The Boelter Cos., the country’s fifth largest equipment and supplies dealer, has acquired Macon, Ga.-based Direct South. The acquisition expands the Milwaukee company’s reach in the Southeast region of the country. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.Direct South was founded in 1960 as Macon Restaurant Supply Co. In 2012, the company merged with Citisco…

Three foodservice equipment manufacturers have been honored along with more than 100 other businesses and organizations by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy. Hoshizaki America, Peachtree City, Ga.; ITW Food Equipment Group, Glenview, Ill.; and Manitowoc Foodservice, New Port Richey, Fla., are among the 128 businesses and organizations in 33…

FCSI-The Americas Division has moved offices. The U.S.-based arm of Foodservice Consultants Society Int’l. is now located at 3309 Robins Road, Ste. 171, Springfield, IL 62704. The phone number remains 309/808-2165.

Johnny Rockets has struck a deal to open 100 restaurants in China over the next decade, the chain’s largest development deal to date. The agreement—a joint venture between AUM Hospitality, Johnny Rockets’ franchisee in Malaysia and Parkson Retail Group Ltd., a Malaysian department store operator with about 60 stores in China—marks a major overseas expansion…

The full-service operator is shifting from rocking chairs to rocking expectations. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store has plans to unveil a new prototype “fusion” unit later this year and is developing a fast-casual concept that likely will debut before July 2016. No details have been released, but officials with the Lebanon, Tenn.-based chain say a…

After a year of strong monthly jobs growth, non-farm payrolls grew by just 126,000 in March, leading many economists and other observers to express concern about the strength of the current recovery in the U.S. Of course, in the perverse way equities markets move, the stock market rose and bond yields fell, as traders took…

A recently released study from the U.S.-based research firm Transparency Market Research estimates the global market for foodservice equipment and supplies was US$35 billion in 2013. The firm forecasts that increasing demand for E&S in Asia and other developing markets will drive a cumulative average annual growth rate of 4.5% between now and 2020, pushing…

The 50 economic forecasting groups polled monthly by Blue Chip Economic Indicators remain upbeat, in spite of two months of cuts in the consensus forecasts for 2015 in the March and early April surveys; the latter was released last week. The forecasters expect little slowdown in 2016 and then only slight declines over the next…

The ongoing discussion over the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed ban on certain refrigerants and how the rule would hurt small businesses, manufacturers and restaurants has spurred resistance not only in the affected industries but also on the House subcommittee reviewing the proposal. The agency has proposed to prohibit several substances commonly used in commercial…

The April 1 announcement by California Governor Jerry Brown was no April Fool’s joke. Two weeks ago, he ordered mandatory water-use reductions for the first time in the state’s history, saying the state’s four-year drought had reached near-crisis proportions after a winter of record-low snowfalls. California has about one year of water stored.  The executive…