Refresh

Even if you’re lucky enough and can grill outdoors all year, the month of May is the kick-off for the rest of us. For the registered dietitian, especially one practicing in a supermarket setting, this is the time of year when we look around for ways to make outdoor cooking more nutritious. We’ll start playing up locally grown produce and some great seasonal foods. Healthy and good eating abounds!

This is also a time when our seafood and produce specialists are willing to team up and host taste tests, recipe demos and special displays that bring healthy eating to the top of the menu. So where do we start?

• Think safe grilling. Customers might be a little rusty from winter, so remind them of the basics. Equip them with meat thermometers. Explain the need to keep fat from dripping onto hot coals. Discuss the merits of grilling and keeping food from burning. There’s a lot of cross merchandising opportunities to promote safety while selling them the food they’ll be cooking.

• Look to produce for some great grilling foods. Right now, there’s fresh asparagus, Vidalia or other sweet onions, and some old favorites like tomatoes, zucchini, and green and red bell peppers. Emphasize organic and locally grown whenever possible. MORE…

Supermarkets have shown they’re keen on using renewable materials to make and remake their stores. That’s a great step, but for many companies this is still a new frontier, and so it doesn’t hurt to look abroad for inspiration.

In this case, we’re talking way abroad — out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, somewhere near the Line Islands that sit halfway between California and Australia. That’s where Plastiki, a boat made from 12,500 recycled plastic bottles, is currently plying the waves.

If it sounds like the eco version of the movie “Up”, well, that’s because it is. Inspired by Kon-Tiki, the primitive boat that carried Thor Heyerdahl across the Pacific Ocean in 1947, Plastiki is on one of the longest eco missions in history. It set out from San Francisco in March, with hopes of reaching Sydney Harbor by July. That timeline may be a stretch, as the crew conceded in an interview with The New York Times (revelation: it’s a slow boat), but that doesn’t tarnish the overall goal of raising awareness about recycling, the need for sustainable energy, and all the stuff we throw away — much of which, in fact, can be found in the Eastern Garbage Patch, a watery landfill twice the size of Texas that Plastiki navigated through.

Determined to go against the spirit of waste that created “the gyre”, Plastiki is a marvel of renewable engineering. MORE…

Despite reassurances from manufacturers, consumers have become increasingly distrustful of chemicals in the products they buy. They’re reading labels, buying organic and all-natural foods, and campaigning against complex ingredients like bisphenol-A and high fructose corn syrup.

This isn’t a revelation, of course, but it’s an appropriate lead-in to today’s news: A report released today by the highly influential President’s Cancer Panel that supports the growing concern about these chemicals, arguing that their role in causing many types of cancer is grossly underestimated.

In fact, if I’m reading everything right, I’d call it a landmark medical endorsement of the organic movement.

In the 240-page report, the panel — which advises the National Cancer Program and, as its name implies, reports directly to the president — lays out a case for tightening regulation and providing education on the risks of chemicals like BPA. There are nearly 80,000 chemicals currently on the market, the report asserts, and only a small percentage have been adequately studied or regulated. Furthermore, the regulatory mindset that says a chemical is safe unless there’s clear evidence to the contrary, is a dangerous one, since modern science doesn’t account for all the ways in which these elements work.

“The increasing number of known or suspected carcinogens compels us to action, even though we may currently lack irrefutable proof of harm,” said LaSalle D. Leffall, Jr., M.D., chair of the panel, in a statement.

It’s estimated that 41% of all Americans will eventually be diagnosed with cancer, and that 21% will die from it. MORE…

Each year we ask ourselves, “How much further can this gluten-free trend expand?” And each year the answer from retailers is “Plenty”.

Over the past couple years, supermarkets have increased their selection of gluten-free products, created dedicated sections in stores, and used their marketing and advertising platforms to call out items. We thought this was as far as it would go for a category that is overwhelmingly supported by customers without medically defined gluten intolerance.

But we’re wrong, of course. Companies are marching ahead with creative new ways to boast a commitment to the gluten-free lifestyle. PCC Natural Markets in Seattle just announced that it’s the first retailer to be endorsed by the Gluten Intolerance Group of North America. PCC carries more than 2,000 gluten-free products, offers special cooking classes and store tours, and works closely with its suppliers to make sure they’re on point with their claims. The co-op worked with GIG for 18 months to strengthen its standards even further.

