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☆ Reducing pesticides in food: Major food manufacturers earn an F grade
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

“Pesticide exposure during pregnancy may lead to an increased risk of birth defects, low birth weight, and fetal death,” the American Academy of Pediatrics stated. “Exposure in childhood has been linked to attention and learning problems, as well as cancer.”Yet pesticide exposure is widespread, even for chemicals that were banned years ago by federal agencies. In the 2023 Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce — a list of nonorganic produce with the most pesticides — researchers found 210 different pesticides on the 12 foods. In addition, consumers can ask food companies to “release the actual test results of pesticide concentrations in their products,” said EWG’s Temkin. “Food companies have not been publishing such data, instead relying on generalities,” she said via email.

Persons: ”, Cailin Dendas, “, disheartening, Jane Houlihan, Houlihan, Kale, collard, ” Alexis Temkin, toxicologist, ” Dendas, Jim Watson, Dendas, Sow, General Mills, Archer Daniels, Lamb, Nestlé, Dane Lisser, Shelby Stoolman, EWG’s, Temkin, ” Temkin, “ Steer Organizations: CNN, “ Pesticides, Healthy, “, ”, American Academy of Pediatrics, Environmental, US Environmental Protection Agency, Environmental Protection Agency, US Centers for Disease Control, Getty, Archer Daniels Midland Co, PepsiCo Inc, Conagra Brands Inc, Campbell Soup Company, Lamb Weston Holdings Inc, G Foods Inc, Cargill, Danone S.A, Del Monte Pacific Ltd, General, Inc, Kraft Heinz Company, Mars Incorporated, Mondelēz, Post Holdings Inc, ADM, US Food and Drug Administration Locations: United States, AFP

☆ Champion used to be one of the hottest athletic brands. Now it's struggling and could be up for sale — here's how it got to this place
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Jennifer Ortakales Dawkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

But the brand's sales are falling behind, and HanesBrands is considering selling Champion. Here's how Champion became popular among athletes, college students, and hip-hop artists. Champion is one of the oldest American sportswear brands, and it claims to have invented both the hoodie sweatshirt and the sports bra. Champion became popular among college students and athletesChampion sweatshirts are popular among college students. Hip-hop artists popularized sportswear brands like Champion.

Persons: Gen Zers, —, Michael Jordan, Stephen Bratspies, HanesBrands, sweatshirts, Rick Friedman, Jean Baptiste Lacroix, Getty, athleisure, Brands, millennials, Davidson, Muhammad Ali, Kylie Jenner, Chance Organizations: Service, US, Getty, Knitting Mills Inc, Wentworth Military Academy, NBA, NFL, US Olympic, Getty Champion, juggernauts, Nike, Adidas, Reebok, Beastie Boys Locations: Mills, Rochester , New York, America, Target

[1/2] Hostess Brands "Twinkies" are displayed in a store in the Manhattan borough of New York City, U.S. July 5, 2016. Smucker (SJM.N) said on Monday it will buy Twinkies-maker Hostess Brands (TWNK.O) in a $5.6 billion deal, as major U.S. packaged food companies look to expand their brand portfolios with pandemic-era fortunes dwindling. J. M. Smucker will pay Hostess shareholders $34.25 per share in a cash and stock deal, representing a premium of 54% since the day before the report surfaced. Hostess Brands became an acquisition target after it managed to boost its revenue through price hikes that fueled investor concerns over its prospects with its volume growth consistently declining. Smucker and Hostess deal follows a spree of other deals including that of Campbell Soup's (CPB.N) $2.7 billion deal for Rao's sauce maker Sovos Brands (SOVO.O) and Unilever (ULVR.L) buying premium frozen yogurt brand Yasso in North America.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Smucker, Campbell Soup's, Hostess, Ding Dongs, Dimpal Gulwani, Ananya Mariam Rajesh, Anirban Sen, Savio D'Souza, Shinjini Organizations: REUTERS, Hostess Brands, Reuters, Hostess, Mills Inc, Mondelez, PepsiCo Inc, Hershey Co, Sovos, Unilever, Hos, Thomson Locations: Manhattan, New York City, U.S, North America, Lenexa , Kansas, Ho, Bengaluru, New York

FILE PHOTO-Hostess Brands "Twinkies" are displayed in a store in the Manhattan borough of New York City, U.S. July 5, 2016. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidFile Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNEW YORK, Aug 25 (Reuters) - Hostess Brands Inc (TWNK.O), the maker of Twinkies snack cakes, is exploring a sale after fielding takeover interest from major snack food makers, people familiar with the matter said on Friday. General Mills Inc (GIS.N), Mondelez International Inc (MDLZ.O), PepsiCo Inc (PEP.O) and Hershey Co (HSY.N) are among the companies that have shown an interest in acquiring Hostess, the sources said. Hostess has hired investment bank Morgan Stanley (MS.N) for advice on handling the deal negotiations, the sources said. No agreement is certain and Hostess may decide against any deal, the sources added.

