California Fires Hit Avocados Hardest; Lush Avocado Acreage A Firebreak Spares County From Worse Damage
All America has been aghast watching the fires rage in southern California. It is always difficult to gauge the impact on the industry in the midst of a natural disaster, so we’ve been standing by for more clarity. Then all the sudden, the Associated Press came out with a bizarre report exaggerating the possible damage […]
Tesco Under Attack From Waitrose In U.K. As U.S. Rollout Imminent Real Estate Key In Both Markets
As Tesco prepares to open in the U.S. it is interesting to note what its competitors have to say about Tesco in the United Kingdom. Mark Price, the CEO of upscale rival Waitrose has spoken out clearly urging the U.K. government to restrain Tesco’s marketing power and, particularly, to restrict Tesco’s practice of “land banking” […]
Pundit’s Mailbag — Should PMA Facilitate Meetings During Program Times?
We’ve been discussing the PMA convention and started off with a piece that asked a question: PMA Analysis — Does Houston Merit A Permanent Place In The PMA Rotation? PMA’s Attendance Just Shy Of 16,000 focused on attendance. We then published a letter from Peter Dessak, Vice President of Six L’s Packing Company, that explained […]
Pundit’s Mailbag —
Wal-Mart’s Path Of Decreased Store-Level Execution
Our piece, Wal-Mart Tightens Quality Specs, which followed up on our piece, High Lettuce Prices Strain Supplier Relations With Wal-Mart — which dealt with topics raised in our piece, Wal-Mart’s ‘Opportunity Buy’ Policy Reveals Much About The Company from a few months ago — has brought forth many industry comments. All seem to agree on […]
Full Service Floral
Often Falls Short
Want to know why full service floral so often fails to realize its potential? How about because it is rarely full service? The Jr. Pundit, Primo — aka William — turned six this past Friday and we had a shindig with all his friends on Sunday. The party was built around a Karaoke theme and […]
Meat Incident Illustrates Danger Of Slacking Standards And Oversight
As we bring to a close our Single Step Award series, which recognizes the efforts of key industry leaders to boost food safety following the spinach crisis of late 2006, and as the industry congratulates itself on the expansion of the California Marketing Agreement to cover Arizona, the industry would do very well to pay […]
Pundit’s Mailbag — Selling Versus Learning At PMA
Our continuing series on the PMA convention in Houston kicked off with a piece that asked a question: PMA Analysis — Does Houston Merit A Permanent Place In The PMA Rotation? We then looked at attendance and pointed out that in Houston, PMA’s Attendance Just Shy Of 16,000. Peter Dessak, Vice President of Six L’s […]
Immigration Reform Battle Not Over; Industry Encouraged To Fight On
Maureen Torrey Marshall of Torrey Farms in Elba, New York, is, along with Mark Miller of Fresh From Texas/Energy Sprouts in San Antonio, Texas, the immediate past Chairman of United Fresh. If you thought she was luxuriating in her leisure now that the burden of being Chairman has been lifted, you would be wrong. In […]
Wal-Mart Tightens Quality Specs
Wal-Mart announced a slight reduction in capital expenditure plans for the U.S. while increasing capital expenditures overseas. Earlier it had announced an intention to purchase all the shares of Japanese chain Seiyu Ltd. that it does not already own. Scaling back on growth in the U.S. may be a good idea — if — and […]
Tesco, Disney and Dunnhumby
It was over a year ago that Tesco signed a deal with the Walt Disney Company to license Disney Characters for use on fresh fruit. Now, without reference to that deal, the headline is that Tesco and Disney Partner on Branded Foods: Tesco, Britain’s biggest retail supermarket, and Disney are merging to launch and increase […]