Fresh & Easy and Kroger are two other retailers who are expanding their selection. Sunflower Farmers Market, meanwhile, which is growing in leaps and bounds out west, just upped its commitment for May, which is celiac awareness month. The Boulder, Colorado-based supermarket chain is celebrating with a dedicated new website instructing consumers on how to go gluten-free. Under it’s “Should You Go Gluten-Free?” section, one of the company’s registered dietitians writes all about celiac disease.

This despite the fact that 93% of consumers who buy gluten-free don’t have celiac. So come to think of it — why do consumers buy gluten-free? Retailers should be asking themselves this question. MORE…

Health-minded patrons are giving restaurants and other dining venues a second helping as the foodservice industry emerges from a recession that caused underperforming operators to close or, at the very least, seriously retool their menus.

A snapshot of the current situation comes from market research publisher Packaged Facts. The report, U.S. Foodservice Landscape 2010: Restaurant Industry and Consumer Trends, Momentum and Migration, examines recent and future consumer habits and attitudes surrounding dining out.

Healthy eaters were among the top three groups found to spend more than average per visit and bring more friends with them. While that’s good, the overall data suggests that even restaurant fans won’t be enough to get things going in earnest until next year. Researchers predict that sales at eating and drinking establishments will fall 2% in 2010, before increasing by 2% in 2011.

Looking deeper, full-service restaurants will have further to climb back, falling 4% this year before increasing 1% in 2011. Limited-service restaurant sales are expected to fall 1% in 2010 and then rise by 2% in 2011, Packaged Facts stated.

Where are sales going? Supermarket deli and meals, it would seem. The study found that sales in the supermarket channel during this period — already doing well — will likely continue to increase as consumers (including healthy eaters) keep making food-at-home purchases. MORE…

To borrow from the Shakespeare’s Juliet: “What’s in a name? That which we call milk by any other name would taste as great…”

Alas, if you’re the National Milk Producers Federation, you’d have quite a bone to pick with Juliet. It’s been the group’s long-standing position that terms like “milk” should refer exclusively to dairy products from animals — not soybeans, almonds or rice.

“The FDA has allowed the meaning of ‘milk’ to be watered down to the point where many products that use the term have never seen the inside of a barn,” said Jerry Kozak, President and CEO of NMPF, in a release announcing a new petition drive to get the Food and Drug Administration to correct the “misappropriation of dairy terminology on imitation milk products.”

The organization, which last appealed to federal regulators in 2000 (without success), is reviving its campaign because the alternative dairy industry has grown beyond milk, and is now using terms like yogurt, ice cream and cheese to describe their non-dairy products.

“You don’t got milk if it comes from a hemp plant, you can’t say cheese if it’s made from rice, and faux yogurt can’t be made from soy and still be called yogurt,” says Kozak. In its petition, the NMPF notes that some manufacturers have adopted wording such as “cheeze” in order to circumvent the controversy.

But the NMPF has noticed and is asking dairy fans to help prod the FDA into action. The group has set up a special Facebook page that allows people to comment and post photos of non-dairy products such as rice milk, coconut milk ice cream and soy cheese. MORE…

Back in 2008, Greenpeace came out with its first sustainable seafood scorecard for mainstream supermarkets. Twenty companies were rated. All of them failed.

That seemed like a pretty harsh judgment at the time, but it definitely sent a message. In the proceeding two years, retailers have retooled their sourcing guidelines to rule out certain red-listed species, and to offer more options that are harvested with the health of underwater dwellers and their habitats in mind.

Greenpeace’s latest scorecard, released today, reflects these changes. Out of the same twenty that were rated, ten earned a passing score. They include Trader Joe’s, which recently ended its holdout by agreeing to source all of its seafood sustainably by 2012. Others include Wal-Mart, Safeway, Whole Foods (of course), Wegmans (of course), and taking the top spot, Target.

