MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis-area residents can now buy groceries online from Target—and receive their orders at home in as little as an hour, the mass retailer has announced. The new system, which went live September 15, is part of a new partnership with on-demand grocery delivery service Instacart.

The companies are exploring plans to expand into additional areas and markets.

“Our goal is to make grocery shopping easier and more convenient,” said Jason Goldberger, president of Target.com and Mobile. “Our team is constantly listening to guests’ needs and looking for new ways to help them shop Target wherever, whenever and however they want. Instacart is a leading player in this space and we look forward to seeing how guests in the Minneapolis area respond to the service.”

In addition to groceries, the collaboration will allow customers to purchase select Target household, health and beauty, pet and baby products such as diapers and formula.

Customers in the delivery area—which initially include select Minneapolis neighborhoods and some western suburbs—can now use Instacart.com or the Instacart app to shop Target. 

The companies are exploring plans to expand into additional areas and markets.

The partnership is another example of Minneapolis-based Target’s increasing efforts to quickly deliver goods to guests. It comes on the heels of Target offering store pickup for online orders and expanding the “ship-from-store” program where stores fulfill and ship online orders, typically in two to three days.

Guests can visit Instacart.com and enter their zip code to see if they’re eligible for the service. Delivery is free for the first Instacart order. After the first Instacart order, delivery costs start at $3.99 for a two-hour scheduled delivery with a purchase of $35 or more. There is a $10 order minimum on all orders. 

Instacart delivers from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. On holidays, Instacart’s delivery hours are subject to Target store holiday hours.

The move comes as Amazon, Wal-Mart and Overstock.com have also recently rolled out online grocery shopping and home delivery. And 7-Eleven recently partnered with DoorDash to provide on-demand delivery from more than 200 participating 7-Eleven convenience stores in five major metropolitan markets across the United States. It is also in a separate test with Postmates to deliver groceries, fresh foods and other convenience-store items in San Francisco and Oakland.

PLANO, Texas — The Ruffles brand is bringing one of Canada’s biggest snacking successes and “taste-bud titillating curiosities,” Ruffles All Dressed potato chips, to Americans for a limited time–September 14 through December 7.

Ruffles All Dressed potato chips have a flavor and a name that are hard to describe, snack maker Frito-Lay said. The flavor is a combination of the most popular flavors and tastes—salty, savory and sweet.

“You don’t know quite what to expect when you put Ruffles All Dressed chips in your mouth,” said Dana Lawrence, senior director of marketing at Frito-Lay. “That’s part of the charm and discovery. This is not a light and crispy chip. Ruffles All Dressed potato chips are for people looking for more–more ridges, more flavor, more fun.”

According to BuzzFeed, “The All Dressed flavor is a mélange of ingredients that include tomato, salt, vinegar, onion, sour cream, barbecue, a sprinkle of this and a sprinkle of that. It’s the ‘everything bagel’ of Canada.”

One independent taste tester for BuzzFeed said, “I would eat the sh*t out of All-Dressed Ruffles. All day, every day. They’re like the chip version of falling in love—a more flavorful salt and vinegar chip. Holy moly. I can’t stop thinking about them.”

(Click here for more reviews.)

All Dressed chips are as popular in Canada as top-selling Ruffles Cheddar and Sour Cream chips are in the United States, said the company. For 15 years, they have been available only in Canada—with confused American visitors constantly stumbling across it in convenience stores and supermarkets and wondering when it would make its way south.

Ruffles All Dressed chips are now available nationwide in two sizes—a 2.6-oz. bag for a suggested retail price of $1.49 and a 7.75-oz bag for a suggested retail price of $3.49. 

Ruffles potato chips is one of the many brands that makes up Frito-Lay North America, the $14 billion convenient foods business unit of PepsiCo, based in Purchase, N.Y. 

PepsiCo generated more than $66 billion in net revenue in 2014, driven by a complementary food and beverage portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker and Tropicana. PepsiCo’s product portfolio includes a wide range of foods and beverages, including 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

SOUTHLAKE, Texas — Characterizing mobile as an opportunity to extend a retailer’s brand as well as managers’ access to business intelligence, officials with The Pinnacle Corp. opened their 2015 users’ conference on a note of raising expectations.

