• The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published its Sixth Assessment Report.
• Food safety concerns spanked strawberries, raw milk and more.
• Women enjoyed the spotlight for their contributions to food production.

Emission Commission

On March 20, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published its Sixth Assessment Report. This “synthesis report” brings together data from IPCC’s three working groups — composed of hundreds of scientists — into a single set of observations and recommendations for policies to mitigate the impact of climate change. Thoughtfully, the committee synthesized the full 9,275-page report down to a mere 36 pages.

• The report notes, “Climate-driven food and water insecurity is expected to increase with increased warming.” IPCC Chair Hoesung Lee added, “If we act now, we can still secure a liveable sustainable future for all.”
• Million Belay of the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems explained in Civil Eats, “Every fraction of a degree of warming raises the risk of food shortages and multiple crop failures. Transforming food systems is now an urgent priority and a massive opportunity.”
• DTN reporter Chris Clayton observed that global agriculture productivity has been growing at a slower rate than in the past — and productivity will be outpaced by population gains in the next 20 years.
• Nonprofit organization ReFED reiterated its mission of reducing food waste: “If global food loss and waste were a country, it would rank third in the world for GHG emissions after the U.S. and China.”
• The Nature Conservancy covered the broad strokes of the IPCC’s goals. Meanwhile, other environmentalist groups, such as Earthjustice, ignored food systems in favor of condemning fossil fuels.

Skip the Berries and Cream

Food safety issues involving some of the usual suspects, like infant formula and raw milk, caused trouble. It’s been an interesting few weeks, with strawberry and cultivated chicken issues also gaining attention.

• We don’t often correlate strawberries with hepatitis A, but that drove a big recall this week. NPR covered this outbreak involving frozen strawberries originating from certain farms in Baja California, Mexico, in 2022 and sold at Costco, Aldi and Trader Joe’s.
• Unfortunately, we do correlate infant formula with food safety issues lately. Food Safety News publisher Bill Marler offered some scathing criticism of FDA’s response to the crisis, as well as some suggestions on how to improve, like putting an FDA inspector in every plant. FDA Director Susan Mayne disagreed.
• Amid the continued formula shortage, yet another recall — this one involving the Gerber brand — pulled product from shelves, “out of an abundance of caution due to the potential presence of Cronobacter sakazakii,” reported USA Today.
• GOOD Meat, the cultivated meat division of food technology company Eat Just, Inc., grabbed headlines on March 20, when the FDA declared the company’s chicken product safe to consume. Now the product must pass USDA approvals before being served at an upscale Washington, D.C., eatery owned by chef-philanthropist José Andrés (Fox News).
• The Honolulu Star Advertiser summarized a house bill legalizing the sale of raw milk in the state. The bill cited improving food security in small communities as a primary motivation. If we’ve learned anything from scanning the food news every day for more than a decade, it’s to stay away from raw milk. And Cronobacter sakazakii.
• Risk-assessment group Sedgwick published a 2022 recall report covering all product areas. Regarding food, the report found “FDA food recalls experienced a 700.6% increase in the number of units impacted in 2022. With 416.9 million units recalled, this represents a 10-year high.”

Celebrating Women

March is Women’s History Month, including International Women’s Day on March 8. Women make up a large part of the food industry’s workforce and a variety of organizations made their appreciation known.

• We owe women of color for the foods we love to eat | NPR: Code Switch
• How the Women’s Foodservice Forum has evolved since the pandemic | Nation’s Restaurant News
• Honoring female farmers and ranchers this Women’s History Month | USDA
• Women Grocers of America to launch share group for emerging leaders | National Grocers Association
• IFPA mentoring program extends leadership development for women | International Fresh Produce Association
• How can we embrace gender equity in the workplace this International Women’s Day? | Food Manufacture
• Undernourished and Overlooked: A global nutrition crisis in adolescent girls and women | UNICEF
• International Women’s Day: women and school meal programs | Global Child Nutrition Fund
• WTO Gender Research Hub launches work programme to deepen expertise on women in trade | World Trade Organization
• Tweets from: American Veterinary Medical Association, Corteva, NRN editor Alicia Kelso, President Biden, Zoetis

Hey, What’s Good This Week?

PepsiCo chose National Ag Day to announce plans to invest $216 million into regenerative ag practices in the United States. Partnering with three large ag organizations, they intend to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 3 million metric tons by the end of the decade, all to meet their Positive Agriculture ambition published two years ago. As one of the world’s largest food and agriculture companies, their plan commits to spreading regenerative agriculture over 7 million acres.

• Online grocery, e-grocery, e-commerce, omnichannel — whatever you call it, it’s here to stay.
• The USDA upset the meat industry and Canada with updates to a labeling law.
• There’s a lot happening down on the farm.

