Green Biologics, an industrial and biotech maker, will now sell its ingredients under two names. This action comes as the company hopes to market its products as sustainable alternatives to those made using fossil fuel.

The company will now sell its ingredients name under BioPure, which the company feels “encapsulates both the purity and sustainability of its biobased chemistry.” The company has also trademarked GreenInside, allowing for co-branding with its business partners.

With this, the company is pursuing opportunities in cosmetics, food ingredients, plasticizers, monomers and specialty solvents. Additionally, it is currently focused on selling n-butanol and acetone.

Walmart’s American stores are looking at blockchain technology to tackle food safety challenges. The new equipment is being used to track food supply from origin to sale.

According to a Bloomberg article, the blockchain trial could change how Wal-Mart Stores, monitors food, allowing for improvements in food safety.

The blockchain is a distributed ledger where growers, distributors and retailers can record transactions securely. The database also allows for detailed analysis of inventories and interactions along the supply chain.

It is often a struggle to identify and remove food that’s been recalled, meaning that it can take days to identify the product, shipment and vendor. The blockchain analysis will allow Walmart to obtain crucial data from a single receipt, including suppliers, details the food’s origin, and who inspected it.

“With blockchain, you can do strategic removals, and let consumers and companies have confidence,” says Frank Yiannas, vice-president of food safety Walmart. “We believe that enhanced traceability is good for other aspects of the food systems. We hope you could capture other important attributes that would inform decisions around food flows, and even get more efficient at it.”

If the tests are successful, Walmart will expand the technology to other products and locations.

Despite competition in the industry, both Loblaw Companies Limited and Metro Inc. have reported strong numbers for their most recent fiscal quarters.

The chains each performed well in terms of revenue, same-store sales and diluted earnings per share, as well as on the key tonnage metric, which excludes price changes.

Loblaw’s revenue rose 1.4 per cent in its third quarter, with profits beating analysts’ estimates following internal cost cutting. Loblaw’s CEO Galen G. Weston notes that “customers responded well to lowered prices” and that the company “continue(s) to drive the top line.” Moreover, Weston notes that while competition was “intense” this quarter, the company still saw an improvement in store traffic and basket size.

Metro Inc. also had a successful quarter, with its 4Q sales up 3.4 per cent to $2928.9 million. The company’s net earnings were up 10.1 per cent to $145.0 million, and same-store sales were up 2.8 per cent.

Grocer ALDI has announced that as of January 1, it will be removing eight pesticides from all products in its U.S. stores. The supermarket, which has been known for its low prices, will now focus on organic food in a bid that is sure to give Whole Foods a run for its money.

The pesticides being removed are thiamethoxam, chlorpyrifos, clothianidin, cypermethrin, deltamethrin, fipronil, imidacloprid, and sulfoxaflor.

The grocer will also remove some artificial ingredients from its products and add more gluten-free items to its roster. It has also removed certified synthetic colours, partially hydrogenated oils, and MSG from its private-label products.

Additionally, ALDI has expanded its sales of fresh and organic meat and produce, including the “Never Any!” brand of meats that contain no added antibiotics, hormones, animal by-products or other additives. The chain will also grow the SimplyNature line, which is free of more than 125 artificial ingredients, and its gluten-free “liveGfree” brand. The company has also begun to offer more high-end products, including artisan cheeses, smoked salmon, quinoa, and coconut oil.

With this growth, ALDI is certainly competition for Whole Foods. With low prices, a wide selection, and a vast variety of locations across the U.S., ALDI may be set up for a takeover of the organic grocery sector.

There are currently 1,500 ALDI stores in the U.S and they plan to add 500 more by 2018. Currently, there are no ALDI stores in Canada, but industry experts suggest that this could be a future move for the Germany-based retailer.

According to Scottish media outlet The Drum, a survey has revealed that consumers in the United Kingdom are more inclined to shop online using their mobile devices than their U.S. counterparts.

The data, taken from almost 4,000 online businesses, also determined that mobile has replaced desktop for online shopping in the UK. There, it accounts for 58.7 per cent of purchases, while 54 per cent of U.S. shoppers still use desktop.

The Drum suggests that this points to mobile overtaking desktop, a trend that has long been forecasted.

This data is a wake-up call to retailers who don’t have strong mobile platforms. With consumers increasingly turning to mobile, companies must increase the strength of this medium in order to keep up.
As we head towards Black Friday and the holiday season, consider taking a look at your mobile e-commerce capabilities. You may find that this turns over into increased sales with more tech-savvy consumers.

Global Gardens Group, the makers of Veggemo, have partnered with iLevel Management Inc. to promote, distribute and increase sales of the award-winning product. iLevel will act as Global Gardens’s sales broker to natural health stores in Eastern Canada.

