Football season is underway and Shake Shack is giving away free chicken sandwiches for the next couple of months to celebrate its return.
Every Sunday for the next 13 weeks, customers will be able to get a free Chicken Shack sandwich with a qualifying purchase. The company says they are tapping football personalities like former NFL quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and ESPN reporter Adam Schefter to help get the word out.
Shake Shack says it will be hosting tailgating pop-ups in select cities to promote the new campaign.
The sandwich features crispy, white-meat chicken breast over lettuce, pickles, and buttermilk herb mayo on a toasted potato bun.
Here’s how you can get yourself a free chicken sandwich.
For customers to get their free Chicken Shack sandwich they must place a $10 minimum order via the Shake Shack app or in person at a kiosk.
Then people can use the promo code CHICKENSUNDAY for one free Chicken Shack. The offer will automatically apply when the items are added to the order.
The offer began on Sunday, Sept. 8, and will run all the way to Sunday, Dec. 15.
Inflation is down significantly from its 9.1% pandemic-era peak in 2022, but the cost of food -- especially groceries -- may continue to puzzle some consumers at checkout lines as new data showed two major categories with slight price increases.
Despite signs of overall inflation cooling compared to a year ago, the current rate of 2.9% remains higher than the Federal Reserve's target.
The latest Consumer Price Index report for August, released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Wednesday, showed that while grocery inflation has softened, staples such as groceries are up 1.1% compared to 2023 with higher prices on some common household products like eggs and meat, poultry and fish.
Breaking down the latest inflation data on food and grocery prices
The food index, which is comprised of food away from home and food at home, has increased 2.1% over the last year -- and after rising 0.2% in each of the previous two months, was up another 0.1% in August.
There was a slight 0.3% drop last month for takeout and dining, according to the CPI, but food at home remained unchanged.
"Food away from home slowed a little bit at 3.9% year over year, versus that .9% for the food at home category," Dr. Michael Swanson, Wells Fargo's Chief Agriculture Economist, told ABC News. "So they're both slowly kind of trending back down, but still, that's a big gap and it's been a pretty persistent gap, which really speaks to the wages at the restaurant level."
He reminded me that "if you can bring yourself to spend a little time prepping food or cooking food at home, you're going to save yourself a lot of money."
Grocery prices slowly rise in 2 major categories, what it means
Food at home rose at a slower pace than overall inflation at .09% over the last year, but two of the six major grocery store food groups -- meats, poultry, fish, and eggs -- rose last month and by 3.2% over the last 12 months.
The popular animal proteins went up 0.8% in August and eggs increased 4.8%, as dairy and related products increased 0.5% in August.
"When we see a category like eggs where it came in at $3.20 for a dozen at the national number -- vs. a year ago in August where it was $2.04 and the answer is, why?" Dr. Swanson posited. "We know that we dealt with avian influenza early in the year, and barns are being repopulated, but we're not right back to where we were previously. So there's a good, clear story about what happened there."
"The big dollar category is meat, poultry, and eggs -- of the food at home category -- which had the two worst performers across the entire supermarket," Swanson said. "It wasn't really that the ranchers got more money or the wholesalers got more money this month, we saw the retailer spreads move up."
Food price predictions as we inch towards fall, holidays
Swanson likened food price fluctuations to seasonal weather patterns that yield long term benefits: "For example, how much snow did you get in California and will there be enough melt and water to fill the reservoirs to then be able to grow more strawberries."
"We're gonna have the biggest corn and soybean crop ever in the history of United States, according to the USDA," Swanson said, which he explained has dropped the prices "way down from a year ago." He continued, "That's really important to the consumer ultimately because that's what impacts [the price of] chickens, beef, and everything else -- so there's good news, but it's not here just yet."
How grocers are meeting shopper demand for lower prices
"No retailer simply gives you money, if they're going to give you lower prices or better value, it's because they went out and fought with their suppliers to get it for you," he explained.
"What we're seeing in that universe of wholesalers and food manufacturers, they're starting to get a lot more pressure from the retailers to say, 'Help me out here, because I need to do more for our shoppers,'" Swanson said. "It's a slow process, but it's been a complete tide shift in mentality and so all the retailers, to some degree have gone back to say, 'You just have to do better than that.'"
