Expana Exclusive: Supplying 46,000+ Restaurants in Complex Context - McDonald's Supply Chain Leader

Darcy Gilbert, Vice President of Global Food and Beverage Sourcing at McDonald's, leads a global team accountable for overseeing approximately $30 billion in annual spend across 46,000+ restaurants in 100+ markets, and a global network of supplier partners. At its heart, the team’s job is making sure the food customers love shows up in every restaurant, every day. Yet navigating such a vast system in a fast-changing world requires far more than simply leveraging scale.

In an exclusive interview ahead of her appearance...

QSR Tech Expectations Rise as Nearly All Consumers Weigh Digital Experience

Technology is playing an increasingly important role in where consumers choose to eat, but new research from Canopy suggests quick-service restaurants have little room for error as digital touchpoints become more embedded in the customer experience.

Canopy’s 2026 Restaurant Tech Report: Add Sauce, Hold the Friction, based on a survey of 1,007 US consumers, found that technology now influences dining choices for 94% of respondents, up from 80% in 2025. At the same time, 37% said they have abandoned an order because...

Circana Tells Advertisers to Start Holiday 2026 Planning Earlier

Advertisers should start planning for the 2026 holidays earlier as shoppers increasingly discover products through social platforms, creators and AI tools, according to new guidance from Circana.

In its report, How Advertisers Should Prepare for Holiday 2026, the market research firm recommends that brands and media teams begin holiday activity ahead of traditional peak periods, build social and creator discovery into media plans, optimize product data for AI-assisted shopping and measure results across channels.

The case for an earlier start is reflected in Circana’s 2025...

One-Third of Shoppers Now Use AI to Shop, New Acosta Group Study Finds

Generative AI is rapidly becoming a fixture of the shopper journey across the food and consumer goods landscape, according to a new study from Acosta Group, with 34% of shoppers now using AI tools to shop and nearly half of Gen Z shoppers saying AI has influenced a recent purchase decision.

The findings, released ahead of Groceryshop 2026, arrive as food brands, CPG manufacturers, retailers, and foodservice operators reassess how their commerce strategies must adapt to a shopping landscape increasingly shaped by AI-driven product discovery...

NRF Joins PACT AI as Founding Member to Build Trust in the AI Economy

The National Retail Federation announced that it is a founding member of the newly established Partnership for Assurance, Credibility, and Trust on AI (PACT AI), a coalition dedicated to building the shared infrastructure and standards that the AI economy needs to earn and sustain public trust.

As AI redefines how NRF serves its members and retailers serve consumers, NRF is committed to responsible deployment of this technology. With AI models advancing and new capabilities emerging, PACT AI helps build the trust and accountability needed to ensure confidence in AI keeps up with rapid innovation while providing deployers a voice in the policy...

Restaurants Lean on Efficiency and AI to Protect Margins, Toast Survey Finds

Toast’s annual Voice of the Restaurant Industry Survey finds operators doubling down on profitability, growth and efficiency.

The foodservice technology company led a blind survey across 676 operators from April 3–20, 2026. The data reflects that the industry holding up, with 91% saying their business is in good or excellent shape, matching last year. Inflation, cited by 27% of operators and up seven points year over year, and hiring, cited by 22% and up six points, are...

Albertsons Companies Expands AI-Powered Grocery Shopping with New Safeway Plugin in ChatGPT

Albertsons® Companies, Inc. continues its digital transformation today announcing its Safeway plugin in ChatGPT, making grocery shopping faster, easier and more intuitive. Available now, the new Safeway plugin helps consumers discover products, evaluate options and complete their shopping journey in ChatGPT, while remaining in control of their purchasing decisions.

“We are on a mission to power our customers at every touchpoint with AI to deliver a seamless shopping experience that’s faster, easier and more enjoyable,” said Jill Pavlovich, SVP of Digital Customer Experience...

FMI Response to Senate AI Surveillance Pricing Hearing

Today [August 4, 2026], FMI – The Food Industry Association Vice President of Tax, Trade, Sustainability and Policy Development Andy Harig issued the following statement regarding today's Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism hearing on AI surveillance pricing.

