Food + Tech Connect

JULY 22, 2024

Image Credit: Green Queen Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines. The UK has become the first European country to approve lab-grown meat, starting with Meatly, a cultivated chicken pet food product. Meanwhile, innovation in the global food and beverage industry has dramatically declined, with only 35% of new CPG launches in 2024 being genuinely new

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Food and Beverage Food and Beverage 206

Restobiz

JULY 15, 2024

By Samantha Clark As the foodservice industry continues to change and evolve, modern payroll tools are transforming restaurants by streamlining operations, enhancing accuracy, and improving employee satisfaction. Traditional payroll methods in restaurants are not only time-consuming but are also prone to errors, leading to dissatisfaction among staff and administrative burdens for management.

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Restaurant Management Restaurant Manager Staffing 193

Modern Restaurant Management

JULY 22, 2024

Imagine your wait staff getting your restaurant ready for the day when the heat index outside exceeds 100 degrees. The temperature is so oppressive that employees immediately crank up all the air conditioning units. An hour later, when sweltering guests crowd in, your team is too distracted to turn some units down. High electric bills and wasted energy are the last things on their minds.

Recipes 193

Recipes 193

Wasserstrom

JULY 24, 2024

The topic of inclusion is now at the forefront of American discourse. Yet we have overlooked, forgotten, or were completely unaware of one population: the millions of people with disabilities that are not able to use standard public restrooms. Imagine a child not being able to go on field trips with their classmates, because the […] The post Adult Changing Stations Are a Necessity for Inclusive Public Buildings appeared first on The Official Wasserstrom Blog.

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Restaurant Management Restaurant Manager Hospitality Hospitality 120

Hospitality Net

JULY 15, 2024

In today’s dynamic world of cloud computing and enterprise solutions, Oracle has established itself as a leader by integrating advanced technologies to boost business operations across various industries. Let’s look at the applications of Oracle Hospitality, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, and Fusion within the broader framework of Oracle’s enterprise solutions, and highlight how these platforms deliver robust, AI-enhanced functionalities, driving efficiency and growth in the hospitality industry a

Hospitality 132

Hospitality Hospitality 132

Sculpture Hospitality

JULY 23, 2024

Are you excited by the allure of owning your own bar? The camaraderie, the creativity, and the chance to be the neighbourhood hangout is all pretty enticing.

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Food Safety Tech

JULY 22, 2024

The review in the July 2024 Journal of Food Protection , “Potential for Glove Risk Amplification via Direct Physical, Chemical, and Microbiological Contamination,” sheds light on critical issues within the glove manufacturing industry and their implications for food safety. As food industry executives and professionals, it is crucial to understand these challenges and implement effective strategies to mitigate glove risks.

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Food Safety FDA Purchasing 115

Modern Restaurant Management

JULY 23, 2024

When we talk about the “restaurant of the future,” labor compliance isn’t exactly the flashiest or most exciting topic to include—certainly not when juxtaposed with salad-making robots and personalized digital menus. But beyond its legal necessity, ensuring compliance with employment laws is critical to shaping a better experience for employees and customers alike.

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Staffing Food and Beverage Food and Beverage Customer Service 186

FoodService Director

JULY 25, 2024

Assistant Director of Food and Nutrition Services Casey Dickinson spoke at ANC 2024 on how she partnered with a local farmers market to set up a summer meals site for kids, serving smoothies, salads, wraps, tacos and more.

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Nutrition 109

Hospitality Net

JULY 24, 2024

Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) and China Resources Land (CR Land, HKEX: 1109) announced that Hyatt has entered into a management agreement with CR Land for a Park Hyatt hotel in Xi’an, Shaanxi province, China. This project will be ideally located in the CCBD, one of the key mix-use commercial complexes along Xi’an’s central axis. Park Hyatt Xi’an will provide worldly travelers a sophisticated home-away-from-home in the ancient capital of China.

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Foodservice Equipment Reports

JULY 24, 2024

Commercial Kitchen Chronicles, a podcast that is the brainchild of General Parts Group lead service technician Pat Finley, will release its centennial episode this week. The Wednesday, July 24 episode—set to be livestreamed at 8 p.m. EST here—will welcome Brad Adcox from the national HVAC manufacturing company Navac.

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Commercial Kitchen 104

Food Safety Magazine

JULY 23, 2024

In a new scientific opinion, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) warns that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) to critical antibiotics is increasing in some Vibrio species, and that the prevalence of the pathogen is expected to increase globally due to climate change.

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Food Safety 116

Fast Casual

JULY 9, 2024

To stay afloat amid rising prices of food and labor, restaurants must use inventory management systems, handhelds, loyalty programs, menu auditing, QR codes and other restaurant-specific technology.

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Inventory Management Inventory 119

Modern Restaurant Management

JULY 16, 2024

Personalization is key to successful loyalty programs, according to the 2024 Paytronix Loyalty Trends Report. "Top performers are personalizing and using data to segment their customer database," Kristin Lynch, Senior Director of Restaurant Strategy for Paytronix Systems. "They are differentiating, delivering an emotional connection and recognizing their most valuable customers." Lynch has more than 20 years’ experience managing large CPG and retail brands in marketing and

Purchasing 193

Purchasing 193

Food Safety Tech

JULY 13, 2024

The produce industry handles an estimated six billion cases of produce in the U.S. each year. [i] Because a significant portion of this produce travels through the supply chain to reach customers, many produce companies already have traceability program in place. With the finalization of the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Final Rule: Requirements for Additional Traceability Records for Certain Foods [ii] (Food Traceability Rule), the question is whether

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FDA Food Safety 104

Hospitality Net

JULY 26, 2024

ibis Styles, a design-led brand from Accor, proudly announces the opening of ibis Styles Sepang KLIA. Located just 1.2 kilometres from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), this vibrant hotel reimagines airport layovers with its resort-inspired design and exceptional service. Offering trendy and affordable accommodation, ibis Styles Sepang KLIA caters to business travellers, transit passengers, and families.

