As we go to press this humid month of August, the Specialty Food Association (SFA) has announced that the in-person Fancy Food Show 2021, originally scheduled for September 27-29 in New York City, will not take place. The press release noted: âWe believe national increases in COVID-19 cases due to the Delta variant make holding a large indoor event while protecting the general safety of all participants nearly impossible.â However, the digital component of the show – Fancy Food 24/7 – will still run from September 27 to October 8. What they didnât mention was that to dine in a restaurant in New York City, one must show proof of vaccination. Indeed, the SFA is not the only group to change its plans. The Natural Products Expo East show that had been scheduled to be held in Philly just days before the Fancy Food Show issued a statement at the same time as the SFA: âWe have decided to enhance our safety measures and will implement a mask mandate and require proof of vaccination OR negative COVID-19 test for all participants of Natural Products Expo East 2021.â So, what does this mean for the numerous indoor conventions and shows scheduled for the next three months? Your guess is as good as mine, but I am betting that most large group events will be cancelled. Just when we thought the fall was going to be âback to normalâ we find consumers beginning to stockpile staples (retailers, are you listening?) and masking up (some suggest even in our own homesâŠreally??). On a lighter note, at least the dreaded Chinese lantern flies have migrated away from my neighborhood so we can sit outside in peace.
Pennsylvaniaâs first Amazon Fresh (AF), housed in a site formerly occupied by Giant and Genuardiâs units, opened on August 4 in Warrington (Bucks County) after being under a veil of secrecy until just two days earlier. It is the 16th AF operating across the country. Consumers were lined up around the 35,000 square foot store at 6:30 a.m. in anticipation of the 7:00 a.m. ribbon cutting. By 8:30 a.m., those crowds were gone. âWeâre excited to begin serving the Warrington community and to welcome customers into our doors today,â said Ron Marra, the storeâs director whose experience with Office Depot, K-Mart and Best Buy gives him what qualifications to run a supermarket? Exactly. A few positive comments from yours truly: the store is clean and shipper free, the produce and floral departments are especially appealing, and the employees are pleasant. According to the communications department, Amazon Fresh offers a seamless grocery shopping experience, whether customers are shopping in-store or online, as well as free, same-day delivery and pick-up for Prime members. Big deal. A large section of the backroom and part of the back of the store floor is devoted to Amazon customer service, returns, Amazon devices and a wall featuring the âbest of Amazon.â They tout lower prices for all, but astute shoppers have noted that the pricing isnât low, itâs mid-range at best with some prices higher than in neighboring stores, most notably Wegmans. The store has also introduced new ways to make grocery shopping more convenient, including the Amazon Dash Cart, which enables customers to skip the checkout line, and new Alexa features to help customers manage their shopping lists and better navigate the tight, understocked aisles. I made a second visit to the store a week later, hoping to speak with Marra, but he would not answer my questions and told me to call the communications department. I noticed during that visit that most of the shoppers were seniors walking in with the aid of walkers or canes. Tell me how they are going to work this fabulous Dash Cart – they can barely use their phones. Amazon Fresh touts âa wide assortment of national and high-quality produce, meat and seafood, as well as a range of prepared foods made fresh in store every day, from fresh-baked bread to made-to-order pizzas, rotisserie chickens and hot sandwiches.â Yet, at 10:00 a.m. on this particular day, there was basically no bread out for purchase, minimal amounts of prepared foods and gaping holes on the refrigerated and grocery shelves. Yes, national brands like Coca Cola, Layâs potato chips and Kraft Mac and Cheese were present; local brands like Yuengling, Victory Brewing Company, La Colombe Coffee Roasters and Dietz & Watson were also present as were own brands 365 by Whole Foods Market organics, and new Amazon Fresh own brands like Aplenty, Fresh and Cursive. Response to AF from the community has been all over the board. Most of the 92 comments on my Next Door app were along the lines of âthe prices were high.â Also, shoppers were not impressed other than with the technology, with most of them compared the store to Wegmans and Giant – and not in a good light. It wasnât comfortable experience and it offered nothing unique, according to many comments, but some enjoyed the experience and said they would go again. This store will appeal to some shoppers, but with the Dash Cart only holding two bags and the limited varieties, itâs not a first shop; maybe a second shop or a quick stop if you need to pick up a few items. As an aside, there is no way to contact the store directly; one must call the main customer service number where someone from another country answers and has no clue what an area code is. At the end of the day, Amazon Fresh is just a supermarket, and not a complete one at that. I see it as a micro fulfillment center, one of many coming soon to a strategically selected neighborhood near you. My last bit of advice: Amazon Fresh, get over yourself. Being secretive helps nobody. It creates a feeling of deception. Weâre on to you.
