Whole Foods Market has expanded its refrigerated distribution center in Cheshire, Connecticut, to support the significant growth of their store development program throughout the North Atlantic and Northeast Regions. As more consumers turned to online grocery shopping, the demand for cold storage space skyrocketed, and the business case for Whole Foods to grow this facility became even more essential.

New Wave Foods announced a distribution agreement with Gordon Food Service that provides direct access to New Wave Shrimp, the innovative new plant-based shrimp, to any operator or foodservice customer east of the Mississippi River or in the Southwest. Ordering plant-based New Wave Shrimp is now even more turnkey for independent and chain restaurants and foodservice providers that work with Gordon Food Service.

The ongoing labor crisis along the cold chain has necessitated a number of changes throughout the industry to keep up with record demand for goods. 

Deli Star is moving its operations into a new-build, 110,000-square-foot processing facility in St. Louis, which will start construction this summer and is expected to open in early 2022. The company's operations were previously located in Fayetteville, Illinois—about 40 miles east of St. Louis. The company is expected to generate 500 new jobs and nearly $100 million in investment for the surrounding area. 

Tattooed Chef, a leader in frozen plant-based foods, announced a distribution expansion to approximately 1,800 Kroger stores nationwide later this summer. By September, shoppers can find a variety of Tattooed Chef’s plant based offerings including pizzas, entrée bowls, and vegetables in nearly every Kroger.

Grocery retailer and distributor SpartanNash announced plans to open its first SpartanNash Micro-Fulfillment Center, located at 5199 68th St. SE in Caledonia, Michigan. The 55,000-square-foot facility will hold 16,000 products and pick and pack Fast Lane orders for 24 Ada Fresh Market, D&W Fresh Market, Family Fare and Forest Hills Foods stores throughout West Michigan, primarily in the Grand Rapids and Holland area.

Rolling out to grocery stores nationwide this summer are Johnsonville Sausage Strips - a new product line of fully cooked smoked sausage that looks and cooks like bacon, but is sausage. Johnsonville, the number-one sausage company in America, delivers the flavor, texture and versatility of sausage in a new, bacon-like form.

Following its launch in Whole Foods Market nationally, NotMlk is now available at Sprouts, Wegmans, D’Agostino’s, Kings/Balducci’s, Harmons, New Seasons, Earth Fare, Bristol Farms, Rouses, Weis, Gelsons and more including the uptrend Imperfect Foods and vegan ecommerce site Vejii. The brand has expanded rapidly in the U.S. since its initial launch less than a year ago, signaling significant retailer and consumer appetite for a sustainable, plant-based milk that tastes like cow’s milk. NotMilk is currently available in 3,000 stores nationwide, and is aiming for distribution to 8,000 outlets by the end of 2021.