Retail & FoodService

Brinker International, Inc., awarded Detroit-based Wolverine Packing Company the 2012 Brinker Supplier Partner of the Year Award, the highest honor a Brinker supplier partner can receive. Wolverine supported Brinker with innovative ideas and supply chain solutions to deliver improved menu items to guests at Chili's® Grill & Bar restaurants nationwide. …

EcoStar, a Placon® company, is continuing to make headway in the recycling and production of quality RPET (recycled polyethylene terephthalate) thermoform flake and extruded sheet. …

As Whole Foods prepares to open the Detroit store in May, it’s planning to triple its store count to 1,000 and boost sales by opening locations in underserved areas and smaller markets. Whole Foods is just the latest grocer to see opportunity in so- called food deserts and other areas where finding fresh fruit and vegetables is a chore. …

Giant Food's newest Baltimore-area store offers a glimpse of the future for the region's dominant grocer, when shoppers increasingly rely on technology, demand more organic foods and expect a wide selection of prepared meals. …

Save-A-Lot, a national deep-discount grocery chain, is a jewel for its troubled owner, Eden Prairie-based Supervalu Inc. With the grocery giant looking at selling assets, Save-A-Lot is perhaps its most marketable. Conversely, the chain will be critical for Supervalu's future if the firm isn't sold outright or in pieces. …