Speaking of new stores, you heard it here first: McCaffreyâs Food Markets is opening on the Main Line of Philadelphia! They have secured a location in Gladwyne, PA in the space formerly occupied by A&P/Super Fresh/ Acme on Conshohocken State Road and Youngs Ford Road. No opening date has yet been announced. Having spent my teen years growing up in this neighborhood, I can tell you that this is THE perfect location for McCaffreyâs. Canât wait to see the finished product. Acme Markets has announced an interesting opportunity for its vendors – they are offering any vendorâs staff in preparation for the upcoming 2021 flu season. Jennifer Raibley, PharmD, has put this innovative program together. âI am looking forward to the opportunity to provide immunizations to my current and future partners and to help keep our communities safe, healthy, and protected from the flu virus,â Raibley said. The flu clinics will offer vendors a tailor-made, customizable on-site clinic. Acme is up-to-date on current recommendations and has various options available including outdoor, parking lot, and drive-thrus, to name a few. There is no cost to having the team come on site, bringing all needed supplies, including the vaccine, and they will bill vendorsâ insurance plans, most of which cover vaccines at no charge to members. As an added incentive, Acme will provide a 10 percent off Acme grocery coupon (up to a maximum $20 value) to everyone who gets a vaccine. An online scheduling option with a unique URL will be available for each clinic and the Acme team will work with the vendor to make the registration process seamless. Additionally, the pharmacists will assess for and provide other vaccines individuals may need that can then be offered during the clinic or at a separate âCatch-Up Immunization Dayâ event. Family, friends, and community members can also be vaccinated at the vendorâs event. Any booster COVID-19 vaccines (pending CDC recommendations) can also be offered. If any Acme vendor is interested in learning more, Jennifer is available via cell at 484.988.0616.
During the pandemic, we saw a meteorologic rise in the need for food in underserved communities across the U.S. Three local organizations have been there for citizens during these tough times. Philabundance was founded with the simple belief that no one should go hungry while healthy food goes to waste. Their mission is to drive hunger from our communities today and to end hunger for good. Add to that Small Things, whose mission is to support local churches and organizations by providing them with the resources to support their communities and connect to their neighbors in a tangible way. Founded by the Rev. Vito Baldini, Small Things Inc. was birthed during the COVID-19 pandemic when the need for food escalated. Now, more than a year later, Small Things provides food to more than 75 partners across Philadelphia. It has hosted more than 2,000 volunteers to pack food boxes at its Roxborough warehouse and is on track to give away 8 million pounds of food in 2021. And, The Mid-Atlantic Food Trade Organization (MAFTO), a 501c3 non-profit whose mission is to foster and promote fellowship among the food and beverage industry members and raise money to donate to those in need including food banks and scholarships, created the MAFTO Care Package Program to assist in feeding the food insecure in our area. How are these three organizations connected? They are all part of the MAFTO Care Package Program which is back in 2021. In 2020, CPG companies, retailers and our community came together to help Philabundance and our regionâs food insecure in a big way. How can your company help? MAFTO is seeking donations, especially from local companies and retailers to supply 3,000 units of a variety of non-perishable products or free goods coupons to support the 2021 Community Care Package sale and October distribution. With the help of Small Things  Philadelphia, Philabundanceâs distribution partner, MAFTO will help hundreds of thousands in our region get meals. Please contact Andy Morfopoulos, MAFTO Community Care Package chairperson at [email protected] to donate product or to donate packages to volunteers with this mission critical program. For the 25th year, the Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association (PFMA) has chosen the winners of its 2021 Thomas R. and Laura Ridge Scholarship. Twenty-two students who represent PFMAâs membership earned the scholarships based on their academic records, school and community involvement, a submitted essay and required recommendations.
âCongratulations to these deserving students on all of their hard work. Weâre thrilled top rovide these scholarships to help them in their college pursuits,â said Alex Baloga, president and CEO of PFMA. âThank you to our generous PFMA members for their contributions to the Ridge Scholarship program. It would not be possible without their commitment.â This spring, an independent judging panel evaluated scholarship applications to choose the 22 recipients. Recipients must work, or be a child or employee of, a PFMA member. Each student received between $2,000 and $2,500, with  a total of $45,000 awarded in 2021. Recipients are sponsored by PFMA members that contribute to the Ridge Fund Endowment, including Giant/Martinâs, Karns Quality Foods, Rutterâs, Sheetz and Wawa.
Established in 1996, the Ridge Scholarship honors the parents of former Gov. Tom Ridge. Thomas R. Ridge was a member of the food industry for 25 years, and his wife Laura, was a great advocate of education for their three children: Tom, David and Vikki. To date, 600 students have earned Ridge Scholarships, and more than $1.1 million has been awarded. Congratulations!
We have begun work on the 2022 edition of our Grocery Industry Directory (GID). This wire-bound book, which I have dubbed âthe Yellow Pages of the food industry,â has all the information you need to find customers and vice versa, in every facet of our industry, plus some information found in the Market Studies we publish each June. Weâd love to hear from you if you want representation for your company in our unique publication. An added plus is that the 2022 edition is going to be available online at www.foodtradenews.com.
Last but not least, I want to congratulate my partner in schmooze Kevin Gallagher on his recognition in the ROI-NJ Influencers in Food and Beverage list. Kevin is well deserving of this recognition. I am so glad he is on our team! Good job, Kevin!
Birthday shout outs for the month of August go to: Charlie Bell, Acme Markets; Josh Brown, Brownâs ShopRites; Michael Bozzuto, Bozzutoâs; Marty Delinski, Acme Markets; and Ed Rogers, L&L Brokerage. Buon compleanno a tutti!
Quote of the month: âYouâll never reach a point in your life where everything is solved, all neatly tied up in a bow. Thatâs the point. Thereâs no âfinal scene,â only the ongoing adventure movie, forever unresolved.â – Jeff Foster
 Maria can be reached at [email protected]
