Trading Partners

Member attendees of the 15th National Association for Retail Marketing Services (NARMS) Spring Conference & Exposition at Saddlebrook Resort in Wesley Chapel, Fla., scheduled for April 17 through April 20, 2010, will have the opportunity to participate in “A Conversation with Randall ‘Todd’ Jones,” president of Publix Super Markets, Inc.

The U.S. market for ice cream and related frozen desserts, including frozen yogurt and frozen novelties, grew 2 percent to $25 billion in 2009, in spite of a recession that adversely affected frozen dessert sales, according to “Ice Cream and Frozen Desserts in the U.S.: Markets and Opportunities in Retail and Foodservice, 6th Edition,” a report from New York-based market research publisher Packaged Facts.

Regional independent Niemann Foods, Inc. plans to replace its legacy pricing system with a new solution it will use to analyze item/profit movement and track earned promotional dollars from suppliers.

As shoppers increasingly demand better-for-you products from consumer packaged goods companies, major manufacturers, among them General Mills, Sara Lee and Campbell, have been stepping up to the plate by reformulating familiar foods to offer enhanced health benefits.

During a conference call on Tuesday to review results of its third-quarter financial results, Supervalu chief executive Craig Herkert revealed that two more executives from outside the company have joined the retailer, including former Home Depot and General Electric executive Chuck Golias as group VP of strategic planning, and Keith Wyche, who most recently led U.S. operations for Pitney Management Services, as president of Cub Foods.

Following almost two years of extensive research and stakeholder engagement, the Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC) has issued its Sustainable Packaging Indicators and Metrics Framework Version 1.0, which companies can use to gauge their progress toward the SPC Definition of Sustainable Packaging.

A new year offers a fresh start. This idea holds as true for the center store as any other part of the supermarket. To begin with, grocers can expect forward-looking CPG manufacturers to really step up to the plate in terms of making their businesses more effective, streamlining their supply chain practices and bringing their marketing strategies more decisively into the digital age.

Consumer packaged goods (CPG) manufacturers rely heavily on trade funds to proactively shape demand, influence retailers and collaborate on marketing programs that help drive consumer behavior. While the average shopper may not be aware of it, virtually every product placement, price reduction and end cap have been funded by manufacturers.