Persons: Brendan McDermidFile, Hostess, General Mills, Morgan Stanley, Mills, Ding Dongs, Dean Metropoulos, Alec Gores, Gross, Anirban Sen, Abigail Summerville, Chris Reese, Marguerita Choy Organizations: REUTERS, Hostess Brands Inc, Nasdaq, General, General Mills Inc, Mondelez, PepsiCo Inc, Hershey Co, Hostess, Hershey, PepsiCo, Hos, Apollo Global Management Inc, Thomson Locations: Manhattan, New York City, U.S, Mondelez, New York, Lenexa , Kansas, Ho

☆ From Twinkies to Doritos, Snacks Get Tiny
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Jesse Newman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Big food is going small. Sometimes too small. Within the span of a few months last fall, General Mills Inc., Hostess Brands Inc. and PepsiCo Inc.’s Frito-Lay unveiled mini versions of their iconic snacks and cereals, including pee-wee Trix, Twinkies, Ding Dongs and Doritos. The diminutive treats kept coming this year, with the debut of mini wafers from Hostess’s Voortman and McCain Foods USA’s bite-size mashed-potato puffs for restaurants.

April 12 (Reuters) - Motorcycle maker Harley-Davidson Inc (HOG.N) said on Wednesday Chief Financial Officer Gina Goetter was leaving the company at the end of April, and toymaker Hasbro Inc (HAS.O) said she would take over as its finance chief. Harley issued a statement saying that Vice President, Treasurer David Viney will serve as interim CFO after Goetter's departure on April 28. Shares of the company were down 2.8% in extended trading after falling more than 6% on Wednesday. After cutting hundreds of jobs in 2020, Harley has either beaten or met Wall Street earnings forecasts in recent years, while navigating high inflation and supply chain constraints. Hasbro said Goetter will assume the role as CFO on May 18, succeeding Deborah Thomas at the company that makes Transformers action figures.

April 12 (Reuters) - Motorcycle maker Harley-Davidson Inc (HOG.N) said on Wednesday Chief Financial Officer Gina Goetter was leaving the company at the end of April to pursue another job. The Milwaukee-based company said Vice President David Viney will take over as interim CFO after Goetter's departure on April 28. Shares of the company fell 6.3% in extended trading. Before joining Harley, Goetter held top finance roles at meat company Tyson Foods Inc (TSN.N) and cereal maker General Mills Inc. (GIS.N)The company did not respond to a request for additional information. After cutting hundreds of jobs in 2020, Harley has either beaten or met Wall Street earnings forecasts in recent years.

☆ General Mills raises 2023 forecasts again on price hike boost
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 23 (Reuters) - General Mills Inc (GIS.N) on Thursday raised its fiscal 2023 forecasts for a fourth time after beating estimates for quarterly results, helped by price increases and steady demand for its packaged-food products. General Mills' organic sales in the third quarter rose 16%, helped mainly by higher prices, while volumes remained flat. General Mills had most recently lifted its annual organic sales and profit expectations in February. The company said on Thursday it now expects organic net sales to rise 10% to 11% in fiscal 2023, compared to its earlier forecast of about 10% growth. Excluding one-off charges, General Mills earned 97 cents per share, compared with estimates of 93 cents.

Companies are now working to measure how soil stores carbon as they encourage farming techniques that reduce emissions across their sprawling supply chains. Regenerative practices can increase soil nutrients and yields while also absorbing carbon dioxide from the air, scientific studies say. PREVIEWMany of the world’s biggest food companies, including General Mills Inc. and Nestlé SA, are working with farmers to promote the practices. The company aims to have 20% of its key ingredients sourced from regenerative agriculture by 2025 and half by 2030. General Mills is now working to include the soil carbon and emissions data into its annual footprint.

☆ Unilever Tries Reformulating Its Ice Cream to Survive Warmer Freezers
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Katie Deighton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

Keeping ice cream at 10 degrees as opposed to zero will reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions by roughly 20% to 30% per freezer, it said. Unilever’s out-of-home ice cream sales declined slightly during the fourth quarter of 2022 because, the company said, some stores unplugged their freezers sooner in the year than usual. Higher temperatures can lead to softer ice creams that stick to wrappers and slide off ice cream sticks, for example, said Andrew Sztehlo, chief research and development officer for Unilever’s ice cream division. The warming program isn’t designed to sweat competitors out of Unilever freezers, which some shopkeepers fill with an assortment of brands that don’t carry the Unilever logo, Mr. Sztehlo said. Representatives from ice cream makers Nestlé SA, Mars Inc., General Mills Inc. and Froneri International Ltd. declined to comment.

