Safeway has been named one of the 2013 World’s Most Ethical Companies (WME) by the Ethisphere Institute, marking the third time that Safeway has been recognized by Ethisphere for its commitment to maintaining superior business practices. (If you’re wondering what “Ethisphere” means, the Ethisphere Institute is a think tank dedicated to the creation, advancement and sharing of best practices in business ethics, corporate social responsibility, anti-corruption and sustainability. For the past seven years, it annually selects companies from throughout the world for its prestigious WME list.)
“We are honored to be included in this prestigious list and humbled to be in the company of the most admired and principled businesses in the world,” said Laree Renda, Safeway executive vice president and chair of the Safeway Foundation. Safeway was selected for the WME list from thousands of nominated companies representing more than 100 countries and 36 industries.
The methodology for the WME list includes reviewing codes of ethics, litigation and regulatory infraction histories; evaluating the investment in innovation and sustainable business practices; looking at activities designed to improve corporate citizenship; and studying nominations from senior executives, industry peers, suppliers and customers.
Publix Super Markets led all retailers in customer satisfaction ratings in 2012, according to results of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). Lakeland, FL based Publix scored 86 on the index, highest among retailers in eight channels of trade measured by ACSI. Publix’s score represented a 2.4 percent increase from 2011. Overall, supermarkets as a channel improved by 1.3 percent to 77 percent on the survey.
Whole Foods and Kroger followed Publix among supermarkets ranked by ACSI.
Winn-Dixie improved 4 percent to 78; and Supervalu was up 2.7 percent to 76. Wal-Mart stores were the industry’s top percentage gainer in 2012, but its 4.3 percent improvement brought it to 72 percent, lowest among supermarkets ranked by ACSI.
ACSI bases its results on 70,000 consumer interviews. It said companies that display high levels of customer satisfaction tend to have higher earnings and stock returns relative to competitors. It also said customer satisfaction is predictive of both consumer spending and gross domestic product growth.
Whole Foods also took the No.19 spot on Fortune magazine’s 2013 “World’s Most Admired Companies” list. The only grocer on the list, Whole Foods is also named the Most Admired Company in the food and drug store industry, leading the top 10 list of retailers in the category. Whole Foods is ranked in the top 10 for innovation, social responsibility, employee retention and product quality.
The National Association for the Specialty Food Trade has re-named itself the Specialty Food Association. The association’s new branding will launch at the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City June 30-July 2. If you’ve never been to this show, and you’re in the retail food industry, it is a very interesting event and you should think about making the trip this year.
The 2013 Seafood Excellence Awards winners were announced at the International Boston Seafood Show. St. Mary’s River Smokehouses won the “Best New Retail” award for its oven Smoked Salmon Stix and Phillips Foods the “Best New Food Service” award for its culinary crab.
Winners were selected from a group of finalists during a live judging by a panel of seafood buyers and experts from the retail and foodservice industries. This year’s judges included: Kim Taylor, seafood category manager for Delhaize America; Sunil Contractor, finfish category manager for U.S. Foods; and David Bolosan, director of product innovation for Black Angus Steakhouse. Co-located with Seafood Processing America, the International Boston Seafood is North America’s largest seafood trade event, and drew more than 9,000 buyers and sellers from more than 100 countries and over 1000 exhibiting companies.
MOM’s Organic Market announced the activation of rooftop solar panels on its store in Waldorf, MD. The store, MOM’s first in Charles County, opened it doors in November 2012. The unit features energy-efficient design, including closed-door coolers, LED lighting and electric car charging stations. The photovoltaic system, which was installed by SolarCity, is expected to offset the store’s energy needs by at least 15 percent.
“The Waldorf solar array is the first of many,” said Scott Nash, MOM’s founder and CEO. “We plan to install solar panels on every store that we can in the future.”
The National Retail Federation reported that, despite an increase in payroll taxes and higher gasoline taxes, retail sales (excluding sales of autos, gas station sales and restaurants) increased 7 percent from January.
The Washington Post reports that a coalition of “environmental, religious and business groups” is endeavoring to persuade Maryland state lawmakers to impose a five-cent charge for each disposable plastic bag handed out by businesses to customers, which the groups say “would help the environment and not burden low-income residents.”
According to the story, Maryland might actually be the first state to impose such a statewide charge, though “at least five other states – Hawaii, New Jersey, New York, Vermont and Washington” – are contemplating similar legislation.
The story reports: “…under the Maryland proposal … shoppers would be charged a nickel for each disposable bag. Merchants would be able to keep a penny per bag, and stores that offer a rebate to customers who bring their own bags would keep two cents for each disposable bag sold.”
Everyone wants to be a supermarket operator. In a recent article in the Morning News Beat column of The Los Angeles Times, the writer reports on how drug stores are changing their approach as a way of attracting more customers to shop more often.
“Walgreens, for example, is opening glossy stores that feature sushi chefs and enormous alcohol selections. CVS stores have added fresh sandwiches and produce. Rite Aid has been revamping its locations and bringing in packaged organic and gluten-free food.”
“Drug stores perceive themselves as not just competing with each other, but also with mass merchants that sell many of the same items they do, as well as with online merchants that can beat them on cost and that appeals to tech savvy younger shoppers.”
In an article by Brady Dennis, published last month in The Washington Post, he writes that “Whole Foods became the first retailer in the country to announce that it would require its more than 300 stores to label all food containing genetically modified ingredients.”
The move, to be phased in over five years, marked the latest salvo in a decades-long global fight over the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) such as corn, cotton and soybeans in food. As the use of GMOs in a wide range of products has proliferated, so has the argument over whether they are safe for humans and the environment, whether they deserve more scrutiny from regulators and how they should be labeled.”
Stay tuned to this one, we’re sure to hear more about this in months to come.
We were saddened to learn of the death of Eddie Basha, chairman and CEO of the Basha’s family-owned grocery store chain in Arizona. Basha’s grandfather and father opened the first unit of what would become the family owned chain in 1932. Eddie took over the business at age 31 when his father died in 1968. The chain grew to what it is today, 130 stores around Arizona and they also own the AJ’s Fine Foods and Food City Stores. Basha served on the Arizona Board of Regents and unsuccessfully ran for Arizona governor in 1994. He was 75.
Birthday wishes go out this month to: Lee Chadwick, mother of Lancaster Foods’ Jerry Chadwick; my son Rick Bestany, Allegian Systems, and son-in-law, Bill Ireland, Clyde’s Restaurant Group. Celebrating an anniversary are Jeremy and Helen Diamond, Food-A-Rama, their 10th.