“Catholics who find themselves at an event where meat is served in celebrating St. Patrick may in good conscience substitute the general rule of abstinence with another form of penance or a significant act of charity that benefits the poor.”

Archdiocese of Chicago

Convenience for Every Demographic

The two biggest business themes in retail grocery lately are speculation on the Kroger-Albertsons merger and the uncertain future of grocery delivery. Talks about the megamerger proceeded, with the companies agreeing to divest in up to 300 stores in order to overcome antitrust concerns and gain regulatory approval (Reuters). Meanwhile, here are some interesting developments in grocery delivery and e-commerce in a (fingers crossed) post-pandemic market.

• Writing for Supermarket News and fresh out of the NGA Show, entrepreneur Jeff Anders outlined the many obstacles independent grocers face in e-commerce.
• Food Business News reporter Jeff Gelski covered an investor meeting where Walmart CFO John David Rainey described the retailer’s position on delivery, which brought in more than a billion dollars in January: “convenience is something that appeals to every income demographic.”
• Summarizing a Brick Meets Click/Mercatus survey, Supermarket News noted that the grocery e-commerce base is growing while frequency is slowing. Apparently, order volume has fallen below pandemic levels for the first time.
• Andy Nelson from Supermarket Perimeter described the loyalty challenges supermarkets face amid third-party apps. The article also captured a few astonishing facts: “69% of all digital grocery sales came via a grocer’s website… [and] digital sales are expected to total $146 billion in 2023, accounting for 15.3% of all grocery sales.”

Born in the U.S.A.

On March 6, the USDA proposed new requirements for meat, poultry and egg products to use the “Product of USA” label. The update closes a loophole where livestock could be born or raised in another country, but slaughtered and processed in the United States to use the label.

• The new requirements align with USDA survey data that show 63% of consumers “[think] the claim means that all production steps take place in the United States.” Of the remainder, 21% didn’t know what the label meant.
• National Farmers Union President Rob Larew cheered, “This rule is about truth in labeling, plain and simple.”
• North American Meat Institute President and CEO Julie Anna Potts disagreed: “Our members make considerable investments to produce beef, pork, lamb, veal and poultry products in American facilities, employing hundreds of thousands of workers in the U.S. and with processes overseen by USDA inspectors. This food should be allowed to be labeled a ‘Product of the USA.'”
• National Chicken Council president Mike Brown added that the label is duplicative: “Consumers seeking USA chicken can already find the ‘Hatched, Raised & Harvested in the U.S.’ label on American chicken.”
• The rule revives a decade-old international trade dispute. Meatingplace covered the reaction from Canadian trade minister Mary Ng, who reminded rulemakers that the World Trade Organization issued judgments against a similar country of origin labeling law in 2011, 2014 and 2015.
• While we’re on the topic of labels that consumers don’t understand, Purdue University agricultural economist Jayson Lusk studied how a “sustainability facts” label would affect purchase decisions.

Field Report

As farmers gear up for spring planting, new developments have cropped up in the farm tech and policy spheres.

• AFBF inks more ‘right to repair’ agreements | Agri-Pulse
• In rural America, right-to-repair laws are the leading edge of a pushback against growing corporate power | The Daily Yonder
• ICYMI: House Ag GOP members speak against Biden EPA’s burdensome WOTUS Rule | House Committee on Agriculture
• Statement by Secretary Vilsack on the president’s fiscal year 2024 budget | USDA
• 400-plus groups on farm bill budgets and pesticide bills | DTN Progressive Farmer
• How the long shadow of racism at USDA impacts Black farmers in Arkansas—and beyond | Civil Eats
• State legislatures are cracking down on foreign land ownership | Mother Jones
• Sound Agriculture launches on-demand-bred tomato | The Scoop

Hey, What’s Good This Week?

Wegmans announced a host of new in-store accessibility aids for visually or hearing-impaired shoppers. The services incorporate a broad range of technology from American Sign Language-based video remote services to apps for real-time assistance to large print prescription labels and documentation. The efforts also extend to enhance the customer service experience on its website.

• Nutrition assistance budgets keeps taking a beating.
• Leaders negotiated adjustments to the global flow of food trade.
• Brands, restaurants and grocers keep trying interesting ways to build business.

Bellies vs. Budgets

A pandemic-era expansion of funds for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, aka food stamps) expired at midnight on February 28. At the same time, politicians began debating budgets for the program over the next five years. Discussions juxtaposed phrases such as “hunger cliff” and “surprise $250 billion in spending.”