☆ Food Companies to Ex-Employees: Come Back, Please
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Jesse Newman | Jaewon Kang | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Kroger has been reaching out to some ex-employees via text and email, helping lift the company’s staffing to near its prepandemic level. The U.S. food industry is tapping a new pool of workers to staff plants and grocery warehouses: their former employees. Kroger Co., the biggest U.S. supermarket operator by sales, is staying in touch with ex-employees and bringing some back. Cereal maker General Mills Inc. has persuaded some retirees to return to plant jobs, and other food-company recruiters have combed social media for former workers who might be open to coming back.

☆ Sustainable Packaging Is Sometimes Doubling as Easier-to-Open Packaging
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Katie Deighton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

Sarah Ryan Hudson found the Barbie’s Dr. Jane Goodall packaging to be a welcome departure from the hard-to-open versions of her youth. The costs involved in overhauling packaging systems also made them reluctant to change for the benefit of a less-finicky opening experience. To be sure, shifts toward more sustainable materials haven’t made packaging easier to use across the board, and campaigners for widely accessible packaging say companies aren’t moving to provide it quickly enough. The company’s Gillette razor brand in 2021 began selling some razors in cardboard packaging with a pulp tray, rather than in plastic blister packs and trays. Colgate-Palmolive Co. in 2019 introduced a recyclable Colgate toothpaste tube, using a high-density polyethylene material without aluminum, said Greg Corra, Colgate-Palmolive’s worldwide director of global packaging and sustainability.

The question now is whether 2023 will see China reassert its dominance as the main driver of commodity markets. There were differences in China's 2022 commodities imports, and the trends established may persist for a while yet. However, the trend for crude oil imports and product exports shifted in the last quarter of 2022. Crude oil imports rose 4% in December from the same month a year earlier, reaching 11.3 million bpd. It's likely that they will want to ramp up purchases in 2023 to meet rising domestic demand from the re-opening economy and ongoing fuel export quotas.

☆ Conagra CFO Doesn’t See Need for Big Price Increases in Near Term
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Jennifer Williams-Alvarez | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

Photo: Conagra Brands“We won’t have any more significant price increases unless our cost, our inflation estimate, starts to go back up,” Mr. Marberger said. The reading comes amid moderating price increases after a peak of 9.1% in June. I never, ever remember that kind of a price increase,” Mr. Marberger said. “They are now turning the corner and from here are going to need less rapid price increases, unless some other price shocks occur.”Conagra’s sales volumes fell 8.4% for the quarter ended Nov. 27 as customers responded to the price increases, the company said. “And that plays well for us.”Overall, Conagra’s customers—which include retailers Walmart Inc. and Kroger Co. —have accepted the price increases, Mr. Marberger said.

☆ Cargill CFO Resigns as Company Reshuffles Leadership
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Kristin Broughton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +3 min

Cargill Inc. said its chief financial officer, Jamie Miller, is stepping down for another opportunity as the agricultural giant reshuffles its executive leadership. Ms. Miller will leave Cargill on Jan. 13, the Minneapolis-based company said on Monday. Jamie Miller, chief financial officer of Cargill, is set to leave the company on Jan. 13. Photo: CargillCargill has begun an external and internal search for Ms. Miller’s successor, according to a spokeswoman. The spokeswoman said Ms. Miller is leaving Cargill for a job on the East Coast and to be closer to family.

☆ Conagra Brands raises 2023 forecast on price increases
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Shares of the company, known for its brands Birds Eye and Chef Boyardee, rose about 4% in premarket trading. But people have accepted the higher prices with little push back, as they find eating out far more expensive than cooking at home. On Thursday, Conagra forecast a 7% and 8% rise in full-year 2023 organic sales, which excludes impact from foreign exchange, divested businesses and acquisitions, compared with the previous expectation of 4% to 5% growth. Conagra said its higher average selling prices boosted organic sales by 17%, offseting an 8.4% decline in sales volumes in the second quarter. Net sales rose to $3.31 billion, while analysts had expected $3.28 billion in sales.

Fears about the Federal Reserve's plan to keep raising U.S. interest rates have weighed heavily on equities since its policy meeting last week. Among the S&P 500's 11 major sectors, the energy index (.SPNY) gained most, finishing up 1.52% as crude oil prices rose. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.12-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.06-to-1 ratio favored advancers. The S&P 500 posted 1 new 52-week highs and 14 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 64 new highs and 399 new lows. On U.S. exchanges 10.52 billion shares changed hands, compared with the 11.15 billion average for the last 20 trading days.

