The Today’s Group has announced trading figures for the second quarter of the year, recording an overall performance up 8.5% year-on-year.

The FWD is calling for rules on inspections to be changed to prevent wholesalers being unfairly penalised.

Booker symbol group Premier is launching a new recruitment campaign, ‘10 Good Reasons to join Premier’, to highlight the savings and benefits of trading with Premier to independent retailers.

Seventeen manufacturers with foodservice credentials – from large corporates to smaller concerns – have been nominated by wholesalers for the 2005 Catersummit Cup.

METRO C&C UP 7%

Total spend on eating out in the UK was £34.5bn last year out, according to new research.

Booker is helping its customers encourage sensible drinking by placing a responsible drinking message and units of alcohol on its entire range of Malt House Vintners beer, wines and spirits.

Landmark has reported strong sales growth in the first six months of 2005, with its top 70 branded suppliers across 11 major product categories, recording sales value up 5.5%, following a 6% overall increase in 2004.

KK Fine Foods, the frozen ready meals specialist, has signed up as the third member of Foodservice Rewards, the new reward scheme for the UK foodservice sector.

Woodward Foodservice’s management team has led a buyout of the £180m turnover business from its former owners.

Delivered wholesaler Blueheath has announced four new contract wins, although the names of two of the companies have not yet been released.

The chef who followed Gordon Ramsey as a winner of the Craft Guild Chef of the Year, Steve Love, has designed the first two courses for this year’s informal pre-Catersummit dinner.

A Leeds couple who ripped off suppliers of toiletries, greetings cards and fancy goods in Bradford, Bristol and Rochdale by writing fraudulent cheques have been sentenced at Bradford Crown Court after a successful DTI prosecution.

A £450m exclusive contract to supply all Pizza Hut restaurants in the UK for a five-year period, from January 2006, has been won by 3663.

Bestway is to launch one of its biggest ‘Best-in-Best For Less’ promotions, offering consumers up to 100% extra product free on a range of popular lines.

The Nestlé Rowntree Manager of the Month for September is awarded to Martin Simpson, manager of Taylor Vending and Wholesale, Montrose.

The most successful educational advisory scheme for independent retailers in recent history, the Take Home Blueprint is to update its reporting processes for wholesalers and suppliers.

For the tenth successive year, the annual dinner and Gold Medal awards night of the Federation of Wholesale Distributors is a sell out.

The Chronicle of the 20th Century, a boot sale bargain costing £1, provided some interesting holiday reading. A newspaper clipping dated January 8 1940 began: “For the first time since 1918 Britain faces food-rationing today. Butter, sugar, bacon and ham can be bought only on production of ration books. The rigid rationing laws demand the compulsory registration of every household with their local shops.”

Woodward Foodservice has appointed Chris Flowers as its new operations director just days after completing a management buyout.

Nisa-Today’s has appointed Oliver Walters its first ever fresh food development manager. Walters, 28, from Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire, has a five-year background working in fresh and chilled food for Makro and most recently, Nature’s Way.

The shopper insight consultancy him! has appointed Stanley Morrice as non-executive director to help with both internal and external strategy and company development.

Job Title: grocery trading controller

Customer feedback has been used by shopper insight consultancy him! to determine awards for cash and carries in a number of different trading disciplines.

A James Bond themed casino night at Pinewood Studios will be the inaugural event organisd by the new fund raising committee of the London Area Confectionery Benevolent Fund.

Landmark member Blakemore Wholesale has raised £35,000 for charity following its 13th Celebrity Golf Tournament.

Coors Brewers Off-trade sales team has won the BA Cash & Carry Supplier of the Year Award at the annual BA retailer club awards.

UP-FOR-IT? It’s the anniversary of one of the most daring and successful independent retailer public relations exercises ever undertaken on behalf of the sector – perhaps the most successful after National Independents’ Day 05.

Customers’ perceptions of cash and carries have improved in a number of significant areas, according to the 2005 C&C Customer Tracking Programme. During June more than 4,000 independent retailers were interviewed by him! across branches of 15 cash and carry operators including Booker, Batleys, Bestway, Parfetts, AF Blakemore, BA, Bellevue, United Wholesale, Dhamecha and other Today’s members.

Following its recent acquisition of specialist frozen food supplier Variety Foods, Musgrave Foodservices is investing in an Accord Distribution solution, from supply chain specialist Business Computer Projects Ltd (BCP), to replace the current system and to enable rapid integration of the business within Musgrave.

Sanderson has won a contract to supply radio frequency software to Turner Price.

The Pallet Network (TPN) has chosen a 21-strong fleet of Still R70-20 LP gas forklift trucks for its new pallet handling distribution hub at Rugby, Warwickshire.

