SANTA FE, N.M. — A Florida law firm this week filed the first attempt at a class-action lawsuit against Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co. and its parent, Reynolds American Inc., claiming the cigarette maker’s packaging and advertising are intended to mislead smokers into thinking American Spirit cigarettes are healthier than other tobacco products, reported The Santa Fe New Mexican.

The lawsuit was filed this week in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida by Justin Sproule, said the report.

The complaint seeks damages on behalf of Sproule and others who “smoke American Spirits because they have been deceived by claims, labels and advertising into regarding them as safer than other cigarettes.”

Descriptions such as “additive-free,” “natural” and “organic,” the lawsuit says, “are patently deceptive, especially in today’s market, where these terms have a potent meaning for the health-and-environmentally-conscious consumer.”

The company also exploits its marketing message in other ways, the complaint says, by selling its cigarettes in health food stores. “And it accompanies its cigarettes with literature from ‘America’s leading natural foods teacher’ who claims that the cigarettes are medicinal and that Native Americans smoke such additive free cigarettes without developing cancer.”

Santa Fe Natural Tobacco has been using the terms “natural” and “additive-free” to market American Spirit cigarettes since the company was founded more than three decades ago. But the labels are coming under increased scrutiny and legal challenges.

The lawsuit cites a recent U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) warning to the company that promoting American Spirit cigarettes as “natural” or “additive free” violates federal law.

Santa Fe Natural Tobacco already is subject to a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) consent order, entered in 2000, that requires the company’s advertising to include a disclosure that “No additives in our tobacco does not mean a safer cigarette.” Its ads also include a statement that “Organic tobacco does NOT mean a safer cigarette.”

The FDA, in an August 27 letter to the company, asserted that it has authority under a 2009 law to regulate “modified-risk tobacco products.” The agency directed the company to submit plans for “corrective actions.”

The Winston-Salem Journal noted that the FDA warning came about a month after the company began a national advertising campaign with full-page ads in magazines such as Sports Illustrated, Time, Field & Stream, Southern Living, Architectural Digest, Vanity Fair and US Weekly.

A spokesperson for Santa Fe Natural Tobacco, Seth Moskowitz, told the newspaper that company policy prevented him from commenting on the lawsuit.

MISSISSAUGA, Ontario — Walmart Canada and 7-Eleven Canada Inc. are expanding Walmart Canada’s Grab & Go Locker network with the addition of six 7-Eleven convenience stores in the greater Toronto area. The retailers have agreed to a six-month pilot of the project to evaluate customer response and usage.

The announcement marks the first time in Canada two retailers are teaming up to offer a Grab & Go Locker service.

The service offers customers using Walmart.ca a convenient, free shipping option where they can pick up their order, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at no cost.

The announcement expands on Walmart Canada’s current Grab & Go Locker service, which currently offers free shipping to 45 Grab & Go Lockers in the region.

“Partnering with 7-Eleven to expand our Grab & Go Locker service was a natural fit. Our goal is simple–we want to provide our customers with an online shopping experience that is easy and convenient,” said Simon Rodrigue, senior vice president of ecommerce for Walmart Canada. “What better partner to help us achieve this than the world’s largest convenience retailer? We know our customers already use 7-Eleven stores in their daily routine. Now they can fuel up their car at their local 7-Eleven and pick up their Walmart.ca order in one easy stop, any day, any time, without paying shipping fees.”

“The Walmart Grab & Go Locker service is a natural extension of our quality convenience offering,” said Raj Kapoor, vice president and general manager for 7-Eleven Canada. “We know that our customers look to us to give them a one-stop shopping experience, so we’re pleased to be able to offer them this additional service. We’ll continue to listen to our customers and will evaluate the success of this pilot on an ongoing basis.”

Walmart Canada’s Grab & Go Locker service allows customers to order goods online and ship for free to a Grab & Go locker. Once the item is placed in the locker the customer is sent an email with a six-digit PIN code. Customers then have seven days to retrieve their items from the locker. Walmart’s Grab & Go Lockers are currently offered in select Toronto-area Walmart stores, Walmart Canada Home Office and Kapuskasing, Ontario.

