Hope you’re having a happy weekend and find time to read a late version of our review of the Food Week April 12 to 18, 2021. This week saw increasing vaccinations and restaurants bouncing back, churn in delivery service, gang beer, the return of the Michelin stars, Taffy Grapes and a whole bunch of other stuff. Enjoy.
MACRO
There was good news in the world of food April 12th week as retail sales rose over 10% in a month as jobless claims for the week fell by over 200K.
200 million vaccinations. However concern because in 25% of states there is a surplus of vaccines as some people refuse to get jabbed.
USDA discontinuing Food Box program which, in one sense, is a good sign that economic recovery is upon us. But the boxes were a great way to get more fresh produce and healthier food to poorer consumers.
Kroger is doubling down on delivery. Their Monroe OH warehouse is heavy on robotics and other technology. Interestingly, they seem to put a higher emphasis on the role of the delivery driver as the consumer interface.
More than 99% of meat consumed still comes from animals so while growth and investment are impressive, the trendline is slow.
So for the 99% of you addicts still using, here is a very quick primer on meat grades.
If you thought the Miller, Coors and Molson agglomeration was disorienting, wait until you read about the Crips, Bloods, GD merger to market beer.
RESTAURANTS AND FOODSERVICE
Is unemployment insurance keeping workers from re-entering the work force? Not a lot of evidence for it, say economists. Other industries and safer environments are poaching them, offering better pay and safer conditions.
The long term prognosis for delivery services is murky: what are the permanent consumption patterns that stick? Panera, a chain that does so many things right, discontinues their service.
How can disabled people work in the bar and restaurant industry? It’s not easy but it is doable.
I thought Del Posto was one of the most beautiful dining space I have ever seen. They are closing. Big sad.
In great news for snobbish people everywhere (guilty as charged), Michelin will resume its restaurant rating.
FOOD SUPPLY CHAIN
Kinda crazy but Sicilian fruit industry was hit with a frost the first week of April. Serious losses in output occurred.
The port backlog is finally resolving itself after many months.
As we’ve documentedmanytimes, meat production was the worst place to be in the pandemic. 334,000 cases attributable packing plants causing $11.2 billion in economic damage. Researchers found a 20% increase in transmission in the plants.
Netflix documentary argues the only solution to over-fishing is veganism. How many years do you think it will take to change the eating habits of about 5 billion consumers? It makes more sense to put your energy into getting cooperation from an industry that will want to save itself.
LAGNIAPPE
In the world of food: April 12 I learned about Taffy Grapes. Taffy grapes as opposed to taffy apples, sound pretty damn good. A South side phenomenon that is becoming commercially available. Actual innovator unknown.
A tradition of invention is the person who actually comes up with a new product is obscured by some self-promoter. The food week April 12 shows what happened when a social media influencer got a hold of Dalgona coffee and claimed it for her own.
Mezcal is a wonderful spirit. I worry that these days many producers overdo it with the the smokiness. However, Robert Simonson – champion of the three ingredient cocktail – has a book out on Mezcal and I will be reading it.
A climate impact quiz based on food choices. It’s hard. No one surveyed got all four questions right
A traditional like no other: the Pimento Cheese sandwich at Augusta. Relatedly, when I purchased my first house – a rehab special – I had no money. But I worked for a company that produced, among other things, pimento cheese spread that I could buy in 5 pound tubs at a deep discount. Pimento cheese on white bread became lunch and/or dinner a lot of days. And while I was killing myself at a full time job and rehabbing nights and weekends, I was actually getting fatter and fatter. Then I looked at the nutrition label on the cheese. I was getting about 650 calories for each of the many daily sandwiches I consumed. Without knowing it, I had demonstrated how food deserts make people fat.
