Deli / Prepared Foods

Women ages 20 to 30 represent a $54 billion marketing opportunity for packaged goods companies, but their needs and values are vastly different from the generation before them, a new report from Information Resources, Inc. (IRI) has found.

The Supermarket Guru peers deep into his crystal ball to see what trends this coming year will bring for the food industry.

With the help of its retail grocery partners, Cargill’s “More to Share” program will help local charity groups address the strain of having enough food to meet the highest level of food support demand since the Great Depression.

Whole Foods Market is looking to help consumers easily build up resistance to illness by promoting a variety of products that naturally bolster the immune system.

A recent survey from the Private Label Manufacturers Association (PLMA) of supermarket prices on 25 commonly purchased items found that shoppers could save over 35 percent by buying the store brand rather than the national brand.

Pomegranates are big business, which means that the edible seeds — more often called arils — of the currently ubiquitous fruit are poised for a sales spike of their own.

Weis Markets’ month-long “Fight Hunger” food drive generated $210,000 in customer food and monetary donations to local food banks and pantries throughout its five-state marketing area, which will be complemented by $200,000 in corporate donations to eight regional food banks.

Store brands have built momentum during the recession. Will consumers stick with private label frozen when better days arrive? Or will they return to the national brands they used previously?