The 7-Eleven locations that will offer Walmart.ca Grab & Go Lockers are in Toronto (2), Brampton, Burlington, Mississauga and Vaughan, Ont.
Walmart Canada operates 395 stores nationwide. Its flagship online store, www.walmart.ca, is visited by 450,000 customers daily.

Based in Dallas, 7‑Eleven operates, franchises or licenses nearly 10,500 7‑Eleven convenience stores in North America. Globally, there are more than 56,200 7‑Eleven c-stores in 16 countries.

LOS ANGELES — As Pabst Brewing adds Tsingtao to its beer portfolio, it has created a new division called Jacob Best Imports to be led by former vice president of national accounts Mark Beatty.

The new division is named after Jacob Best Sr., a German-American brewer who, in 1844, founded what would later become the Pabst Brewing Co. in Milwaukee.

As president and general manager of Jacob Best Imports, Beatty will oversee the sales and distribution of Tsingtao Beer, which Pabst added to its portfolio on July 1. He’ll also be tasked with building an import portfolio for Pabst, a new venture for the growing brewer.

Beatty will build brand-development and market-activation teams to support and grow the company’s import business. He will work out of Dallas and report to Pabst CEO Eugene Kashper. Before joining Pabst in 2011, he was in national accounts with Heineken USA for eight years.

Brian Smith, formerly national sales leader for Mark Anthony Brands, will fill Beatty’s previous position as vice president of national accounts. He will be in charge of planning and execution within the national accounts organization and growing Pabst’s business with chain customers. He will report to Bruce Muenter, executive vice president of sales.

Pabst is the third-largest beer brewer in the United States behind Anheuser-Busch and MillerCoors.

Blue Ribbon Intermediate Holdings LLC, Los Angeles, purchased Pabst Brewing Co. in November. Blue Ribbon is a partnership between American beer entrepreneur Eugene Kashper and San Francisco-based TSG Consumer Partners LLC, a leading investor in growth consumer brands.

OAKBROOK TERRACE, Ill. — Today, CSP launches the industry’s first PackBev E-News, a new weekly newsletter that will tackle news, best practices and new products in the packaged-beverage world. It’s difficult to overemphasize the importance of packaged beverages in the convenience-store universe. They’re the No. 1 driver of in-store traffic. They represent 15.4% of store sales contribution, behind only tobacco and foodservice, while topping the list of gross-margin earners at 39.8%.

They’re also fun and the frequent subject of innovation.

At the same time, packaged beverages represent hundreds of SKUs—heavy, single-serve SKUs—and a constant barrage of new products that can keep a category manager busy from sunup to sundown trying to figure out which ones are worth their salt.

Add to that, the fact that the beverage category is going through a dramatic transition, one where carbonated soft drinks fight for share with energy drinks, bottled water, iced tea and any number of other subcategories.

City and state governments regularly float proposals to tax, limit or ban sugar-sweetened drinks even as consumers wage their own war against beverages made with other artificial sweeteners.

With so much going on in the beverage arena, shame on us for not launching a newsletter sooner that presents beverage news, analysis, new products, data and more in your email inbox. And we’re democratic around here, so if you have beverage content ideas you’d like to see, drop me a note at sholtz@winsightmedia.com.

In the meantime, watch for PackBev E-News in your inbox every Monday, or click here to get your own subscription if you happened upon this note from a coworker’s shared email.

WORCESTER, Mass. — Joe Hamza, previously with Tedeschi Food Shops, has joined Nouria Energy Corp.’s executive team as the convenience-store and fuel chain’s chief operating officer for retail and marketing, Tony El-Nemr, president and CEO of Nouria Energy has announced.

Hamza brings to his new position nearly 25 years of leadership and retail experience.

“We are very excited to have such a prominent industry leader joining our organization and are looking forward to Joe guiding the retail and marketing division to the new level of success” said EI-Nemr.

