grocery stores

Kroger and the food workers union want grocery staff to be designated as first responders in the coronavirus pandemic.

Grocery Workers Should Be Designated First Responders, Supermarkets And Union Say

6:17pm April 14, 2020

by Alina Selyukh

Kroger and Albertsons have joined the food workers union UFCW in urging state and national officials to give grocery staff higher priority for testing and access to masks and other protections.

Business

Shorter Hours, Some Restrictions Part Of New Reality For Grocers

10:13pm March 19, 2020

by Paul Garber

Grocery stores have been cutting back hours in response to the coronavirus, and some have also started limiting sales of certain high-demand items.

Many supermarkets are setting special designated hours when only seniors and others most vulnerable to the coronavirus are invited to shop.

Supermarkets Add 'Senior Hours' For Vulnerable Shoppers

6:18pm March 19, 2020

by Alina Selyukh

Target, Safeway and others are restricting their opening hours, limiting purchases per each shopper and setting off time for seniors and other high-risk individuals to shop.

A person shops in front of the empty shelves in the deli section of a Walmart Supercenter in Nashville on Saturday.

Empty Grocery Shelves Are Alarming, But They're Not Permanent

6:58pm March 18, 2020

by Camila Domonoske

The sudden spike in demand driven by the coronavirus pandemic has meant shortages at many stores. But retailers say products will return to shelves and urge customers to not panic or hoard items.

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Shoppers found some empty shelves at a Kroger grocery store in Grosse Ile, Mich., on Friday. Americans are stocking up on food, toilet paper, water and other items amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Here's What's Been Flying Off Store Shelves

3:04pm March 16, 2020

by Camila Domonoske

Sure, hand sanitizer and spray disinfectant are among the most popular items sought out by panicked shoppers. But they're also buying a lot more oat milk and canned goods, according to Nielsen.

George Laurer in 2011 at the University of Maryland's Innovation Hall of Fame. His many inventions, including the Universal Product Code, led to his induction into the hall in 1991.

National

IBM Engineer Who Designed The Universal Product Code Dies At 94

8:06pm December 12, 2019

by Sam Gringlas

The bar code is now a packaging mainstay, but it probably wouldn't have worked without George Laurer.

Fresh Corner Café sells loose fruits and fresh pre-packaged items like salads, sandwich wraps and fruit cups to corner stores, grocery stores and gas stations.

Detroit Entrepreneurs Fight Food Insecurity With Lessons Of The Past

7:00am October 27, 2019

by Brittany Hutson

In 1968, a survey found that African Americans paid more money for lower-quality groceries and struggled for access to fresh food, among other inequalities. Today, those same battles persist.

One reason frozen food sales might be faltering is because of design. "That glass door. It really creates a fence," says food trend analyst Phil Lempert.

National

Frozen Food Sales Feel The Heat As Consumers Opt For Fresh

10:04am May 02, 2018

by Neda Ulaby

Food from the frozen aisle accounts for only about 6 percent of grocery store sales — and that percentage has seen some declines over the past few years. The deli section, however, keeps expanding.

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Composting food scraps is one way to reduce food waste, but preventing excess food in the first place is better, says the EPA.

Grocery Stores Get Mostly Mediocre Scores On Their Food Waste Efforts

3:04pm April 16, 2018

by Menaka Wilhelm

A new report, "Supermarkets Fail to Make the Grade in Reducing Food Waste," scores the 10 largest grocery stores on how they handle food waste. No store got an A, but Walmart got a B.

Djerbrani checks food donations from a French grocery store before driving it across town to a church, which will distribute it to poor families.

French Food Waste Law Changing How Grocery Stores Approach Excess Food

3:35pm February 25, 2018

by Eleanor Beardsley

Two years ago, France introduced a law to force supermarkets to donate unsold food to charities and food banks. Skeptics called it unworkable at the time, but there are signs the effort is succeeding.

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