  March 1, 2012 | News for the food, beverage and consumer packaged goods industry |  |  | Company Watch |  |  | | - General Mills buys Food Should Taste Good
Food Should Taste Good, maker of organic potato and tortilla chips, has been acquired by General Mills. The purchase of the snack company is expected to help General Mills compete with Kellogg, which is purchasing the Pringles brand, as well as Diamond Foods and PepsiCo's Frito-Lay division. Reuters (2/29) - Chobani named official yogurt of U.S. Olympic teams
Chobani yogurt will feature the Olympic rings and Team USA logo on its packaging as part of its deal with the U.S. Olympic Committee, making Chobani the official packaged yogurt of the USOC and Team USA. "Chobani will play an important role by providing high-quality protein to our athletes, especially in the recovery phase, when the addition of protein has muscle-building effects," said Alan Ashley, chief of sport performance for the U.S. Olympic Committee. Progressive Grocer (2/29) Trends |  |  | | - Finkel to join GMA as executive vice president for government affairs
Louis A. Finkel, currently a vice president of McGuireWoods Consulting, has been hired by GMA as executive vice president for government affairs and will start April 9. He has served as chief of staff of the House Committee on Science and Technology, and "is a trusted and respected advocate who has built strong relationships on both sides of the aisle in pursuit of public policy goals," said Pamela G. Bailey, GMA president and CEO. Supermarket News (2/29), Progressive Grocer (2/29) Supply Chain Management |  |  | | - P&G ranks first again for supply-chain management
As it has for several consecutive years, Procter & Gamble again took the top spot in a Kantar Retail ranking of companies with the best supply-chain management. Kraft, General Mills and Unilever filled the following spots in the list, formed by retailers rating manufacturers and manufacturers ranking retailers. Supply Chain Digest (2/28) Advertising & Marketing |  |  | | - Coca-Cola marketer talks segmentation
Segmentation is important, but people see themselves as fitting more than one segment, says Kimberly Paige, assistant vice president of Coca-Cola North America's African-American marketing group. "When people love your brand and see its value, not only will they buy it more often, and sometimes at a premium, but they will become an advocate and one of your 'super fans.' That's the power of marketing and why I love this business," she says in an interview. Advertising Age (tiered subscription model)/The Big Tent blog (2/29)  | Fly a lot? Earn 3X rewards points on airline purchases with The Business Gold Rewards Card from American Express OPEN. Designed to earn Membership Rewards® points faster: • 3X points on airfare • 2X points on advertising, gas, and shipping • 1X points on everything else LEARN MORE AND APPLY |
 - SUPERVALU app updates lists in real time
SUPERVALU launched a mobile application that updates shopping lists in real time, so users who are in the store can see changes made by family members elsewhere. The app, for Apple and Google Android devices, synchronizes with SUPERVALU banner websites so shoppers can see weekly circulars. Progressive Grocer (2/29)  | How to Get the Package You Need—Without Breaking the Bank A robust benefits package can be the difference between someone choosing to work with you versus a more established competitor. But with the cost of benefits rising each year, providing a benefits package that helps you attract, retain and motivate talented people gets harder all the time. Download, 5 Ways To Manage The Rising Costs of Benefits. |
Health & Wellness |  |  | | - Rule for meat label goes into effect
Starting today, raw meat sold at grocers must carry a nutrition label with information including calories, calories from fat and the level of protein, cholesterol, saturated fat, sodium and iron. "It's the kind of information that consumers are asking for, and we just think it's about helping people make their own best choices by having the information that they need," said Dr. Elisabeth Hagen, the USDA's undersecretary for food safety. CNN/The Chart blog (2/29) GMA News |  |  | | - Does your company deserve recognition in reverse logistics management?
The Joint Industry Unsaleables Leadership Team will again honor three retailer–manufacturer teams with the Reverse Logistics Collaboration Award to recognize successful collaborative initiatives among trading partners in one or more areas of reverse logistics management.
Eligible projects or programs must demonstrate significant impacts on either unsaleables or reverse logistics functions in the manufacturing or distribution environments; or enhance the state of knowledge about best practices in managing unsaleables and attacking root causes; and should be relevant and applicable to other companies in the CPG industry.
The deadline to submit applications is March 30. Awards will be presented at the Joint Industry Unsaleables Management Conference on May 17.
For more information, contact GMA's Jessica Martin at (202) 295-3952 or jmartin@gmaonline.org, or download the flier. Government & Food Safety |  |  | | - USDA website highlights local food efforts
USDA officials unveiled a website highlighting local food projects, with an interactive map and information about projects receiving department support. The Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food Compass shows where agency resources have been coordinated to help local and regional growers, ranchers and farmers. Progressive Grocer (2/29) Editor's Note |  |  | | - Announcing the launch of SmartBlog on Food & Beverage
SmartBrief has expanded its Restaurants blog to include coverage on the entire food and beverage industry. In addition to coverage of restaurant management and foodservice news, you'll find the latest news and trends from the food and beverage world. The expansion comes as SmartBlogs, home of SmartBrief's original blog posts, videos and interviews, undergoes a networkwide face-lift. Now, it's even easier to get the news you need, including insight on social media marketing, finance and executive leadership.
Check out the Food & Beverage blog. We'd love to hear your thoughts. E-mail SmartBrief's Web editor, Doris Nhan, or tweet us @SmartBrief if you have any feedback. SmartQuote |  |  | |  | If people only knew how hard I work to gain my mastery, it wouldn't seem so wonderful at all." --Michelangelo, Italian sculptor, painter, architect, poet and engineer  | | | This SmartBrief was created for cpgbrokers@gmail.com | | Read more at SmartBrief.com | A powerful website for SmartBrief readers including: | | | | | | Recent GMA SmartBrief Issues: - Wednesday, February 29, 2012
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