Swanson found in looking at the Federal Reserve Board which tracks capacity utilization in food manufacturing, that "during the peak of the crisis -- they didn't have any spare capacity, so they weren't interested in negotiating with food retailers like Walmart."
Since that's no longer the case, Swanson said we're starting to see "a little bit more and more slack" which makes wholesalers "more susceptible to arm twisting from the food retailers."
McDonald’s is piloting a new setup of digital kiosks at some U.S. locations that accept both cash and card, with the hopes that they can reduce the cumbersome task of waiting in line, the company told Quartz in an email.Ozempic maker Novo Nordisk has an experimental anti-obesity pill with noteworthy early trial results
McDonald’s did not immediately say if the new kiosks would cut costs for franchises or if they could lead to reduced staffing. However, demand for ordering automation tech in the fast-food industry has grown in response to new livable wage laws in California, signaling broad interest in replacing some fast-food jobs with kiosks.
Some McDonald’s locations are also replacing old menu boards with digital screens that show off promotions and popular items, the chain said. For those who still want to order the traditional way, printed menus will still be available.
McDonald’s says these upgrades are meant to meet the growing demand for digital options and to enhance speed and accuracy. The decision to adopt this new format is up to franchisees, who own and operate about 95% of McDonald’s locations. There is no timeline for a nationwide rollout just yet. Some McDonald’s stores had ordering kiosks back in 2016, but until recently they hadn’t accepted cash.
As digital ordering grows, McDonald’s stores are rethinking how they staff up. With fewer staff needed at the counter, some employees are being reassigned as “guest experience leads,” to help customers dining in or waiting for curbside pickup.
It’s possible the push for more kiosks could boost the chain’s digital presence overall. Currently, McDonald’s has about 166 million loyalty members, who account for 25% of system-wide sales, according to CEO Chris Kempczinski.
“Digital is going to continue to grow for us,” Kempczinski said. “But today, we just don’t have the penetration where we need it to be.”
McDonald’s, one of the largest fast-food chains globally, has been active in other areas to get budget-conscious diners back. In June, it launched a $5 meal deal, which it noted it would keep around a little while longer.
In July, it said it was pilot testing the “Big Arch” in select markets with the caveat that it would land in the U.S. soon. In early August, it said it was launching a limited-time “Collector’s Cup promotion. During that same month, there was even talk of a new “Chicken Big Mac.”
Norfolk Southern said Wednesday it has fired CEO Alan Shaw for having an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate.
His ouster comes after two difficult years in the top job and just days after the company’s board announced it was investigating him for alleged ethical lapses.
The Atlanta-based railroad said Shaw had an inappropriate consensual relationship with Norfolk Southern’s chief legal officer, who was also terminated. Norfolk Southern promoted Chief Financial Officer Mark George to be the railroad’s next CEO.
Shaw was leading Norfolk Southern in February 2023 when one of its trains derailed, spilled toxic chemicals and caught fire in East Palestine, Ohio, the worst railroad disaster in the last decade. Then, activist investor Ancora Holdings tried to take control of the railroad earlier this year and fire Shaw.
He weathered congressional hearings and difficult community meetings after the East Palestine derailment while promising to make Norfolk Southern the “gold standard for safety” in the industry. He also managed to persuade investors not to back the majority of Ancora’s board nominees. Three of its nominees did win seats on the railroad’s board, but that wasn’t enough to give it control.
The derailment near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border prompted the nation to re-examine railroad safety and led lawmakers and regulators to call for reforms. But those proposals have largely stalled, and the industry has made only minimal changes since the derailment, such as installing more trackside detectors to spot overheating bearings like the one that caused the East Palestine crash.
The disappointing financial results Norfolk Southern delivered after the derailment, combined with questions about Shaw’s strategy of keeping more workers on hand during a downturn, made the railroad ripe for pressure from an investor like Ancora. Norfolk Southern’s profits have consistently lagged behind the other major railroads that more aggressively adopted the lean operating model that has become the industry standard.
The railroad said Shaw’s firing was unrelated to Norfolk Southern’s financial performance, and the board reaffirmed its financial guidance. The railroad has said it expects to improve productivity by about $550 million and boost its profit margin over the next two years.