• Food Research and Action Center SNAP Director Ellen Vollinger told Food Tank that older adults are likely to be hit hardest, with allotments falling from $281 per month to the minimum $23 per month.
• PBS NewsHour covered how food banks are preparing for an increase in demand as a result of the benefit drop-off. A Virginia food bank director explained: “You see somebody come to you, and you give them a can of tuna, and they hold it to them and say: ‘Oh, my God, Sharon, this is four meals.’ No, it’s not. It’s one. That will make you stop and think. And, at our level, we see that, we hear that. Congress don’t.”
• Keith Good of the University of Illinois condensed a hearing on nutrition program budgets as part of the upcoming 2023 Farm Bill. Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.) worried, “The cost of the largest of these programs, [SNAP], has grown by more than 94%” due to inflation and higher participation rates.
• The American Farm Bureau Federation pointed out that current estimates put nutrition programs at 82% of an expected $1.5 trillion of farm bill spending. It’s worth noting that the Farm Bureau lobbies for the other 18%.
• Other avenues of hunger relief are getting easier, at least. Food Safety News reported that — for the first time — the FDA outlined food safety provisions for retailers that wish to donate food that would otherwise go to waste.
• In the past week, several corporations have ramped up donation campaigns. Publix hosted a hunger summit and launched its Feeding More Together campaign. Kellogg Company joined Albertsons in donating to the Nourishing Neighbors Initiative. Tyson Foods and Smithfield donated to local food banks (Meatingplace).

Trade Ins & Outs

With roughly 20% of all U.S. farm products being exported around the world, international trade keeps the U.S. ag engine running. Weather, animal disease, tariffs and conflicts all factor into this complex global puzzle.

• The Politico Weekly Ag newsletter detailed how, despite increased tensions, China remains the #1 U.S. market for exported farm goods. Nevertheless, imports of Chinese agricultural goods exceeded that value by $14.5 billion.
• Reuters described how an outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (aka mad cow disease) is affecting beef trade between Brazil and China. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association called on USDA secretary Tom Vilsack to halt imports of Brazilian beef to the U.S.
• Meatingplace summarized fiscal 2023’s overall meat export outlook, predicting a slight decrease from 2022. Beef and chicken numbers are down, while pork is up based on strengthening shipments to East Asia and Mexico.
• Speaking of Mexico, Civil Eats writer Lisa Held defended Mexico’s upcoming ban on importing genetically modified U.S. corn, which is set to take effect in 2024. The U.S. says the ban violates trade agreements while Mexican policymakers say the ban’s purpose is to preserve genetic diversity, as well as cultural and ecological heritage.
• The Scoop outlined many obstacles Ukrainian farmers are facing — like getting called into battle and clearing mines from their fields — which are adding up to lower exports for Europe’s breadbasket.

Givin’ the Business

Krispy Kreme at McDonald’s, Starbucks coffee with olive oil, DoorDashing Aldi; it’s cats and dogs living together everywhere you turn. Oh, and KFC’s Double Down is back, if you’re into replacing bread with fried chicken. Quite a few business and marketing moves caught our attention this week:

• Eat Just laying off 18% of workers with cuts impacting plant-based egg business | Food Dive
• Target to invest in shopping experience, private brands | Specialty Foods Association
• Olive oil in coffee? New Starbucks line a curiosity in Italy | The Associated Press
• The double down Is back at KFC | Food & Wine
• How Jersey Mike’s is becoming ‘America’s sandwich shop’ | Nation’s Restaurant News
• Restaurant chains make it cost more to be loyal | The New York Times
• McDonald’s, Krispy Kreme expand donut test | Food Business News
• Instacart’s revenue and profit climb ahead of public listing | The Wall Street Journal
• Shoppers speak up! #Shrinkflation and #FoodCrimes in their supermarkets | Supermarket Guru
• Corner Bakery is in deep trouble | The Takeout
• Answer the door … it’s Aldi | Supermarket News

• Controversy and tension echoed throughout the food workforce.
• Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago, impacting the global food supply chain.
• Experts continued their bickering over what’s healthy and authentic.

“Putin tried to starve the world.”

President Joe Biden (The White House)

The Hard Way

Once again, worker issues rose to the forefront of conversations, this time around child labor and farmworker overtime, while some employers struggled to fill job vacancies throughout the supply chain.

