E&S Extra
Taking FE&S' coverage of the E&S industry to the next level, the E&S Extra blog supplements our newsletters and print coverage of the market. Visit for weekly commentary and observation by FE&S staff on happenings in the foodservice equipment & supplies industry, plus trend analyses, and links to interesting articles, cool products and useful resources.
A Green Gold Medal
In the spirit of the Olympics, it seems that Vancouver could get a gold medal itself – for composting that is. According to this nice article in the Boston Globe today, Harvest Power Inc., a company that works with waste management and composting facilities to transform not just yard waste, but also food waste, into fully-functioning energy sources. In Vancouver, Harvest transformed an exi ...... Read More
Comments (0)Lessons Learned from Restaurant Chains
Last week I had the opportunity to attend Chain Leader Live!, an annual conference hosted by FE&S’ sister publication Chain Leader. While the weather outside the Hyatt might have been as frigid as today’s business conditions, the attitude at the conference was exactly the opposite. The restaurant chains in attendance warmly embraced one another and shared countless ideas about th ...... Read More
Comments (1)Family Dining Poised for Growth?
Looking for a foodservice segment ready to rebound once the economy improves? Well, data from Technomic indicates that operators in the family dining segment could be positioned for growth thanks to their appeal to moms, according to research by Technomic. How would you rate your favorite sit-down restaurants’ kids offerings? (Source: Technomic) Family Dining Casual Dining A good va ...... Read More
Comments (0)Improvement in Employment Will Signal Foodservice Recovery
Looking for an economic indicator that the foodservice industry is about to enter a fiscal recovery period? On a national regional level one of the first indicators foodservice professionals should monitor is unemployment. “The majority of the industry’s challenges are related to unemployment, which isn’t expected to improve quickly,” says Bonnie Riggs, NPD restaurant i ...... Read More
Comments (1)NRA Partnership Highlights Waste Reduction Efforts and Tax Benefits
Waste management is a hot topic these days in the foodservice industry and rightfully so. Foodservice operators are starting to fully realize that by managing their waste effectively they have a chance to not only be a little nicer to the environment but also provide some much needed relief to their bottom line by operating more efficiently. When looking at waste management, the concepts of reduce ...... Read More
Comments (0)Students See the Pros and Cons of Trayless Dining
Foodservice operators’ desire to function in a more environmentally friendly manner seems to know no bounds these days. And the segment in which this conversation is most prevalent has to be among college and university foodservice operators as their customer base tends to be the most engaged in this area. While these operators continue to explore countless different environmentally friendl ...... Read More
Comments (3)Manufacturing Sector Offers Glimmer of Hope
As the foliage begins to change color marking the shift to autumn from summer, it seems as if most every foodservice professional I speak with is looking for some indication that the industry has ceased its economic free fall. I think everyone’s grown tired of seeing red on their balance sheets and hopes to keep that color to the leaves on the trees. In times like these you often find ...... Read More
Comments (0)Manitowoc to Sell Lincoln Smallwares
According to published reports, Manitowoc Foodservice Group plans to sell the smallwares portion of its Lincoln Foodservice Division, hopefully by the end of the year. The company informed employees of its plan to divest the Fort Wayne, Ind.-based division at a meeting on Monday morning. This plan really seems to make sense for the Manitowoc Foodservice Group because it allows the company to focus ...... Read More
Comments (2)Starbucks' Green-Building Plans
In an aggressive build-on from its recycled paper cups and fair trade coffee beans, Starbucks announced new plans to continue in its quest to go green, not just in its logo. Last week, the company announced plans to seek LEED certification on all new company-owned stores beginning in 2010. Part of that move includes sourcing materials and employing craftspeople on a more locali ...... Read More
Comments (1)School Kids Want Robots
"The kitchen would have robots to cook, so that it could be made really fast." That was one comment by a grammar school-aged child as part of a survey conducted on school children to find out what their "dream kitchen cafeteria" would be like. I think you’ll like these other remarks too. "Robots would run the kitchen. There would be mixers and ovens and stoves and microwaves, etc." &# ...... Read More
Comments (4)Twitter This, Facebook That
I came across an interesting blog post on Inside Facebook. The post, written by a Sahana Mysore, was titled, “Three Things All Restaurants and Bars Should Do to Market More Effectively on Facebook.” That certainly got my attention, especially since I am a Facebook user (for better or for worse), and am “a fan of,” or “friends with” several resta ...... Read More
Comments (1)‘Tis the Season for Equipment and Supplies-Oriented Awards
It seems to me as if there’s no shortage of foodservice equipment and supplies-oriented awards these days. And we can add the U.K.’s Caterer and Hotelkeeper magazine to the list of organizations handing out product-oriented awards in the foodservice space. Its 2009 Equipment and Supplies Excellence awards coverage recognizes products from 10 different categories and is worth a read. ...... Read More
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