Grocery Gazette’s Post

Private label food sales grew 8.3% during the first half of 2023. Unit share, that's total units sold in a store (Private Label Penetration), grew to a record 22.5%.. When I first took on the prepared meals desk at Target back in 2016, Archer Farms (old Private Label) was a really small portion of this assortment. Target was dominated by Jack Daniels, Cooking Light, and a few other brands. 2018 came, we wanted to stand behind the new Private Label brand we were creating across Target's food division. We tried 100's of products and specs to find the right vendor and the right items to roll out what was to become the signature private label program in the Deli. Fast forward 6 years later and Good & Gather has become the dominant brand. And thankfully, it's not just because leadership wanted to chase a private label penetration number. It's the dominant brand because the product is great and the price point is even better. I love everything about grocery in 2024. Brands can grow like crazy. Private Label can grow like crazy. As long as you're absolutely in tune with what your customer wants - you can make them raving fans come back for more and more.

J.M. Smucker has completed the sale of its fermented brands— including pickled beets, horseradish and onions—to TreeHouse Foods, a private brands manufacturer for approximately $20M cash. While the sale itself is not expected to materially impact Smucker’s share price, the move is in line with the company’s broader strategy to deepen market penetration of core brands, like Folgers, Jif, and Smucker’s Uncrustables. This also comes after the $5.6B acquisition of Hostess Brands in November of last year. https://lnkd.in/e-xgQQSE

Austin is cranking out good food and drinks, with some brands reaching national and international status like Waterloo, Nutrabolt and Siete. This article dives into how Miguel Garza's team at Siete Family Foods got on Whole Foods' radar — it all started with an email. #austin #cpg #food #wholefoods #siete #business

Mr Kipling maker Premier Foods (LSE:PFD) reported slower sales growth for the past quarter, but its Sweet Treats division outperformed.  The maker of Oxo cubes, Ambrosia creamed rice and Angel Delight pudding recorded growth of 14% through what was its third quarter, with grocery sales up 11.9% and sweetmeats up 21.3%. This compared to group revenues up 19.2% in the half-year to end-September, where grocery grew 24% and Sweet Treats 5.4%.    Branded Sweet Treats returned to growth in the third quarter, Premier said, with sales up 17.1% on the back of significantly higher sales of Cadbury cake compared to last year, in large part from growth of Cadbury Mini Rolls and cake bars and a softer comparative due to unscheduled maintenance of a plant line last year. More at #Proactive #ProactiveInvestors #LSE #PFD #mrkipling #premierfood #oxocubes #ambrosia #angeldelight http://ow.ly/Lq2Z105aVj5

Christine Blank’s latest article on C-Store Dive highlights important trends for #ConvenienceStores in 2024. Energy drinks are set to perform strongly, while careful stocking decisions in alcohol and candy are crucial. Taiga's Front Office Platform utilizes #ArtificialIntelligence, enabling c-store retailers to anticipate and respond to these trends in real time. With Taiga’s real-time analytics, you can make informed decisions to optimize inventory and boost sales, ensuring your store stays ahead in a competitive market.

Austin is cranking out good food and drinks, with some brands reaching national and international status like Waterloo, Nutrabolt and Siete. This article dives into how Miguel Garza's team at Siete got on Whole Foods' radar — it all started with an email. #austin #cpg #food #wholefoods #siete #business

Crystal Light is the latest Kraft Heinz brand that is undergoing its first major innovation in years as the food and beverage giant looks to generate $2 billion in incremental net sales by 2027. 🚀 Check out this article to understand how the CPG giant is prioritizing product innovation to upscale its customer base.📈 #Innovation #ConsumerStrategy #CPG

Major recall of #privatelabel #dairyproducts made by Schreiber Foods for ALDI USA. This is unfortunate, but it brings to mind an unspoken truth (that I will speak 😂). National brands have far more to lose when it comes to product safety and quality than do private brands. Brands have value because they are trusted, and once trust is broken, it can be hard to win back. The bigger the brand, the greater the stakes, as a misstep can cost millions. Private label products are made by one company for another company, without a national brand name on them. By definition, these are smaller brands with less to lose. Further, private brands are shopped around to food manufacturers with excess capacity, and cost is a significant consideration in selecting the manufacturer. Herein lies the problem. Cheap does not usually translate to going the extra mile on anything, but rather meeting a specification. We are all feeling the pinch of #inflation. That private label product might be cheaper, but how much extra would you pay for peace of mind? This is one of the big reasons I am not a fan of Aldi and Trader Joe’s in the first place. National brands are hard to even find there. Caveat emptor.

Fearing a loss of shelf space, many players high atop the corporate food chain purchased better-for-you brands. JM Smucker's decision to sell off Sahale continues a long-standing trend of offshoot brands that were aquisitions now being sold off. As the major corporate stakeholders look to focus more on core & legacy SKUs, I think we're going to see a continued selloff or complete scuttle of many better-for-you products.

What does distribution look like in Foodservice? Your primary distributor focus depends on whether your product is designed for back of house use (ingredients for kitchens) or for front of house use (pre-packaged items by the register; chips, protein bar, beverage, etc.) The Foodservice distribution landscape is diverse, and there are many players; many operators use multiple. For back of house, the primary distributors include Sysco, US Foods, PFG and GFS. There are also major regional players like Shamrock, Ben E. Keith, Baldor to name a few. For pre-packaged goods, the primary distributors include Vistar, Coremark, McLane, UNFI. Some distributor facts: The ‘by the book minimum’ to stock a product is moving 5 cases per week per SKU through that specific warehouse -Dot Foods is the largest redistributor and delivers to all distributors multiple times a week -Each major broadliners has a ‘national account team’ that handles their largest customers. Get in contact with them 🙂 -Most distributors have 1 to 2 trade shows a year. These are a great way to meet their customers AND many of the distributor sales rep in one day! Below is an image of some of our major distributor partners Rooted Food Sales. What are your favorite distributors to work with?