Metro Beat

Greetings all, and first and foremost, I do hope this finds everyone and their respective families and loved ones all in good health and using good judgment as we navigate these crazy times.

The last few weeks have transformed all of our lives in ways we could never have imagined. Through this pandemic, the strength, courage and resolve of the food industry has been demonstrated time and time again, and we should all be proud to be a part of it. At Food Trade News, we are doing our best to navigate this unprecedented situation for all of our readers. Our commitment is to continue to communicate with you regularly through our monthly print edition and also through our website, www.foodtradenews.com, as well as through email communications. Please go to our website to sign up for these email blasts so you will be a part of our ongoing coverage. We will continue to serve you as our readers and partners and look forward to being able to come together again and experience the joy of live industry events when the time is right. Meanwhile, look inside this issue for a roundup of how the many retailers and wholesalers are addressing their customers and associates during the pandemic. If we have missed anyone, please feel free to contact us and we will update the listing. And while many companies have gone above and beyond with their philanthropic efforts and gestures over the last few weeks, here are a few that caught my eye.

The good people at Goya Foods donated 18,225 meals through its Goya Gives program to six New York City high schools. “We understand that this is going to be a tough few weeks for many and we wanted to help support families and students during this time, who often only eat a healthy meal while attending school,” Bob Unanue, president and CEO of Goya Foods, said. “We’re prepared to do our part and help in any way we can.” The schools are: Food and Finance High School, High School of Hospitality Management, Facing History High School, Urban Assembly School of Design and Construction, Manhattan Bridges High School, and P.S. 138 District 75 School. Every student at each school will receive a container filled with a 5-pound bag of Goya rice, a 1-pound bag of Goya black beans, a 1-pound bag of Goya pink beans, and two 16.9-ounce tetra of Goya coconut water. Outstanding job!!

And Stop & Shop has donated 5,000 fresh meals each day to health care first responders at hospitals in greater New York City and Boston caring for novel coronavirus (COVID-19) patients. The Ahold Delhaize grocer said donations are being sent to those metropolitan areas because they represent some of the nation’s communities hardest hit by COVID-19. Meals will be provided every day to: Mount Sinai Hospital in East Harlem, NY (Manhattan); Mount Sinai South Nassau Hospital in Oceanside, NY (Long Island); Long Island Community Hospital in Suffolk County, NY; Pascack Valley Medical Center in Westwood, NJ; Boston Medical Center; and Boston Children’s Hospital. “Medical first responders are doing incredible work in extremely trying conditions to keep our communities safe, and we are honored to have this opportunity to help,” Stop & Shop president Gordon Reid said in a statement. “Stop & Shop’s 60,000 associates are working extraordinarily hard each day to ensure that everyone has access to the food they need, and we hope these meals will help in filling an essential need for local healthcare heroes in the days ahead. We also hope that other food retailers and suppliers will do what they can to expand free meals at hospitals across this region and around the country. Now, more than ever, it’s important we come together as a community to support each other during challenging times,” Reid continued. Food donations will include sandwiches, salads and prepackaged entrees, as well as energy and nutrition bars for when health workers don’t have time for a meal as they care for COVID-19 patients. Stop & Shop said it will cover all costs and use its “substantial food production capacity and extensive regional delivery network” to supply the meals and snacks. Stop & Shop also said it will provide $500,000 to its Helping Hands associate care fund for associates and their families in times of need, including during the coronavirus pandemic. The retailer, too, has raised pay for hourly union associates by 10 percent and expanded leave benefits and flexible scheduling arrangements to support workers.

And a big shout out to Wakefern Food Corp as they donated $1 million to regional food banks to help meet the increased need for food and essentials during this COVID-19 pandemic. The donation will be divided among 30 food banks in nine states where Wakefern’s cooperative members operate. “It’s so important for us to support the food banks that are experiencing increased need and demand during this crisis,” Joe Colalillo, chairman and CEO of Wakefern Food Corp., said. “In these uncertain times our members remain committed to supporting the communities our stores serve and will continue to help in the fight against hunger by working with our food bank partners.” Wakefern said it also donated ShopRite trailers to help move hospital equipment to field hospitals in the state and donated protective masks to New York and New Jersey hospitals. Great job!

Unilever and its Hellmann’s brand launched a Food Relief Fund that will provide $1 million to feed frontline workers and people in need in New York City. To start, Hellmann’s Food Relief Fund will provide $500,000 worth of meals through a partnership with Grubhub. Together, the brands have teamed up with local restaurants to provide 30,000 individually-catered meals to health care workers at three New York City hospitals. By leveraging Grubhub’s delivery network, the partnership will fuel local restaurants struggling to stay open in this time of crisis. “With the creation of Hellmann’s Food Relief Fund, we want to provide much needed food to the humanitarians on the frontlines in New York City who are selflessly confronting the virus and facilitating care daily as well as to New Yorkers who are experiencing hardship through this pandemic,” said Ben Crook, senior marketing director for Hellmann’s North America. “The fund’s first partnership with Grubhub will help feed frontline healthcare workers immediately impacted while also benefiting local restaurants and their staff who are among the hardest hit in New York City.” The commitment is part of Unilever’s ‘United for America’ initiative, which is contributing $20 million in products and services to help those impacted by the pandemic, including donations of food (including Hellmann’s), soap, personal hygiene, and home cleaning products. To learn more about the Unilever ‘United for America’ initiative, please visit www.weareunitedforamerica.com.

We were sorry to learn that Nina Balducci passed away from colon cancer on April 12 at the age of 91. Nina married Andy Balducci in 1952 and joined Andy’s father Louis in running Balducci’s Market in Greenwich Village. She was a pioneer of specialty foods retailing in New York City and later a part of the foundation of Baldor Specialty Foods. Baldor is currently run by Nina’s grandson TJ Murphy. “Nina’s business acumen, along with her refined European sensibility, was made evident when Balducci’s market expanded from a small, open-air produce store to a full-service gourmet food market in 1972,” according to a family statement. “Every decision, from the new store’s design, to the types of foods to carry, to branding and logos, to PR and marketing, was made by the young Balducci couple as a team.” Andy and Nina’s daughter Ria married Kevin Murphy in the 1980s. Murphy joined Balducci’s, taking over the small wholesale division called Baldor in 1991. Balducci’s was sold in 1998, and is not connected to the family. Andy Balducci died in March 2018. She was predeceased by two daughters, Dena and Ria. She is survived by two daughters, Marta and Andrea; six grandchildren; and four great grandchildren. The family said that a celebration of Nina’s life will be held at a later date. May her soul rest in peace.

Congratulations to Donna Banks-Ficcio who will be returning to the warm enclaves of Minneapolis as she has accepted the position of vice president merchandising-central region for UNFI. Donna was most recently the VP-center store sales and merchandising at Weis Markets. Prior to Weis, she had been in Minnesota as VP-center store for Supervalu. Donna is a talented and knowledgeable retail executive who I’m sure will shine once again in the Midwest. She has always been a class act to interact and correspond with (from her years at King’s and A&P) and we wish her all the best in her new endeavors.

Marianne Denomme has joined Treeline Cheese as director of sales-east. She brings a background from Bel Cheese, Hillshire and Sara Lee to the position. Treeline Cheese produces totally dairy-free, plant-based cheeses.

Well that’s all for now. My thoughts are with you, your families and associates during these trying times. We’re in this together, and I believe that we’ll come out the other side stronger for it. (Just sooner rather than later, I hope). If you want to chat, talk or correspond you can always reach me at 201.250.2217 or [email protected].

BE WELL! STAY SAFE!