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5@5: Simple Truth--the country's largest natural food brand? | Walmart pushes suppliers on animal welfare
Each day at 5 p.m. we collect the five top natural news headlines of the day, making it easy for you to catch up on today's most important natural products industry news.Today's natural news docket includes: Kroger execs say Simple Truth did $1.2 billion in sales last year; Walmart urges suppliers to cut back on antibiotics; China: the next GMO powerhouse?
6 Min Read
Friday, May 22
Kroger exec: Simple Truth is largest natural food brand in U.S.
via Cincinnati Business Courier
Last year, Kroger's private label brand, which was introduced two years ago, hit $1.2 billion in sales. Read more...
Walmart presses meat suppliers on antibiotics, treatment
via CBS News
The nation's largest retailer is urging meat and egg suppliers to use antibiotics only for disease prevention or treatment, and to stop performing painful procedures on animals without proper pain management. Read more...
China does an about-face on GMOs
via Bloomberg Business
Officials in China, which has long been wary of genetically modified organisms, are getting ready to turn their country into a GMO power. Read more...
Coming to grocery stores: "Got milk?" branded food
via Ad Age
So far, three deals have been made between the California Milk Processor Board and food producers whose products are meant to be paired with milk. Read more...
Nonprofit grocery store set to open in Dorchester
via The Boston Globe
Daily Table, created by the former president of Trader Joe's, aims to serve up affordable, healthy meals. Read more...
Thursday, May 21: USDA won't investigate alleged organic farming violations | The rise of Small Food
USDA declines to investigate alleged violations at major organic farms
via The Washington Post
The agency says photographs taken last summer of 14 large organic egg and dairy farms and submitted to the USDA by an organic watchdog organization, along with allegations that the farms weren't complying with organic farming standards, are "insufficient to warrant investigation."
Small food makers on fast-track to U.S. store shelves, threatening big producers
via Reuters
Thanks to falling barriers to entry within the food industry, companies like Arctic Zero, Talenti and Mediterra are finding shelf space in major retailers.
Food companies fear bird flu may cause egg shortages
via The New York Times
Avian flu has devasted a large portion of egg-laying hens in the U.S., leading major food companies to search for alternative supply sources (including Hampton Creek, apparently).
Organic farming 'benefits biodiversity'
via BBC News
A new study found that organic farming led to higher plant diversity on surrounding conventionally farmed fields.
Special Report: The war on Big Food
via Fortune
The fast-growing population of natural and organic shoppers are challenging the very existence of major packaged food companies. Here's how they're trying to turn their businesses around.
Wednesday, May 20: Method co-founder takes on vitamin marketing | Berkeley soda tax rakes in $116K in first month
Method co-founder looks to clean up vitamin aisle
via AdAge
Eric Ryan, the co-founder of Method who helped transform marketing the cleaning-product category, is hoping to give the supplements aisle a similar makeover with a new brand, Olly. "Instead of selling melatonin, we sell sleep. Instead of selling biotin, we sell beauty," he says.
Berkeley soda tax brings in $116,000 in first month
via NBC Bay Area
Berkeley, which became the first city in the U.S. to adopt a soda tax, back in November, estimates the tax is on track to provide an extra $1.2 million a year to the city's health programs and schools.
US, Brazil still dominate $10 billion probiotic Americas market
via NutraIngredients-USA
An interview with Monica Feldman, head of consumer health industry research at Euromonitor International, on trends in the booming probiotics market.
FDA chastised for lack of FSMA-required recall notification guidance
via Food Safety News
One requirement of the Food Safety Modernization Act (enacted in 2011) that has yet to be implemented is a recall notification system for grocery stores. CSPI made its frustration with implementation delays known via a letter to the FDA.
What does 'raw' mean? When it comes to almonds, you might be surprised
via NPR
Virtually all the almonds in the country are heat-pasteurized or treated with a fumigant to prevent foodborne illness. Is this misleading consumers?
Tuesday, May 19: Why Big Food is going mini | Ireland sets guidelines for marketing 'natural' products
Mini is the new supersized
via Adweek
Why going smaller makes sense for brands like Starbucks, Coca Cola and Sonic.
Ireland gives guidance on 'natural' marketing
via Food Business News
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland released guidelines calling for products marketed as 'natural' (starting in December 2016) to be formed by nature and not significantly interfered with by man.
How taxing organic products could solve California's water shortage
via National Review
Fellows at the Property and Environment Research Center and the Hoover Institute argue that a tax on all organic products could reduce demand for "water-wasting organic products" in the drought-stricken state.
Omega-3 fatty acids enhance cognitive flexibility in at-risk older adults
via Science Daily
Older adults at risk for Alzheimer's disease who consumed more omega-3s were more able to efficiently switch between tasks and had a bigger anterior cingulate cortex in a University of Illinois study.
Cheap bacon is about to be everywhere, again
via Bloomberg
Bacon kraut. Bacon veggie burgers. Bacon milkshakes. It's safe to say that bacon is having a moment.
Monday, May 18: FDA expected to ban trans fat | John Oliver slams U.S. poultry industry
Food industry braces for Obama trans fat ban
via Politico
As soon as next week, the Obama administration could issue a ruling that would force companies to cut use of trans fat even more than they already have over the last decade.
John Oliver lays out everything wrong with our crazy chicken ind
ustry
via grist.org
“Chickens no doubt can be treated terribly, but that is not what this story is about. This is about chicken farmers,” the comedian says John Oliver before launching into an 18-minute takedown of the American poultry industry.
Chipotle makes a sound decision: Opposing view
via USAToday
"Since when do the mainstream news media, in a country that worships at the altar of capitalism and the free market, launch a coordinated attack against a company for selling a product consumers want? When that company dares to cross the powerful biotech industry," writes the international director of the Organic Consumers Association in defense of Chipotle's non-GMO move.
Target is, like, all granola and yogurt and less soup and Corn Flakes
via Fortune
Fresher, healthier foods are taking shelf priority at Target, potentially spelling trouble for big food companies like Kraft and Campbell's.
Vitamin B3 prevents new skin cancers in study
via Forbes
In a new study, nicotinamide, a form of vitamin B3, appeared to cut recurrence of non-melanoma skin cancer in patients who previously had skin cancer.
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