Catering 104

Catering Catering 104

Foodservice Equipment Reports

JULY 25, 2024

Insinger Machine Co. is announcing the passing of its chairman, Robert A. Cantor, who was at the helm for nearly four decades. He was a fourth-generation executive leader.

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Food Safety Magazine

JULY 23, 2024

The Think Tank on the Future of Food Safety Auditing was formed in response to an urgent need for innovation in food safety auditing. Based on the insights and recommendations from the Think Tank, industry must embrace transformative change in food safety auditing practices, as discussed in a recently released whitepaper.

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Food Safety 112

Fast Casual

JULY 17, 2024

Bradley Cooper, editor of Food Truck Operator, spoke with Chris Ruff, CEO and president of Glympse Inc. to discuss more about how food trucks can generate profits with location tracking.

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Modern Restaurant Management

JULY 19, 2024

Google’s I/O Conference on May 14th proves they’re taking generative AI seriously. In addition to the introduction of Gemini this year, they’ve also developed a range of AI features that will be integrated into standard Google searches. With Google committing to the AI project, the technology is likely to advance quickly and will present significant opportunities for business owners who are able to get ahead of the curve.

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Recipes Hospitality Hospitality 185

the CAMBRO blog

JULY 13, 2024

Nestled in the heart of Downtown Seneca, South Carolina, Hogs and Hops BBQ is a beloved, family-owned gem that turns customers into friends with every visit. This warm and welcoming restaurant is the brainchild of husband-and-wife duo Joey and Melodie, who are both retired from the fire service. Joey, an award-winning pitmaster, and Melodie, a seasoned restaurant industry veteran with over 30 years of experience, bring their shared passion for exceptional barbecue to life.

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Catering Catering 105

Hospitality Net

JULY 17, 2024

Booking.com recently dropped the price parity clause in the European Union. This move has caused a wave of questions and uncertainty in the hotel industry. How will the platform respond to hotels that decide to offer lower rates on their own websites to promote direct sales? The answer could redefine the relationship between OTAs and hotels, creating a scenario full of opportunities and challenges.

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Foodservice Equipment Reports

JULY 17, 2024

Darden Restaurants—parent company of Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Yard House and others—is looking to add to its mix of brands with its anticipated acquisition of Chuy’s. Today, July 17, the duo announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement; the all-cash transaction has an enterprise value of approximately $605 million, according to the press release.

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Food Safety Magazine

JULY 2, 2024

Certain components of the food safety plan, like preventive maintenance and environmental monitoring, can benefit from the predictive characteristics of AI; however, the quality of the data fed into the system is critical.

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Food Safety 116

FoodService Director

JULY 16, 2024

Operators shared how free school meals for all students has impacted their programs during a panel at the School Nutrition Association’s 2024 Annual National Conference in Boston.

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K-12 School Nutrition Nutrition 102

Modern Restaurant Management

JULY 10, 2024

Among the reasons restaurants fail (poor location, inadequate marketing, lack of staff and inventory control, uninspired menu, unreasonable pricing), customer theft is rarely on the radar. And yet, the diner who walks out with your logo beer mug is damaging your restaurant’s bottom line. After a guest thief takes what they want, the restaurant must purchase replacements and eventually report the thefts to their insurance company, which in the long run will raise their premiums, creating an

Purchasing 192

Purchasing Food and Beverage Food and Beverage Inventory 192

Food Safety Tech

JULY 12, 2024

On July 2, the Beijing News reported that the state-run oil and grain company, Sinograin was using the same tanker trucks to transport both fuel and food oil products, without any cleaning process between. According to the website, ChinaMediaProject.org, the tankers were transporting soybean oils and syrups together with coal-to-oil (CTL) products, which use coal as a raw material to produce oil and petrochemical products through chemical processing.

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Food Safety 98

Hospitality Net

JULY 22, 2024

Hotel performance declined more than expected with the greatest decrease taking place at the beginning of the week (Sunday-Tuesday) and the greatest impact occurring in the Top 25 Markets. A similar pattern was seen in 2019, which followed the same day-of-week calendar, although the decline this year was much more severe. In both 2019 and this year, the impact of July 4th occurring on Thursday reverberated into the following week, particularly the first couple days.

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Foodservice Equipment Reports

JULY 1, 2024

Another AI pilot is spreading its wings. Taco John’s, a nearly 400-unit QSR, has been testing voice AI in the drive-thru of one of its Minnesota restaurants since April. In June, it announced it would add the tech to a second location, in Wyoming, by this August. After completing the pilot phase, Taco John’s says it intends to roll out voice AI at its franchised locations this year.

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Food Safety Magazine

JULY 12, 2024

Testing and sampling of raw dog and cat food sold at retail across the UK has shown a high prevalence of significant foodborne pathogens, putting pets and pet owners at varying risk of infection by different bacteria, according to the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA).

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FoodService Director

JULY 8, 2024

A new study by the USDA’s Economic Research Service showed lower rates of food insufficiency among children located in states with universal free school meal programs compared to those in states that have no such program in place.

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