Voice of Food Retail Blog

How Health and Wellness Fits Food Retail in the 21st Century

We’ve moved from an era where there was a dearth of nutrition facts to the present-day challenge of health-information ...

What Is Your Digital Readiness Score?

Whether the future of food retailing lies with brick-and-mortar stores, online operators or a combination of both is not the question to ask. The real challenge is to ask ourselves how ready are we to leverage digital technology and operational ...

A Long Called for Retirement Finally Announced

MasterCard has announced it is officially retiring signature authentication for credit and debit card transactions. This is a huge step in the right direction of once and for all putting signature out to pasture to never be seen ...

The Bipartisan Effect of Providing Jobs and Feeding Families

According to recent analysis released by FMI, our industry pays over $167 billion in wages to its almost five million workers in the U.S. Our significant economic impact includes the $367 million in wages in House Speaker Paul Ryan’s district in ...

Challenges and Opportunities: Is the Food Retail Industry Unique?

Just two short months ago I started at FMI as the director of research. Through my first assignment, releasing the 67th edition of The Food Retailing Industry Speaks (Speaks) report, I quickly became immersed in the exciting and evolving food retail ...

Preserving Shopper Trust through Health and Wellness

The most recent FMI U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends study found that nearly half of Americans see their “primary food store” as a significant ally in their attempts to achieve their health and wellness ...

How Do #GrocersDoingGood Create Youth Development Programs in Communities?

The unique strength of Cooking up Change comes from its power to elevate a meal and a message created by students so that it reaches their peers locally and nationwide. Through the competition, students gain a platform to discuss the importance of ...

FMI Family Embraces National Family Meals Month

During the month of September, FMI Staff celebrated National Family Meals Month™ with weekly events. The month kicked off with a pot luck celebration where everyone had the opportunity to share dishes that were special to their families. We also ...

Help Needed to Set the Table for Economic Growth

Our industry is in a time of great transition and change. The landscape is evolving in ways that necessitate significant capital expenditures and investments in order for traditional grocery stores and supermarkets to remain ...

What Grocers Need to Know About the 2017 State Elections

This November, voters in New Jersey and Virginia will head to the polls. Special elections to fill vacancies will also be held, most notably in the state of Washington, and 22 ballot initiatives will be held in seven states. Though far more limited ...

Fresh Food in the Grocery Store and RevenueShield®

I recently sat down with Joel Berrian of Berrian Insurance Group to discuss the advantages RevenueShield® brings to FMI Members particularly around the area of fresh foods....

Five Questions to Ask About Your Food Defense Plan

Food defense has long been a priority for retailers. Grocers have established food defense plans to actively prevent intentional contamination in the food supply ...

Go For The Gold: Excellence in National Family Meals Month Programming

By all accounts, this September is the best and most celebrated National Family Meals Month™ (NFMM) to date! Celebrate your accomplishments during the month of September through the FMI Foundation's Gold Plate ...

Why Now? What Has Changed? RevenueShield® Protecting Members’ Brands and Balance Sheets

FMI has added RevenueShield® to our Member Plus Program to assist members and associate members address these unconventional challenges and exposures. A unique program created exclusively for food retail, RevenueShield provides industry expertise, ...

The Unsung Heroes of Local Communities

While I often witness how the stores I frequent are involved in making a difference in our neighborhood, through the awards, I get to glimpse how the oft-unmentioned kindness of grocers throughout the U.S. can change their neighbor’s lives, proving ...