ARLINGTON, VA — July 26, 2007 — The Food Marketing Institute (FMI) today announced the release of a new training video, Quality Service, Quality Produce. The video educates produce department employees about safe food handling, customer service and the appropriate sales and handling techniques for fresh fruits and vegetables.



Consumers seek stores that focus on these issues. As many as 95 percent of shoppers say courteous, friendly employees are somewhat important or very important when selecting a primary store, according to FMI’s U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends 2007.




Trends also notes that consumer confidence in food safety declined from 82 percent in 2006 to 66 percent this year—the lowest level since 1989. Well-trained employees who are knowledgeable about safe food-handling techniques can encourage consumer confidence.



Specific topics covered in the video include:

• Safe food-handling procedures.

• Innovative ways to measure and reduce shrink.

• Improved customer service through employee knowledge and behavior.

• Effective selling techniques to add incremental sales on new items and weekly specials.



The 22-minute video is $65 for retail/wholesaler members; the DVD version is $80. Call to inquire about associate member and nonmember prices. Quality Service, Quality Produce can be purchased through the FMI Store at www.fmi.org/store or by contacting Kim Roberts at (202) 220-0720 or kroberts@fmi.org.