Nonfoods

QUINCY, Mass. -- Ahold USA here, together with Cleveland, Ohio-based business-planning company Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing (ECRM), will host the Ahold Supplier Diversity Trade Fair next month for women and minority-owned businesses in the consumer packaged goods industry.

CHICAGO -- Retailers may be doing a bang-up job with their private label programs, but if they're not marketing these products, they won't get the true value these programs can deliver, according to Todd Maute, v.p. of Daymon Worldwide, who spoke during the company's biannual event last week.

SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- H.E. Butt Grocery Co. and ConAgra Foods, Inc. are teaming up to help celebrate Mother's Day this weekend with free cooking camps.

AUSTIN, Texas -- A nationwide survey released yesterday by Whole Foods Market shows that meat is as popular as ever in the United States: Americans eat meat an average of 4.2 times a week, or 218 times a year. The survey additionally revealed, however, that along with flavor, safety and the humane treatment of animals were the top motives for selecting high-quality meat and poultry.

KIRKLAND, Wash. -- Larry's Markets this week revealed that the six-store chain, based here, is looking to sell the company and has filed for financial protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code while it engages in sales negotiations.

LEEDS, England -- Wal-Mart-owned ASDA, the United Kingdom's second-largest retailer, is introducing Heartfelt Plus Natural Cheese, the first cheddar cheese in that country to combine both low-fat and cholesterol-lowering benefits. The product will be in stores tomorrow. Hearfelt Plus contains Reducol, a cholesterol-lowering ingredient developed by Vancouver, B.C.-based Forbes Medi-Tech, Inc.

SEATTLE -- PCC Natural Markets (PCC) here will open its eighth store, in Redmond, Wash. on Wed. May 17. The 23,382-square-foot store will offer a wide selection of organic and natural products, while cutting-edge building enhancements that maximize energy efficiency and minimize waste are expected to qualify the store for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification -- only the third grocery store in the United States to earn this distinction -- and the first to attain the LEED Gold level.

CHICAGO -- With the official start of the 2006 hurricane season -- predicted to be very active -- just weeks away, Information Resources, Inc. (IRI) has released insights from an exhaustive analysis of CPG product demand before and after the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes, summarized in a four-part "Times & Trends" series.