Before about 300 attendees at the annual user forum, Bob Johnson, president of the Arlington, Texas-based company, talked about plans to extend access to reports and analytics via mobile devices.

“It used to be you had to go to your desk or to the reporting personnel,” Johnson said. “Now [information] will extend out to where your management teams are.”

In addition to talking about upcoming mobile capabilities, Johnson recapped a few recent company achievements:

• Training processes, having developed a program for users to continually hone their application skills.

• EMV, with extensive updates done to accommodate Europay MasterCard Visa requirements.

• Altria rebate support, with work going into helping users participate in the tobacco manufacturer’s latest programs.

• Inventory management, with an increasing number of users opting for item-level inventory and computer-assisted ordering.

• Loyalty, with its program growing in areas like promotions.

Other speakers included Jenny Bullard, CIO of Flash Foods, Waycross, Ga., who looked back on her company’s involvement with Pinnacle, evolving from scanning and backoffice development to its current loyalty and mobile-payment platforms. She said that when her supervisors review the year, they always say the best things they’ve ever done so support profitability have been their loyalty and computer-assisted-ordering programs.

Another opening session speaker focused on raising expectations. John Brenkus, CEO and director of BASE Productions, a TV-content creator based in Washington, D.C., has developed science programs focused on sports for channels such as Discovery, Fox and ESPN. The multiple Emmy-award winner said oftentimes people set their expectations too low.

He gave the example of the four-minute mile. It took decades for runners to break it, but once done, dozens followed. In a similar way, he felt that society’s expectations for girls and sports are far too low. Those standards should rise to allow for greater excellence.

“Make sure you’re not setting a silly limit or round number,” Brenkus said. “What is your four-minute mile and what can you do to break it?

SOUTHLAKE, Texas — Characterizing mobile as an opportunity to extend a retailer’s brand as well as managers’ access to business intelligence, officials with The Pinnacle Corp. opened their 2015 users’ conference on a note of raising expectations.

Before about 200 attendees at the annual user forum, Bob Johnson, president of the Arlington, Texas-based company, talked about plans to extend access to reports and analytics via mobile devices.

“It used to be you had to go to your desk or to the reporting personnel,” Johnson said. “Now [information] will extend out to where your management teams are.”

In addition to talking about upcoming mobile capabilities, Johnson recapped a few recent company achievements:

• Training processes, having developed a program for users to continually hone their application skills.

• EMV, with extensive updates done to accommodate Europay MasterCard Visa requirements.

• Altria rebate support, with work going into helping users participate in the tobacco manufacturer’s latest programs.

• Inventory management, with an increasing number of users opting for item-level inventory and computer-assisted ordering.

• Loyalty, with its program growing in areas like promotions.

Other speakers included Jenny Bullard, CIO of Flash Foods, Waycross, Ga., who looked back on her company’s involvement with Pinnacle, evolving from scanning and backoffice development to its current loyalty and mobile-payment platforms. She said that when her supervisors review the year, they always say the best things they’ve ever done so support profitability have been their loyalty and computer-assisted-ordering programs.

Another opening session speaker focused on raising expectations. John Brenkus, CEO and director of BASE Productions, a TV-content creator based in Washington, D.C., has developed science programs focused on sports for channels such as Discovery, Fox and ESPN. The multiple Emmy-award winner said oftentimes people set their expectations too low.

He gave the example of the four-minute mile. It took decades for runners to break it, but once done, dozens followed. In a similar way, he felt that society’s expectations for girls and sports are far too low. Those standards should rise to allow for greater excellence.

“Make sure you’re not setting a silly limit or round number,” Brenkus said. “What is your four-minute mile and what can you do to break it?

LOS ANGELES — While the national average gasoline price is around $2.33 per gallon, Los Angeles drivers are paying more than $1 more. But a special “Tank Takeover” promotion this week from GasBuddy will roll prices back to 2009 levels.

GasBuddy, the crowd-sourced fuel-price intelligence provider, is partnering with G&M Oil Co. Inc. to take over some of its Los Angeles and Orange County gas stations and offer a special, limited-time gasoline price and in-store deals.

