Despite a fragile economy, American consumers continue to see alcoholic beverages as an affordable indulgence. The Nielsen Company offers its outlook on alcoholic beverage trends as the critical holiday season approaches: Restaurants and Bars Hurting With consumers staying in and entertaining at home more often, the on-premise sector - restaurants, bars and nightclubs - is facing serious challenges. Consumers are going out to eat less often, as evidenced by a recent Nielsen survey, where two-thirds... ...Read more »

Independent South Australian Senator Nick Xenophon is planning to introduce a notice of motion to Parliament next week that will seek changes to the current GROCERYchoice website. The survey, implemented following the Grocery Price Inquiry, has been criticised by some, who claim it does not provide enough timely information for consumers and allay concerns that too much focus is on Coles and Woolworths. The grouping of all independents together has also been questioned. The ACCC has advised that... ...Read more »

Once considered a lower-price, lower-quality substitute for name brands, private label products, or home brands, are now viewed in a more positive light by the majority of American consumers, according to a new survey by The Nielsen Company. Nearly three-quarters (72 per cent) of consumers believe store brands are good alternatives to name brands and 62 per cent of consumers report they consider store brands to be as good as name brands, up three points since 2005. Private label products now account... ...Read more »

The Workplace Ombudsman has today released a new list of businesses it will target in the lead-up to Christmas to ensure workers are properly paid.The workplace watchdog’s latest “hit-list” includes bakeries, butchers, dairy producers, coffee shops and take-away food outlets. Also in the sights of inspectors will be grocers, smallgoods stores and both retail and wholesale suppliers of poultry and seafood. Federal Workplace Ombudsman Nicholas Wilson advised that the national food... ...Read more »

The fourth findings of the GROCERYchoice comparison survey were released on Monday and discovered Woolworths and Coles were each cheaper in 30 out of 61 regions for a total grocery basket, with independents cheapest in Eastern Central Queensland. Aldi, which is not included in the total grocery basket category, again led the way in terms of a basic staples basket in all 40 regions in which they operate. Coles, meanwhile, turned the tables on their primary competitor in the basic staples basket category... ...Read more »

Australians love buying “house brand” cotton wool and sugar but baulk at the thought of deserting trusted brands when it comes to sunscreen and ice-cream. And, while private labels have been a strong growth segment for supermarkets over the past few years, there are a number of product categories in which Australians have tried the no-name option and come back to national brand favourites, according to business information analysts IBISWorld. Last year house brand sales accounted... ...Read more »

Business information analysts IBISWorld have released their forecast for what Australians will be piling into their shopping baskets in five years’ time. With slower economic growth encouraging more frugal supermarket spending, and increasing health consciousness at the forefront of many a shoppers’ mind, there is a noticeable change in the food Australian consumers are choosing, noted IBISWorld’s General Manager (Australia), Robert Bryant. Demand for dairy Dairy consumption is... ...Read more »

Chadstone Shopping Centre - Australia’s largest shopping centre - will officially open its new Fresh Food precinct comprising 12,600m2 of retail space tomorrow (Friday 31 October). Chadstone, in Melbourne’s south-east, is now home to 55 new food retailers including Simon Johnson, Tangelo Fine Foods, jones the grocer and Oriental Tea House, and prominent supermarket retailers Woolworths and Aldi. The array of quality food available is expected to see consumers flock to the centre in search... ...Read more »

Nearly six out of 10 Americans report they have had to cut back on the quantity or quality of food they buy because of increasing prices, according to The 2008 Hormel Hunger Survey, carried out by the Opinion Research Corporation.The study, commissioned by Hormel Foods Corporation, discovered most Americans (67%) believe that food prices have ‘increased a lot’ since last year, with 61 per cent suggesting that corn-based ethanol is at least partly responsible for higher food prices. Fifty-seven... ...Read more »

Australian shoppers are re-evaluating their shopping habits in the face of rising household costs, according to a recent study undertaken by The Nielsen Company. This has seen two out of every three Australians (66%) reduce, or plan to cutback on, purchases of non-essential grocery items, 41 per cent avoiding the purchase of certain items altogether, and more than one-third (38%) buying fewer items. The Nielsen study, which surveyed 1,500 Australian consumers, found that fuel, home loans,... ...Read more »