Target, if you’ll recall, announced earlier this year that it would stop sourcing farmed salmon, opting instead for the wild-caught Alaskan variety. That move was a first for a major supermarket retailer, and it definitely put them in Greenpeace’s good graces.

Just about every supermarket on the list has made improvements over the past two years. That shows just how important ethical sourcing is to consumers — and to retailers’ bottom lines as well, since you’re not going to turn much profit if a popular species is extinct.

Here’s hoping retailers continue to improve their sourcing. Hopefully we’ll see a couple “good” scores on next year’s report card.

Maybe it’s the aura left over from Earth Day, or perhaps just coincidence, but a few retailers this week are unveiling some interesting health/wellness and sustainability plans.

The three that are in the news are all leaders in whole health and green retailing: Hannaford (creator of the country’s first nutrition rating system, Guiding Stars), Publix (home of the GreenWise private label and store banner) and Harris Teeter (a pioneer in consumer health outreach).

At Delhaize-owned Hannaford, Scarborough, Me., nearly 300 private label products in the retailer’s own-brand portfolio have been reformulated to eliminate trans fats. The Food and Drug Administration has required all labels to include trans fat amounts since 2006, so updating the products mean “customers can save money while still making healthy choices,” Julie Greene, Hannaford’s director of healthy living, told the Associated Press.

We also found an interesting pilot of some kind on YouTube, promoting what could be a new online outlet for the Guiding Stars franchise. The 5-minute Expert Chef Cooking Show includes recipes for Moroccan Pork Loin (2 stars) and Athenian Couscous Salad (1 star). The program was posted by Guidingstarstv, which already has a number of “how-to” videos posted, though they focus more on the Guiding Stars program itself. MORE…

It can be frustrating knowing that your future is in another’s hands. This is precisely what happens during the cold call. You pick up the phone, dial the number and hope that it is answered. You have two scenarios swimming through your head. Scenario #1: voice mail. Scenario #2: the “live” pitch.

In Scenario #1, you are relieved that you might have a life expectancy of more than 10 seconds with this account, but it means leaving an enticing enough message to get the buyer to call you back, or staging a repeat performance that entices the buyer to pick up your call the second or third time around.

But the real kicker comes during Scenario #2 when you have the full attention of the buyer (okay, let’s not kid ourselves here — we all know that when we’re on the phone we all multi-task with email and other outside interferences) and you must deliver a convincing, yet eloquent argument as to why your product is a Must Have for this certain retailer.

Delivering this important pitch is much like writing an essay or even a term paper. In this 10-second timeframe you will be introducing the product, giving arguments as to why it is the next best thing since sliced bread and effectively concluding with the hope of landing an appointment or even just a sample/pricing exercise.

When I sat on the other side of the desk, I never thought that I had the power to make or break this person’s dreams when I was listening to cold call after cold call. Now, I run through Scenario #1 and Scenario #2 long before I pick up the phone to try to land the full attention of the elusive buyer.

Sometimes it pays to be prepared, and sometimes it doesn’t. But one thing I know is that I’m at my best when I’m trying to grab the buyer’s attention — and to ultimately make them the retail heroes.

The latest organic sales figures are in and, no surprise, the industry slowed to single-digit growth during 2009. This after several years of through-the-roof gains in the teens and twenties. Organic, meet Earth. Earth, organic.

According to the Organic Trade Association, product sales in 2009 climbed 5.3% to reach $26.6 billion. That’s still a tiny percentage of the overall food industry, though embedded in the report are a few eye-catchers. Organic fruit and vegetable sales, for instance, grew by 11.4%, and now comprise 11.4% of all fruit and vegetable sales in the U.S., and 38% of the total organic food market. That’s pretty impressive, and it just goes to show how important fresh, perishable foods are to people who believe in the organic standard.

Unfortunately, that standard is under major scrutiny right now, and some consumers are losing confidence. An audit last month by the Office of the Inspector General found problems with import oversight, showing that reviews had not been conducted for some of the certifying agents abroad. This is a big deal since, to meet organic demand, companies have had to look to countries like China, Australia and Argentina for supplies. A recent poll by the OTA found that 41% of producers say “undependable supplies of organic raw materials limit their ability to generate sales.” MORE…