Prior to joining Nouria Energy, Hamza served as Tedeschi Food Shops’ vice president of sales and marketing, where he was responsible for devising and implementing sales and marketing strategies and for running the c-store company’s foodservice business.

In a deal that closed in August, 7-Eleven, Dallas, has acquired Tedeschi Food Shops, Rockland, Mass.

Hamza is an active member of the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS), serving as a member of the NACS-United Fresh Convenience Task Force. He also serves as chairman of the membership committee for the New England Convenience Store Association (NECSA), among other industry groups. In addition, he serves on a number of organization and brand advisory boards.

Worcester, Mass.-based Nouria Energy is one of New England’s largest family-owned and -operated convenience-store and fuel retailers. The company owns and operates 83 convenience stores under the Shell Food Mart and Lil’ Mart brands and supplies fuel to more than 130 sites operating under the Shell, Gulf and Irving brands in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. Most locations have extensive foodservice offerings such as Dunkin’ Donuts, McDonalds, Subway or the chain’s own Sebago Cafe and Sub Express. Additionally, it has multiple locations that include car washes.

TOKYO —Japanese retailer FamilyMart Co. Ltd. is closing all eight of its Famima!! convenience stores in the United States, is liquidating Famima Corp. USA and will withdraw from the United States, reported Japanese newspaper Nikkei.

All of the convenience stores are located on the West Coast in the Los Angeles area, with headquarters in Torrance, Calif.

According to social media reports, the chain’s Santa Monica, Calif., store closed in late September. LA Eater confirmed that the rest of the stores will close by the end of October.

When the chain opened its first store in 2005, FamilyMart said it had plans to open as many as 200 stores in the United States within four years. Between 2005 and 2013, it opened and closed a handful of stores, ending to with the current eight locations.

As recently as 2014, the company still said it planned extensive international growth, including in the United States.

The expansion did not materialize, and FamilyMart will concentrate its resources on opening stores in Asia, the newspaper said.

The company did not respond to CSP Daily News requests for comment.

The chain’s product lineup focuses on fast-food items, ready-to-eat products and health sandwiches. The stores feature “characteristically Japanese high-quality products, services and hospitality,” Famima said on its website. “We aim to meet the expectations of our fashion-conscious customers in the local area.” The stores offer traditional Japanese c-store staples such as omusubi and onigiri rice balls, bento box lunches and sushi. The stores also feature wireless Internet access, an ATM, a copy machine and an eat-in area.

Tokyo-based FamilyMart has a network consisting of more than 11,100 convenience stores in Japan and an overseas network consisting of more than 5,700 c-stores.

WASHINGTON — The Big Three tobacco manufacturers have revived a lawsuit seeking a permanent injunction against the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to prevent implementation of new packaging guidelines, reported The Winston-Salem Journal.

Altria Group Inc., Lorillard Inc. and Reynolds American Inc. sued April 14 over rules for packaging labels that they consider too restrictive under the federal Tobacco Control Act of 2009.

The FDA issued an interim enforcement policy May 29 on new tobacco products that appeared to be a response to the lawsuit, the report said.

The manufacturers agreed to drop the lawsuit June 2 based on the FDA’s willingness to consider regulatory comments and delay enforcing the initial guidelines.

The FDA’s new guidelines were issued September 8. The manufacturers said in the revived lawsuit that the guidelines imposed similar restrictions.

In the revival of the lawsuit, ITG Brands LLC has taken the place of Lorillard, said the newspaper. Most of Lorillard went to Imperial Tobacco Group in a deal related to the Reynolds American-Lorillard merger. ITG Brands is Imperial’s U.S. subsidiary.

The FDA has wanted to broaden its power of prior restraint on the companies’ marketing communications by saying that they require the agency’s approval for changes to labeling of tobacco products and the quantities of products within a package.

A modified label could be simply changing the background color, the report said.

According to the lawsuit, “over the past four years, FDA has suggested varying interpretations of the act that would improperly broaden the agency’s regulatory authority over tobacco product labels and product quantities. Each time, when challenged, FDA devised a new rationale for the same predetermined conclusion that the changes create a new tobacco product subject to premarket review under the act—a results-oriented approach that is antithetical to proper agency decision-making and inconsistent with the plain language of the act.”

