Just when we thought Jeff Bezos had taken the grocery and incidental shopping experience to a new level with his “Amazon Go” convenience and grocery stores in the U.S.A., it appears he is still on the move…and this time, globally. For those readers who are not familiar with the “grab and go “concept, these are …
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Taco Bell will open its first “Defy” restaurant in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota in 2022. The artist rendering of this fabulous new restaurant is shown below. It looks a little like a bank with drive through windows, doesn’t it? It’s very high tech and you won’t interact with anyone, even as you receive your food. The …
Continue reading “Taco Bell Going Digital & Wendy’s Using Ghost Kitchens”
Japan’s Sanatech Seed has begun selling “Sicilian Rouge High GABA” tomato to consumers. This is the first genome-edited tomato to be sold on the Japanese market. The product was developed using CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technology to edit the tomato’s genome and remove the autoinhibitory domain that prevents tomatoes from increasing their GABA content. The tomato …
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Some incredible things are happening these days. On September 18, 2021, the Crew Dragon16 spacecraft splashed safely down off the coast of Florida after 3 days in orbit. This was an amazing success with an all-civilian crew, preparing us for future private adventures in space and perhaps a new outpost on the moon. Back on …
Continue reading “Civilians in Space, Weed Killing Robots & a Cargo Ship Without Humans”
Grocery stores in the U.S. continue to suffer supply problems. By now the reasons are clear – shortages of labor and raw materials added to the continuing logistical problems make getting back to normal relatively impossible – especially for the smaller stores and chains. Add stockpiling by consumers (when they can find the items they …
Continue reading “Expect Food Shortages to Continue as Delta Variant Fears Increase”
Here in America, we enjoy relatively cheap food prices compared to other areas of the world. But good things don’t last forever…so don’t be surprised by the coming strategy changes and price increases when shopping at your local supermarket. Sure, I’m grateful that the shelves are stocked with a variety of the latest delicacies from …
Meet the Latest in Delicious High-Tech Fruit In 2015 Hiroki Koga came to California from Japan where he had worked as a consultant in the vertical farming industry. Although this industry initially failed in Japan due to expense, Koga knew this very “tech-savvy technology” could be successful if he found the right way to use …
Most Americans have become used to low inflation, but all that is changing now. Although the price increases are difficult for many, most are not surprised. Let’s look back over the last 12-14 months. In March 2020 most of the global economy slowed to a standstill. In the retail and hospitality industry many workers were …
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These days we take a lot of things for granted; especially how easy it is to shop online! For many of us, those days of shopping at the mall are almost a thing of the past as we look instead to purchase online from Amazon or Walmart, two of the world’s largest e-commerce stores. After …
What was once considered a fad is here to stay. Enter a Burger King franchise and enjoy the Impossible Burger or try a Beyond Meat patty at McDonald’s. Consumers can now find plant-based meat alternatives in their favorite grocery store or fast-food chain. Burger King just introduced the “Impossible Whopper” in Ontario, Canada on March …
Most people today are aware of the basic benefits of blueberries…they’re extremely high in nutrients, delicious to eat and low in calories. One cup of blueberries contains 24% of the RDI of Vitamin C, 36% of the RDI of Vitamin K, 25% of the RDI of Manganese as well as 4 grams of fiber. When …
There’s no doubt about it. Shipping both internationally and domestically continues to pose significant problems. It doesn’t matter if you are importing or exporting, orders are delayed and it’s not without good reason. Recently, at the port of Los Angeles, there were forty-two ships waiting to unload their cargo. And it’s not just the west …
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The first lab-grown meat was just recently approved for human consumption in Singapore. This is a big deal, especially exciting for the San Francisco based company “Eat Just” – the first ones to get it to market. You may also know lab-grown meat by its more official title, cultured meat or by other descriptive terms …
In the early 1900’s the residents of Philadelphia experienced a new kind of dining – the first Automat called “Horn and Hardart” (named after its founders) had just opened. It was a huge success. Food was chosen by the customer from a wall of cubbies that were coin-operated, and the quality of food couldn’t have …
Continue reading “The Return of the Automat, A Modern Solution to “Contactless” Eating”
Have You Met Marty? He’s made by Badger Technologies and only one of five robotic systems currently in place in grocery stores throughout the U.S. He checks inventory, alerts staff to spills on the floors and directs customers to various store locations. As of April 2020, 172 Giant Stores and 325 Stop and Shops have …
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Throughout the world, COVID-19 has changed the way people dine both inside the home and out. Public attitude towards restaurants and choice of eating places has changed. Restaurant owners have had to become more innovative and adapt to these differences in order to keep their businesses open and hopefully, profitable. Some are ready and anxious …
COVID-19 on the way out – Is everything back to normal? In Wuhan, things changed suddenly with the onset of COVID-19 about eight months ago. Life in China came to a standstill and the government forced the closure of just about every shop and type of entertainment; travel in and out as well as within …
USA Online grocery sales in the U.S. grew 22% in 2019 (Coresight Research U.S. Online Grocery Survey 2020) and COVID-19 lockdowns have propelled e-commerce food shopping to an even higher level. In April 2020, e-commerce sales overall jumped 49% compared to early March before lockdowns went into effect, according to new data from Adobe’s Digital …
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Each year the Specialty Food Association publishes a detailed industry report – it is a joint research project prepared by Mintel and SPINS/IRI. The report covers the three most recent calendar years of sales data and has figures for 63 specialty food categories. In addition, it includes data and insights from a 23-question customer survey …
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A shopper commented, “Each time I go to the store it seems the grocery bill is higher. Even frozen food that is normally a cheaper option than fresh seems to cost more. Hopefully prices will come back down once things get back to normal.” Unfortunately, prices are not likely to come down anytime soon. The …
Continue reading “Disrupted Supply Chains Bring Rising Food Prices”