G&M Oil, Huntington Beach, Calif., has more than 140 G&M Food Mart and Extra Mile Chevron-branded stores throughout Southern California.

The promotion will run from Sept. 16-18, 2015, and offer gas prices “for a fraction” of the Los Angeles average, according to GasBuddy. The discounted price will apply only to vehicle fillups of gasoline. It will not be applicable to container fillups or diesel purchases. G&M Oil customers who download the retailer’s and GasBuddy’s mobile apps will also get deals such as free refreshments and savings on convenience-store items.

“This year Southern California has been plagued with sudden and huge price spikes,” said Allison Mac, director of public relations for GasBuddy, Gaithersburg, Md. “Our mission has always been to help people save money at the pump. This week we are taking it a step further and literally providing the cheapest gas possible to a city that could use the relief.”

G&M Oil was founded in 1969, and today owns and operates more than 140 c-stores and gas stations in San Diego, Riverside, San Bernardino, Orange, Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

GasBuddy’s fuel-price app and website feature real-time fuel prices at more than 130,000 stations in the United States and Canada.

HOPEWELL JUNCTION, N.Y. — In late December 1995, Ali Kirmani arrived at JFK airport in New York City from Lahore, Pakistan, seeking to embody the ultimate in overused clichés—a better life for himself in the land of opportunity.

With absolutely no experience in the retail-fuel business, Kirmani began managing a retail gas station in Queens. He worked hard for many years, learned the business and purchased his first gasoline station in 2001. He became a branded dealer for Gulf Oil, invested in the site and grew the business. Over time, he bought a few more locations and became a Gulf Oil distributor in 2011. SNK Petroleum Wholesalers was born.

Kirmani today is the embodiment of many crosswinds in an industry undergoing rapid transformation. He is the classic immigrant story played out with increased frequency in the convenience trade. He also is an adherent to the adage “grow or go.”

Bumps In the Road

With his new status as a distributor, Kirmani sought to grow the Gulf brand in New York.  Over the next few years, SNK purchased several more locations, sites that were mostly underperforming and in need of considerable improvements. With the capital in place and an eye for quality construction, Ali refurbished each site, both inside and out, with high-end building materials. The strategy paid off, and sites that were previously run down and nearly left for dead flourished with an improved image, better service, competitive pricing and, of course, Gulf branding. 

But as we know, even the finest of Disney storylines is interrupted with threats and uncertainty. And so too with Kirmani.

It was the pre-Halloween meteorological calamity, Superstorm Sandy, that rocked Greater New York on Oct. 29, 2012. Sandy caused billions of dollars in damage and wrought massive power outages and flooding, including gasoline terminals and retail stores. With much longer truck routes to pick up fuel at operating terminals, long lines at gas stations mirrored those experienced during the 1979 oil crisis. Far fewer deliveries could be made to stores; many sites were without power or fuel for weeks. And for those able to stay open, prices topped $4 a gallon.

SNK was not spared, and Kirmani vowed that his company would never again suffer such disruptions if he could help it.

In 2013, he decided to purchase trucks so that he could have some control over his deliveries, in addition to using outside carriers. This not only supported SNK’s retail-store network in times of crisis, but also allowed for purchasing efficiencies. Since that time, SNK has become one of Gulf’s largest independent fuel distributors in New York, quite an accomplishment for the 4-year-old company.

Growing Today

With a current portfolio of over 25 locations and sites typically running four MPDs and stores of about 2,500-square-foot, SNK Petroleum has made its mark on the motor-fuels industry in New York. Kirmani has set the stage and is poised for continued growth in the Empire State and beyond. He continues to answer the call for new growth under the Gulf brand.

“With our extensive network of sites in New York, we take pride in delivering value and best-in-class service and image to our customers in the markets in which we do business,” said Kirmani, CEO of SNK. “With our proven formula for business improvements, we will continue to strive for excellence and growth no matter how great the challenges we must face in our day-to-day business.”

CHICAGO — MillerCoors’ Tenth and Blake craft and import beer division has acquired a majority interest in Saint Archer Brewing Co.