“We are excited to partner with iLevel Management,” says Wade Bayne, vice-president of Marketing at Gardens Group. “iLevel is a full service sales and marketing agency providing the focused representation we desire in the Natural Health channel. Their brand portfolio continues to expand and this is a testament to their ability to add value to the retail customers. iLevel provides a tremendous platform for the further progression of the Veggemo brand.”

The Veggemo product line is the first and only non-dairy beverage to originate from vegetables and is available in 3 flavours: Original, Unsweetened and Vanilla.

(https://mgtrailer.com)

Hain Celestial, the food and beverage giant, has filed suit in federal court against St. Louis’s Blueprint Coffee for trademark infringement.

Hain owns a company by the name of BluePrint Organic, a brand whose product line is comprised of cold-pressed juice and various cleanses. Hain notes that the name of Blueprint Coffee creates “a likelihood of confusion” with its BluePrint brand.

According to The Riverfront Times in St. Louis, Mike Marquard, a partner in Blueprint Coffee, notes that his company has filed for a U.S. trademark. At this time, they are in a period where potential rivals can object to the finalization of the trademark.

Marquard said he is not “caught off guard” by the suit, as the two companies have been negotiating to find a “peaceful resolution.”

Blueprint Coffee operates out of St Louis, and sells coffee products across the U.S. Founded in 2013, the company seeks to create mutually beneficial relationships between its producers, vendors, wholesale partners, and customers.

The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. has announced the official launch of its Cultivate Ventures platform. The new strategic platform is dedicated to investing behind lifestyle brands, smaller portfolio brands and concepts as well as incubator opportunities.

Beena Goldenberg, the current CEO of Hain Celestial Canada, has been appointed CEO of this new unit. In this position, she will oversee Cultivate’s mission to grow strategic investments and act as an incubator of small acquisitions.

Cultivate will utilize several teams, including marketing, sales and supply chain, to reinvigorate its brands. Taking the entrepreneurial mindset to heart, the teams are charged with treating each brand as a startup, working to quickly innovate concepts, product lines and categories.

The brands included in the Cultivate initiative include:

• BluePrint^®:A pioneer of cold-pressed juices, juice drinks and functional beverages.
• DeBoles^®: A full line of pastas including whole wheat featuringJerusalem artichoke flour and gluten-free varieties made with rice, corn and quinoa grains that are undeniably nutritious and delicious.
• GG^®Unique Fiber: Slow-baked crisp, hearty fiber-rich crackers made with wheat bran and whole grain rye flour.
• SunSpire^®:Confectionery line including snacking and baking products that are certified organic and made with Fair Trade certified cocoa ingredients.
• Tilda^®: Pure basmati rice and other grain products.
• Yves Veggie Cuisine®: Full line of meat-free products for the health conscious consumer including nutritious vegan and vegetarian options.

“Cultivate Ventures will renew our Company’s entrepreneurial spirit and reaffirm Hain Celestial’s position as the leader to create and inspire consumers with ‘A Healthier Way of Life,'” says Goldenberg. “Cultivate will rely on key learnings from Hain Celestial’s history of growing acquisitions by offering smaller brands access to our unique sourcing opportunities, manufacturing facilities and best practices in marketing and distribution in the natural and organic industry.”

Alain Bouchard, the founder and executive chairman of the board of Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., has been inducted into the Canadian Business Hall of Fame.

The retail icon, who started the convenience store chain in 1980, has more than 40 years of experience in the retail industry. He acted as president and CEO of Couche-Tard until September 2014, when he stepped down and took on a new role as founder and executive chairman.

Bouchard also was a member of the board of directors of Quebecor Inc. from 1997 to May 2009, and has been a board member of CGI Group Inc. since 2013.

The Canadian Business Hall of Fame annually recognizes and celebrates the lifetime accomplishments of Canadian business leaders. This year’s inductees include Thomas Jenkins, chair of OpenText Corporation; Clay Riddell, executive chairman, Paramount Resources Ltd.; and Nancy Southern, chair, president and CEO, ATCO Ltd. (astrajewellery.com)

This year’s Class of Companions will be inducted into the Canadian Business Hall of Fame on May 18 at the 2017 Dinner and Induction Ceremony at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

The Organic Agriculture Centre of Canada (OACC) is looking to collect feedback on priorities for Canadian organic research.

On behalf of the Research Needs Task Force of the Organic Value Chain Roundtable, the OACC is coordinating a cross-Canada assessment process. The information collected will be used to guide organic research priorities to direct organic funding, including the Organic Science Cluster program.

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