Friday Morning One Liners...

FRESH incentives approved for first two supermarkets
New York City Industrial Development Agency (NYCIDA) this week approved two tax incentive packages to assist in the development of two new supermarkets in the Bronx — the first projects to be given the go-ahead under the Fresh Retail Expansion to Support Health (FRESH) program, which funds grocery stores in so-called “food deserts.” NYCIDA approved about $3 million in real estate and tax for a Foodtown store, and nearly $5.6 million for a Western Beef location.

Wine at Grocery in NY
Patterson proposes a higher fee for wine in supermarkets
New York Gov. David Patterson is recommending that his previous wine-at-grocery executive budget proposal, which would bring in an estimated $92 million to the state in the form of franchise fees, be amended to increase the required franchise fee for retailers with gross sales of over $1 million...Meanwhile proposals for a $1 per pack cigarette tax increase, and a penny per ounce tax on sugared beverages linked to obesity, remain unchanged.

Ahold’s Giant-Carlisle chain here said Monday that it had completed its acquisition of 25 Ukrop’s stores in the Richmond, Va., market, and that those stores would take on the Martin’s banner later this spring.

King Kullen was #2 on Supermarket News' top 50  independents' list.  Kullen's 52 stores accounted for $940 million in sales in 2009.  While Fareway stores (not Fairway), out of Boone, Iowa, ranked 1st and brought in $950 million.  Glass Gardens came in at 19, The list was compiled to determine the largest supermarket operator in terms of volume with sales below $1 billion in the U.S..  The entire list of 50 companies are available here.

The Washington Post remembers the life of the late UFCW International Vice President Beth Shulman.

Approximately 55 janitors who clean Northern California Safeway supermarkets unconditionally returned to work Thursday night after walking off the job Wednesday night, as protracted contract negotiations continued between SEIU United Service Workers West Local 1877 and four janitorial services employed by Safeway.

Kroger and its union employees in Atlanta and Savannah, Ga., have reached tentative agreement on new contracts, the retailer here said.

DNAinfo gives an update on the new upper east side Fairway Market.  The 60,000 square foot proposed site is on 240 E. 86th street.

Wegmans Food Markets and Costco, Inc. have been chosen the best grocery retailers in a consumer survey conducted by global customer intelligence solutions company Market Force Information, Inc., which will present insights from the survey in a webinar co-hosted by the American Marketing Association

Workers join suit over NYC restaurateur's labor practices: Owner and partners accused of stiffing employees on pay. 

NY Times: Immigrants Claim Wal-Mart Fired Them to Provide Jobs for Local Residents
A small group of West African men who came to the Rockies in search of economic opportunity are embroiled in a dispute with Wal-Mart, accusing it of a raft of discriminatory actions. Most say they were dismissed because supervisors wanted to give their jobs to local people in need of work. Wal-Mart, which has a history of discrimination and labor complaints but has increased efforts to promote diversity at its stores, denies the accusations.

NYT: Once Stigmatized, Food Stamps now finds Acceptance.

Gillibrand endorsed by the New York County Democratic party.

New on the bookshelves: Cornered, a new book by Barry C. Lynn, analyzes the new monopoly capitalism and the economics of destruction:

Regular Harpers and Financial Times contributor Barry C. Lynn paints a genuinely alarming picture: most of our public debates about globalization, competitiveness, creative destruction, and risky finance are nothing more than a cover for the widespread consolidation of power in nearly every imaginable sector of the American economy.

Cornered strips the camouflage from the secret world of twenty-first-century monopolies-neofeudalist empires whose sheer size, vast resources, and immense political power enable them to control virtually every major industry in America in an increasingly authoritarian manner. He reveals how these massive juggernauts, which would have been illegal just thirty years ago, came into being, how they have destroyed or devoured their competition, and how they collude with one another to maintain their power and create the illusion of open, competitive markets.

Random Story of the Week
A 23-year-old Georgia man has been charged with walking into a Walmart, picking up a metal baseball bat from the sports department and pummeling 29 flat-screen TVs, the USA Today has more.