Founded in San Diego in 2013 by a group of entrepreneurs, artists, skateboarders and surfers, Saint Archer brews a range of ales including Blonde Ale, IPA, White Ale and Pale Ale. Saint Archer expects to sell 35,000 barrels of beer in 2015, up more than 100% over 2014, making it one of the fastest-growing breweries in California. Tenth and Blake plans to support its continued growth under the ongoing leadership of Josh Landan, Saint Archer co-founder and president.

“We have always wanted to get great beer into more people’s hands,” said Landan. “We were fortunate that brewers big and small were interested in partnering with us, but Tenth and Blake was the clear choice. Tenth and Blake shares our passion for putting great beer first. Joining Tenth and Blake allows us to keep doing what we love right here in San Diego but now with more resources to innovate and grow. With Tenth and Blake’s help, we hope to one day be a national brand.”

Saint Archer’s management and team will continue to brew, package, ship and sell Saint Archer’s portfolio of brands. Saint Archer will be run as a separate business unit of Tenth and Blake.

“We’re really excited about our partnership with Saint Archer,” said Scott Whitley, president and CEO of Tenth and Blake. “Saint Archer is consistent with our strategy of building our high-end portfolio while driving topline growth. Josh and his team represent everything we look for in a partner. Saint Archer brews award-winning ales across a variety of styles that are complementary to our current portfolio, including some outstanding IPAs. We’re excited at the prospect of working together to support the continued success of Saint Archer.”

Saint Archer picked up two gold medals at the 2014 San Diego International Beer Festival and a gold medal at the 2014 Great American Beer Festival.

Saint Archer joins other leading crafts in the Tenth and Blake, Chicago, portfolio, including Blue Moon Brewing Co., Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co., Crispin Cider Co. and a minority equity stake in Terrapin Beer Co.

The transaction is expected to complete in October 2015. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

WASHINGTON — Today the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) issued orders that will stop the further sale and distribution of four currently marketed R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. cigarette products because the company’s submissions for these products did not meet requirements set forth in the Federal Food, Drug & Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act).

The FDA’s evaluation found that Camel Crush Bold, Pall Mall Deep Set Recessed Filter, Pall Mall Deep Set Recessed Filter Menthol and Vantage Tech 13 cigarettes were not substantially equivalent (NSE) to their respective “predicate” products (products that were commercially marketed as of Feb. 15, 2007) as identified by the manufacturer.

The agency concluded the products have different characteristics than the predicate products and that the manufacturer failed to show that the new products do not raise different questions of public health when compared to them.

Consequently, at this time, these products can no longer be sold, distributed, imported or marketed in interstate commerce, the FDA said.

Watch for details on CSPnet.com and in CSP Daily News.

OAKBROOK TERRACE, Ill. — “Have it your way.”

What once served as an evocative slogan for a national burger chain, the phrase now packs so much additional potential.

It used to signify a simple request for pickles, onions, extra ketchup (and hold the cheese!), but has since graduated to something more substantive. Similar to pizza and other fare, customer cravings for exotic burgers are unrelenting, a trend that should keep convenience-store retailers on their toes.

For example, Masher Burgers are beef or chicken burgers topped with garlic mashed potatoes, truffle gravy and crispy onion strings. They were tested in the summer of 2014 by Carl’s Jr., according to Datassentials’ August edition of FoodBytes.

And there’s more exotic inspiration where that came from: Bison burgers are a perennial limited-time offer, and two or three chains have introduced one each year since 2013. This summer Fuddruckers introduced a Bison Chipotle Burger, while Kona Grill in January introduced a Bison Burger with Danish bleu cheese, according to FoodBytes.

The Rock Bottom’s Bison Prairie Burger, offered twice as an LTO in 2014, features a “perfectly seasoned bison patty smash-griddled to guests’ liking” topped with poblano peppers, mushrooms, pepper jack cheese, pico de gallo and chipotle mayonnaise. The burger scored in the 85th percentile with male consumers, and in the 57th percentile overall, according to FoodBytes.