In fixed income U.S. Treasury prices fell following the BOJ's shock move, with the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield was rising to a three-week high of 3.69%. Among the S&P 500's 11 major sectors, energy index (.SPNY) was leading gains, up 1.8%, as crude oil prices rose. The materials (.SPLRCM) and financials (.SPSY) sectors were the next biggest gainers with banks benefiting from a rise in Treasury yields. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.45-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.38-to-1 ratio favored advancers. The S&P 500 posted 1 new 52-week highs and 14 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 44 new highs and 331 new lows.

☆ General Mills Raises Outlook on Higher Snack Sales
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Dean Seal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

General Mills said it now expects stronger organic sales growth this year and higher adjusted earnings. General Mills Inc. raised its outlook for 2023 after the consumer foods company increased prices and reported a boost in sales for its snacks and baking products. The Minneapolis-based maker of Cheerios and Betty Crocker cake mix said sales rose 4% to $5.2 billion in its fiscal second quarter, driven by higher prices and positive shifts in the mix of products it sold. Volumes, meanwhile, fell 12%, with major drop-offs in its international and pet businesses.

Wall Street's main indexes continued their losing streak for a fourth straight session on Monday as investors shied away from riskier bets, worried that the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes could push the U.S. economy into recession. The Fed has managed to slow the economy down so it's likely that earnings estimates (for Q4) are going to come down. Treasuries fell following the BOJ's shock move, with the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield rising to a three-week high of 3.66%. Earlier, data showed U.S. single-family homebuilding tumbled in November as higher mortgage rates continued to depress housing market activity. A slew of other economic data due this week including consumer confidence and core inflation will provide more clues to investors on future interest rate hikes.

☆ Apple and Amazon resume advertising on Twitter, reports say
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Dec 3 (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and Apple Inc (AAPL.O) are planning to resume advertising on Twitter, according to media reports on Saturday. Twitter billed the offer as the "biggest advertiser incentive ever on Twitter," according to the email reviewed by Reuters. On Saturday, a Platformer News reporter tweeted that Amazon is planning to resume advertising on Twitter at about $100 million a year, pending some security tweaks to the company's ads platform. However, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters that Amazon had never stopped advertising on Twitter. Separately, during a Twitter Spaces conversation, Musk announced that Apple is the largest advertiser on Twitter and has "fully resumed" advertising on the platform, according to a Bloomberg report.

[1/2] Twitter logo and a photo of Elon Musk are displayed through magnifier in this illustration taken October 27, 2022. The billionaire CEO of Twitter and Tesla also said Apple was pressuring Twitter over content moderation demands. Parler was restored by Apple in 2021 after the app updated its content and moderation practices, the companies said at the time. "Apple has mostly stopped advertising on Twitter. Musk also said "yes" in response to a user question on whether Apple was threatening Twitter's presence in the App Store or making moderation demands.

☆ Musk says Apple mostly stopped advertising on Twitter
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 28 (Reuters) - Billionaire Elon Musk said in a tweet on Monday that Apple Inc (AAPL.O) has mostly stopped advertising on Twitter. Apple and Twitter did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Earlier in November, Musk said Twitter had seen a "massive" drop in revenue and blamed activist groups for pressuring advertisers. read moreSeveral companies including General Mills Inc (GIS.N) and luxury automaker Audi of America have paused advertising on Twitter since Musk completed his purchase, while General Motors Co (GM.N) said it had temporarily halted paid advertising on the social media platform. read moreApple spent an estimated $131,600 on Twitter ads between Nov. 10 and Nov. 16, down from $220,800 between Oct. 16 and Oct. 22, the week before Musk closed the Twitter acquisition, according to ad measurement firm Pathmatics.

☆ How Elon Musk’s Twitter Faces Mountain of Debt, Falling Revenue and Surging Costs
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Mark Maurer | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +10 min

Elon Musk says his $44 billion Twitter takeover might result in a bankruptcy filing. To make the deal work, Mr. Musk has been trying to add subscription revenue and reassure advertisers about the platform’s future. What’s more, the company’s debt stack now includes floating-rate debt, meaning that interest costs are set to rise as the Federal Reserve continues to increase interest rates. Twitter’s credit ratings, which were below investment grade before the transaction with Mr. Musk, have deteriorated further. For that, Mr. Musk would need to persuade potential investors that he has a viable long-term business plan, he said.

☆ Elon Musk Tries to Convince Wary Advertisers to Stay on Twitter
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Patrick Coffee | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

That prompted Mr. Musk to say there has been a “massive drop in revenue” in a tweet last Friday. “I understand if people want to, you know, give it a minute and see how things are evolving,” Mr. Musk said. “Obviously Twitter cannot be simply some extension of me, because then anyone who doesn’t agree with me will be put off,” Mr. Musk said. Other potential new features include letting verified subscribers post high-quality videos that are up to several hours long, according to Mr. Musk. Twitter’s pivot toward subscriptions and e-commerce could also help minimize trolls and fake accounts, according to Mr. Musk.

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