With summer solidly here, a recent trend in coffee may leave many caffeine junkies wondering what happened to a classic cup of joe. In April, Restaurant Business reported that Starbucks now gets most of its daily sales not from a steaming cup of morning dark roast, but from drinks best enjoyed cold. More than 70% of the chain’s beverage sales are now cold – iced coffee, cold press, iced cappuccino; if it goes in a cup, it can probably be chilled, and the trend isn’t just limited to Starbucks...

Amid troubling quarterly numbers and lagging in the e-commerce and grocery races, Target’s foray into the private-label battleground has been more arduous than expected. The foray is more like a slog. Per a recent story from Reuters, the Minneapolis-based megaretailer features more than 45 private labels that generate over $30 billion each year (its most well-known food brands are Good & Gather and Favorite Day). Data from research firm GlobalData shows that Target lost market share this...

In a move long anticipated by major and regional retailers across the country, Walmart has announced electronic shelf labels (ESLs) will be installed in over 2,300 stores by 2026. The digital tag implementation follows a successful test run at a supercenter in Grapevine, Texas. The move will catapult ESLs into the public eye in the U.S., where the technology has been relatively slow to garner support. Walmart’s labels were developed with VusionGroup. For many, the announcement makes perfect...

The national palate is changing. At this year’s James Beard Award ceremony early in June, many chefs and restaurants that tout a decidedly non-American type of fare were celebrated. The sheer volume of winners – whose culture and cuisines stem from West Africa, Southeast Asia, Mexico, Senegal, and more – point to a trend decades in the making, from urban food trucks to the toniest, hard-to-get restaurant reservations from New York to New Mexico. Fusion and global flavors won the evening and...

The ubiquitous (and now iconic) red rooster-labeled sriracha sauce from Huy Fong Foods is in short supply once again. In early May, it was widely reported that Huy Fong Foods faced another supply shortage of crimson red winter jalapeño chiles that provide a streak of heat to the viscous sauce and, more importantly, lend it their vibrant and fiery hue. Per the initial report from USA Today, Huy Fong goes through over 50,000 tons of chile peppers per year to make its crimson sauces. Chile...