spoke with Ryan Lockman.
“We want attendees to know that North Bay Produce is a global company operating at the regional levels. We believe that quality of product, customer service, and delivering on the North Bay promise is paramount,” the Vice President of Sales and Procurement told me.
Ryan went on to note why Viva Fresh is such an important show to attend.
“It is quickly becoming one of the great regional shows that is well attended and showcases and emphasizes what the Texas region has to offer. Our goal is to network with new potential customers within the region as well as look for new and interesting business opportunities,” said Ryan.
I can say for sure that the AndNowUKnow team will be swinging by the North Bay booth, #200, to talk shop and get a taste of that enticing pico de gallo! It was little surprise to me that North Bay’s enthusiasm is similar to our own.
“Since this is our first Viva show, we are very excited to see what the buzz has been about over the past few years,” Sharon relayed. “The attendance looks to be strong for this show, and the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center, in Grapevine, Texas, is a wonderful all-inclusive venue to draw in the crowds. It will be great to meet new faces and to reconnect with our Southern customers again.”
Cheers to all those attending this upcoming show!
ISSAQUAH, WA - The month of March was a busy one for Costco. As reported in the retailer’s recent Q3 sales results, Costco saw a nearly $3.4 billion gain as a result of net sales of $130 billion for the 31 weeks ended April 3, 2022.
Net sales for March, the five weeks ended April 3, showed $21.61 billion, an increase of 18.7 percent from $18.21 billion last year. According to the press release, this year’s five-week March retail month had one additional shopping day versus last year, due to the calendar shift of Easter. This positively impacted total and comparable sales by approximately one and one-half to two percent.
When we last reported Costco’s financial results, the chain’s Q2 results showed net sales for the first 24 weeks accumulating to $100.35 billion, up 16.4 percent from $86.23 billion last year.
Click here to learn more about the chain’s fiscal report, and keep an eye out for AndNowUKnow as we bring you the latest.
NEW YORK - There is nothing like the great outdoors with its picturesque landscapes and beautiful creatures to provide a sense of peace and wonder. In order to help protect Mother Earth and all she has to offer, Bowery Farming has announced a partnership with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) as part of its Earth Month “Rewild the Land” initiative.
"When we grow inside, we can restore outside," said Frank Renwick, Vice President of Marketing and Brand. "Sustainability has always been core to our mission, and this Earth Month, we are dedicating retail shelf space and e-commerce displays at FreshDirect, Whole Foods Market, Walmart, and more to increase consumer awareness about Rewilding. Our ability to turn non-arable land into verdant farmland means we can give Mother Earth a break for key land restoration endeavors, bringing biodiversity back to degraded lands over time. This brand campaign will also connect our consumers to information on actionable sustainability and restoration efforts, such as supporting The Nature Conservancy's Plant a Billion Trees campaign."
Through this alliance, Bowery is pledging to restore 50 acres in the United States to support conservation efforts in restoring ecosystem biodiversity, a press release explained. These actions will also spotlight the Rewilding movement, which returns retired farmland and other degraded lands to the earth.
In celebration of Rewilding efforts led by TNC, Bowery has updated packaging for select 4 oz SKUs in all of its retail partners throughout April. Each package features cutouts of six animals that are residents of Longleaf Pine Forests and the Mississippi Alluvial Valley—the two areas where Bowery is concentrating its restoration efforts.
Want to learn more about the partnership between Bowery and The Nature Conservancy, as well as what the vertical grower is doing to benefit Mother Nature? Click here.
For the latest partnerships and sustainability efforts, keep a page open for AndNowUKnow.
KEASBEY, NJ & SAN FRANCISCO, CA - A world in which robots roam Earth has become a reality, and retailers are taking part in the movement. Wakefern Food Corp. has entered a new partnership to meet its own technology goals and is rolling out a new pilot. Teaming up with Simbe Robotic, the retailer will deploy business intelligence solution Tally at several Wakefern stores.
“Wakefern Food Corp. is committed to providing our customers best-in-class grocery shopping experiences,” said Charles J. McWeeney, Vice President, Technology, Innovation, and Strategy at Wakefern. “Tally’s technology is another tool to help our store operations and staff while creating new opportunities to maximize customer satisfaction.”
Advanced and autonomous, Tally roams store aisles up to three times per day to collect highly accurate shelf data that ensures products are in-stock, in the correct location, and accurately priced on the sales floor. Leveraging computer vision technology, Tally’s AI-powered platform is the retail industry’s leading solution for in-store data and inventory insights, noted the press release.
