Stephan's Thursday Picks

• The judgment bottleneck: Balancing AI and human speeds in strategy (McKinsey)
• The chocolate conspiracy (Grub Street)
• Albertsons and Kroger to call ex-CEOs to testify over failed deal (Bloomberg)
• It's sliced cheese on bread. And it's rocking Copenhagen's world (NYT)
• Unilever agrees to sell Welly bandage business to private equity firm (WSJ)

 Stephan's Thursday Picks

• How 10 billion pounds of lettuce travel from farms to dinner plates (WSJ)
• Unilever sales jump on emerging market demand for Dove soap (Bloomberg)
• Cracker Barrel CEO stepping down after logo redesign, activist pressure (WSJ)
• This summer's status symbol is a $3.99 bottle of water (WSJ)
• Mondelez lifts outlook on higher quarterly sales (WSJ)

 Stephan's Thursday Picks

• Whey protein is running out as food companies put it in everything (Bloomberg)
• Unilever CFO defends food deal saying staff 'not paying to be lazy' (FT)
• Dollar General says pinched customers are buying less food (Bloomberg)
• General Mills sells Haagen-Dazs stores in China (FT)
• What Trump delivered for Amazon (Bloomberg)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• Unilever CFO Srinivas Phatak on how to perform and transform (BCG)
• When times are tough, people eat more beans. It's happening again now (NPR)
• Being creative requires taking risks (Escaping Flatland)
• Whole Foods CEO wants to put a banana in your Amazon box (Bloomberg)
• Prized by 'MAHA influencers' and chefs alike, craft flour is on the rise (NYT)

 Stephan's Monday Picks

• Unilever to build new U.S. research facility (WSJ)
• Men are spraying themselves 100 times in new fragrance frenzy (Bloomberg)
• Retail stock surge with US shoppers surprising Wall Street (Bloomberg)
• Americans spent $2.4 billion on Korean beauty last year. It's about to get even better (WSJ)
• Did Trump take tomato? Here's what's behind the latest grocery price shock (CBC)

 Stephan's Tuesday Picks

• Unilever sales lifted by Dove soap, rebound in Brazil (Bloomberg)
• Hershey beats expectations, buoyed by charging higher prices (Bloomberg)
• Hershey CEO on making luxury chocolate accessible - and battling Ozempic breath (WSJ)
• Walmart expands local products in bid to boost sales, traffic (Bloomberg)
• Colgate-Palmolive sales rise on international growth (WSJ)

 Stephan's Thursday Picks

• Why McCormick thinks flavouring food is better than making it (WSJ)
• How big brands can spot the next big thing (BCG)
• Protein is hotter than ever. So why is the owner of Quest and Atkins on a cold streak (WSJ)
• Pistachio prices hit eight-year high on war in major grower Iran (Bloomberg)
• Walmart challenges Amazon on same-day delivery using stores as warehouses (FT)

 Stephan's Tuesday Picks

• Unilever hikes prices of Hellmann's mayonnaise as suppliers try to offset rising fuel costs (Globe and Mail)
• Chocolate makers look to cut down on cocoa after price volatility (WSJ)
• Teen's death prompts push to ban energy drink sales in Quebec to youths under 16 (CBC)
• Weight-loss drugs and Mars bars: Novo Nordisk's comeback bid (FT)
• IMF sees Canada's fiscal position as strongest in G7 (Bloomberg)

Stephan's Friday Picks

• State of Food and Beverage: The choices CPG leaders can make to renew growth (McKinsey) 
• The US small town coffee shop that created a viral drink (The Guardian)
• Unilever bets big on gummies as next frontier of wellness (Bloomberg)
• The $40 half chicken that ruffled Brooklyn (NYT)
• From the archives (2015): Unilever must aim not to spread itself too thinly (FT)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• Food influencing gets a feel good refresh (NYT)
• Can food actually be medicine? These doctors say yes (NYT)
• Conagra replacing CEO after 60% stock slide (Bloomberg)
• Unilever's $45 billion food deal spreads fear among brand loyalists (Bloomberg)
• Mamdani plans to open city-owned grocery store in East Harlem (NYT)

