Fighting fresh is best and Tesco admits it got it wrong in the U.S.

The Canned Food Alliance is mobilizing to make their point that fresh isn't necessarily best. The message is a dangerous one to fresh produce marketers - or at least it should be. Meanwhile, press reports indicate that Tesco's believes it may have overestimated the loyalty of the American consumers. Read on....

Canned food industry stressing nutrition in argument to win back consumers Modbee.com

Come on, 'fess up. There are times when you have cranked open a can of peaches to satisfy a craving for fruit. In so doing, you might have drawn a sneer from certain people who think that fresh is best when it comes to fruits and vegetables. It's a belief that the canned food industry -- including Modesto-area processors of tomatoes, peaches and a few other crops -- has been trying to counteract.Industry people say canning seals in the flavor and nutrients within hours of harvest. They also note that the products are affordable, easy to use and available all year.

Tesco reevaluates U.S. market Reuters

Tim Mason, the head of Tesco's U.S. business, was quoted in the Sunday Times as saying its early market research was mistaken."We may have assumed that certain elements of the Fresh & Easy brand would do the work for us and we would not have to go down and dirty on price," he said. "That may have been a mistake."There's less loyalty in the American market.""In a key moment at a focus group, one man told them that he had stopped shopping at Fresh & Easy because they no longer sent him a flier promoting the latest special offers.

Tesco admits: we got it wrong in the U.S. Times Online

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New growth for pineapple farming in Hawaii Honolulu Advertiser

Bowden is one of the biggest, if not the biggest, among the new crop of Hawai'i pineapple farmers. A graduate of Kalani High School and former manager with Del Monte who worked in the Philippines, Hawai'i and Florida, Bowden partnered with fellow Kalani alumnus and crop research specialist Tom Menezes to start Hawai'i Pineapple Co. LLC in 2006 and produce fruit under a brand named Hawaiian Crown.

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