Gourmet News

Seafood Products Debut in Red Lobster Frozen Food Line

Published February 22, 2023

Red Lobster is bringing the heat, and seafood, to the frozen aisle with the launch of its first line of Red Lobster frozen food seafood products available at retail. Inspired by craveable guest favorites, the new Red Lobster frozen food retail entrées include Cheddar Bay Biscuit Shrimp, which combines the Cheddar Bay Biscuit with sweet, succulent shrimp, and Coconut Shrimp Bites, both making it easier than ever to enjoy delicious seafood whenever the craving hits.

A quick and convenient dinner, the perfect party appetizer or a reliable late-night shrimpy snack, the lineup of new seafood products builds on the existing retail line of Cheddar Bay Biscuit offerings and features:

CHEDDAR BAY BISCUIT SHRIMP – What happens when warm, buttery Cheddar Bay Biscuits and tender, crispy shrimp collide? You get NEW Cheddar Bay Biscuit Shrimp. It’s impossible to eat just one!
COCONUT SHRIMP BITES – These bite-sized goodies are slightly sweet, perfectly crunchy and dangerously delicious. The Coconut Shrimp Bites are tossed in real shredded coconut and paired with the Sweet Chili Sauce.
CHEDDAR BAY BISCUIT COD – Wild-caught cod breaded with legendary Cheddar Bay Biscuit seasoning makes this like no other fish you’ll ever get from the sea. It’s so easy to make you’ll want it on the weekly dinner rotation.
PARMESAN CRUSTED GARLIC & HERB STUFFED SHRIMP – Sweet shrimp stuffed with garlic, herbs and cream cheese coated with a parmesan-crusted breading, it’s the perfect bite of shrimp every time. It’s second to yum at every meal.
The new frozen seafood offerings join a lineup of popular biscuit retail products including Red Lobster’s award-winning FROZEN, READY-TO-BAKE CHEDDAR BAY BISCUITS, GLUTEN-FREE CHEDDAR BAY BISCUIT MIX, TRADITIONAL MIX, and HONEY BUTTER BISCUIT MIX. Visit RED LOBSTER AT HOME for recipes and meal inspiration and to find where to catch Red Lobster at Home creations in your local retailer.

Red Lobster is the world’s largest and most-loved seafood restaurant company, headquartered in Orlando, Fla. With a proud heritage and an even brighter future, Red Lobster is focused on serving the highest quality, freshly prepared seafood that is traceable, sustainable and responsibly-sourced. To learn more about Red Lobster’s sourcing standards and where the seafood we serve comes from, please visit WWW.REDLOBSTER.COM/SEAFOODWITHSTANDARDS.

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Toshiba to Showcase ‘YOUnifying Experiences’ at NGA

Published February 22, 2023

Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions will be exhibiting its “YOUnifying Experiences” at The NGA Show 2023 from Feb. 26-28 at Caesars FORUM Convention Center in Las Vegas. The company will showcase its best-in-class portfolio of solutions at booth #1339 demonstrating how retailers can provide personalized interactions with shoppers and improve their operations.

As the grocery landscape continues to evolve, retailers must embrace a “unified commerce” approach to succeed. A study conducted by Incisiv and Toshiba revealed that self-checkout technology is now a staple in the industry with 94 percent of grocers currently offering or planning to offer self-checkout options in stores. Consumer interest in buy online pick up in store continues to grow, requiring retailers to adjust across digital and brick-and-mortar channels to unify experiences and make lasting consumer relationships.

“It is critical for retailers to have the freedom to accelerate and meet the demands of consumers to drive retention and loyalty in an authentic way,” said Rance Poehler, president and CEO of Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions. “We provide a full ecosystem of resources for retailers that includes hardware, self-service and software solutions like our ELERA™ Commerce Platform. Our robust partner network also plays a vital role in connecting us with retailers across various segments to provide tailored technology solutions that meet their unique needs.”

Toshiba’s partner and independent software vendor LOC Software (booth #1725) will showcase first-time demonstrations of their LOC Store Management Suite software integrated with Toshiba’s self-service software running on the Pro-X Hybrid Kiosk. The fully integrated combined solution presents grocery retailers with features that address their unique demands across service and convenience for their shoppers. Both companies will showcase the fully integrated joint solution in their booths during the show.

