Empty shelves: It’s taking longer than expected for Blue Bell Ice Cream to make its way back into groceries, and the company’s president says it is still months away “at a minimum.” The Blue Bell production plants in Brenham, Texas; Broken Arrow, Oklahoma; and Sylacauga, Alabama, are all closed because of possible listeria contamination, and no ice cream is being produced at this time. Meanwhile, a government investigation released Thursday says Blue Bell had evidence of listeria bacteria at its Oklahoma plant as far back as March 2013. The company then continued to ship ice cream produced in that plant after what the Food and Drug Administration says was inadequate cleaning. Read the full story.
All the roadrunning: With more money in their pockets thanks to lower gas prices and an improved job market, AAA expects more than 37 million Americans to travel for Memorial Day, the most since 2005. As The Associated Press reports, AAA predicts that the number of Americans taking a trip of 50 miles or more will rise 4.7% to 37.2 million over the period May 21 to May 25. Nearly nine of 10 travelers, or 33 million, will drive to their destination, making for crowded highways. Gasoline should be around $1 cheaper this Memorial Day than a year ago. The average price for a gallon of gas this morning in the U.S. was $2.66. Last year on the holiday it was $3.66. AAA also predicts the number of people flying over the holiday weekend will rise 2.5%. Read the full story.
Cheers: New data shows the cost of going out is going up. But as Bloomberg reports, the culprit isn’t bars and restaurants hiking up drink prices. Rather, it’s the growing number of Americans who intentionally choose more expensive beers, wine, and cocktails. This is just one of recent changes in the way American drink alcohol, the data shows. People go out less often and they order fewer drinks—but they’re ordering more expensive drinks. Data from research firm GuestMetrics, which monitors drink sales at 6,000 bars and restaurants, shows wines costing more than $10 a glass now make up 48% of the volume of wine sold. Craft beers make up 31% of all beer sales at bars and restaurants. Both categories saw their market share grow about 6.5% over the past year. Read the full story.
