Mintel analysts note that the sales of dog and cat treats are growing at a faster rate than pet food.

“We are definitely seeing interest in pet treats that have natural, organic or unique flavors that align more with human food as pet owners are willing to spend on the best for their pet companions,” says John Owen, Mintel’s senior food and drink analyst.

According to the report, cat treats in particular have a lot of growth potential. This is because cat treat dispensers, which combine treats with play, encourage more cat owners to offer treats to their cats on a regular basis.

To benefit from this trend, the Mintel analysts suggest that retailers position their products near checkout aisles to promote impulse purchases. Additionally, they recommend playing up the training benefits of certain treats.

“Treats used to reinforce good behavior can make pet owners feel good about spoiling their pets in ways that support training efforts,” says the report.

If you’ve never stocked pet products before, consider doing so now. With interest on the rise, your sales—and your clients—are sure to benefit from your new selection.

Xylitol Canada Inc. has entered into a shares for debt agreement with Andrew and Julie Reid. As per the agreement, Mr. and Mrs. Reid will receive an aggregate of 10,361,226 common shares of the company at a deemed issuance price of $0.075 per share to retire debt in the aggregate principal amount of $777,092.

The shares are to be issued over two closings. The first will include the issuance of 5,180,613 debt shares in respect of debt in the principal amount of $388,546. At this time, Mr. and Mrs. Reid will transfer 3,500,000 common shares of Xylitol to an arm’s length third party for value. The second closing will be comprised of 5,180,613 debt shares in respect of debt in the principal amount of $388,546. Concurrent with this, Mr. and Mrs. Reid will transfer 1,500,000 common shares of Xylitol to an arm’s length third party for value, provided that immediately following the second closing, Mr. and Mrs. Reid will hold an aggregate number of shares that is less than 20 per cent of all issued and outstanding common shares of Xylitol.

Should the second closing not occur on or before November 15, 2016, the Company will call a shareholder’s meeting to approve the issuance of 5,180,613 common shares to Andrew and Julie Reid and the creation of a new “Control Person” as is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV).

About Xylitol Canada Inc.

Xylitol Canada markets xylitol and xylitol based-products and is focused on becoming a major low-cost manufacturer of xylitol and related products, serving the global market from operations in North America. Xylitol Canada’s business strategy is to leverage novel proprietary technology and processes to become North America’s premier manufacturer of low cost, high quality xylitol from readily available environmentally-sustainable biomass. Xylitol is a natural sweetener which is marketed globally including Canada and the United States and is accepted by the American Food and Drug Administration, the World Health Organization and the American Dental Association. Xylitol contains 75 per cent less carbohydrates and 40 per cent less calories than sugar, has a myriad of oral health benefits including the prevention of tooth decay and is safe for diabetics. To date, wider spread use of xylitol has been limited by the lack of a reliable, low cost, high quality supplier.

With Health Canada still vying to regulate Natural Health Products (NHPs) in the same manner as drugs, it is important for all members of the industry to voice their concerns about this issue.

“This is a scary time for the industry,” says Patrick Toledano, president of Herbasante. “Health Canada is looking to scrap what we previously worked hard to build. From a financial standpoint, this represents 10 years of our paying to adhere to the current standards possibly going down the drain.”

For Toledano and other members of the industry, this makes it extremely important to raise awareness about—and work against—these regulations.

“Currently, we are working to get the word out to our clients and consumers about this issue,” adds Toledano. “They are signing petitions and voicing their concerns about this potentially very serious change.”

To learn more about how to combat these regulations, visit the CHFA’s website here.

Walmart is pulling back the reins on opening new stores, instead focusing their efforts and money into their e-commerce sector and remodeling already established locations.

Last month, the retailer closed a deal for a more than $3 billion buyout of the fastest growing online retailer Jet.com, which means they’re serious about putting in the investment to grow online presence. Last year, this expansion totaled USD $13.7 billion, a small portion of their annual profit.

Walmart has said that moving forward, they will be investing more of their $11.5 billion capital expenditures on e-commerce and digital initiatives.

“This is the perfect time to accelerate the business,” says Marc Lore, co-founder and CEO of Jet.com, who will be overseeing Walmart.com.

The Canadian economy has been sluggish, but in the midst of this slow progress the food manufacturing industry is seeing opposite results. According to a recent study by The Conference Board of Canada, things are looking up for the food marketing industry due to a growing interest in Canadian products from the U.S. and other foreign markets.