• Leading worker-related news, Food Safety News reporter Dan Flynn detailed developments in federal investigations of underage employees at meat processing facilities. To date, a Wisconsin sanitation company has paid $1.5 million in fines for placing more than 100 minors at 13 different processors in eight states. The firm provides contract cleaning services at some of the largest processors in the country.
• “Make no mistake, this was no clerical error or the actions of individuals or bad managers,” remarked U.S. Department of Labor’s Jessica Looman (ABC News). “These findings represent a systemic failure across PSSI’s organization to ensure that children were not working in violation of the law.”
• Two dueling takes on “Supermarket Employee Day” caught our attention on February 22. FMI, The Food Industry Association, celebrated “the essential role that grocery workers play at every level of the industry and across their communities,” while the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union suggested the day “ignores the critical need for the industry to provide better wages, benefits, and treatment for these essential workers.”
• The Wall Street Journal’s Jesse Newman and Jaewon Kang detailed the systemwide need for workers across retail, foodservice and manufacturing. Besides raising hourly wages, offering bonuses, hiring temporary workers and introducing flexible shifts, companies are looking to rehire past employees: “Alumni are also a talent source,” said Tim Massa, chief people officer of Kroger.
• Civil Eats’ Grey Moran captured the tense talks between growers and farmworkers over overtime pay.
• On a lighter note, Progressive Grocer summarized a handful of “best of retailer” lists. Topping best customer service for a retailer was Albertsons, according to a 2023 INCISIV survey. By contrast, Forbes partnered with Statista to survey workers to determine the best large employers. Texas retailer H-E-B, In-N-Out Burger and Trader Joes were the three food employers in the top 20.

What Is It Good For?

Today (February 24) marks one full year since Russia invaded Ukraine, proving to be a popular time to reflect on the war’s impact. Global food supplies have rebounded from the initial shock, but international markets are still far from “normal” … whatever that is.

• On February 20, President Biden redoubled the United States’ opposition to Russia’s invasion: “Putin tried to starve the world … exacerbating the global food crisis that hit developing nations in Africa especially hard. Instead, the United States and the G7 and partners around the world answered the call with historic commitments to address the crisis.”
• Politico’s Meredith Lee Hill provided an overview of the ongoing political responses to the war.
• Ukraine is seeking to extend its agreement with Russia to allow grain shipments from Black Sea ports (Reuters). Before the war, Ukraine accounted for 42% of sunflower oil exports, 16% of corn exports and 10% of wheat exports — blocked ports contributed to food price inflation worldwide.
• Former Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman explained to DTN editor Chris Clayton that the long-term prospects for recovery aren’t great: “It just struck me that the Russians are attempting to absolutely destroy the infrastructure of Ukraine, totally. They can’t go out and destroy all of the farmland, but they can destroy access to the products around the world.”
• Bloomberg noted that Russia still holds “a stranglehold on the world’s food security” due to its major stake in the world fertilizer supply. The country’s potash, phosphate and nitrogen production has not been targeted by sanctions for this reason. And the alternatives are crap. Literally.

Label Unconscious

What’s healthy? What’s milk? Is that actual meat? These are some of the topics in recent labeling conversations. Particular controversy swirled around the FDA’s guidance that says plant-based beverages can keep using the name “milk.”

• FDA draft guidance on plant-based milk labeling ruffles industry feathers | AgFunder News
• FMI encourages FDA to refine healthy definition to more closely align with dietary guidelines | FMI, The Food Industry Association
• Private label sales continue to accelerate upward | Supermarket Perimeter
• How grocery execs feel about private label performance | Progressive Grocer
• Product warning labels can alter meat purchasing decisions: study | Meatingplace
• Cigarette-style meat warning labels slammed — are they coming to stores? | New York Post
• NOAA proposes rule changes to minimize risk of mislabeling and product substitution | Food Safety News

• Farm bill negotiations continue to roll as industry groups call their shots.
• Food prices seem to be stabilizing, but remain a dominant topic.
• Manufacturers and channels have mixed performance in a fickle earnings cycle.

Craving Carve-outs

Industry groups have spent the past month hashing out their priorities for the 2023 Farm Bill — which funds nutrition assistance programs as well as farm policies. Now that both chambers of Congress have established committee rosters, negotiations will begin in earnest.

• In Food Fix, Helena Bottemiller Evich explained Republicans’ plan to reduce funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, aka food stamps) to help balance the budget. Plans to cut $70 billion may sound like a lot, but it will barely make a dent in the $31 trillion budget shortfall.
• Contrarily, the National Grocers Association advocated for expanding access to food stamps, including for online grocery purchases.
• The National Pork Producers Council requested resources to combat foreign animal disease and increase market access overseas (Pork Business).
• The Organic Trade Association called for updates to the standards and enforcement of the National Organic Program as well as a larger role in climate-smart agriculture policies.
• A cornucopia of produce industry groups joined forces to lobby for research and insurance resources for specialty crop producers. Farmers who grow apples, berries, potatoes and tomatoes get a relatively small piece of the pie compared with grain producers.
• The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union championed provisions to “modernize health and safety standards in our meat packing plants” and require country of origin labels on packages (Meatingplace).
• Activist group Farm Action hosted its Food Not Feed Summit on February 9, arguing that current subsidies disproportionately benefit the livestock industry.
• When it comes to timing, DTN political correspondent Jerry Hagstrom quoted Rep. Frank Lucas (R-Okla.): “I am not holding my breath about getting it done by October 1, but we will get it done.” Our over/under pool is set at Christmas Eve.