“Reynolds American’s operating companies are in compliance with the act, and believe that FDA does not have the authority to impose the restrictions outlined in the guidance,” David Howard, a Reynolds spokesperson, told the Journal. “The act’s substantial equivalence [SE] provisions regulate the introduction of new tobacco products into the market. These provisions address the characteristics of the product itself, not how the product is described. Congress provided different mechanisms for changes to how the product is described in its packaging and labeling.”

He added, “FDA is trying to do an end run around these other mechanisms by using the substantial equivalence pathway to regulate packaging and labeling.”

On September 15, the FDA prohibited the sale of four brands of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.’s cigarettes: Camel Crush Bold, Pall Mall Deep Set Recessed Filter, Pall Mall Deep Set Recessed Filter Menthol and Vantage Tech 13.

On August 27, it sent warning letters to a Reynolds American subsidiary and ITG Brands, saying that advertising traditional cigarette products as “additive free” or “natural” is in violation of federal regulations. The brands are Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Co.’s Natural American Spirit, ITG’s Winston and Sherman’s 1400 Broadway N.Y.C. Ltd.’s Nat Sherman.

BOSTON — In Boston on October 1, CITGO Petroleum Corp. sponsored the red carpet at the grand opening event of the city’s first Wahlburgers restaurant located in Fenway Park and adjacent to the iconic Boston CITGO sign, giving attendees a taste of the benefits of newly released Club CITGO mobile app.

Wahlburgers is a chain of casual burger restaurants owned by the celebrity Wahlberg family from Boston, including actors Mark and Donnie Wahlberg along with their brother Paul (who is the restaurant’s chef), which has been featured in its own ongoing reality show on A&E for four seasons.

Fenway Park marks the chain’s fifth location, with others in the Massachusetts area and more in the works in Las Vegas, Orlando and Philadelphia.

Mark Wahlberg is known for his starring roles in Planet of the Apes, The Departed (which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor), Ted and Transformers: Age of Extinction. Prior to the event, he used his social media channels to encourage his nearly 20 million online fans and followers to join Club CITGO. Approximately 4,000 followers “favorited” and “liked” his posts.

On the red carpet, the event’s 350 guests were encouraged to download the Club CITGO app for the chance to win up to $500 in gas gift cards along with other prizes. Club CITGO brand ambassador Jessica Kenworthy was also on hand to meet with attendees and explain more about the benefits of the app, including access to special in-store deals, prizes and offers at participating CITGO locations.

In addition to the Wahlburgers opening, CITGO’s partnership with Mark Wahlberg will continue later into the year, as the company will serve as a sponsor of the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation holiday party in December, bringing gifts, food and a visit from Santa Claus to underserved children from local Boston Boys & Girls Clubs. Involvement with the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation is part of CITGO’s Fueling Good initiative, encouraging everyone to get involved and give back to their local communities.

CITGO, based in Houston, is a refiner, transporter and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products. The company is owned by CITGO Holding Inc., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A., the national oil company of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

NEW YORK — The combined wealth of Forbes magazine’s 2015 ranking of the richest people in America, The Forbes 400, is $2.34 trillion, up from $2.29 trillion in 2014 and the highest ever. The average net worth of a Forbes 400 member is an astounding $5.8 billion, the highest to date, up from $5.7 billion last year. Net worth increased for 202 members and decreased for 119 members.

Bill Gates retains the top spot on The Forbes 400 for the 22nd straight year, at $76 billion, down $5 billion from 2014:

1. Bill Gates, Microsoft ($76 billion)
2. Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway ($62 billion)
3. Larry Ellison, Oracle ($47.5 billion)
4. Jeff Bezos, Amazon ($47 billion)
5. Charles Koch, [diversified] ($41 billion)
6. David Koch, [diversified] ($41 billion)
7. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook ($40.3 billion)
8. Michael Bloomberg, Bloomberg LP ($38.6 billion)
9. Jim Walton, Wal-Mart ($33.7 billion)
10. Larry Page, Google ($33.3 billion)

Individuals who built their fortunes as gas-station and convenience-store industry suppliers fared better than retailers on the list:

Retail

No. 86: Kelcy Warren, Energy Transfer Equity (ETE)/Energy Transfer Partners (ETP), $4.6 billion.

