Image Credit: Taste

Every week we track the business, tech and investment trends in CPG, retail, restaurants, agriculture, cooking and health, so you don’t have to. Here are some of this week’s top headlines.

In the ever-evolving landscape of food and labor economics, two headlines stand out: “We Need to Talk About Trader Joe’s” delves into the underbelly of the beloved grocery chain’s business practices, spotlighting accusations of aggressive copycatting that have drawn ire from food brands. Meanwhile, “California’s Fast Food Workers Just Got a Pay Bump” highlights a significant development in labor rights, as fast food workers in California secure a wage increase to $20 an hour, setting a new standard in minimum-wage earnings nationwide.

In other news, we’ve wrapped the first season of our podcast in partnership with AgFunder: New Food Order, a nuanced investigation into the business of tackling our climate and social crises through food and agriculture. Read all about why we launched the podcast, and be sure to subscribe and share!

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1. We Need to Talk About Trader Joe’s – Taste

Behind the bubbly cashiers in Hawaiian shirts, craveable snacks, and bargain-basement prices are questionable business practices that have many food brands crying foul at the company’s blatant and aggressive copycat culture.

2. California’s Fast Food Workers Just Got a Pay Bump – New York Times

They now must be paid at least $20 an hour, near the top of what minimum-wage earners make anywhere in the country.

3. World Central Kitchen Halts Operations In Gaza After Strike Kills Staff – BBC

The charity recently made headlines for providing hundreds of tons of food for Gazans that was transported on the first aid ship in March.

4. Iowa Fertilizer Spill Kills Nearly All Fish Across 60-Mile Stretch of Rivers – New York Times

Officials in Iowa and Missouri estimated that nearly 800k fish had died in waters that flow into the Missouri River.

5. Person Infected With Bird Flu in Texas After Contact With Cattle – New York Times

The case adds another worrying wrinkle to a global outbreak that has devastated bird and marine mammal populations, and recently appeared in cattle herds.

6. Spain: Ozempic, But Without the Side Effects: Scientists Identify Plant Extracts with GLP-1 Agonist Potential – Green Queen

Scientists have discovered two plant extracts that have potential as GLP-1 agonist weight loss pills akin to semaglutide injections like Ozempic and Wegovy, following an AI-led study.

7. Why Independent Grocers Are Pushing For Better Antitrust Enforcement – Forbes

Errol Schweizer interviews Chris jones, Chief Government and Industry Relations Officer and Counsel at the National Grocers Association about the FTC lawsuit around the Kroger-Albertsons merger.

8. Inside Bayer’s State-by-State Efforts to Stop Pesticide Lawsuits – Civil Eats

As the agrichemical giant lays groundwork to fend off Roundup litigation, its use of a playbook for building influence in farm state legislatures has the potential to benefit pesticide companies nationwide.