Restaurant Executives Can't Wait for 2025 after Slow Traffic and Wave of Bankruptcies

After a tough year for the restaurant industry, executives can't wait for 2025 to start.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm ready for '24 to be behind us, and I think '25 is going to be a great year," Kate Jaspon, CFO of Dunkin' parent Inspire Brands, said at the Restaurant Finance and Development Conference in Las Vegas this week.

Restaurant bankruptcy filings have soared more than 50% so far in 2024, compared with the year-ago period...

New FMI 2024 Reports Examine Grocery Shopping Trends for The Holidays and Retail Foodservice

Despite ongoing concerns about food prices, shoppers feel more confident in managing their grocery budgets ahead of the holidays, according to FMI —The Food Industry Association’s annual U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends: Holiday Season report. These findings are further supported by FMI’s newly released ninth-annual Power of Foodservice at Retail report, which found that retail foodservice purchases continue to play a key role in shoppers’ meal preparation.

Consumers report a strong sense of excitement and enthusiasm for the holiday season despite...

Whetstone Distribution Acquires Chicago-Based Anmar Foods 

Whetstone Distribution has acquired Anmar Foods, a Chicago-based meat producer specializing in beef, turkey, chicken, and other animal proteins, including pork, lamb, sausages, and smoked products. 

The acquisition is part of Whetstone’s strategy to expand its regional customer base. The company recently bought several other Chicago-based businesses, including Fulton Market and Pritzlaff Wholesale Meats, as well as Moesle Meats and Queen Foods...

The Meat Institute and the American Meat Science Association Announce

The American Meat Science Association (AMSA) and the Meat Institute today announced a partnership to manage the popular Meat Buyer’s Guide (MBG) with editions to publish in 2024 and 2025.

This agreement will ensure the continuity and future development of an essential industry resource. The phased upgrade of the Meat Buyer’s Guide is set to begin with an initial print run in December 2024, followed by a comprehensive update and re-release scheduled for 2025.

The MBG, first published in 1961, summarizes the USDA’s Institutional Meat Purchase...

Why EU Farmers are Upset about Mercosur Deal

A trade agreement between the European Union and Mercosur countries, which includes a significant section on agriculture, has triggered protests from EU farmers who argue farm imports from South America do not meet European standards.

The agreement dating from 2019 and published on the Commission website has yet to be adopted. It includes the establishment of import quotas of certain agricultural products from Mercosur countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, either duty free or at reduced levy.

The agreement would also give EU farmers increased...

Hawaii Officials Investigate Bird Flu Wastewater Source

State health officials are investigating possible sources of the H5 avian influenza virus detected for the first time in a wastewater sample from Oahu, but reassure residents that public risk remains low.

The state Department of Health said the specimen was collected Nov. 7 and that it received the result Tuesday but is unable to determine whether it is the specific subtype H5N1, also known as highly pathogenic avian influenza.

"The wastewater testing provides a signal for further investigation to determine whether this detection is H5N1-related," said state...

CDC Confirms Oregon's First Human Case of Bird Flu

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday confirmed highly pathogenic form of bird flu in a person in Oregon.

The infected person is linked to a previously reported outbreak tied to a commercial poultry operation in the state, where the virus has been confirmed in 150,000 birds, the state health authority said.

A total of 52 people from eight states have tested positive in the U.S. this year as the virus has infected poultry flocks and spread to more than 500 dairy herds, the CDC said...

UK Confirms Bird Flu Cases at Commercial Poultry Farm

Britain said on Sunday it had confirmed a strain of the H5N1 bird flu virus in commercial poultry at premises near the town of St Ives in southwest England.

All poultry on the premises will be humanely culled, and a 3 km protection zone and 10 km surveillance zone have been put in place, the UK government added in a statement.

It was the first confirmation of the HPAI H5N1 strain in kept birds this season and followed recent detections of HPAI H5N5 in wild birds...

Strong US Data Continues Reshaping Fed Views of Pace, Extent of Rate Cuts

Strong U.S. economic and inflation data on Friday continued reshaping the debate among Federal Reserve policymakers over the pace and extent of interest rate cuts as investors further downgraded their expectations for a rate reduction at the central bank's December meeting.

In the latest round of comments on U.S. monetary policy, Fed officials continued to express faith that inflation was coming under control and would allow the central bank to lower its benchmark rate over time from the current 4.5% to 4.75% range...

Eurozone Trade Surplus Rises on Jump in Exports to U.S.

The eurozone's trade surplus climbed in September on year, with exports to the U.S. growing as the threat of tariffs proposed by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump looms large.

The eurozone trade surplus in goods with the rest of the world increased to 12.5 billion euros ($13.18 billion) in September, up from the 9.8 billion euros in September 2023, unadjusted figures from the European Union's data agency said Monday.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, exports increased by 0.4%, and imports decreased by 0.8% compared with...