Further, Tally does not require any infrastructure changes to the store environment to operate effectively and is thoughtfully designed to operate during normal store hours collaboratively with store teams and safely alongside shoppers.
“The retail industry is facing a unique and unprecedented set of challenges, and companies must thoughtfully adopt technology to address those challenges while continuing to provide a stellar level of service that customers expect,” said Brad Bogolea, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Simbe Robotics. “Tally is a cost-effective solution that supports the work of store teams and enhances the retail experience for associates and customers.”
Equipped with a sheath of sensors, the robot is able to strategically navigate quietly and autonomously across the store without being obtrusive to customers or store teams. Tally’s data gathering technology also frees up time for store associates to work more closely with customers.
What’s next in the world of grocery robots? ANUK will report.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI - SpartanNash’s executive team has seen substantial growth over the past few months, and the retailer is continuing to tap into vital industry expertise with the appointment of new leaders. Recently, the food solutions company named Yu Ying Seah as Vice President of IT Global Applications.
With this new appointment, Seah will take on the role of developing and driving the grocer’s applications roadmap and overseeing the delivery of business system initiatives from conceptualization to execution and maintenance, as explained in a press release.
Seah previously joined SpartanNash as an independent contractor within the Enterprise Applications Office. In this position, he played a pivotal role in the journey of modernizing how SpartanNash’s IT team delivers services to the business, organizing the IT applications team to deliver transformational initiatives.
Some of Seah’s key projects included pricing and promotions automation, enabling SpartanNash’s supply chain transformation, spearheading the launch of a transportation management platform, and more. As noted in the release, he more than doubled the number of IT applications projects delivered annually during his tenure.
Seah brings more than 20 years of experience to the new role, including managing diverse global enterprise applications, including programs involving organizational and process change across a broad spectrum of business areas. Before joining SpartanNash, Seah spent five years as Senior Director of IT Applications at SC Johnson.
“Our IT applications are a key component to delivering operational excellence and insights that drive solutions in this rapidly changing marketplace,” commented Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer Arif Dar. “Yu Ying has played a vital role in delivering leading-edge products and services that include convenient, technology-enabled experiences for our customers, store guests and Associates across the Company.”
In addition to his long-standing career in the industry, Seah earned a bachelor of science degree in Business Administration from the National University of Singapore. He has lived and worked extensively across the world, including in the U.S., Chile, Spain, the Netherlands, China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Australia.
Congratulations to Yu Ying Seah on this new position, and to SpartanNash for this latest boon for growth!
FRANCE - There has been much debate over which materials are more sustainable when it comes to produce packaging. Westfalia Fruit has rolled out its latest solution in France, launching a new range of environmentally friendly packaging for avocados. The line reportedly eliminates the use of black plastic while maintaining the quality of the fruit.
“We have worked hard to remove plastic from our packaging to contribute to solving the plastic waste challenge and to lower our carbon footprint,” said Johnathan Sutton, Group Safety and Environmental Executive. “We are delighted to take a proactive approach in implementing industry-leading initiatives, enabling compliance to respective laws whilst offering a host of solutions for our customers and consumers.”
The new packaging launch is a result of a new law banning plastic packaging on most fruit and vegetables, which came into effect in France on New Year’s Day. These alternative solutions include options with no plastic or a significant reduction in plastic.
The company’s zero plastic options include a cardboard tray with a paper label or a paper band and are fully compostable. Both are made with Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) materials, guaranteeing that the cardboard used has been sourced from sustainably managed forests, according to a press release.
On the other hand, a heat-seal film option includes recyclable plastic which contains a QR code on the packaging directing consumers to details of where they can recycle their plastic. Additionally, a paper lid is in development for this packaging. Other solutions include an FSC-certified string bag and zero packaging natural laser marking on the skin of the avocado itself.
The press release noted that this new packaging has been introduced and adopted by a wide range of retailers in France.
How will other operators comply with the new law in France? ANUK will report.
WASHINGTON, DC - Following the recent ruling made by Texas Governor Greg Abbott to increase inspections on all commercial vehicles crossing the Texas-Mexico border, the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) is among the industry organizations urging a return to normal border access between the United States and Mexico. As the ruling has created delays in transportation and disrupted the movement of fresh fruits and vegetables along Texas’ ports of entry at the U.S.-Mexico border, the association is calling for a solution as soon as possible.
