The National Restaurant Association announced on Feb. 8 the recipients of the 2012 Kitchen Innovations Award, which recognizes cutting-edge kitchen equipment in the foodservice market. The 21 honored items were selected by an independent, expert panel of judges, including consultants, multiunit executives and design experts, who evaluated recipients for significant innovations which improve quality, productivity,…

The nation’s 32 million schoolchildren will be eating healthier under just-released U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines for government-subsidized school meals. The new guidelines are a boon—estimated by the USDA at $250 million in the next two years—for the foodservice equipment industry outfitting school kitchens and cafeterias to ensure those rules are met. The

It may just be the mild winter, but “wow” is all one can say about the big jump of the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index in December. The overall RPI jumped 1.6 points to hit 102.2, its highest level since March 2006. It was the third month in the last four that the RPI…

Last issue, we reported on Chicago’s new self-certification rule: Through November 2014, recently inspected restaurants with no history of foodborne illness will be able to police themselves and send inspection reports to city hall, freeing Chicago’s field inspectors to focus on high-risk establishments. It sounds as though New York’s operators might like to follow suit.…

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The National Restaurant Association forecasts the foodservice industry will grow a modest 3.5% in current dollars in 2012, a slight decline from its estimate of 4% growth in ’11. NRA estimates ’12 will be the third consecutive year of growth following two years of declines during the Great Recession. Sales are forecast to reach a…

The economy in the United States is generating new jobs at a much faster pace than almost anyone expected. The latest evidence is the Bureau of Labor Statistics report for jobs growth for January, during which nonfarm payroll employment jumped by 243,000, with broad-based gains across all sectors except information and government. Most economists expected…

After bottoming out in November and December, prices for stainless and carbon steels, as well as aluminum, copper and other materials widely used in foodservice equipment and supplies, are back on the rise. Pushing the gains are strong increases in prices for carbon steels, nickel and copper. According to a report from Main Steel, published…

We’ve been reporting for years about the U.S. restaurant market thanks to the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index. Going forward, we’ll be able to report about the Canadian market, too. The Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association has launched a new Restaurant Outlook Survey. The quarterly survey of Canadian restaurant operators will track current and…