“We’re excited that LOC Software successfully completed testing with Toshiba’s CHEC software application on the Pro-X Hybrid Kiosk. The new software integration and hardware solution creates new offerings and opportunities to empower retailers to meet the evolving demands of their industry,” said Guy Leger, VP of sales and marketing at LOC Software. “Our joint presence at NGA will show participants how we are partnering to create solutions that enable grocers to deliver a fully connected platform that links stores, customers, and data.”

Toshiba’s NGA booth will feature the technology that empowers retailers with unified commerce solutions to connect with consumers and meet the changing needs of the grocery and retail food industries. The Hardware Bar will feature live demos of Toshiba‘s TCx line of rugged point-of-sale solutions that have been rigorously tested to ensure performance and durability for grocery. The ELERA Commerce Platform and its suite of solutions accelerate digital transformation, supporting the connected store experience in an agile, interconnected, and infinitely adaptable way.

The booth will also spotlight self-service options like Pro-X Hybrid Kiosk and the industry-leading Self Checkout System 7 offering innovative computer-vision based produce recognition, loss prevention features, and more.

The Incisiv research presented key findings and analysis from a study of 135+ retail executives. The study was designed to understand retailers’ outlook and attitude towards Unified Commerce as an enabler of key growth strategies. For more information on Incisiv’s 2022 State of the Industry “Unified Commerce in Food & Grocery,” visit here.

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‘Delivering Food in Turbulent Times’ Global Food Safety Forum Set in Atlanta

Published February 22, 2023

The Global Food Safety Initiative, part of The Consumer Goods Forum, announces its 22nd Annual Conference, “Delivering Food in Turbulent Times: The Need for Agility & Resilience.” The three-day conference will take place at the Westin Peachtree Plaza in Atlanta from April 24-27.

The GFSI annual conference, in partnership with industry organizations, is the meeting place for decision-makers from across the public and private supply chain to share knowledge, strengthen their networks and do business.

Following last year’s in-person reunion in Barcelona, this year’s global event will host more than 600 food industry leaders from over 50 countries. 2022 attendees included household brands such as The Coca-Cola Company, Dole Food Company, General Mills, Mondelez International, Pick N Pay, The Kroger Co. and Walmart.

“After last year’s successful return to an in-person GFSI Annual Conference, we’re excited to see what this year’s event will bring,” says Erica Sheward, director of the Global Food Safety Initiative. “Though the initial uncertainties and struggles of the early pandemic have since fallen away, we still face unprecedented global challenges that affect the food and ingredient supply chain.

“As such, it’s more important than ever that industry experts and leaders across all sectors and verticals come together to discuss the best way forward. We’re glad to be the group fostering these conversations and fueling the future of the industry.”

The conference program will feature a group of hand-picked speakers, including CEOs, public authorities, renowned experts and academics, industry leaders, innovators and grassroots players. Attendees can select from sessions across three tracks – Benchmarking and Harmonization, Capability Building, and Public-Private Partnerships Collaboration. Sessions will center around food safety and the unprecedented times we face today because of economic uncertainty, climate change, geopolitical crisis and the disruption in food supply chains which have significantly impacted access to safe and secure food across the globe.

For more information about the conference and to register, visit https://mygfsi.com/events/gfsi-conference/register/. To request sponsorship info, brands can contact sponsorship@theconsumergoodsforum.com. For practical info, including COVID-19 requirements, travel and lodging details, and dress code, visit https://mygfsi.com/events/gfsi-conference/practical-info/.

The Consumer Goods Forum is a global, parity-based industry network that is driven by its members to encourage the global adoption of practices and standards that serves the consumer goods industry worldwide. It brings together the CEOs and senior management of some 400 retailers, manufacturers, service providers, and other stakeholders across 70 countries, and it reflects the diversity of the industry in geography, size, product category and format.

Its member companies have combined sales of EUR 3.5 trillion and directly employ nearly 10 million people, with a further 90 million related jobs estimated along the value chain. It is governed by its Board of Directors, which comprises more than 55 manufacturer and retailer CEOs.

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