Center Store

CHILLICOTHE, Mo. — MidWest Gloves & Gear has introduced a new line of fashionable garden wear for women.

MidWest said its gardening colors line features raspberry red, lime green and teal blue, used as solid colors, unique stripe designs and in combinations. The lineup includes a waist apron, canvas gloves and a sun visor with an adjustable headband.

“We are quite proud of the coordinated color statements made with this new group of products. They are good-quality items and they are visually exciting and fun,” said MidWest president Stephen Franke.

PURCHASE, N.Y. — After complaints about Frito-Lay's noisy biodegradable bags for its SunChips brand were made loud and clear by consumers, the bags now deliver the same eco-friendly message on a quieter scale.

SunChips unveiled its hushed compostable bags and has asked consumers for feedback on its Facebook page. So far, the feedback has been positive.

CLEVELAND — Greeting card enthusiasts that want to know what's new in the card aisles before hitting the stores now can see the latest innovations online, thanks to a new page on American Greetings' website.

AmericanGreetings.com's new page now features the latest product introductions, a special downloadable coupon and a store locator so consumers instantly can find retailers in their area.

HERSHEY, Pa. — Reviewing progress of its consumer-driven approach to core brand investment in U.S. and international markets, Hershey EVP and COO J.P. Bilbrey unveiled the latest Hershey confectionary innovation.

Air Delight will be available in the style of Hershey's Kisses and the classic Hershey's milk chocolate-style bar, according to a presentation made by Bilbrey at the annual Consumer Analyst Group of New York conference in Boca Raton, Fla.

ATLANTA — Expect to see Heinz in a whole new way.

The company said it has entered a strategic partnership with Coca-Cola to implement the soft drink giant's PlantBottle packaging in the production of its Heinz Ketchup bottles. PlantBottle packaging is made of PET plastic bottles that are fully recyclable and use less nonrenewable resources than traditional PET plastic bottles, according to the companies. Heinz said the adoption of the PlantBottle technology will be the biggest change to its iconic ketchup bottles since they first introduced plastic in 1983.

DUSSELDORF, Germany, and ROCKY HILL, Conn. — Henkel's 2010 sales grew 11.2% to nearly $20.8 billion during the year, the company reported in its financial earnings release.

Henkel's North American sector also experienced strong growth, garnering $3.75 billion in sales for the year, an increase of 7% from 2009. The company also noted that organic sales growth totaled 3.5%, mainly boosted by its adhesive technologies, although sales of the laundry and home care and cosmetics/toiletries business sectors declined.

IRVING, Texas — Hostess is promoting its classic Twinkie snack with two limited-edition flavors.

As part of Hostess' Twinkie Mania sweepstakes — in which Twinkie fans are being asked to vote for the newest flavor filling — the brand is introducing limited-edition Twinkies with chocolate creme and strawberry and creme fillings. The flavors now are available at retailers nationwide.

WOONSOCKET, R.I. — As expected, CVS/pharmacy officially has introduced a new line of store-brand products called Just the Basics, which is comprised of household essentials. As previously reported by Drug Store News, the retailer unveiled plans to launch the new line during its 2010 analyst day in October.

The new product line, exclusively available at CVS/pharmacy, is comprised of nearly 100 items, and there are plans to expand the line going forward.