Produce / Floral

SALISBURY, N.C. -- Food Lion asked, and Bloom shoppers have answered: We want more fresh foods.

NORTH VANCOUVER, B.C. -- Vitasti, Inc., based here, a food company specializing in the health-and-wellness sector, has developed a new line of vitamin-rich granola with an antioxidant supplement and a hip new featured ingredient -- the acai berry. Harvested in the Brazilian rainforest and touted by the media as "nature's perfect food," the acai (pronounced "AH-sci-EE") has been used for thousands of years by Brazil's indigenous peoples, who attribute various healing and nutritional properties to the fruit.

Indianapolis -- Marsh Supermarkets is in the final stages of preparing to open its first location in Illinois on Aug. 22 with a new 66,000-square-foot Lifestyle format store in Naperville, a community that was recently ranked third on Money Magazine's list of the top, "100 Best Places to Live" for 2005.

While snacks, beer, and soft drinks score biggest for Super Bowl, retailers can gain yardage with many nontraditional products, too.

Clamping down on retail losses should be everybody's business.

AUSTIN, Texas -- Leading natural and organic foods retailer Whole Foods Market opened its inaugural Baton Rouge store yesterday, its third in the state of Louisiana. The nearly 50,000-square-foot location is at 7529 Corporate Blvd. at Jefferson Highway.

VANCOUVER, B.C. -- For the second straight year, the cost of unsaleable products has declined for CPG manufacturers, according to the 2005 Unsaleables Benchmark Report, which was released yesterday at the Joint Unsaleables Management Conference here, which is produced by GMA in conjunction with FMI, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, and the Consumer Healthcare Products Association.

DAYVILLE, Conn. -- Albert's Organics, Inc., a subsidiary of natural foods and supplements distributor United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI) has completed the acquisition of Roots & Fruits Cooperative, a Minnesota-based organic wholesale distributor of fresh produce and other perishables.