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A look at Casey Means, Trump’s controversial Surgeon General pick whose unconventional health views could reshape the food-away-from-home industry.
A roundup of regulatory developments affecting the food-away-from-home business, including policy changes that are part of the Administration’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) initiative.
Aramark has added a new service for senior living facilities that want a foodservice contractor’s help with functions like procurement without the complete operational overhaul that comes with bringing in outside management.
US Foods and Performance Food Group (PFG) have ended their discussions about a possible merger, leaving three broadline giants vying for the business of the food-away-from-home industry.
Two of every 3 restaurant operators are exploring the replacement of their current suppliers with alternative sources as a way of holding down costs, according to new research from the technology company Popmenu.
In a sharp illustration of how channels are blurring in the public's mind, the convenience-store chains Buc-ee's and Kwik Trip have bested usual top finishers In-N-Out and Chick-fil-A in a ranking of quick-service brands by their consumer appeal.
The event brought together hundreds of senior leaders from manufacturing, distribution, regional and national foodservice operations, and companies that help support the industry.
The White House has taken what it says is a first step in bringing down the prices of such imported food-away-from-home staples as coffee, bananas, and cocoa.
President Trump has lifted the protectionist tariffs he’d levied on many of the foods that had the food-away-from-home-industry worried about the kitchen staples’ price and availability, including coffee, cocoa, beef, and tomatoes.
As the U.S. Supreme Court assesses the legality of President Trump’s aggressive tariffs, the White House continues to tweak its controversial trade policies. Here are some of the proposed changes that could have a significant impact on the domestic f
Food broker Mueller Yurgae Associates (MYA) has agreed to acquire the Midwestern sales agency Alliance Foods for an undisclosed amount.
Like much of the dining-out public, Outback Steakhouse parent Bloomin’ Brands is taking a hard look at what it spends on food and beverage.
Two past Silver Plate winners will need to find space on their trophy shelves for some additional hardware. Both Dick Rivera and Phil Hickey have been named winners of their respective state restaurant association’s lifetime achievement award.
Rising menu prices are upending Americans’ dining-out habits, prompting more than 1 in 3 consumers to frequent restaurants less often and a major portion of the rest to economize when they do venture out, according to new research.
New York City is reminding chain restaurants within its borders that they have until Jan. 1 to update their menus and menu boards with icons that flag certain items containing at least 50 grams of added sugar.
The Datassential 500 is a key product of the well-known researcher, traditionally available only to paid subscribers. But the 159-page report is now available free of charge to suppliers with a Tier II or Tier III membership in IFMA The Food Away fr
School nutrition leaders say the federal Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) plan misses the mark. Critics argue the initiative offers few real solutions to improve student meals, lacks school input, and overlooks funding and infrastructure needs essen
Grocery prices rose at three times the rate for meals prepared outside of homes in September, tempering what restaurants and other ready-to-eat food outlets have cited as a major reason for a decline in customer traffic.
The Arabic word “halal” translates into English as “permissible.” A more appropriate definition for the food-away-from-home industry may well be “surging opportunity.”
Lobbying groups and suppliers from across the food-away-from-home industry have joined forces to push for federal pre-emption of the food-ingredient regulations that are beginning to proliferate at the state level.
The number of pre-school-aged children with an allergy to peanuts dropped by 43% between 2017 and 2020, a result of introducing the legume into the youngsters’ diet as soon as they could consume solid foods, according to a groundbreaking new study.
Quality Supply Chain Co-Op (QSCC), the independent purchasing arm for the Wendy’s quick-service chain, has named Krista Pohlman CEO and president.
President Trump said Tuesday that he’s considering a complete shutoff of cooking oil imports from China as retaliation against the Asian mega-power for halting its purchase of soybeans from U.S. farmers.
California has become the first state in the nation to mandate the disclosure of common allergens as part of its menu-labeling requirements.
On Friday, the multi-regional distributor What Chefs Want (WCW) said it has agreed to buy vegetable and dairy-products provider Premier Produce. The agreed-upon price and other details of the deal were not disclosed.
The legal arm of the National Restaurant Association has filed a lawsuit in collaboration with members of the fishing industry to stop the Trump Administration from severely limiting imports of seafood starting Jan. 1.
California is embarking on a 10-year effort to reset the standards for what foods and beverages can be offered in school foodservices for children in grades 12 and below.
