Gourmet News

Toshiba to Showcase ‘YOUnifying Experiences’ at NGA

Published February 22, 2023

Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions will be exhibiting its “YOUnifying Experiences” at The NGA Show 2023 from Feb. 26-28 at Caesars FORUM Convention Center in Las Vegas. The company will showcase its best-in-class portfolio of solutions at booth #1339 demonstrating how retailers can provide personalized interactions with shoppers and improve their operations.

As the grocery landscape continues to evolve, retailers must embrace a “unified commerce” approach to succeed. A study conducted by Incisiv and Toshiba revealed that self-checkout technology is now a staple in the industry with 94 percent of grocers currently offering or planning to offer self-checkout options in stores. Consumer interest in buy online pick up in store continues to grow, requiring retailers to adjust across digital and brick-and-mortar channels to unify experiences and make lasting consumer relationships.

“It is critical for retailers to have the freedom to accelerate and meet the demands of consumers to drive retention and loyalty in an authentic way,” said Rance Poehler, president and CEO of Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions. “We provide a full ecosystem of resources for retailers that includes hardware, self-service and software solutions like our ELERA™ Commerce Platform. Our robust partner network also plays a vital role in connecting us with retailers across various segments to provide tailored technology solutions that meet their unique needs.”

Toshiba’s partner and independent software vendor LOC Software (booth #1725) will showcase first-time demonstrations of their LOC Store Management Suite software integrated with Toshiba’s self-service software running on the Pro-X Hybrid Kiosk. The fully integrated combined solution presents grocery retailers with features that address their unique demands across service and convenience for their shoppers. Both companies will showcase the fully integrated joint solution in their booths during the show.

“We’re excited that LOC Software successfully completed testing with Toshiba’s CHEC software application on the Pro-X Hybrid Kiosk. The new software integration and hardware solution creates new offerings and opportunities to empower retailers to meet the evolving demands of their industry,” said Guy Leger, VP of sales and marketing at LOC Software. “Our joint presence at NGA will show participants how we are partnering to create solutions that enable grocers to deliver a fully connected platform that links stores, customers, and data.”

Toshiba’s NGA booth will feature the technology that empowers retailers with unified commerce solutions to connect with consumers and meet the changing needs of the grocery and retail food industries. The Hardware Bar will feature live demos of Toshiba‘s TCx line of rugged point-of-sale solutions that have been rigorously tested to ensure performance and durability for grocery. The ELERA Commerce Platform and its suite of solutions accelerate digital transformation, supporting the connected store experience in an agile, interconnected, and infinitely adaptable way.

The booth will also spotlight self-service options like Pro-X Hybrid Kiosk and the industry-leading Self Checkout System 7 offering innovative computer-vision based produce recognition, loss prevention features, and more.

The Incisiv research presented key findings and analysis from a study of 135+ retail executives. The study was designed to understand retailers’ outlook and attitude towards Unified Commerce as an enabler of key growth strategies. For more information on Incisiv’s 2022 State of the Industry “Unified Commerce in Food & Grocery,” visit here.

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‘Delivering Food in Turbulent Times’ Global Food Safety Forum Set in Atlanta

Published February 22, 2023

The Global Food Safety Initiative, part of The Consumer Goods Forum, announces its 22nd Annual Conference, “Delivering Food in Turbulent Times: The Need for Agility & Resilience.” The three-day conference will take place at the Westin Peachtree Plaza in Atlanta from April 24-27.

The GFSI annual conference, in partnership with industry organizations, is the meeting place for decision-makers from across the public and private supply chain to share knowledge, strengthen their networks and do business.

Following last year’s in-person reunion in Barcelona, this year’s global event will host more than 600 food industry leaders from over 50 countries. 2022 attendees included household brands such as The Coca-Cola Company, Dole Food Company, General Mills, Mondelez International, Pick N Pay, The Kroger Co. and Walmart.

“After last year’s successful return to an in-person GFSI Annual Conference, we’re excited to see what this year’s event will bring,” says Erica Sheward, director of the Global Food Safety Initiative. “Though the initial uncertainties and struggles of the early pandemic have since fallen away, we still face unprecedented global challenges that affect the food and ingredient supply chain.

“As such, it’s more important than ever that industry experts and leaders across all sectors and verticals come together to discuss the best way forward. We’re glad to be the group fostering these conversations and fueling the future of the industry.”

