Click here to find a delicious chocolate chip cookie recipe perfect for your own noms.
The cupcake craze may be crashing, according to The Wall Street Journal, with some bake shops experiencing faltering sales. “The novelty has worn off,” Kevin Burke, managing partner of investment banking firm Trinity Capital LLC, told WSJ. Do you think consumers are still sweet on cupcakes?
Chipotle has pulled its sponsorship of Utah’s “Scout-O-Rama” event because of the Boy Scouts of America’s ban on gays. The restaurant chain had signed on to provide $4,200 worth of coupons to support the Utah Boy Scouts’ annual event. But Chipotle’s anti-discrimination policy states that the company shouldn’t support organizations that exclude based on sexual orientation. When the company learned about the coupon offer, it ended the sponsorship, according to Chipotle comms director Chris Arnold.
Nutrition matters to Latinas, according to a new study released by Meredith Hispanic Ventures, publisher of Siempre Mujer and Ser Padres magazines that identifies the shopping, cooking, and eating habits of modern Hispanic families. Nearly 4 in 5 respondents said they read nutrition labels, and more than half buy organic products. Almost half of respondents also use smartphones to assist them with food shopping. Meredith Hispanic Ventures tapped into its “Entre Nosotras” (“Between Us”) database of 5,000 influential subscribers to conduct the food trend report.
The horse meat scandal in Europe has become fodder for social media jokes. USA Today spoke with PR pros who shared tips on what brands can do to address horse meat concerns.
Furniture retailer Ikea is the latest brand to be hit with the European horsemeat scandal. Ikea stopped the sales of its Swedish meatballs in 13 European countries after inspectors in the Czech Republic detected horsemeat in packs of frozen meatballs on Monday. The meatballs were produced by supplier Familjen Dafgard in Sweden. The supplier said on its website it was investigating the situation and would soon receive further test results. For its part, Ikea announced on its Swedish branch’s Facebook page that it would not sell or serve any meatballs at its stores in Sweden out of concern for “potential worries among our customers.”
Berkshire Hathaway and 3G Capital have agreed to acquire
food giant H.J. Heinz, maker of Heinz ketchup products, Ore-Ida potato products, and Weight Watchers Smart Ones, for $23 billion. Berkshire Hathaway chairman and CEO Warren Buffett told CNBC Thursday, “This is my kind of deal and my kind of partner. Heinz is our kind of company with fantastic brands.”
UK-based sandwich chain Pret A Manger has pulled its new “Virgin Mary” potato chips from shelves after Catholic group Protect the Pope led a campaign claiming that the chips’ name was offensive. The chips were flavored with Worcestershire sauce and chilli, the same ingredients found in a non-alcoholic version of a Bloody Mary cocktail which inspired the name.
Pret A Manger chief executive Clive Schlee initially defended the chips, but according to a Pret spokesperson, the “strength of feeling” in the complaints led to the removal.
Burger King said Thursday that it will begin testing its beef patties for the DNA of animals such as horse, lamb, and pork. No timetable has been set for putting the testing procedures into place.
The fast-food chain disclosed that it found small traces of horse DNA at a plant operated by Silvercrest Foods in Ireland that made beef patties for its UK restaurants. Burger King said the horse meat did not make it to any restaurants.
The company also terminated its relationship with Silvercrest, which had provided beef for restaurants in the UK, Ireland, and Denmark.