As the shutdown of the federal government enters its second week, the food-away-from-home industry is facing the severe erosion of a key source of business: travel.
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case aimed at allowing the patrons of restaurants, bars, convenience stores, and other food-away-from-home sources to carry a gun onto the premises without the establishments’ permission.
The food-away-from-home business of Portland, Ore., is facing more of a break from the usual than the possible dispatch of federal troops to patrol the streets.
Several associations that lobby on behalf of the food-away-from-home industry have joined a coalition aiming to secure legislative permission for restaurants and other merchants to round off customers’ charges to the nearest nickel.
If the last federal shutdown is a preview of what the food-away-from-home industry can expect this time around, a resolution of the political stalemate can’t come soon enough for dining-out businesses in and around the nation’s capital.
Ikea furniture stores in the U.S. are piloting a new program for turning food waste from their in-store foodservice facilities into low-carbon fertilizer and natural gas.
The U.S. Health & Human Services Department (HHS) has earmarked an additional $61.9 million to upgrade the foodservice operations of more than 290 facilities participating in the federal Head Start childcare program.
Foodservice distributors still have a long way to go in their stated quest of being seen as true partners by the food-away-from-home operators they service, according to a newly released research report.
Trend-watchers wondering what type of restaurant might be the next sort to take off as a market darling. Here are some possibilities drawing attention.
Throw out the old go-to-market strategies for landing a product on restaurants’ menus. New research shows the opportunities are shifting as consumers yield to different motivators for dining out.
Relations between distributor and operator have always afforded what a tactful person might characterize as considerable opportunity for a smoother partnership. The less-diplomatic use language that propriety prohibits us from recounting here.
Difficult times in the restaurant industry aren’t discouraging some of the best-known brands in other fields from giving the business a try. Then again, many of the big-name recent entrants are aiming more for marketing benefits than a straight finan
The desire of consumers to tighten their belts—literally and figuratively—is prompting a wide array of restaurant operations to reduce their portion sizes.
With prices already rising because of President Trump’s tariffs, Congressional lawmakers from both political parties are drafting legislation that would exempt foods and beverages from the import duties.
The inaugural Go2MarketEdge conference lived up to its promise of being unlike any event the food-away-from-home business had seen before.
Performance Food Group (PFG) and US Foods have formed a committee of third-party advisors to evaluate the feasibility and benefits of merging the two distribution giants.
Grocery prices rose sharply last month, increasing at double the rate of food-away-from-home prices, according to new data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
On September 9th, The Trump Administration released its anticipated Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy which includes 128 specific strategies and recommendation to address childhood chronic disease.
After developing more than 70 senior and assisted-living facilities, the real estate firm Gallaher Cos. is bringing operation of its residential complexes in-house.
An activist shareholder is seeking four of the 12 seats on Performance Food Group’s board of directors in hopes of forcing the distributor to seek a merger with arch-rival US Foods.
President Trump said he’s poised to lift the tariffs on many of the imported supplies routinely used in the food-away-from-home business, provided the source nation has a standalone trade deal with the U.S.
Purchases of goods and services from food-away-from-home suppliers will increase by an inflation-adjusted 1.1% in 2026, with the most appreciable uptick coming from the onsite sector of the market, according to IFMA The Food Away from Home Associatio
Economic uncertainties may have consumers ordering less often from restaurants and other sources of prepared meals, but the squeezed businesses are far from panicking.
Restaurants in California would be required to flag menu items containing a potential allergy-triggering ingredient under a bill slated for a vote in the state Senate next month.
Amid all the anxiety about tariffs and consumer belt-tightening, other currents are shaping the food-away-from-home business with far less attention. Here’s a sampling of those forces packing a more subtle influence.
With a merger off the table, 7-Eleven is counting on a stronger presence in the food-away-from-home business to help maintain its dominance of the U.S. convenience-store market.
On December 9, 2013, the food-away-from-home world was shocked to hear that Sysco and US Foods had agreed to “merge.” Although it was technically called a merger, it was clear that Sysco was buying US Foods. Behemoth #1 was buying Behemoth #2.
Fearful that tariffs will trigger another spike in inflation, 58% of consumers intend to cut their spending over the next 12 months, according to the latest research on consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan.
A new study confirms what many food-away-from-home establishments say they’ve already seeing on their P&Ls: Americans are significantly cutting back their alcohol consumption.