“Like making sausage, the 2023 Farm Bill isn’t something that you will want to look at.”

Dan Flynn, Editor, Food Safety News

Inflated Expectations

Inflation may be slowing down, but media coverage of it isn’t. Here are some quick takes on how food prices are evolving lately:

• Letup in grocery price inflation continues in January | Winsight Grocery Business
• Americans think grocers’ profits are 14x higher, inflation twice as high as in reality | Progressive Grocer
• American consumer retail sales jump as Americans defy inflation and rate hikes | PBS NewsHour
• Egg prices drop for retailers, but shoppers yet to see relief | The Wall Street Journal
• Is Florida running out of orange juice? Record prices put the squeeze on consumers | The Guardian
• How inflation impacts the salty snack market | Mintel
• Public willing to pay more for meat in January | Feedstuffs

‘Hit in the Mouth’

A slew of earnings statements hit recently, as manufacturers and channels held shareholder events to explain what’s happening. In many cases, input costs, price inflation and labor shortages have made it increasingly difficult for manufacturers to predict demand and sales of their products.

• JBS poultry subsidiary Pilgrim’s Pride reported $155 million in losses in Q4, citing low cutout values, market volatility and inflation for input costs such as grain and labor (Supermarket Perimeter). For those in the know, cutout value is the approximate value of a total unit (such as a whole chicken) based on the prices received for its respective parts.
• Starbucks closed its fiscal Q1 with record-breaking success. Outbound CEO Howard Schultz mentioned sales, gift cards and mobile app downloads as contributors (Nation’s Restaurant News).
• CNBC summarized Coca Cola’s 4th quarter revenue, which exceeded $10 billion, and that higher prices have not softened demand. Also, Food Dive covered Coke’s shaky integration of the BodyArmor sports drink brand.
• For PepsiCo, Food Manufacturing went right out and said it: “Price Hikes Fuel 10% Jump in Pepsi Sales.”
• Yahoo! Finance reported that Chipotle missed its expected earnings in the fourth quarter. “The cost of foods, packaging and beverages weighed on the company this quarter, accounting for 29.3% of total revenue.”
• Kellogg’s beat estimates and also announced it would retain the Morningstar plant-based brand it had planned to sell. Reuters reporter Mehr Bedi suggested, “Americans have so far taken price hikes for snacks and breakfast cereals in stride even as decades-high inflation forces consumers to dial back spending.”
• Food Business News listened in to Bunge Foods’ earnings call to hear the agribusiness giant is expecting a sluggish year.
• On-premise leader Aramark reported positive earnings and a big jump in revenue. Shortly after, The Wall Street Journal tracked an 11% drop in share price, citing a $30 million contingent liability. Talk about a fickle market.
• Subway reported some positive news: same-store sales rose 9.2% over last year (Nation’s Restaurant News).
• Reuters’ Tom Polancek recapped Tyson CEO Donnie King’s February 6 earnings discussion. King said Tyson “took a hit in the mouth,” citing Tyson’s struggle to forecast demand for beef and poultry amid high inflation and the worst-ever outbreak of avian flu.

• USDA is getting stricter with sugar and salt in school meals.
• Food will be as important as football for the Super Bowl.
• Workers are collectively bargaining for the spotlight, after a pause.

Sugar and Salt Stifled

On February 3, the USDA announced updates to the school meals program. Considering that the program covered 4.9 billion lunches and 2.4 billion breakfasts in 2019 (USDA), any changes to the program will change students’ future eating habits and reverberate throughout supply chains.

• The proposed changes include limiting added sugars, reducing sodium and emphasizing whole grains while providing $100 million in grants to update equipment and source locally.
• Coincidentally, the update aligns well with a February 1 report that the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation published on aligning school nutrition policy with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
• Center for Science in the Public Interest President Peter Lurie welcomed the changes and called on Congress to increase funding for school meals.
• Dairy industry groups cheered the return of flavored milk options on menus.
• The Nutrition Coalition pushed back on the USDA’s plan to roll out changes gradually: “Why should it take years? Currently, 69% of school lunches + 92% of breakfasts exceed 10% of calories as sugar.”
• The School Nutrition Association — which represents cafeteria workers — objected to the move. President Lori Adkins warned, “School meal programs are struggling to successfully maintain current standards and need support, not additional, unrealistic requirements.”

Party Pack

You may have been told that the Super Bowl is about something called “football,” but we see it as a holiday centered on food and advertising. For those who care about details, the Kansas City Chiefs will play the Philadelphia Eagles in Glendale, Arizona, this Sunday. To us agency folks, it’s not eating, drinking and watching; it’s called “working.”

