Food

Fast Company released its annual list of the The Worlds 50 Most Innovative Companies for 2011 earlier this month. Not surprisingly, Apple, Inc. was crowned No. 1 followed by social networking stars Facebook and Twitter. While only three consumer goods companies made the Top 50, another 20 were named as market leaders in the consumer product and food industries.

VMI programs have been in place at CG companies for years, but leaders are just now asking: How can I gain more value? The Dannon Company Inc. seems to have the answer as it pursues VMI as a strategic initiative to strengthen retailer relationships and grow sales. Get the inside scoop here.

After being acquired by Ralcorp, Post Foods successfully collaborated with a broker and a solutions provider to transition to a new enterprise resource planning (ERP) and trade promotion management (TPM) solution.

Timothy R. McLevish to leave mid-year 2011; David Brearton to become CFO.

P&Gs global product supply officer retires; the company announces current vice president product supply, global operations, as his successor.

M-Factor is a software-as-a-service company that enables consumer products companies to continuously analyze, forecast, and optimize marketing investments and trade spend.

The New Year has been saturated with news of high-ranking CG executives either being promoted or moving on to new companies. Among the changes were CIO appointments at H.J. Heinz and MillerCoors. Here's a pocket guide to who has gone where.

With annual sales of approximately $325 million, the acquisition accelerates Heinzs growth in Latin America and gives the company its first major business in Brazil.