News of the Week

Some 72% of consumers are more concerned with quality than price at the grocery store, while nine out of 10 claim that value and nutrition will be of equal or greater importance when the recession ends, according to an IBM survey. Almost 50% of respondents are shopping at more stores to get the best deal, 35% changed grocery stores to save money, 52% are reducing the volume of food they purchase from the grocery store and 45% of those making less than $20,000 want foods that keep them full longer. Meat, poultry, and coffee top the list of the one item shoppers do not want to give up, but they are willing to cut spending on prepared food and individual-sized beverages. Full Story

The Top 100 pizza chains had U.S. sales of $18.8 billion in 2008, up 2% over 2007, according to Technomic's 2009 Technomic Top 100 Limited-Service Pizza Chains Restaurant Report. The total limited-service pizza industry grossed $29 billion, with growth comparable to the total restaurant industry at 0.4%. Pizza Hut led the Top 100 chains with $5.3 billion in U.S. sales in 2008, up 3.9% over 2007; it also registered unit growth of 1.3%. Domino's Pizza and Papa John's followed with $3 billion and $2 billion in sales respectively. Despite flat sales in 2008 and into 2009 throughout most of the limited-service pizza industry, some pizza chain operators are finding success through a strategy of focused positioning. Full Story

A glatt kosher Subway restaurant opened in North Miami Beach, FL, one of only nine in the entire country. The only other national fast-food company with kosher stores in the U.S. is reportedly Dunkin' Donuts, which has more than 30 Kosher stores. "It's a niche opportunity,'' stated Ron Paul, president of Technomic. "It's a good idea because it gets the brand the good will of the kosher community. I'm surprised that others haven't tried it.'' While the kosher Subway stores are open fewer hours than a typical fast-food restaurant, they typically do sales as much as 25% higher, reported Miami Herald. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

About 48% of consumers claim that it is "very important" or "extremely important" that quickservice restaurants (QSR) participate in green initiatives, according to a a survey from M/A/R/C Research. About 34% of total respondents ranked green initiatives somewhat important, 10% not very important and 8% not at all important. Over half (51%) stated they "prefer" fast-food restaurants that care about green issues but will not go out of their way to patronize them, and 39% stated that green issues have no impact on their QSR choices, reported MediaPost's Marketing Daily. Full Story (Free Registration Required)

The U.S. market for children's food and drink will grow in value by 50% from $16.4 billion in 2007 to $26.8 billion within two years, according to a report from New Nutrition Business. The report, Marketing Kids' Healthy Beverages, identifies health drinks as making the biggest gains. Fruit juice, fruit-flavored water and dairy drinks are still areas that provide growth, reported Food Navigator USA. Full Story

West Bloomfield, MI-based brothers Tyler and Chris McVety launched Beyond the Shaker LLC, a line of 27 all-natural salts and salt blends, including Windy City Celery and Hot Habanero, reported The Detroit News. The line, which launched in July, is available in three retail locations. Full Story

Food chemist-turned-chocolatier Hanna Frederick developed a meat flavored chocolate. Ms. Frederick's venison chocolate truffles are made from dark chocolate and ground salty dried meat. The taste is reportedly a smokey opening followed by a strong chocolate taste, then a salami flavor to finish, reported Food Navigator. Full Story

New Product News: McKee Foods launched Little Debbie Chocolate Cupcakes. Full Story ... Windsor Foods Inc. and Jim Beam Bourbon are offering foodservice operators Jim Beam Chopped Barbecue Brisket, which is designed for menu applications from sandwiches to center-of-the-plate, reported Meat & Poultry. Full Story (Free Registration Required) ... Del Monte Fresh Produce Co. N.A. Inc. launched a vending line, featuring specially packaged bananas and fresh-cut fruit and vegetables, reported The Produce News. Full Story

Manufacturer News: German scientists identified two strains to produce amaranth-based sourdoughs, potentially opening the way towards new gluten-free formulations, according to a study published in the International Journal of Food Microbiology, reported Food Navigator. Full Story ... Stevia could soon be adopted by ice cream manufacturers, according to Firmenich and Danisco. The companies stated that their collaboration introduced stevia as a sucrose replacement in vanilla and lemon sorbet ice cream, furthering opportunities for the product, reported Food Navigator. Full Story

About 72% of retailers expect the 2009 holiday season to be the same or worse compared with 2008, according to a survey by consulting firm Hay Group. Over half of retailers (57%) reported plans to reduce their holiday workforce level, reported Bloomberg.com. Full Story

Younger white women with vitamin D deficiencies are about three times more likely to have high blood pressure in middle age than those with normal vitamin levels, according to a study presented at a meeting of the American Heart Association, reported Reuters. Full Story

New Store News: Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market opened a LEED Gold Certified Store in Cathedral City, CA. Full Story ... Little Caesar Enterprises, Inc. opened a location in Evansville, IN. Full Story ... Smashburger will open a location in Dayton, OH on Oct. 15, while a second University of Dayton location will open later this year. Smashburger will also offer a Buckeye Smashburger designed especially for the Ohio market. Full Story