• How much are Super Bowl viewers projected to spend on food, parties? | WFXR Fox
• As Prices Ease, Americans Projected to Eat 1.45 Billion Chicken Wings for Super Bowl LVII | National Chicken Council
• School Worker Stole 11K Cases of Chicken Wings in $1.5M Scheme | NBC Chicago
• Super Bowl Party Food: Chicken Wings, Avocados Cheaper, Beer Prices Rise | Bloomberg
• How some Phoenix-area restaurants are preparing for the Super Bowl | Nation’s Restaurant News
• For the first time in over 30 years, you’ll see a Super Bowl commercial for a beer that’s not Budweiser | Fortune
• These Parents Raised Two Kids Playing in the Super Bowl. Here’s How They Fed Them. | The Wall Street Journal

Working It Out

We lost count of how many sections of Friday by Noon we dedicated to workers in 2022. From worker shortages to strikes and unions, the topic still hits every link of the food supply chain hard. In recent weeks, The International Brotherhood of Teamsters continued to infiltrate processing and distribution, and companies strategized on how to maintain staffing amid record low unemployment.

• The Wall Street Journal outlined how foodservice employers are competing for migrant workers by offering higher wages. “Migrants who come to the U.S. to find work are now being hired more quickly, at higher pay and under better working conditions than at any time in recent memory.”
• Trader Joe’s on February 3 filed an objection with the National Labor Relations Board, objecting to a union proposed by workers at a Louisville, Kentucky, store (Supermarket News).
• At an ADM grain facility in Decatur, Illinois, Teamster workers walked off the job, citing wage discrepancies with what members of other unions receive. “Well guess what — the Teamsters have power too, and we plan on using it to get a good contract for these workers,” read a Teamsters press release.
• On February 6, the Specialty Food Association reported that workers from UNFI, the nation’s largest natural foods distributor, unionized under another Teamsters group in California.
• In response to President Biden’s State of the Union address, The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (which represents 1.3 million grocery and meatpacking workers) posted: “Passing a worker friendly Farm Bill, lowering healthcare costs, passing the PRO Act to strengthen the right to organize, and holding corporate employers accountable would go a long way towards building a fairer and more just economy that benefits all hard-working families.”
• Food Business News’ Jeff Gelski summarized a February 7 Chipotle earnings call. Chipotle CFO John Hartung mentioned the burrito chain’s workforce stability getting back to pre-pandemic levels. “So the average tenure in the kitchen manager role was like 0.69 (in 2019), meaning it was about 8 months or so. Today, it’s like 0.64. So it’s like maybe 7, 7.5 months, something like that.” Solid math for an MBA.
• Here’s a nice employee perk: quitting smoking. Supermarket Perimeter reported that Perdue Farms is offering workers at an Indiana processing plant a free smoking cessation program.

“We believe the Commissioner and the Agency’s senior leaders are focused on right things to advance the Human Foods Program and perform its Congressional mandate more efficiently and effectively.”

De Ann Davis, SVP of Science, Western Growers

Reorg Reax

On January 31, the FDA announced a plan to reorganize its Human Foods programs, following up on suggestions from the Reagan-Udall Foundation. The agency hopes to reverse its fortunes after enduring a year of criticism in the wake of its high-profile failure to manage the infant formula crisis.

• FDA Commissioner Robert Califf outlined changes to improve the agency’s operation: unifying existing human food programs under a newly created deputy commissioner role and setting up a new division dedicated to working with state food safety agencies.
• At least 15 industry and activist groups — including the International Fresh Produce Association, American Frozen Food Institute and Consumer Federation of America — supported the restructuring. Worth noting: most groups used the phrase “first step.”
• Consumer Reports voiced disappointment, partly because the consolidation leaves the Center for Veterinary Medicine independent. Notably, the Animal Health Institute viewed this as a plus.
• Food Fix writer Helena Bottemiller Evich, who has been tracking the developments very closely, asked: “What, exactly, from FDA’s Office of Regulatory Affairs will get folded into this new unified foods program? (ORA is the arm of FDA that does inspections).”
• The American Heart Association thanked the FDA for using the opportunity to create a Center for Excellence in Nutrition and “[encouraged] the agency to pursue bold, new policies that help consumers make healthier choices and improve the food supply.”
• The announcement came just one week after Frank Yiannas submitted his resignation as deputy commissioner for food policy due to the agency’s structure. Food Safety News publisher Bill Marler opined: “Lock the door and do not let Frank Yiannas leave the building. Although I do not always agree with Mr. Yiannas on policy, the Reagan-Udall Foundation’s definition of ‘ideal leadership’ reads like a Frank Yiannas resume.”