“The action by the State of Texas has resulted in a huge backlog of fresh produce. In some cases, there are reported delays of 30-plus hours at the border, with the state inspections interfering with the responsibilities of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which is already tasked with border inspections and security,” explains IFPA Chief Policy Officer, Robert Guenther. “In turn, produce that was destined to U.S. consumers, in some cases, will have to be destroyed because of the perishability of our products. This will result in millions of lost economic production not only in Mexico but to the state of Texas and potentially other border states that are now experiencing similar delays. We urge the Governor to convene all stakeholders impacted by this decision and resolve this issue as soon as possible.”
As explained in a press release, IFPA is encouraged by recent announcements that some border crossings in Texas have been reopened, but still hopes to see a timely return to normal to minimize the increased inspection delays and loss of product.
Additionally, the association also stated that both workforce and supply chain are priority issues for the organization, and IFPA is working with allied industry groups and federal stakeholders for a prompt resolution of this trade disruption.
AndNowUKnow will continue to bring you important updates on the fresh produce supply chain, so be on the lookout for our next update.
PROVIDENCE, RI - It was only a few months ago that United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI) announced the promotion of Mark Bushway to Chief Supply Chain Officer. Now, the distributor is continuing its string of leadership appointments by filling the vacancy left by Bushway and appointing Chris Finck as its new President, Atlantic Region. Effective May 1, Finck will lead the Atlantic Region sales team to support customers with UNFI’s full portfolio of products and services.
Finck is an industry expert with 34 years of experience in commercial, sales, marketing, operations, and general management. During the past five years, he has served as Chief Commercial Officer for Dean Foods and Chief Customer Officer for Treehouse Foods, playing a vital leadership role in broker network and contract management, go-to-market organization, and improving customer profitability. Before working with Treehouse Foods, Finck also spent time as Chief Customer Officer for Grupo Bimbo and Senior Vice President of Sales, Bakery Division for Sara Lee, according to a press release.
Prior to his work with the Grupo Bimbo team, Finck spent nearly two decades with PepsiCo, where he held positions of increasing responsibility, such as Account Manager, Regional Sales Manager, and Market Development Manager for Pepsi Beverages. He also worked as Director of Strategic Planning and Integration for Quaker Oats, as well as Vice President of U.S. Sales for Gatorade.
Finck holds a bachelor’s degree in Marketing from Towson University and an MBA from Loyola College, in addition to serving on the Mayor’s Advisory Board for the city of Naperville, Illinois. He is a member of the Board of Directors for Little Friends, which provides services to those with autism and other developmental disabilities, and previously served as Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Downtown Naperville Alliance.
In his new role, Finck will report to Chief Customer Officer Steve Dietz.
“Chris is a well-rounded, highly passionate, and results-driven leader with a strong track record for building effective teams and delivering strategic sales capabilities,” commented Dietz. “With his leadership background and significant experience in the food industry, Chris understands the challenges facing today’s marketplace and, along with the Atlantic Region team, will provide innovative and meaningful solutions that help our customers grow and succeed.”
The ANUK team sends huge congratulations to Chris Finck on his new role as President, and we will continue to report on the distributor’s future growth.
MIAMI, FL - When it comes to food, consumer trust is crucial. Over the years, Fresh Del Monte Produce has earned that confidence from shoppers, as was recently shown when the company was named one of America’s Most Trusted Companies of 2022 by Newsweek.
“Trust and care are at the core of our corporate culture at Fresh Del Monte. For 135 years, we’ve worked hard to become a business that provides fresh and healthy products to families, while doing good by our communities and protecting our planet,” said Mohammad Abu-Ghazaleh, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “We are honored to be among the companies recognized for this award and remain committed to maintaining the honesty and transparency Fresh Del Monte is known for.”
Overall, the produce purveyor ranked #13 in the Food and Beverage category for consumer, investor, and employee trust, a press release noted. The award is presented by Newsweek and Statista, a statistics portal and industry ranking provider.
Each company that made the 2022 list was identified by an independent survey based on a sample of approximately 50,000 United States residents who rated companies they know on customer trust, investor trust, and employee trust. In total, 110,000 evaluations were submitted. All stock exchange-listed companies with a revenue of over $500 million in 2020 were considered in the study.
To learn more about what Fresh Del Monte is doing to inspire trust, click here.
Congratulations to Fresh Del Monte on making this distinguished list!