"FMI supports policies that promote transparent, accurate and understandable pricing for consumers. Grocery retailers compete every day to earn shoppers' trust by delivering value, convenience and affordable food, and consumers have more choices than ever about where and how they shop.  

"Food prices are influenced by a wide range of factors, including supply and...

GLP-1 Medications and AI Reshape How Consumers Buy, Prepare and Eat Chicken

GLP-1 medications and artificial intelligence (AI) are rapidly impacting the way Americans plan meals, shop for groceries and consume fresh chicken, according to new consumer research presented today at the 2026 Chicken Marketing Summit.

The study, commissioned by the National Chicken Council (NCC) and WATT Global Media and conducted online by Circana in June 2026, surveyed 535 U.S. consumers (ages 18-67) who purchase fresh chicken. The research explored how evolving health priorities, emerging technologies and changing dietary guidance are influencing today's protein purchases.

"Chicken is uniquely positioned to meet consumers...

USDA Asks Partners to Develop AI Solutions to Accelerate Crop Innovation

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is taking steps to speed up progress in plant science by calling on universities and stakeholders to help build new AI tools that can translate the huge amount of germplasm data the agency collects.

Through the Genesis Mission and the Agriculture Advanced Research and Development Authority (AgARDA), USDA is expected to launch an Agricultural National Science & Technology Challenge later this year. The Challenge will ask innovators to create practical solutions that pull together different types of...

Research Shows Promise for AI-Based Salmonella Detection in Poultry

New artificial intelligence (AI)-based tools could help poultry producers detect Salmonella more quickly using smartphone images and bird activity patterns, according to a newly published study conducted at the University of Georgia. The project was funded by the USPOULTRY Foundation to advance innovative solutions for poultry health and food safety. The research is part of the Association’s comprehensive research program, which encompasses all phases of poultry and egg production and processing, and is made possible in part through proceeds from the International Poultry Expo, part of the International Production &...

Instacart Buys Arpalus to Expand Real-Time Shelf Intelligence and Improve Fulfillment Accuracy

Instacart has acquired Arpalus, a computer-vision firm that turns quick shelf-video scans into real-time on-shelf inventory data. This move is a direct play to reduce out-of-stocks, catalog gaps and the substitutions and cancellations that undermine online grocery fulfillment.

Arpalus’ models, built for grocery realities (low Wi‑Fi, poor lighting, thousands of similar SKUs), identify items with better than 95% accuracy and run on any smartphone or camera device. That lets Instacart’s roughly 600,000 shoppers generate shelf intelligence at...

Circana’s 2026/2027 Global Food and Beverage Outlook Predicts Slow-to-Moderate Growth 

U.S. consumers are no longer just cutting back; they are recalibrating how they buy, according to new Circana Compass research released today by Circana LLC. The insights show the U.S. retail food and beverage (F&B) industry grew 2.2% in the first half of 2026, and Circana projects growth will settle into a 2-3% range in 2027 as shoppers optimize spending amid financial pressure, shifting lifestyle priorities, and increasingly digital, AI-assisted shopping behavior. The findings signal a return toward pre..

Instacart and Weis Markets Launch AI-Powered Caper Carts to Transform In-Store Shopping

Instacart, the leading grocery technology company in North America, and Weis Markets, a Mid-Atlantic food retailer, today announced the launch of Caper Carts at select Weis locations in Pennsylvania with additional rollouts planned throughout the year. Powered by Instacart's AI-driven Connected Stores technology, Caper Carts transform the in-store experience with a smart, digital-first cart that puts convenience, savings, and personalization directly in the hands of customers.

"Weis Markets and its associates have always been committed...

Solink Drive-Thru AI Gives QSR Operators Full-Lane Intelligence -- No New Hardware Required

Solink®, the leader in AI-driven video intelligence, today launched Solink Drive-Thru AI, an extension of its platform that gives quick-service restaurant (QSR) operators real-time performance monitoring across the full drive-thru journey, using existing cameras.

Drive-Thru AI replaces the blind spots and downtime risks of legacy loop timers and in-ground sensors with configurable, camera-based detection zones that provide full visibility across the lane, from entry and stack through the menu board, service windows, and pull-forward. This end...