Shaw received $13.4 million in compensation last year in his first full year as CEO. The railroad said earlier this year that Shaw would be entitled to nearly $9.6 million in retirement compensation if he left the company. It wasn’t immediately clear how being fired for cause would affect the $2.3 million severance pay Norfolk Southern had previously promised him. More details on his final compensation are expected to be disclosed Thursday.
The railroad’s Chairman Claude Mongeau said, “The Board has full confidence in Mark and his ability to continue delivering on our commitments to shareholders and other stakeholders” despite having only worked on the railroad since 2019. Previously, George was CFO for air conditioning maker Carrier Corporation and Otis Elevator Company.
Mongeau said George will work with John Orr — the chief operating officer hired during its fight with Ancora — to continue improving the railroad’s profits by cutting costs and getting more efficient.
“I look forward to my continued partnership with John and the entire (Norfolk Southern) team as we further our progress on optimizing operations and serving our customers while creating a safe and satisfying workplace and delivering enhanced value for our employees, customers, shareholders, and communities,” George said in a statement.
Norfolk Southern is one of the six largest railroads in North America with tracks crisscrossing the Eastern United States.
Campbell is ready to drop the soup — at least from its official name.
Campbell Soup Co. announced its intention to change its name at an annual meeting of investors on Tuesday. The 155-year-old food seller, which is most famous for its namesake canned soups, says it would now like to be known as Campbell’s Co.
CEO Mark Clouse said in a statement that this “subtle yet important change” will retain the company’s iconic name “while better reflecting the full breadth” of its portfolio today.
Campbell hasn’t been exclusive to the soup business for some time. The company also owns brands like Prego sauce and Goldfish crackers — and completed a $2.7 billion acquisition of Sovos Brands, the maker of Rao’s pasta sauces, just earlier this year.
Campbell’s roots date back to 1869, as a modest operation out of New Jersey that later grew. The current Campbell Soup name was adopted in 1922, according to the company’s website.
The new name isn’t final yet, as it’s still subject to a shareholder approval vote in November. But the New Jersey company is far from the first to attempt such as makeover. A handful of other food companies have also rebranded themselves over the years — often shedding the mention of specific items they were known for with shorter corporate titles, or even an updated logo, in hopes of emphasizing other business.
Manoj Thomas, a marketing professor at Cornell University’s SC Johnson College of Business, says that it’s important to consider whether a new name will disrupt product recognition or stray from a brand’s identity. But he doesn’t see these risks with Campbell — noting that the move is “unlikely to affect consumer perception” and may instead signal a “drive for expansion and growth.”
Here are some past examples.
Dunkin’
Back in 2018, Dunkin’ Donuts decided to shorten its name to just “Dunkin’” — which officially took effect in January 2019.
The Massachusetts-based chain had toyed with the idea for some time. And, while doughnuts are still very much on the menu, it eventually decided to rename itself to reflect its increasing emphasis on coffee and other drinks.
Krispy Kreme
Krispy Kreme also dropped “doughnuts” from its corporate name several years later — ahead of the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company’s second time going public in 2021.
According to a securities filing, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts changed its name to Krispy Kreme Inc. in May 2021. But the word “doughnuts” still prominently accompanies the Krispy Kreme name on the chain’s logo and boxes of treats.
Domino’s
Domino’s Pizza took the word “pizza” out of its logo and off storefronts back in 2012, with the leadership of the Ann Arbor, Michigan-based chain at the time citing menu expansions and other in-store updates. But its parent company is still named “Domino’s Pizza Inc.,” which is what the brand trades as on the New York Stock Exchange.
Starbucks
Starbucks has also seen logo changes over the years — which included the shortening, and then dropping, of the Seattle coffee giant’s name over the years.
Back in 1971, Starbucks’ original logo depicted a siren surrounded by its then-name “Starbucks Coffee, Tea, and Spices,” the company notes on its website. In 1987, that siren got a makeover and the name encircling her was shortened to “Starbucks Coffee” — and by 2011, Starbucks introduced its latest logo, which doesn’t feature the company’s name at all.