Food Industry Short Takes

While the FDA restructuring dominated food news, lots of other developments on the policy and business fronts comprise this grab bag of important news:

• Unilever announced that Hein Schumacher will replace current CEO Alan Jope in July. Over the past year, Unilever faced criticism from investor groups over purpose vs. profit. Fundsmith founder Terry Smith suggested last year, “A company which feels it has to define the purpose of Hellmann’s mayonnaise has in our view clearly lost the plot.” (Financial Times) We’re watching closely how Schumacher will define Unilever’s “good.”
• Alaskan villages, local wild salmon fisheries and environmentalist groups such as the National Wildlife Federation rejoiced after the EPA announced a final decision under the Clean Water Act blocking a mining operation in Bristol Bay, Alaska.
• After some bruising criticism from former advocates writing for Bloomberg and Forbes, Impossible laid off approximately 100 people from its 700-person workforce (SF Gate).
• Supply chain managers wary of shifting trade back to West Coast ports | CNBC
• Explainer: Spilt milk? Why are the US and Canada fighting over dairy? | Reuters
• 2023 farm bill discussion highlights concerns about Mexico’s GMO corn import ban | The Hill
• SHIP It Act Reinforces Urgent Need for Supply Chain Fixes in 2023 | Consumer Brands Association
• Is the Shipping Crisis on the Mississippi River Coming to an End? What is the Outlook for Spring? | The Scoop

• Soaring egg prices
• Unsafe baby food
• Robust retail and foodservice activity

Shelling Out Big Bucks

While many have adjusted to food price inflation, one grocery staple recently eggceeded eggspectations. Sticker shock provoked more than the usual chatter over rising egg prices the past two weeks.

• Bureau of Labor Statistics data showed egg prices increasing by 138% from December 2021 to the same month in 2022, reaching a record-high national average of $4.25 per dozen.
• The Associated Press cited avian flu as a major factor, with the loss of 43 million laying hens over the course of the past year.
• American Egg Board President and CEO Emily Metz countered, “When you’re looking at fuel costs go up, and you’re looking at feed costs go up as much as 60%, labor costs, packaging costs — all of that … those are much much bigger factors than bird flu for sure.”
• Advocacy group Farm Action cried fowl. The group wrote to FTC chair Lina Kahn, arguing “The real culprit behind this … appears to be a collusive scheme among industry leaders to turn inflationary conditions and an avian flu outbreak into an opportunity to extract egregious profits.”
• Some savvy consumers hatched a plan to circumvent the price hikes by taking advantage of Mexican markets. NPR reported that U.S. Customs and Border Patrol has cracked down on egg smuggling. At a 24¢/egg margin, it would only take 104 dozen eggs to break even with one $300 fine.
• The Washington Post’s Becky Krystal suggested substitutes for more law-abiding citizens.
• Supermarket News suggested that retailers lead with egg sale prices on social media. It’s always good to highlight eggstra savings (okay, we’ll stop now).

Gross ≠ Unsafe

Food safety developments ran the gamut from the FDA’s continued implosion to lead levels in baby food to eating potentially toxic animal lungs. Ewww.

• FoodFix reported that Frank Yiannas, FDA’s food safety leader, tendered his resignation on January 25, citing dysfunctional leadership structure at the agency. His departure follows the baby formula crisis and a series of mishaps at the FDA.
• In a development in the baby formula crisis, an Abbott Laboratories spokesperson confirmed that the company was under investigation by the Department of Justice concerning several illnesses and up to nine deaths associated with the company’s Similac product (The Hill).
• On January 24, the FDA issued a draft guidance limiting levels of lead in baby and toddler foods to 20 parts per billion, about a 25% reduction. “The proposed action levels announced … will result in long-term, meaningful and sustainable reductions in the exposure to this contaminant from foods,” added FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf, MD. Wait … they allow lead in baby food?!?
• The Daily Show correspondent Wanda Sykes shared a TV news report on Twitter covering the guidance, adding, “Good news for babies, your food is about to taste a lot less like pennies.”
• Madeline Buiano, writing in Martha Stewart Living, summarized a Journal of Food Protection study that found spice jars to be kitchens’ most contaminated surfaces. Other particularly dirty spots included cutting boards and trash can lids. Faucet handles got a clean bill of health.
• Philadelphia physician Jonathan Reisman petitioned the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) to reconsider its ban on livestock lungs as human food (Food Safety News). “Food being ‘gross’ is not the same as it is unsafe,” suggested Reisman. Breathe easy people, this change is unlikely.

Food Channel Surfing

A handful of foodservice and retail news stories caught our attention and reflect some ongoing larger trends.