“While the majority of the manufacturing sector has struggled to take advantage of the weaker exchange rate, cheaper oil prices and the strengthening of the U.S. economy, the food manufacturing sector has seen sales continue to grow,” says Michael Burt the director of the Conference Board of Canada’s Industrial Trends sector.

According to Grocery Business, The U.S. represents the largest export destination for Canada’s food products, accounting for more than 70 per cent of the industry’s exports in 2015.

Food manufacturers are all seeing a positive change from Canada’s ongoing dedication to natural ingredients and nutritious foods. Between 2011 and 2015, food and drink products marketing the term superfood, superfruit and surpergrain have more than tripled in growth.

The downside to these new changes is that Canadian shoppers are more conscious of where their money is going. As such, consumer spending in the food and alcoholic beverage market may see a slow down in numbers.

Costco Canada is about to expand in a major way, with plans for the opening of seven new stores during 2017.

“I think the fact that we are opening so many stores right now has to do with very strong sales over the last few years,” says Richard Galanti, the retailer’s executive vice-president and chief financial officer.

About 90 per cent of retailers in the U.S and Canada renew their membership, says Costco. Therefore their membership format will become a large problem for traditional supermarkets. Analysts estimate that opening a Costco Canada is equal to opening four to five conventional supermarkets.

An August report from Kevin Grier Market Analysis and Consulting has shared that general merchants such as Costco and Walmart have taken over the market share for traditional grocery retailers. In 2015, grocery retailers’ share of Canadian food sales was about 78 per cent, a steady drop from 84 per cent in 2010.

Toronto-based Onex has come out on top in their bid to acquire the Save-A-Lot discount chain from Supervalu. This was revealed at an auction that explores the potential option for Supervalu’s future.

Supervalu is currently making a decision about spinning off to become a publicly traded company controlled by Supervalu shareholders. A confidential source shares that a final verdict could be made in the coming weeks.

An industry wide downturn in sales performance this year reduced valuations for publicly traded food retailers including Supervalu. Sources have stated that this may have made a public offering for difficult for this time.

Ottawa-based retailer Rainbow Foods has announced its acquisition of Market Organics. With this, the company has significantly increased its size, continuing to grow in the Ottawa market.

“We now have three stores in Ottawa, employing about 100 people,” says Mischa Kaplan, president of Rainbow Foods. “Having the Market Organics store helps us leverage our existing support infrastructure, expand our reach into a different part of the city and take advantage of a well-located and long-running business.”

Kaplan adds that this acquisition will allow the company to build its city-wide footprint faster. “This purchase also allows us to discover more efficient economies of scale with certain areas that we couldn’t otherwise justify before the acquisition. We now have substantial buying and advertising power, and that allows us to be more efficient and, hopefully, more profitable.”

Also located in Ottawa, Market Organics is a full-service health food store, offering an in-house kitchen, coffee bar, and wide selection of organic food, supplements and cosmetics. This wonderful community store aligns with Rainbow Foods’ desire to provide consumers with organic, local, fair trade, sustainable and non-GMO products.

Nearly $11.7 million has been awarded over the course of five years to The Cancer Biology Research Center at Sanford Research from the National Institutes of Health to support clinical trial research for head, neck and pediatric cancers.

“Our hope is that this latest NIH grant allows us to improve cancer care for this region,” said Keith Miskimins, Ph.D., who is the project’s principal investigator and director of the Cancer Biology Research Center at Sanford Research. “A grant this large positions the participating scientists well for long-term sustainability in the research world.”
“Basic research is important because it leads to discoveries that might someday be translated to patients,” said David Pearce, Ph.D., executive vice president of Sanford Research.

Nearly $11.7 million has been awarded over the course of five years to The Cancer Biology Research Centre at Sanford Research from the National Institutes of Health to support clinical trial research for head, neck and paediatric cancers.

“Our hope is that this latest NIH grant allows us to improve cancer care for this region,” said Keith Miskimins, Ph.D., who is the project’s principal investigator and director of the Cancer Biology Research Centre at Sanford Research. “A grant this large positions the participating scientists well for long-term sustainability in the research world.”

“Basic research is important because it leads to discoveries that might someday be translated to patients,” said David Pearce, Ph.D., executive vice president of Sanford Research.