While absent from the logo, Starbucks still operates as “Starbucks Coffee Co.,” or similar names that include the word “coffee” in many countries around the world, as subsidiaries of the larger Starbucks Corp.
KFC
KFC hasn’t been using the longer “Kentucky Fried Chicken” name for decades. The Yum brands-owned fast food chain shortened its name back in 1991, according to Snopes.
Still, messing with iconic brands can also have consequences — and potentially cause false rumors speculating reasons for the change. Long after shortening its name, Louisville-based KFC, for example, had to issue a press release a few years ago to combat an online rumor that it was forced to change its name because it doesn’t serve real chicken.
To Ruth Breeden, whose job is to assemble Ram trucks in this Detroit suburb, a simmering dispute between the United Auto Workers union and Stellantis isn’t merely about whether her employer will reopen a distant factory in Illinois. To her, the standoff is a danger sign for all UAW workers.
Belvidere, Illinois, is the site of an assembly plant that Stellantis had pledged to reopen under a contract it forged last year with the union. But the company, which reported poor sales and earnings this year, has delayed the reopening given what it calls unfavorable “market conditions.” Stellantis says it will eventually meet its commitment to reopen the plant.
Yet no date has been given for the company to restart the factory or to open a new battery plant and a new parts warehouse, both of which were also promised in the contract agreement that ended the UAW’s strike against Stellantis last year. At stake are about 2,700 jobs.
Breeden and other union members say they fear that Stellantis will break other commitments in other states, eventually jeopardizing their jobs.
“It’s the whole company,” she said at a union rally last month in front of her factory in Sterling Heights. “Who knows which plant is next?”
Anxious and angry about Stellantis’ delay, union leaders have threatened to strike, a move that could extend beyond Stellantis. Labor experts say its two Detroit-area rivals, Ford and General Motors, are watching as they weigh their own strategies, including whether to move future production sites out of the United States and away from the UAW.
Detroit automakers have been expanding production in Mexico for years. And after last fall’s strikes shut down a Ford truck plant, its CEO warned that the company would have to rethink where it builds new vehicles.
“There’s plenty of history of the U.S. manufacturing sector moving its operations to low-wage countries,” said Bob Bruno, a labor and employment relations professor at the University of Illinois. “It seems reasonable to me for the UAW to be concerned about not opening here, not investing here, but beginning to move operations someplace else as the company looks at essentially how they can build their cars for the cheapest cost.”
In February 2023, the last Jeep Cherokee small SUV rolled off the line at the Belvidere Assembly Plant, about an hour northwest of Chicago, and 1,350 workers were laid off. Stellantis had plans to shutter the factory for good.
A few months later, Belvidere emerged as an issue in the UAW’s first direct election of its officers in the wake of a bribery and embezzlement scandal involving the union’s previous leadership. Shawn Fain, who won the UAW presidency, demanded that Belvidere be reopened.
After the six-week strike against all three Detroit automakers last fall, each company signed a new contract with the UAW. Under the deal with Stellantis, it agreed to reopen the Belvidere assembly plant in 2027, with plans to build up to 100,000 electric and gas-powered midsize pickups annually.
It also agreed to open a parts distribution hub in Belvidere this year and an electric-vehicle battery factory with 1,300 workers in 2028. In all, the company pledged $18.9 billion of U.S. investments during the contract, which runs until April 2028.
So promising was the prospect of reopening Belvidere that it drew a celebratory visit from President Joe Biden and a pledge of $335 million in federal dollars to revamp the 5-million-square-foot plant, which began building vehicles in 1965.
A year later, there’s no parts hub and no definitive plan to open the assembly and battery plants. Stellantis’ vague pledge to eventually open the facilities sounded the alarm among the union members.
“If they violate this, what are they going to violate moving forward?” asked Kevin Gotinsky, who leads the UAW’s talks with Stellantis.
On Wednesday, Stellantis did announce that it would spend roughly $400 million to revamp three Michigan factories to build electric vehicles or parts. Breeden’s plant will receive about $235 million of the money, which was included in the UAW’s contract.
Still, Breeden said she fears that the company’s CEO, Carlos Tavares, who talks frequently about cutting costs, wants to move more production to low-wage Mexico. The company already builds Ram pickups in Saltillo, Mexico. She fears that Stellantis might decide to move some production there and away from her plant.
