JD.com’s SEVEN FRESH Supermarket Rolls Out Autonomous Vehicles as COVID Cases Surge in China

JD.com has rolled out autonomous vehicles in the city of Shenzhen to deliver groceries through their fresh food supermarket, SEVEN FRESH.

The City of Shenzhen, which links Hong Kong to mainland China, saw a spike in COVID-19 cases earlier this month. China has a strict “zero-COVID” policy, so Shenzhen was put under lockdowns and hit with additional restrictions in an effort to stop the spread of the virus. To ensure food supply with no-contact, JD.com introduced their autonomous delivery vehicles...

China’s Foodservice Industry Recovers After Experiencing Sharp Declines in 2020

Western-style quick service restaurants outperformed Chinese-style counterparts in 2021

According to The NPD Group, China’s foodservice industry ended 2021 showing signs of recovery after a tumultuous two-year period full of uncertainty brought on by COVID-19 and stringent lockdown measures throughout the country.

Thanks to vaccination rollouts and easing restrictions across the country, China reported a recovery in the first half of the year across the 22 Chinese cities tracked by NPD for the foodservice industry.

There was growth for both foot traffic and spend over the...

FSIS Issues Public Health Alert for Ineligible Imported Meat and Poultry Products from China

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is issuing a public health alert for an undetermined amount of imported meat and poultry products from China. A recall was not requested because FSIS has been unable to identify and contact the importers. The total amount of ineligible product is undetermined because the investigation is ongoing.

The products subject to the public health alert and labels are listed here.

The meat and poultry products do not identify an eligible establishment number on their...

JD Fresh Partners with World’s Largest Meat Supplier JBS

JBS, the world’s largest meat supplier, partnered with JD Fresh, JD.com’s fresh food business, marking the Brazil-based meat supplier’s first foray into retail business in China. Under the partnership, JBS will launch a flagship store on JD.com.

With 220 factories across the world, JBS offers a wide selection of beef products from many countries, such as Brazil, the United States, Australia, and more.

Through the partnership, JD Fresh will help JBS connect with over 550 million customers on JD.com, providing Chinese consumers with diverse and high-quality choices of meat...

REPORTER: The Massive Chinese Market Attracts Plant-Based Innovators

This article was originally featured in the Fall 2021 Edition of Urner Barry's Reporter magazine.

As Chinese consumers seek more protein in their diets and plant-based foods become readily available, alternatives to meat are gaining acceptance in China. Although plantbased protein currently has a small serving share compared to traditional meat in China, The NPD Group reports that awareness has reached 90%. The retention rate for plant-based proteins is on the rise, increasing from 53% in October 2020 to 68% in January 2021...

NRF Statement on Biden Administration’s China Trade Policy

The National Retail Federation today issued the following statement from Senior Vice President of Government Relations David French in response to United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai’s announcement on the Biden administration’s China trade policy.

“American businesses across the country continue to be severely impacted by the tariffs put into place by the previous administration. Today’s long-awaited announcement proved the Biden administration’s trade strategy on China to be lackluster at most, and will further inflict unnecessary damage to the American economy and retail supply chains.

“The continuation of these harmful..."

PLANT PROTEIN: Get to Know Players in the Plant Protein Market: Dao Foods

Dao Foods is a China-focused impact investment firm whose goal is to ultimately “reduce the consumer demand for industrial animal agriculture” through fueling startups “who are targeting the 400 million millennials in China with new, exciting, and delicious plant-based proteins”. The firm was founded by seasoned investors Tao Zhang and Albert Tseng alongside Beyond Meat investor New Crop Capital and the Good Food Institute.

In October 2020, Dao Foods announced a 3-year plan to invest in 30 Next-Gen Good Food Ventures using...

ANALYSIS: July Turkey Exports: Less Is More

As our day-to-day market canvassing efforts have suggested, July’s turkey export figures were a mixed bag with some countries increasing...

Traders Assess Suspension of Brazilian Beef Exports to China Due to BSE

Over the weekend, the agriculture ministry reported that Brazil has suspended beef exports to China after confirming two cases of “atypical” bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in two domestic meat plants. BSE, also referred to as mad cow disease, is a fatal neurodegenerative disease of cattle that is transmitted through contaminated feed. The two cases recently confirmed in Brazil were “atypical” since the disease appeared “spontaneously and sporadically, unrelated to the ingestion of contaminated food”, according to the agriculture ministry. 

It is not yet certain when Brazilian beef exports to China will resume. The ministry stated there was no risk to animal or human health.

BSE was first diagnosed in 1986 in the United Kingdom and has since been detected in other countries. The first known case of BSE in the United States occurred in 2003 and resulted in the loss of most of the United States’ beef exports in 2004. 

Brazil was the world's largest beef exporter in 2020. The indefinite suspension of Brazilian beef exports to China could be supportive of U.S. beef exports if the ban is not resolved quickly...

