Nonfoods

Deadline Looms for Supermarket Contracts in Baltimore-Washington Area
BALTIMORE -- Giant and Safeway supermarkets in the Baltimore-Washington area, as well as the union representing 29,000 of their employees, are facing a Tuesday deadline for a new contract -- and the possibility of a strike that could affect hundreds of local supermarkets and prompt thousands of workers to join picket lines, the Baltimore Sun reports.
FDA Finds Acrylamide in More Foods
WASHINGTON - Acrylamide, a cancer-causing substance that has been found in fried potatoes, is also found in such foods as olives, prune juice, and teething biscuits, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has said. Still, scientists stress that the public health significance of acrylamide remains unknown.

FMI Applauds House Vote to Reauthorize WIC

WASHINGTON - The Food Marketing Institute today applauded Wednesday's vote by the U.S. House of Representatives to reauthorize the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program for the next four years.
Eatzi's To Open Second Metro Atlanta Unit

ATLANTA - Eatzi's will open its second metro Atlanta gourmet grocery and restaurant next year in Park Place across from Perimeter Mall, reports The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Gelson's Clerks in Southern California to Vote on Contract Again

ENCINO, Calif. - Unionized clerks at Gelson's Markets will vote this week on a new labor contract after rejecting it March 12, according to a report in The Orange County Register.
Aldi Launches Gourmet Food Line

Aldi has introduced a new line of gourmet foods called Grandessa that features an assortment of upscale offerings, according to a report in the Moberly Monitor-Index in central Missouri.
Aurora Foods Emerges from Chapter 11 and Completes Merger with Pinnacle Foods

ST. LOUIS - Aurora Foods Inc. on Friday announced that it has emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and has completed its previously announced merger with Pinnacle Foods Holding Corporation. The reorganized company has been renamed Pinnacle Foods Group Inc. and is headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J.
Fresh Brands to Convert Four Stores to Piggly Wiggly Brand

SHEBOYGAN, Wis.- Fresh Brands, Inc. today announced an agreement for the conversion of four stores in western Wisconsin operated by David Hegenbarth to the Piggly Wiggly franchise.
Grocery Store Sales Up 5.6 Percent in February

WASHINGTON - U.S. grocery stores recorded $36.4 billion in sales during February -- a 5.6 percent jump from a year earlier and the largest such gain since April 2003, according to data from the Department of Commerce.
Tom Thumb Ceases Operations

ST. PAUL - Hastings, Minn.-based convenience store operator Tom Thumb Food Markets Inc. confirmed that it has ceased operations, closing the last of more than 100 stores in Minnesota under its banner, according to The Associated Press.

Deadline Looms for Supermarket Contracts in Baltimore-Washington Area

FDA Finds Acrylamide in More Foods

FMI Applauds House Vote to Reauthorize WIC

Eatzi's To Open Second Metro Atlanta Unit

Gelson's Clerks in Southern California to Vote on Contract Again

Aldi Launches Gourmet Food Line

Aurora Foods Emerges from Chapter 11 and Completes Merger with Pinnacle Foods

Fresh Brands to Convert Four Stores to Piggly Wiggly Brand

Grocery Store Sales Up 5.6 Percent in February

Tom Thumb Ceases Operations