Energy Transfer Equity LP, Dallas, is master limited partnership (MLP) that owns the general partner and 100% of the incentive distribution rights (IDRs) of Energy Transfer Partners LP (ETP). It owns Sunoco Inc. and Susser Holdings Corp. Houston-based Sunoco LP is an MLP that distributes motor fuel to convenience stores, independent dealers, commercial customers and distributors. It also operates more than 150 convenience stores and gas stations. While primarily engaged in natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil and refined products transportation, ETP also operates a retail and fuel distribution business through its interest in Sunoco LLC, as well as wholly owned subsidiaries, Sunoco Inc. and Stripes LLC, that operate approximately 1,100 convenience stores and gas stations.

No. 108: Tom & Judy Love, Love’s, $4.8 billion.

Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores Inc., based in Oklahoma City, has more than 350 truckstops in 40 states.

No. 234 Jimmy Haslam, Pilot Flying J, $2.9 billion.

Based in Knoxville, Tenn., Pilot Flying J has approximately 725 truckstops in 46 states and Canada. Haslam also owns the Cleveland Browns professional football team.

No. 327: Bill Haslam, Pilot Flying J, $2.1 billion.

Bill Haslam, brother of Jimmy Haslam, is governor of Tennessee and the richest elected official in America.

Suppliers

No. 18: Forrest Mars Jr., Mars, $22.4 billion.

No. 18: Jacqueline Mars, Mars, $22.4 billion.

No. 18: John Mars, Mars, $22.4 billion.

No. 129: Steve & Lynda Resnick, POM Wonderful, Fiji Water, $4.3 billion.

No. 149: Christopher Reyes, Reyes Beverage Group, Martin-Brower (food distribution), Reinhart Foodservice, $3.7 billion.

No. 149: Jude Reyes, Reyes Beverage Group, Martin-Brower (food distribution), Reinhart Foodservice, $3.7 billion.

No. 149: Alejandro Santo Domingo, SABMiller, $4.6 billion.

No. 256: William Wrigley Jr, Wrigley, $2.6 billion.

No. 279: C. Dean Metropoulos, Pabst, Hostess, $2.4 billion.

No. 375:  Drayton McLane, Wal-Mart, McLane Co., $1.84 billion.

Click here to view the full list and profiles.

HOLTS SUMMIT, Mo. — Pro Food Systems, the parent company of Champs Chicken and Cooper’s Express, is repositioning itself with a new strategy, new image and new focus. To launch this effort, Pro Food Systems Inc. (PFS) is introducing a new corporate umbrella brand, PFSbrands, along with the tagline “Our Support. Your Success.”

The launch of PFSbrands is accompanied by a new website, www.PFSbrands.com, with detailed information about hot food program options for convenience stores, grocery stores and distributors. PFSbrands encompasses the company’s flagship brand Champs Chicken, Cooper’s Express, private-label brands and the recently expanded PFS Equipment Division.

“Our company is successful because we have a fantastic team of employees that live by a solid set of core values. Our team places 100% of their attention toward enhancing the levels of support we provide our retailers to help them succeed and be profitable,” said Shawn Burcham, CEO of Pro Food Systems. “We are currently adding staff into a new Customer Success Division that will help our committed retailers continue to grow their same-store sales.”

He continued, “We have a lot of short-term and long-term improvement plans working that will make the next several years exciting. PFSbrands is just the beginning. We are a company committed to continuous improvement, and we plan to bring even more value to our retail partners.”

With more than 700 branded locations in 36 states, Pro Food Systems distributes its chicken and other products out of the company’s 65,000-square-foot corporate headquarters and national distribution center located in Holts Summit, Mo.