“The truth is Stellantis doesn’t want to invest in America,” Fain said in a recent UAW video.
Tavares has told reporters that one reason Stellantis needs to slash costs is so it can make electric vehicles — which cost roughly 40% more to build than gas-powered cars do — affordable to typical customers.
Breeden’s friend Jazmine Johnson, who has spent a decade with the company helping build Jeep SUVs, shares Breeden’s concerns. Both say they’re willing to strike.
“You’ve got to be ready to fight,” Johnson said.
In the end, experts say, the Belvidere matter could end up in court.
Tavares has taken the unusual step of singling out the Sterling Heights Ram plant for criticism for encountering problems with trucks that were built there but not yet shipped. The company has also complained about high absenteeism among workers at Stellantis’ U.S. factories.
Local union officials counter that Stellantis has made a high number of temporary hires who have caused much of the absenteeism. Fain also argues that Stellantis’ management has tended to buy poorly made low-cost parts.
In August, Stellantis stopped producing older Ram pickups at a plant in Warren, Michigan, and laid off up to 2,400 workers. It was the latest sign that Stellantis’ U.S. workers face an uncertain future, said Marick Masters, business professor emeritus at Wayne State University who follows labor issues.
“I think the apprehension workers have is well-founded,” he said.
Stellantis said it stands by its commitment to Belvidere under the contract it signed with the UAW. But it said it needs the delay so it can afford to remain competitive and preserve U.S. factory jobs.
“The business case for all investments must be aligned with market conditions and our ability to accommodate a wide range of consumer demands,” Jodi Tinson, a Stellantis spokeswoman, said in a statement.
Tinson said the company isn’t violating its commitments, noting language in a letter detailing investments that’s part of the UAW contract. The letter said Stellantis and the UAW agree that investment and jobs in North America are “contingent upon plant performance, changes in market conditions, and consumer demand continuing to generate sustainable and profitable (sales) volumes.”
Maite Tapia, an associate professor at Michigan State University’s School of Human Resources and Labor Relations, noted that language in union contracts is often intended to appease both parties.
“The union could sell the agreement to their members,” Tapia said, “because it has clear language about investment and reopening Belvidere, whereas the employer was fine with it as well, given this broad clause that could potentially give them the right not to invest.”
The UAW counters that its contract with Stellantis authorizes it to strike over plant closures and broken investment promises.
Stellantis, which has been slow to shift its production toward increasingly popular lower-cost vehicles, has struggled this year. Its U.S. sales fell nearly 16% in the first half of the year. Profits tumbled 50%. As a result, the company’s inventory reached nearly 400,000 as of July, the highest level in the industry.
Still, overall U.S. sales of new vehicles rose 2.4% in the first half of the year. The union argues that GM and Ford are doing well and that Stellantis would be, too, if not for poor management by Tavares.
Fueling the angst on U.S. assembly lines is a statement made in February by Ford’s CEO Jim Farley, who said his company would rethink where it builds vehicles. Farley sounded that warning after the UAW’s 2023 strikes shut down Ford’s largest and most profitable plant, which makes heavy-duty trucks in Louisville, Kentucky. In July, Ford said it would revamp a factory in Ontario to build the same trucks.
Before last year’s strikes, Farley said, Ford continued to make pickups in the United States despite higher labor costs and competitors that had opened plants in Mexico. The CEO said he was particularly upset that the union strike shut down the Louisville plant.
Fain, the union president, scoffed at the notion that Detroit’s automakers would be compelled to move production out of the U.S. because of the new contract and a more aggressive union. He complained that over the past 20 years, the companies have closed or sold 65 factories during a period where the UAW was more cooperative.
“That’s hundreds of thousands of jobs that cost us,” Fain said in an interview with The Associated Press. “So don’t talk to me about your commitment to the American worker when that’s your traditional history.”
In the meantime, the standoff with Stellantis over Belvidere has led the UAW to threaten to strike as early as October.
“We expect them to honor the commitment they made,” Fain said. “If they don’t, we put language in this agreement so that we can hold them accountable. And we’re going to.”