Abig lesson in how to sell more spirits – 15% more in this case – comes from the new 2005 Blueprint Retailers of the Year. The award went to Harry and Kully Kaur at the recent Drinksummit.

With the British population spending an amazing £34.5bn eating out last year, or £47.57 a month for every man, woman and child in the country, the foodservice sector represents a huge but highly complex opportunity for suppliers and wholesalers.

Father and son business Hillfield News & Off Licence, in Coventry, used their joining of Nisa Todays as the catalyst to revamp their 3,000 sq ft store and overhaul their wines and spirits section, with help from the Take Home Blueprint. The result: the wines and spirits categories are both showing sales increases of 20%.

Cash and carry and delivered wholesalers and their independent retail customers can build on the impact of the My Shop Is Your Shop campaign and increase sales by creative promotional activity which focuses on community, community, community…says Alan Toft, MSYS campaign chairman, in this review.

With their compact size, and because they are usually invisible when in use, batteries can often be overlooked but they play a role in most consumers’ lives and their influence is growing.

Think dairy, and milk immediately comes to mind – and it’s a massive market. According to market research company Mintel the value of the milk market was £2.35bn in 2003, with volume at 4.6bn litres. Its figures show multiple grocers accounting for 64% of volume sales, with growth driven by their move into convenience and forecourt stores. The independent channel accounts for just 6.5% of volume sales but is a vital source for distress and top-up purchases. And even 6.5% of £2.35bn is quite a sizeable figure.

Carlsberg UK is re-launching the Tetley’s brand with a new visual identity and it will receive more than £11m of marketing support including sponsorship, national TV and press advertising and promotions in the next 12 months.

A new £1.5m multi-media campaign titled ‘Brown humour. Not to everyone’s taste’ is being launched by Scottish Courage Brands to support Newcastle Brown ale.

Inbev UK has introduced a new pack design for Stella as part of a worldwide harmonisation initiative to create a consistent pack design internationally.

Carling has teamed up with the gadget, games and gifts retailer Firebox.com for an on-pack promotion this autumn.

Castlemaine ‘XXXX’ is marking the brand’s sponsorship of rugby league with the launch of new packaging highlighting its new status as the official beer of rugby league.

Heinz Foodservice is planning its biggest ever Heinz Tomato Ketchup promotion – Red October. In a bid to boost existing sales and attract new customers, Heinz will be featuring a £1m holiday giveaway on key Heinz Tomato Ketchup products.

In a promotion designed to drive uplift of Nescafé Original and Nescafé Gold Blend, Nestlé FoodServices is launching ‘The Great Nescafé £10,000 Giveaway’.

Kellogg’s has extended its Portion-Pak offering with the launch of Kellogg’s Special K Red Berries, Kellogg’s Crunchy Nut Clusters Honey Nut and Kellogg’s Just Right Portion-Paks.

Schöller Ice Cream has extended its range of premium quality Christophe Delmotte patisserie.

Ice-cream cones, wafers and fans supplier Askeys has teamed up with Valiant, the latest CGI animated release from the producer of Shrek, to offer caterers an on-pack promotion to drive ice-cream sales.

Gallaher has launched Benson & Hedges Gold and Silver in 14 stick packs to offer smokers its premium cigarettes at a new price point. Gallaher said the new format would suit today’s average consumption of 14 cigarettes a day, and would also present retailers with a new profit opportunity. It said the new pack would increase the likelihood of daily purchase and increase footfall to store.

Masterfoods is introducing two initiatives in cash and carry depots as part of its Christmas 2005 campaign.

Quaker is adding to its portfolio of hot cereals with three new products: Take Heart, Organic Oats and Oatso Simple Raspberry Flavour. The launch of the new products will be supported by a new £2.5m television advertising and press campaign, featuring a new Quaker brand spokesperson.

Cadbury Trebor Bassett is continuing its Cadbury Dairy Milk centenary year celebrations with the launch of the Cadbury Dairy Milk Happiness Xpress.

Nestlé Rowntree has unveiled plans to help independent retailers make the most of Easter with a number of products tailored to the sector’s needs.

Cadbury Trebor Bassett is investing £7m to support a range of new products designed to ensure retailers profit from the lucrative Big Night In trend.

Wrigley is launching three new produucts across its confectionery range which will all be available from September 12.

Walkers is relaunching its limited edition snacks for Halloween. Cheese flavoured Quavers Ghosts are produced in a ghostly shape, and Monster Munch Spooky Tongue contains a food colouring that leaves the consumer’s tongue blue.

United Biscuits UK is launching an on-pack promotion on its McVitie’s brand titled Better Biscuit by Half.

Premier Foods is giving its Branston Pickle brand a makeover in time for its Christmas peak selling period.

MONDAY