Rock Bottom also introduced a BBQ Brisket Stuffed Burger last November: a beef patty filled with shredded BBQ beef brisket, served on a buttery grilled onion bun with smoked gouda, lettuce and tomato. Again, the burger scored high with male consumers (91st percentile), as well as millennials and baby boomers.

At the Green Turtle Sports Bar & Grille, The Comeback Burger brings breakfast flavors to the lunch and dinner menu, according to FoodBytes. The LTO features an Angus burger topped with bacon, cheddar, American cheese and a fried egg drizzled in maple syrup, all served between two Belgian waffles with a side of homemade cheddar and scallion-stuffed tater tots.

With so much activity, social media has joined the fray. The Hartman Group reported in September that Burgerbusiness.com noted fan photos of customized burgers are becoming “Facebook staples for many burger chains and bars.”

The site reports “Canada’s South St. Burger is taking that idea a step farther by creating what it’s calling a ‘Not-So-Secret’ menu. These are four new sandwiches inspired by customers’ photos of custom burgers. These are made possible by what the chain claims are the 730 million ways to order a burger because of its extensive array of topping options.”

The Hartman Group’s Digital Food Life study found the interplay between consumers, social media, smartphone use and “digital life” is reconfiguring how consumers eat today. The study found that “through technology, food culture has shifted in such a way that it is no longer imperative that food marketers focus on consumers’ wants and needs. Instead, forward-looking companies should pay attention more to what people are actually doing with food, how they play with it and what meals and snacks they make.”

Burger Facts

CHD Expert, a Chicago-based foodservice data and analytics firm, has evaluated the current hamburger restaurant landscape of the United States and uncovered recent trends that offer new insight into this market.

• There are roughly 1.6 hamburger restaurants for every 10,000 Americans.
• As of August 2015, there are more than 49,000 hamburger restaurants in the United States. In 2014, independent burger restaurants grew 6.7% in units, whereas chain burger restaurants showed limited overall growth.
• The fast-casual segment is still on the rise, with four of the Top 10 fast-casual growth chains being classified in the burger segment. Independent burger restaurants make up 14% of the entire burger market.

“The burger market in the United States is a multibillion dollar business,” said Brad Bloom, vice president of sales and marketing at CHD Expert, The Americas. “As this landscape continues to expand, new opportunities for generating profitability begin to present themselves to manufacturers and suppliers. Each new trend represents a new opportunity for growth, be it with a new start up concept restaurant or an established chain.”

THOMASVILLE, Ga. — Flowers Foods Inc. has completed the acquisition of Dave’s Killer Bread, the nation’s best-selling organic bread, from its shareholders, including members of the founding Dahl family and Goode Partners, for approximately $275 million in cash.

Dave’s Killer Bread will operate as an independent subsidiary of Flowers Foods.

“We are firmly committed to staying true to the recipes, baking process and other factors that have made Dave’s Killer Bread the best-selling organic bread in the U.S.,” said Allen L. Shiver, Flowers Foods’ president and CEO. “Flowers’ resources will allow more consumers to find Dave’s Killer Bread in their markets, and with the deal now completed, we can begin working together to make that happen. We welcome the more than 300 Dave’s Killer Bread employee partners, who bring great expertise and enthusiasm to Flowers.”

John Tucker, Dave’s Killer Bread president and CEO, sees more growth ahead. “We’ve got a brand that’s made for greatness: a killer recipe that’s powerfully different, a deep commitment to organic, non-GMO ingredients, and a team of partners poised to dial up our growth and take care of all of our fans, ” Tucker said. “Together with Flowers, we’re going to blanket the U.S. with the best bread in the universe, and make good on our commitment to second chance employment.”

Dave’s Killer Bread is an organic sliced bread with 17 varieties of whole grain organic bakery products and widespread distribution across the United States and Canada. All its products are Certified USDA organic and Non-GMO Project Verified.
Based in Thomasville, Ga., Flowers Foods is one of the largest producers of fresh packaged bakery foods in the United States, with 2014 sales of $3.75 billion. It operates bakeries across the country that produce a wide range of bakery products. Among the company’s top brands are Nature’s Own, Wonder and Tastykake.