Editor's choice: the highlights on just-food last week

By Dean Best | 18 March 2013

Morrisons and Ocado announced talks on possible online JV

Morrisons and Ocado announced talks on possible online JV

Morrisons last week announced firmer plans for an online food service - and the UK retailer could join forces with specialist Ocado. Larger rival Tesco, meanwhile, launched its own price-comparison scheme to lure in customers. Tesco, however, attracted more headlines on horsemeat with another recall. On a separate note, an Irish meat firm was said to know its beef was contaminated a year ago. Dole Food Co., Chiquita and Diamond Foods were among companies announcing results and, on the M&A front, UK firm Burton's Biscuit Co. could soon be up for grabs.

Morrisons gets serious about online food retail
The UK's fourth-largest grocer lags its rivals in the online space but has announced plans to launch a service in 2014 - and could team up with specialist Ocado. Our full coverage of the story - and Morrisons full-year results - are here, including a column from Katy Askew suggesting the retailer still has problems with its core business.

Comment: Tesco looks to stand out from the crowd in UK retail
Tesco has grabbed a number of headlines with the launch of its Price Promise at the tills, raising the prospect of an intensifying price war in UK retail. However, a focus on price is just part of the group's strategy to improve its UK performance. As its acquisition of restaurant group Giraffe shows, the retailer also has its eyes on boosting its in-store appeal.

HORSEMEAT: UPDATE: Tesco recall may be "body blow"
A fresh horsemeat recall initiated by Tesco could come as a "body blow" for the UK retailer, City analysts have warned.

HORSEMEAT: Birds Eye supplier QK aware of contamination last year
Irish meat firm QK Meats, a supplier to Birds Eye, was first alerted to the presence of horsemeat in beef shipped from Poland in June 2012 after its own tests came back positive for horse DNA.

On the money: Diamond hails turnaround progress
Diamond Foods has insisted it continues to make good progress on its turnaround plan, despite booking a mixed set of results that saw the top and bottom line remain under continued pressure.

On the money: Chiquita looks to further cost savings to drive growth
US produce giant Chiquita Brands International has said it is beginning to see the results of its restructuring but will continue to drive costs down in a bid to be more competitive.

On the money: Dole unveils "strategic" capex programme
US produce group Dole Food Co. has detailed plans to step up the capital expenditure programme behind its strategic initiatives in 2013.

UK: Burton's Biscuit Co. owners mull options
The owners of Jammie Dodgers and Maryland Cookies firm Burton Biscuit Co. have started a strategic review of the UK biscuit firm.

Interview: Costcutter CEO talks up Palmer & Harvey deal
Costcutter CEO Darcy Willson-Rymer has told just-food the UK c-store group's new venture with wholesaler Palmer & Harvey will benefit independent retailers and suppliers.

EU: Sugar quota to remain until 2020
The European Parliament has voted to keep EU sugar quotas in place until October 2020 in a move that has drawn criticism from food industry representatives.

Sectors: Baby food, Bakery, Canned food, Cereal, Chilled foods, Commodities & ingredients, Condiments, dressings & sauces, Confectionery, Dairy, Dried foods, Emerging markets, Financials, Food safety, Fresh produce, Frozen, Health & wellness, Ice cream, Meat & poultry, Mergers & acquisitions, Multichannel, Natural & organic, NPD & innovation, Private label, Retail, Seafood, Snacks, Sustainability & the environment, World foods

Companies: Tesco, Morrisons, Ocado, Diamond Foods, Dole Food Co., Burton’s Biscuit Co., Costcutter, Chiquita Brands International

View next/previous articles

Currently reading -

Editor's choice: the highlights on just-food last week

Currently reading -

Quote, unquote: just-food's week in words

There are currently no comments on this article

Be the first to comment on this article

Related research

Tesco in the UK: Local Profile

This is a detailed report covering Tesco’s store formats, private labels, history, key employees, and key financial and operational metrics in the UK....

Tesco in the Czech Republic: Local Profile

This is a detailed report covering Tesco’s store formats, private labels, history, key employees, and key financial and operational metrics in the Czech Republic...

Tesco in Turkey: Local Profile

This is a detailed report covering Tesco’s store formats, private labels, history, key employees, and key financial and operational metrics in Turkey....

Related articles

US: Billionaire Burkle "in talks to buy Fresh & Easy"

US billionaire investor Ron Burkle is reportedly in discussions to buy Tesco's US chain Fresh & Easy.

Talking shop: Amazon's fresh step in fledgling US online grocery

Amazon has made another stride in taking on US food retailers with the roll out of its fresh grocery business into the second most populous city in the US, Los Angeles. The move is sure to make other players in the market sit up and take notice but will it be enough to really shake up the US online grocery channel and give it the much needed boost it requires? Michelle Russell takes a look.

What the analysts say: Sainsbury's Q1

Sainsbury's has booked another quarter of like-for-like sales gains - bucking the downward trends in the wider UK grocery market and outperforming its peers. However, LFL growth has slowed significantly and management has sounded a downbeat note on the consumer outlook. Here is the City's take on Sainsbury's first quarter results.

Welcome to the home of food information, insight & intelligence

Not a member? Join here

Decrease font sizeDecrease font sizeDecrease font size Increase font sizeIncrease font sizeIncrease font size Comment on this article Email this to a friend Print this page