 Stephan's Monday Picks

• CEO Andy Jassy's 2025 Letter to Shareholders (Amazon)
• Top Canadian grocers downgraded as Scotiabank flags increased competition (Bloomberg)
• How war in the Middle East paralyzed an Asian food giant (NYT)
• Unilever acquires vitamin gummies brand Gruns in wellness push (FT)
• Aldi and Lidl rivalry heats up in race for UK discount shoppers (Bloomberg)

 Stephan's Thursday Picks

• Why McCormick's $65 billion deal for Unilever might actually work out (WSJ)
• Growth in the era of intentional shoppers: Beyond omnichannel grocery in Latin America (McKinsey)
• Aritzia shares soar as most in nearly a year on strong spring collection sales (Bloomberg)
• Uniqlo is coming for middle America (Bloomberg)
• The next Competition Bureau leader must embrace a Canada Strong mindset (Globe and Mail)

 Stephan's Monday Picks

• Spice maker McCormick's rise from a Baltimore cellar to a global food power (WSJ)
  
• How Nelson Peltz chalked up another break-up at Unilever (FT)
• The retailer that welcomes returns (WSJ)
• Secrets of the 'granny shelf' - a supermarket gold mine (FT)
• Teens sick of their phones are mallmaxxing (Bloomberg)

 Stephan's Wednesday Picks

• Where might the war with Iran hit your grocery bill? Start with raspberries (NYT)
• How successful retailers prosper in tough times (HBR)
• Unilever to combine foods business with McCormick (WSJ)
• McCain's ownership flaws were identified decades ago - now a second generation is feuding all over again (Globe and Mail)
• Hershey's growth strategy leans into salty, better for you snacks (WSJ)

 Stephan's Tuesday Picks

• Roger Martin: First mover advantages versus pioneering costs (Substack)
• Unilever nears deal to create $60 billion food giant with McCormick (WSJ)
• Food giants were finally starting to cut prices - then the war began (FT)
• Amazon's rural delivery push slams into Walmart (Bloomberg)
• Nestle pushes ahead of €5B Perrier and San Pellegrino deal (FT)

 Stephan's Thursday Picks

• Kraft Heinz puts focus on struggling brands after ditching split (Bloomberg)
• Lululemon scrambles to revive yoga pants empire amid fight with founder (NYT)
• Unilever considers potential separation of food assets (Bloomberg)
• Amazon plans drastic cut in packages sent via already struggling postal service (WSJ)
• General Mills posts lower sales, profit amid turnaround (WSJ)

 Stephan's Monday Picks

• Impossible Foods wants to put plant-based burgers on European menus this year (Bloomberg)
• The value seeking customer (Deloitte)
• Matcha is having a moment - and it's putting pressure on Japan's tea industry (CBC)
• Unilever to buy Dr. Squatch in $1.5 billion deal (Reuters)
• The 33-year old meat heir feeding America's protein obsession (WSJ)

 Stephan's Friday Picks

• Hudson's Bay to begin clearance at six stores originally left out of liquidation (Globe and Mail)
• Nestle sales get boost from coffee, chocolate price hikes (WSJ)
• Starbucks opens its first 3D-printed store. Is it cheaper than the real thing (Fast Company)
• Unilever confident for 2025 amid turnaround plan, ice cream spinoff (WSJ)
• From the archives (2008): Woolworths: The rise and fall of a department store empire (The Guardian)

 Stephan's Thursday Picks

• Amazon's new AI agent is designed to do your shopping (The Verge)
• Chipotle went on a seven-year quest to find avocados outside of Mexico (WSJ)
• Walmart keeps price pressure on suppliers after Beijing pushback (Bloomberg)
• Ben & Jerry's co-founder calls on Unilever to 'set it free' (WSJ)
• Amazon's new movie strategy starts with theatres (NYT)

 Stephan's Friday Picks

• Ben & Jerry's accuses parent company Unilever of firing its CEO for political reasons (NYT)
• Are we in an omakase bubble (Globe and Mail)
• P&G takes lead in 95-year rivalry with Unilever (WSJ)
• Trump's 200% alcohol tariff threat shocks European drink firms (Bloomberg) 
• From the archives (2000): Unilever buys Ben & Jerry's, SlimFast, for over $2.5 billion (WSJ)