Food & Beverage

Supermarkets Are Now Both Brick-and-Mortar and Virtual

January 22, 2013

In one of the biggest flops of the dot-com era, Webvan went bust less than two years after its $375m initial public offering in 1999. That's because it built a warehouse and distribution system for products that are already available within three miles of most consumers, says Rich Tarrant, CEO of MyWebGrocer.

Topco Saves Big With Transportation Solution

January 22, 2013

Lorne J. Brown, Director of Logistics, Topco Associates

How Unilever Derives Value From Its Supply Chain

January 21, 2013

SupplyChainBrain

Pier Luigi Sigismondi, chief supply chain officer of Unilever, enumerates the ways in which the company's supply chain adds value to the business. He also talks about issues of sustainability and supply-chain segmentation.

Merging the Two Albertsons Chains Won't Be as Easy as Splitting Them Up in the First Place

January 21, 2013

Storefront Backtalk

Putting Albertsons back together again won't be as easy as it looks. The grocery chain was split in 2006 between Supervalu and private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management, with both chains using the same logo in different geographic regions. But on January 10, the two owners decided to reunite what will now be a 650-store chain in a complicated deal that leaves only one thing very clear: These money managers aren't thinking about IT when it comes to reassembling the chain.

Organic Agriculture Expands Worldwide, Especially in Developing Countries, Says Report

January 18, 2013

Worldwatch Institute

Despite a slight decline between 2009 and 2010, since 1999 the global land area farmed organically has expanded more than threefold to 37 million hectares, according to new research conducted by the Worldwatch Institute for its Vital Signs Online service.

NetSuite Acquires Retail Anywhere, Multi-Channel Services Provider

January 17, 2013

NetSuite Inc.

NetSuite Inc. has acquired Retail Anywhere, a provider of multichannel retail-management services.

QAD Adds Demand-Planning Capabilities to Enterprise Apps Suite

January 16, 2013

QAD Inc.

QAD Inc. has developed new demand-planning capabilities as an add-on to it its QAD Enterprise Applications suite.

Shoppers Taking to Mobile Commerce More, But Not for Groceries at This Point, Survey Finds

January 16, 2013

Symphony EYC

Symphony EYC, a player in retail and distribution improvement software formerly known as Aldata, announced that its second U.S. holiday shopping survey has determined that in the United States shoppers want to use their mobile phones to make shopping easier, more personalized, and to have more control over inventory, but that purchasing groceries with a mobile is still in its infancy.

Restaurants to Back Off on Menu Price Hikes, Increase Group Purchasing

January 15, 2013

SpenDifference

Chain restaurants, battered by value-hungry customers and rising commodity prices, are showing little appetite for significant menu price increases, according to a new survey of industry executives conducted by SpenDifference, a supply chain co-op that helps restaurants save money.

U.S. Manufacturing Is on the Way Back

January 15, 2013

Los Angeles Times

The sharp slowdown in U.S. manufacturing that began last spring appears to be over, setting the stage for moderate expansion in the factory sector in coming months - with a little boost from companies bringing overseas production back to America.

Food & Beverage

The latest supply-chain news, analysis, trends and tools for executives in the food and beverage industries. Learn how food and beverage companies and their suppliers around the world are managing the flow of products across all channels of the enterprise. Experts sound off on forecasting and demand planning, supply-chain visibility, logistics outsourcing, inventory optimization, transportation management, warehouse management, supply-chain security, corporate social responsibility and more.