Ahold

CARLISLE, Pa. — Giant Food Stores turned 90 Friday, the Ahold USA-owned supermarket chain said.

The supermarket banner, which operates nearly 200 stores under the Giant and Martin's Food Markets brands in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia, marked its 90th anniversary Friday morning at a store in its hometown of Carlisle, Pa. Customers at all the company's 200 stores will receive free slices of cake and free apple slices Friday.

NEW YORK — One of the world's leading Italian pasta brands is the subject of an international boycott after remarks that critics have characterized as disparaging gay people, and the mother of a leader in a U.S.-based gay-rights group is petitioning a supermarket chain to stop carrying it.

ST. LOUIS — The former president of Giant Food of Landover, Md., has joined Schnuck Markets as EVP and chief strategy officer, Schnucks said Thursday.

MONTCLAIR, N.J. — Oral care brand hello has announced that it is expanding its national footprint from 7,800 stores to more than 18,000 stores across the United States by the end of September.

PURCHASE, N.Y. — Stop & Shop is marking Earth Day on Monday by emphasizing the measures it has taken to reduce its effects on the environment, the Ahold USA-owned supermarket banner said.

Stop & Shop highlighted its efforts to sell sustainably sourced seafood, reducing the environmental effects of its store operations — including adding environmentally friendly design features to stores — and helping customers reduce waste. The chain reiterated its intention to reduce its carbon footprint by 20% by 2015.

PURCHASE, N.Y. — Stop & Shop will sponsor a healthy-eating summit for middle schoolers in New Jersey on Thursday, the supermarket chain said.

AMSTERDAM — Royal Ahold CEO Dick Boer expressed condolences for the victims of Monday's bombing of the Boston Marathon in a meeting with shareholders Wednesday.

"The Boston area is, of course, one of our main U.S. markets, and our thousands of employees are shocked by Monday's events," Boer said. "Our thoughts are with everyone in the city of Boston and the surrounding communities, and especially the families and friends of those affected."

The company's Stop & Shop banner has a prominent and long-standing presence in the area.

LANDOVER, Md. — Giant Food of Landover, Md., is planning to raise $1.6 million for children's cancer research, the supermarket chain said Tuesday.

The Ahold USA-owned banner, also known as Giant-Landover, announced it would launch its ninth annual Triple Winner game on Friday to benefit the Pediatric Oncology Division at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center and The Children's Cancer Foundation. The annual game has helped raise $11.5 million to support pediatric cancer research since its inception in 2005.