83% of Fast-Food Chains Are Invisible to AI Restaurant Recommendations, Uberall Finds

As AI assistants increasingly shape where people decide to eat, most quick-service restaurants are being left out of the conversation. That’s the core takeaway from a new Uberall report, Fast Food, Faster Discovery: The 2026 GEO Playbook for Multi-Location QSRs, which examines how tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity surface restaurant recommendations — and why many multi-location brands aren’t making the cut.

Based on Uberall’s GEO Studio benchmark data and performance metrics from its global QSR customers, the report...

Unilever Food Solutions Turns Future Menus Into Real-Time AI-driven Platform for Chefs and Operators

Unilever Food Solutions (UFS) is expanding its Future Menus platform from an annual trend report into what it describes as an action-oriented program built on a new experiential intelligence model, signaling a broader push to give chefs and operators more practical, real-time guidance.

According to the company, Future Menus 2026 was designed to address a gap in the market for predictive tools that can identify emerging diner expectations while also helping operators improve menu profitability, operational efficiency...

Cargill Wins Two 2026 Edison Awards, Extending Four-Year Innovation Streak

Cargill has earned two 2026 Edison Awards, marking its fourth consecutive year of recognition from the global innovation program in the Consumer Food Innovations and Sustainable Industry Solutions categories.

The Edison Awards™, named after inventor Thomas Edison, honor some of the world’s most innovative products and business leaders. Winners are selected by a panel of peers from industry, academia and the innovation sector, based on concept, value and impact.

This year, Cargill was recognized for two innovations. 

NextCoa™, which received a Gold award...

Cargill Wins 2026 BIG Artificial Intelligence Excellence Award

Cargill has been named a winner in the 2026 BIG AI Awards, presented by the Business Intelligence Group, recognizing the company’s leadership and innovation in applying artificial intelligence to transform the global food and agriculture system.

The award highlights Cargill’s integration of artificial intelligence across its value chain from on-farm decision tools to supply chain optimization and customer co-creation, all designed to deliver measurable impact for producers, customers and consumers worldwide...

Disciplined Intelligence: How Byte by Yum!™ is Scaling AI at Global Speed

The conversation coming out of ICR Conference 2026, a meeting that “Mad Money” host Jim Cramer has called “the Super Bowl of consumer conferences,” was that the future of global restaurant leadership will be defined by companies that own, operate and scale intelligence as a core capability – and that winning restaurant brands will be those that shift from buying AI tools to building AI capabilities.

Ahead of the industry, Yum! Brands, the world’s largest restaurant company, built Byte by Yum!...

Acosta Group Unveils 2026 Top Consumer Predictions  

Acosta Group has unveiled its four consumer predictions for 2026, highlighting the increasing importance of personalization and innovation for achieving success and relevance.

Colin Stewart, EVP of Business Intelligence at Acosta Group, noted, "Technology and evolving consumer lifestyles continue to reshape the shopping experience, as do the expectations, priorities, and values driving purchases. This creates fresh opportunities for brands, retailers, and foodservice operators to predict consumer needs and drive excitement and trust," based on comprehensive research conducted with the company's 40,000-member shopper community.

The predictions include:

• Shoppers turning to...

Instacart App Launches in OpenAI ChatGPT 

Instacart (NASDAQ: CART), the leading grocery technology company in North America, today announced that it is the first grocery partner to launch an app on ChatGPT and the first to offer an embedded, end-to-end shopping and Instant Checkout -- all within the context of a ChatGPT conversation. This new integration makes it easier than ever for people to go from meal inspiration to doorstep delivery, using Instacart's real-time grocery network and fulfillment capabilities with the help of OpenAI frontier model capabilities.

"Instacart and ChatGPT are redefining what's possible in AI-powered shopping," said Anirban...

Walmart Partners with OpenAI to Create AI-First Shopping Experiences

Walmart is ushering in the next generation of retail by combining its huge assortment, everyday low prices and delivery speed with the power of AI. Today, the company announced a new partnership with OpenAI that will start with allowing customers and members to soon shop Walmart through ChatGPT using Instant Checkout. Whether planning meals, restocking household essentials, or finding something new, customers can simply chat and buy, and Walmart will handle the rest.

“For many years now, eCommerce shopping experiences have consisted...