After being fined $9.8 million over the previous three years by Chinese authorities, U.S. retailer Wal-Mart told China’s regulators that they also need to improve their product safety rules and policies. Some of the retailer’s alleged violations include misleading prices, selling products that did not meet quality standards and selling donkey meat that was later discovered as fox meat. In China, unlike in the U.S. and most other countries, manufacturers are not accountable for food safety problems. Instead, foreign-owned retailers, Wal-Mart in particular, often bear the brunt of government regulators’ actions. In contrast, regulators do not frequently visit stores owned by local grocery companies or often issue fines against them. Some market analysts said Wal-Mart’s risky move has enough basis, especially after the retailer had implemented various steps to ensure the quality and safety of food products it sells in the country.
"Wal-Mart Cries Foul on China Fines", Wall Street Journal, April 13, 2014
Foodservice traffic fell slightly in Canada, Italy, Spain, China and the U.S. in the last calendar quarter of 2013, mainly because of “challenging economies” and “low consumer confidence”, according to researcher NPD Group. The opposite was true for Russia, Great Britain and Australia, where foodservice traffic rose in the same period, due to nice weather, improved economies and “a burgeoning foodservice market”. (Traffic in Russia rose a healthy seven percent.) NPD said quick service restaurants, on-premises dining, and chains powered growth in the strongest markets. Many markets were held back by a weak quick service segment.
"Russia, Great Britain, and Australia Lead in Foodservice Traffic Growth in Last Quarter of 2013", NPD Group, March 19, 2014
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Bloomberg, April 26, 2014
The Economist, April 19, 2014
BCG Perspectives, April 17, 2014
McKinsey & Company, April 01, 2014
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