It’s a new year, as good a time as any to step back and see the bigger picture.

There is still time to register for next week’s Foodservice Equipment Reports E&S Market Forecast President’s Preview. This annual one-day, comprehensive look at the data and trends driving the foodservice equipment and supplies market is Tuesday, July 24, at the Westin O’Hare Hotel in Rosemont, Ill. The fee for the meeting, including all program materials in print…

A hood proposal to the International Code Council described as a well-intended but unnecessary expense has been “disapproved” but remains alive pending public comment. Proposal M105-12, section 507.2.1 calls for specific hoods above a variety of equipment including conveyor and door-type dishwashers, kettles, pasta and rice cookers, steamers, smokers and others. The proposal calls for…

Oregon operators have delayed by several months a new state rule that would require cooks to wear gloves or otherwise avoid touching food with their bare hands. In late June, Oregon’s Health Authority backed off implementing a rule that would have taken effect this month requiring restaurant cooks to wear gloves and avoid touching food…

In spite of a rash of economic challenges in the past few months, the restaurant industry continued to expand in May, according to the latest data from the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index. While operators showed concern about the six-month outlook in the survey, capital spending and spending plans increased. The overall index ticked…

In another step toward its multiyear plan to strengthen its messaging and connection, the National Restaurant Association has given its logo a makeover. The association’s new visual identity applies to all of its programs, advocacy, services and products to build cohesiveness in the NRA’s brand structure. The association says its new brand visual is designed…

Peruse this magazine, or check out the stories in FER Fortnightly, and you can see an awful lot of flux in foodservice these days. It’s not just simple one-problem-at-a-time turmoil, either. Everything is tied to everything else, like some big three-dimensional web pulled tight as a guitar string. Tweak it here, and things twang here,…