Food Week August 22 – 28, 2022

Welcome to Food Week August 22 – 28, 2022. Among other stories, coffee shops are doing very well, thank you, due to unflagging consumer demand for the liquid gold. It’s dry everywhere but especially in Western US which will lead to higher vegetable prices this winter. And how ultra-processed foods make you literally crazy. Enjoy!

MACRO

• The trick to getting your employees to come back to the office? Good food.

• The world is really dry. Everywhere.

• Fed says interest rates will stay high but not much additional clarity.

RETAIL AND CONSUMER

• Egg brand Vital Farms launching regenerative agriculture line.

• A lot of winter vegetables come form Arizona. Or at least they did. Drought will hit hard this year and prices will be high.

• However, to help you out, the best in cheap, quality alcohols.

• Amazon Fresh stores struggling in UK.. Their impact of Whole Foods since the acquisition.

• Whole Foods has problem keeping its “no antibiotics, ever” promise.

RESTAURANTS AND FOODSERVICE

• Coffee shops apparently special, avoiding price inflation. Consumer demand remains high.

• 37 people sickened by eColi outbreak from lettuce at Wendy’s.

• COVID accelerated the trend of restaurant chain dominance.

• A Thai restaurant has been boiling the same stew continuously for 45 years. We had previously written about 4 year preparation of mole at Pujol but this is another order of magnitude. I bet they are afraid to stop.

FOOD SUPPLY CHAIN

• Americans’ love of beef is destroying the Amazon. The problem is that the land is so cheap (often stolen, essentially) that even though it isn’t great grazing, producers use it anyway.

• Container rates finally coming down.

• India is the world largest rice exporter but it is restricting shipments due to a poor harvest.

• Everything is more expensive, right? Well actually not broccoli or cauliflower.

FOOD WEEK AUGUST 22 LAGNIAPPE

• As a kid, Rainbow Cone was one of my great joys. It is a series of ice cream and sherbet flavors heaped into one. It was wonderful and while a series of pistachio, orange sherbet and then vanilla sounds like it won’t work, well… you’ve never had a Rainbow Cone. This treat will soon be available via franchising.

• Solar panels made from food waste.

• Oktoberfest recipes. Gut schmekt!

• People sure get mad about how their pizza gets cut.

• Consumers who eat processed foods are more likely to struggle with mental illness.