• Stop & Shop Launches Flashfood in More New England Locations | Progressive Grocer
• Dollar Stores Are Growing as Food Retailers in the U.S. | Tufts University
• Where did natural foods investments go? | New Hope Network
• Shift to Remote Work Puts Pressure on Chains Like Sweetgreen | The New York Times
• The Most Popular Fast Food in America’s Top College Towns | Broke Scholar
• Why Pizza Hut is smoking everyone in traffic | Nation’s Restaurant News
• Chipotle looks to hire 15,000 amid continuing labor shortage | The Associated Press

• Business developments buzzed throughout foodservice.
• The Farm Bureau wrote a table of contents for 2023 policy.
• Media offered no shortage of ways to cut the booze.

“We could more accurately call it a food and farm bill because whether you come from a rural community, a city or a suburb, it matters for you and your family.”

Zippy Duvall, President, American Farm Bureau Federation

Fast Food to Fancy Food

Two media favorites of the foodservice industry (Noma and In-N-Out) made big announcements this week. There were plenty of developments across the rest of the restaurant biz, too.

• On January 9, The New York Times reported that Noma — the Copenhagen, Denmark, restaurant often described as the finest in the world — will close in 2024. Chef René Redzepi cited the grueling hours and intense culture as unsustainable. The business will shift to “a full-time food laboratory, developing new dishes and products for its e-commerce operation.”
• Eater’s Jaya Saxena reassured those who had not visited Noma, “It’s in every instance a fine dining restaurant cites locally foraged ingredients as the inspiration for a dish, in every goth bird we’re still seeing on tables today, and every high-end restaurant’s experiments with DTC fermented sauces.”
• In-N-Out, the West Coast burger chain “consistently ranked as consumers’ most-craved brand in NRN’s annual Consumer Picks survey,” will open its farthest-east operation near Nashville, Tennessee, in 2026 (Nation’s Restaurant News).
• Former McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook resurfaced this week after the Securities and Exchange Commission issued an order charging him “with making misleading statements to investors about the circumstances leading to his firing in November 2019.” (Food Business News)
• Subway, the nation’s largest restaurant chain by units, has hired a firm to explore its sale (The Wall Street Journal). The process is in the very early stages, and the sale of the privately held chain to private equity could fetch more than $10 billion.
• Associated Press reporter Dee-Ann Durbin wrote a deep-ish dive on the state of restaurant unionization, focusing on Starbucks. To date, 358 Starbucks units have petitioned the National Labor Relations Board to hold union elections.
• Finally, Business Insider shared news about a grill that Chili’s is testing to cook a steak to perfection in three minutes. Casual, meet quick service.

Conventional Policies

The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), the largest farmer advocacy group, held its annual convention January 8-11 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The event set the tone for food policy discussions in the coming year, replete with an awards presentation and an appearance by the agriculture secretary.

• AFBF set its policy priorities for the 2023 Farm Bill, which include: expanding disaster relief, increasing transparency of milk pricing, reducing food insecurity and opposing an update to the Clean Water Act.
• Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack addressed the convention on January 9, highlighting a report that most farmers rely on off-farm income to make ends meet. Vilsack set forth the goal of “making agriculture profitable, not for many, but for all. Not sustainable for some, but for all. Not resilient for some, but for all.”
• The Ag Innovation Challenge winner, NORDEF, took home $50,000 to help diesel vehicles meet EPA emissions standards.
• AFBF named Tough, a border collie from Kansas, Farm Dog of the Year. Yes, there are photos. And videos. And photos of the runners-up.
• On January 8, the Farm Bureau surprised the ag industry by announcing an agreement with John Deere to “ensure farmers’ and ranchers’ right to repair their own farm equipment.” The move comes after years of farmers’ protests against Deere limiting repairs by independent shops and requiring expensive diagnostic equipment.
• The Association of Equipment Manufacturers stated that the move “reinforces our belief that successful resolution does not require onerous legislative action.” (The Scoop)
• NPR noted that many remain skeptical of Deere and will want to see follow-through. U.S. Public Interest Research Group captured the attitude: “Like Charlie Brown, farmers have lined up for the kick too many times to let Lucy pull the ball away again.”

Resolved.

As many make New Year’s resolutions to get healthier, the media chimes in with health advice. This year, more of that advice was dedicated to giving up alcohol than meat.

• Will Dry January trigger alcohol withdrawal symptoms? | The Washington Post
• The 12 best new nonalcoholic drinks for Dry January | Chicago Tribune
• More non-alcoholic drink options are available for Dry January | NPR: Planet Money
• Think you’ll save money with Dry January? Not at $17 for a mocktail | The Wall Street Journal
• Year-long moderation dampens Dry January participation | Food Business News
• Best diets overall 2023 | U.S. News & World Report
• Veganuary takes hold: Companies and consumers alike expected to embrace plant-based eating in 2023 | Food Ingredients First