Do Consumers Eat More When Given Calorie Recommendations At Restaurants?
‘McDonald’s Study’ Demonstrates Nanny-Statism May Have Unintended Consequences
Almost four years ago, in a piece we wrote for National Review as the health care law was being debated, we revealed that mandatory calorie counts had been slipped into the bill. We asked, When Did Restaurant Regulation Creep into the Health-Care Bill? We pointed out that calorie counts mandated by the law were of […]
A Lesson From Tesco’s Fresh & Easy: Do Your Customers Define Things As You Think They Do?
One of the most useful exercises in business is to make sure one is always using the language of the intended customer base. In all we wrote about Tesco’s journey to America as Fresh & Easy, one continuing issue was that Tesco never quite synced with the American consumers’ understanding and expectations regarding key terms. […]
A Wal-Mart Example – What Is The Produce Industry To Do When Its Showroom Isn’t Executing Well?
Here at the Pundit, we spend lots of time discussing industry initiatives to increase produce consumption, and in Pundit sister publication, PRODUCE BUSINESS, we often run pieces such as “Ten Solutions To Selling More Grapes” that are focused on merchandising technique. Yet we visit a lot of retailers, and a confluence of factors — economic, […]
The Pundit And William Shatner Of Star Trek Fame Share A Moment With Cheese
Convinced that specialty cheese is where wine was, say, 30 years ago, we launched a magazine a few years ago titled, CHEESE CONNOISSEUR. It is an unusual hybrid magazine, read religiously by the specialty cheese trade, it is also a consumer lifestyle publication sold in every Barnes & Noble, all Hudson News airport and commuter […]
With Wal-Mart’s PTI Mandate And 100% Guarantee On Produce, One Wonders If Local Is Included Or Is There More Fluff Than Real Stuff; Unions Will Be Watching Carefully
We have written a great deal about Wal-Mart. Now, like a one-two punch, Wal-Mart has roiled the produce industry with two separate announcements. It declared that it would begin to enforce the requirements of the Produce Traceability Initiative (PTI) on vendors and that it would “recommit” to providing consumers with the freshest fruits and vegetables by rolling […]
Industry Convenes In California: Ground Zero Of Immigration Issues… Can A Guest Worker Program Prove Milton Friedman Wrong?
With the United Fresh Produce Association meeting in San Diego, and one of United’s focuses being immigration, the confluence of how immigration reform might impact California agriculture is timely. So we were happy to receive a missive on the subject from Rick Eastes of Rixx International Marketing. Rick has shared his insights with us before […]
Outpourings Of Love And Condolences Given To Jan Fleming’s Family
Part of the United Fresh culture is that the organization is in many ways a family. This is what comes from the mingling of over 100 years of multigenerational family businesses. So the loss of Jan Strube Fleming, longtime President and Chief Executive Officer at the Strube Celery& Vegetable Company in Chicago, leaves an absence […]
Aaw Shucks
Our piece, Dispatch From The Department Of Breaking One’s Arm By Patting Oneself On The Back — Part III: Prevor Brings Home Another Jesse H. Neal Award For Editorial Excellence, highlighted that the produce industry once again had a winner with the Jesse H. Neal awards. The piece brought many kind notes, including this most generous […]
Pundit’s Mailbag — Food Safety And The Trade Off Between Short Term Sales And Diminished Long Term Consumer Satisfaction
Our piece, When Is The Retailer Responsible for Food Safety?, brought many responses. Most were from retailers who were surprised and disappointed that a retailer would be dumping older fresh-cuts in a non-refrigerated bin to sell at a discount but didn’t want to be quoted attacking a fellow retailer. Others, though, were willing to speak […]
Obsession With Food Safety Distorts Public Policy Priorities
Trevor Suslow, PhD., Extension Research Specialist, Postharvest Quality and Safety at UC Davis, has been a frequent Pundit Contributor, with pieces such as these: Trevor Suslow Of UC Davis Speaks Out: The Truth About Consumer Reports, Bacteria And Packaged Leafy Greens Salmonella And Tomatoes Linked In New Mexico Consumer Guide To Cantaloupe Food Safety Pundit […]
