Attitudes: Retailers

AUSTIN, Texas -- In a bid to improve the lives of farm animals, Whole Foods Market said yesterday it will donate five percent of its total global sales on Jan. 24 to the Animal Compassion Foundation, an independent non-profit organization created by Whole Foods last year.

WASHINGTON and NEW YORK -- Two recent consumer surveys offer different takes on what Americans think of Wal-Mart and whether negative publicity has scarred its chances for future success.

WASHINGTON -- Rochester, N.Y.-based Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. finished first in customer service among food and drug retailers in a new survey of nearly 9,000 consumers.

WALTHAM, Mass. -- A study released on Friday by Global Insight, an economic analysis firm based here, suggests that some claims from Wal-Mart's growing number of critics may be unfounded. The study, which analyzes the national and regional impact of the nation's largest retailer on the U.S. economy, was presented at a Wal-Mart-sponsored conference in Washington, D.C., along with papers written on this same topic from other sources.

NEW YORK ¿- Safety is one of the most basic factors driving consumer food-purchasing behaviors, and consumer awareness of food safety issues is high, according to a new report jointly released by Packaged Facts and Wharf Research.

NEW YORK -- Private Label products are steadily increasing their share of the international marketplace, according to a new report on the market from ACNielsen, a VNU business and sister company of Progressive Grocer. The report, "The Power of Private Label 2005 Executive News Report, " private label items made up 17 percent of total value sales for the 12 months ending the first quarter of 2005, up from the 15 percent level ACNielsen reported in 2003.

NEW YORK -- Younger and lower-income consumers are behind the growth in sales of kosher foods, according to a report on the American kosher market newly released by global research firm Mintel Organization International. The report, based on a survey, indicated that the segment's growth is also tied to the adoption of kosher as an alternative by occasional buyers who are not strictly keeping kosher, as well as non-Jews.

WASHINGTON -- A coalition of major fair trade organizations will hold a Fair Trade Conference Sept. 30 to Oct. 2 at the Holiday Inn ChicagoMart Plaza, to publicize the growing Fair Trade movement in North America.