The conference program will feature a group of hand-picked speakers, including CEOs, public authorities, renowned experts and academics, industry leaders, innovators and grassroots players. Attendees can select from sessions across three tracks – Benchmarking and Harmonization, Capability Building, and Public-Private Partnerships Collaboration. Sessions will center around food safety and the unprecedented times we face today because of economic uncertainty, climate change, geopolitical crisis and the disruption in food supply chains which have significantly impacted access to safe and secure food across the globe.

For more information about the conference and to register, visit https://mygfsi.com/events/gfsi-conference/register/. To request sponsorship info, brands can contact sponsorship@theconsumergoodsforum.com. For practical info, including COVID-19 requirements, travel and lodging details, and dress code, visit https://mygfsi.com/events/gfsi-conference/practical-info/.

The Consumer Goods Forum is a global, parity-based industry network that is driven by its members to encourage the global adoption of practices and standards that serves the consumer goods industry worldwide. It brings together the CEOs and senior management of some 400 retailers, manufacturers, service providers, and other stakeholders across 70 countries, and it reflects the diversity of the industry in geography, size, product category and format.

Its member companies have combined sales of EUR 3.5 trillion and directly employ nearly 10 million people, with a further 90 million related jobs estimated along the value chain. It is governed by its Board of Directors, which comprises more than 55 manufacturer and retailer CEOs.

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$59M Investment to Strengthen Food Supply Chain, Rural Economies

Published February 21, 2023

The Biden-Harris Administration is investing $59 million across the country to increase independent meat and poultry processing capacity, expand market opportunities for farmers and create jobs in rural areas.

The investments support the Biden-Harris Administration’s Action Plan for a Fairer, More Competitive, and More Resilient Meat and Poultry Supply Chain, which dedicates resources to expand independent processing capacity. As President Biden has highlighted, creating fairer markets and more opportunities for family farmers helps bring down prices at the grocery store.

“For too long, American farmers and ranchers have been asked to produce more to meet increasing demand across the country and around the world, while they and the rural communities they come from have struggled to see their fair share of the benefits,” U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said.

“The Biden-Harris Administration and USDA are taking action to advance a sustainable vision of agriculture that prioritizes the needs of our resilient producers and small businesses, strengthens our food supply chain and brings value back to rural people and places. Through investments like those I’m announcing today, USDA will continue to work tirelessly to give farmers and ranchers a fair chance to compete in the marketplace, which in turn helps lower food costs for the American people.”

Vilsack announced the new investments while touring a processing facility in Harrisonburg, Va., that will be expanded with the funding. Vilsack and Deputy Secretary Jewel Bronaugh visited with local producers and members of the community to discuss the importance of these investments to the region’s economy.

USDA is providing the $59 million in grants to five independent processors under the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program. The funding will help build new processing plants, create hundreds of jobs, give local producers and entrepreneurs more options and business opportunities, and give consumers more options at the grocery store.

In Virginia, Shenandoah Valley Organic LLC is receiving a $3.6 million grant to expand its organic chicken processing facility in Harrisonburg to meet increasing demand. The grant will be used for equipment purchases, new conveyor lines, building and site modifications, and a new wastewater treatment system. The improvements will help the facility alleviate processing bottlenecks and nearly double its processing capacity to 630,000 birds per week. These investments will create 300 jobs and enable Shenandoah Valley to provide more processing options and choices for customers.

In Idaho, Riverbend Meats LLC is receiving a $25 million grant to help build an environmentally friendly beef processing plant in Idaho Falls. The funding also will be used for custom equipment and installation of nine miles of mainline gas pipe. The project is expected to double the plant’s capacity from 300 head per day to 600, increasing the price ranchers receive for their cattle and lowering costs for consumers.

In South Dakota, CNF Enterprises LLC is receiving a $3.3 million grant to help build a 30,000-square-foot processing facility in New Underwood. The facility will have the capacity to process 4,000 head per year, including beef, pork, lamb and buffalo. CNF Enterprises is a new company that was formed to help meet the increasing demand for high-quality, locally sourced meat products.
Through the American Rescue Plan, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and the Inflation Reduction Act, the Biden-Harris Administration has made once-in-a-generation investments in rural America. These investments have provided USDA with an unprecedented amount of resources to invest in rural communities and transform our food system.

In November, USDA awarded $75 million to 22 projects under MPPEP. In January, USDA awarded an additional $12 million to three more MPPEP projects. The program is one of many actions that USDA is taking to expand processing capacity, create more revenue streams and market opportunities for producers, and transform the nation’s food system.

Additional information on all these programs is available at www.usda.gov/meat.

Under the Biden-Harris Administration, Rural Development provides loans, grants and loan guarantees to help expand economic opportunities, create jobs and improve the quality of life for millions of Americans in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural, Tribal and high-poverty areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov.

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