Starbucks Promotes Leo Tsoi to CEO of Starbucks China

Starbucks Coffee Company announced the promotion of Leo Tsoi to chief executive officer of Starbucks China. Serving as Starbucks China’s chief operating officer and president of Starbucks Retail for the last five years, Tsoi has led efforts to grow Starbucks footprint across the Chinese mainland to 5,200 stores across more than 200 cities today. He has engineered the development of a robust and diversified store portfolio by pioneering new store concepts, which have influenced new coffee-inspired lifestyles and further elevated third place experiences for Starbucks customers in China.

As one of the leading architects behind Starbucks China’s phenomenal growth since he rejoined the company in 2012, Tsoi previously served in various leadership positions, including...

ANALYSIS: The Impact of Labor Issues on Hams

Ever since the first COVID-19 shutdowns, labor-related conversion issues have plagued the US ham market. As more and more bone-in hams couldn’t be...

U.S. Poultry and Egg Exports Surged in First Half, on Pace for Record Year

The Covid-19 pandemic, an uncertain economy, and logistics problems like port closings and shipping bottlenecks haven’t slowed the tremendous demand for U.S. poultry and eggs around the world.

Exports of U.S. broiler chicken and shell eggs set records in the first half of 2021 and are on pace to break all-time marks for the year, according to the USA Poultry & Egg Export Council (USAPEEC), citing government trade data.

Total broiler export volume reached an all-time high for the January through June period, with Mexico, China, Cuba, and Philippines leading the way. Cuba, and Philippines set records for both...

Pork Quarterly Q3 2021: Looking for Growth Amid Uncertainties

Great volatility in Chinese hog and pork prices is rippling through the global market. China’s slaughter rates were unexpectedly high in Q2, pushing pork production up 35.9% YOY in 1H, according to official data. The sudden supply increase resulted in a sharp price decline and negative results in both farming and trading in 1H, pointing to low pork imports into China in Q3. While we expect hog and pork prices to rebound in Q3, the estimated high frozen pork inventory will impose a lot of downward pressure on prices. We expect the slowdown of imports in the coming months will reduce full year imports from 2020’s record levels by 10% to 20%. This will lead to a redistribution of pork trade in the global market and could place downward pressure on pork prices in exporting regions.

CBP Agriculture Specialists Prevent Smuggled Animal Products from Entering United States

U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agriculture Specialists (CBPAS) issued 246 emergency action notifications during the second quarter of 2021. Emergency Action Notifications (EAN) alert trade entities of non-compliance with Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) regulations. The EAN provides options for phytosanitary actions that must be taken to prevent the entry of plant pests, prohibited plant products, or animal products capable of introducing foreign animal diseases.

During the inspection of rail containers in International Falls, Minnesota, CBPAS intercepted more than 18,500 pounds of smuggled animal products. The animal products were seized because...

Awareness and Retention Rate for Plant-Based Protein on the Rise in China

According to China Plant-based Protein Topical Report from The NPD Group, plant-based proteins are gaining acceptance in China as Chinese consumers seek more protein in their diets, and plant-based foods become more available and appealing. Although plant-based protein currently has a small serving share compared to meat proteins in China, awareness has reached 90%; and the retention rate for plant-based proteins is on the rise, increasing from 53% in October 2020, to 68% in January 2021.

“There is no doubt that consumers in China view plant-based proteins as healthier alternatives to traditional meat protein,” said Gimantha Jayasinghe, Senior Vice President of APAC Foodservice at The NPD Group. “Though these products have a long way to go in terms of...

Livekindly Collective Launches in China with Two New Brands

Livekindly Collective, a collection of brands on track to become one of the world’s largest plant-based food companies, announced its launch in China with two new flagship brands, Giggling Pig and Happy Chicken. Both have been developed and manufactured locally to cater to Chinese consumer tastes and are the first brands created in-house by Livekindly Collective.

The two new brands cover a portfolio of seven innovative plant-based products based on beloved Chinese dishes, including...

Shake Shack Announces China Expansion 

Shake Shack and licensee Maxim’s Caterers Limited are continuing the momentum in China with an expanded partnership to open 10 Shacks in new territories by 2031, including locations in Sichuan, Chongqing, Yunnan, Hubei, Shaanxi, Anhui, Henan and Guizhou.

The new agreement increases the company’s development commitment with Maxim’s Caterers Limited in China to 79 by 2031. There are currently 16 Shacks open in China, with 2021 new market entries so far in Macau and Shenzhen; Hangzhou will come...

Yum China Releases 2020 Sustainability Report

Yum China Holdings issued its 2020 Sustainability Report, which highlights the Company's commitment to sustainability and provides an overview of progress made in 2020 towards its sustainability goals.

In 2020, Yum China engaged internal and external stakeholders to complete a comprehensive materiality review. As a result, the Company resolved to focus efforts around three pillars: Environment, Food and People. Within these, Yum China identified 23 material issues in the value chain to work on as initial sustainability priorities. In the report, progress made in 2020 has been summarized in accordance with...

PODCAST: Seeing Green: High Imported Beef Prices, Cyber Attacks, and More

This week on Market Digest, Host Laura Zinger and CEO Joe Muldowney talk high prices for imported beef, Australia emerging from their drought, China searching for product, cyber attacks, supply chain issues, return to live events, and much more.