Food-away-from-home advocates ranging from the James Beard Foundation to several state restaurant associations are joining forces to secure permission for the employment of immigrant food workers.
With sales of fanny packs and digital cameras soaring again, is there any mystery as to why nostalgia is driving so many current food-away-from-home promotions?
The gap between food-away-from-home and grocery prices widened during July, according to newly released government figures, giving restaurants and other foodservice outlets more reason to stress value.
Illinois has expanded its restaurant food-safety certification requirements to include training on accommodating and protecting customers with food allergies and sensitivities.
If there was an overall theme to Go2MarketEdge, a new conference focused on the technologies changing food-away-from-home marketing and sales, it might well have been the need for even the tech-challenged to take deep a breath and relax about AI.
Rebuffed so far in its efforts to forge some sort of combination with arch-rival Performance Food Group (PFG), foodservice distributor US Foods acknowledged last week that it’s still open to a merger.
The discussion of AI’s potential shifted from the theoretical to the practical during Day Two of Go2MarketEdge, hosted by Instacart. Speakers from operations ranging from McDonald’s to Nestlé Professional Solutions highlighted benefits they’re alread
The National Restaurant Association plans to survey its members to calibrate the impact on the restaurant industry of the Trump Administration’s so-called reciprocal tariffs, which went into effect today.
Once-praised initiatives to promote diversity in the food-away-from-home workforce are turning into a potential regulatory issue for two businesses that have maintained the effort.
President Donald Trump has given importers seven days to pack U.S. warehouses with foods and other products from abroad before the goods are subject to tariffs ranging as high as 41%.
Facilities that feed pre-school children under the federal Head Start program can now apply for one-time grants from the Trump Administration to upgrade their kitchens and menus.
With President Trump’s so-called reciprocal tariffs about to take effect, the National Restaurant Association has formally requested that imported foods and beverages be exempted from the protective duties.
Food-away-from-home employers warned that steep increases in the pay of restaurant workers would ultimately hurt the intended beneficiaries. Now they’re wielding research that shows they weren’t crying wolf.
The National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) has tapped a foodservice veteran to serve as its next CEO and president: former Aramark Northern Europe CEO Frank Gleeson.
Strong relationships may be as crucial to getting a manufacturer’s product on a menu as the caliber of the item itself, according to a new study of the menu ideation process.
The U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration, and Agriculture have issued a joint Request for Information seeking public input on defining ultra-processed foods (UPF).
Foodservice distribution’s use of advanced technology is proving both a blessing and a curse, as recent news from the sector attests. Here’s a sampling of developments where the digital revolution posed either a vulnerability or a new opportunity.
In a rare instance of a supply-chain veteran rising into the top management ranks of a major restaurant chain, Wendy’s supply chain co-op CEO Pete Suerken has been appointed President of the No. 2 burger concept’s U.S. operations.
A roundup of regulatory developments affecting the food-away-from-home business, including policy changes that are part of the Administration’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) initiative
A little-noticed omission in the 1,000-plus-page federal budget could spell trouble for business-and-industry foodservice operators.
A new study has underscored another challenge for Starbucks in its ongoing effort to reverse slumping traffic: Reversing a loss of younger customers to convenience stores.
The Trump Administration has proposed revoking 52 standards governing what’s in food products ranging from canned peaches to specialty pastas, saying the requirements are obsolete and unnecessary.
Dozens of ice cream makers have agreed to stop using artificial dyes in their frozen dairy products by the end of 2027, according to joint announcements Monday by the producers’ trade association and the Trump Administration.
The Trump Administration said it intends to levy a 17.01% duty within 90 days on all tomatoes imported from Mexico, asserting the move will stop exporters from dumping product on the U.S.
Foodservice distribution giant US Foods is exploring the possibility of acquiring competitor Performance Food Group (PFG), the Bloomberg news service reported Friday.
An emerging wave in packaging regulation is giving new currency to the old maxim about the devil being in the details. But even with the particulars largely undetermined, food-away-from-home businesses can sense an impending mess.
The Trump Administration has filed a lawsuit to stop California from enforcing an animal-welfare regulation mandating more cage space for egg-laying chickens, saying the measure did nothing for humans except raise prices to historic levels.
Food-away-from-home giant WK Kellogg Co. has agreed to be acquired by candymaker The Ferrero Group for $3.1 billion.