Sustainability

General Mills is in the process of acquiring leading natural and organic food company Annie’s for $46 per share in cash, for a total transaction value of approximately $820 million.  

The transaction consideration represents a 51% premium over Annie’s 30-day average closing price of $30.47 as of Sept. 5. Annie’s will continue to be headquartered in Berkeley, California.

Lakeland, Fla. -- Publix on Monday was honored with three awards from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) GreenChill Partnership, including its Store Certification Excellence 2013-2014, and two Store Re-Certification Excellence Awards 2009-2014.

Publix earned the Store Certification Excellence award for achieving 26 GreenChill store certifications in the past year. Two Publix stores have achieved GreenChill Certification for five consecutive years and are being honored with the Store Re-Certification Excellence award.

Atlanta - S. Truett Cathy, founder and chairman emeritus of Chick-fil-A Inc., died at the age of 93 on Sept. 8.

Cathy got his start in 1946, when he opened a diner in a suburb of Atlanta. He invented the Chick-fil-A sandwich in 1964 and opened the company's first restaurant in Atlanta in 1967. Under his leadership, the quick-serve eatery grew into one of the nation’s largest family-owned companies, with annual sales of $5 billion in 2013. Currently, there are more than 1,800 Chick-fil-A restaurants operating in 40 states and Washington, D.C.

Toronto - Staples Canada is expanding its Bullfrog Power partnership to support renewable energy in four additional stores. Through the partnership, Bullfrog Power injects clean, renewable electricity onto the grid to match the amount of energy the Staples facilities use.

The increasingly competitive yoga apparel category just got a little more crowded. Sports Authority has launched an exclusive yoga line called Bloom, which it says it created specifically for women who enjoy being connected to the outdoors.

New York -- California is on track to become the first state in the United States to impose a statewide ban on single-use plastic bags. Lawmakers passed the bill last week, and California governor Jerry Brown on Thursday said he would probably sign it into law.  

The legislation would ban single-use plastic bags from supermarkets and drug stores in 2015, and from convenience and liquor stores in 2016. The bill would allow stores to charge 10 cents for paper or reusable bags.

By Sanford Stein, founder, Stein LLC

With the point-of-sale tucked away in one’s backpack, pocket or purse, how does the store-based retailer expect to survive in an e-everything world? And what is to become of the malls, the meccas of economic indulgence that were driven by the shop-till-you-drop dynamic we thought would last forever? We are currently in a period of just such a change wave, driven by a dramatic demographic shift, corporate downsizing, economic stagnation, and rising costs.

J.C. Penney Co. is testing new design treatments, merchandise presentations and service options at its new — and first ever — location in Brooklyn, New York. Located at Gateway Center, the 124,000-sq.-ft., single-level store boasts a contemporary exterior that incorporates clean lines, large glass panels, red accents and the unmistakable Penney logo.

The interior is bright and modern, with large murals of local landmarks. A variety of flooring surfaces, including polished concrete, wood laminates and grey ceramic tile, complement the streamlined design.

San Francisco -- Costco Wholesale Corp. agreed to pay a $335,000 in penalties federal Clean Air Act violations, according to a settlement announced Wednesday by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Justice. In addition, the retailer will fix refrigerant leaks and make other improvements at 274 of its stores, which EPA estimates will cost about $2 million over the next three years.