European Parliament has voted against the proposed ban on the use of designations referring to meat for plant-based alternatives. However, designations referring to dairy products will continue to be banned.

Coca-Cola wants to halve its brand portfolio. Some two hundred brands will go out, as sales continue to fall in all regions due to the corona pandemic. Nevertheless, it was a better-than-expected third quarter.

Several sources report that German sports goods giant Adidas is considering a sale of its sister brand Reebok. That brand was severely hit by the corona crisis.

Supermarket chain Edeka intends to double its stake in the Dutch online supermarket Picnic. The German market leader currently owns 10 percent of Picnic International and 35 percent of Picnic Germany.

Delhaize launches a delivery service for freshly prepared dishes in collaboration with Tastyoo, a food technology start-up in which the supermarket chain is already the main shareholder. Colruyt Group has already launched a similar service, Rose Mary.

Nearly 60% of all online sales worldwide are made by just six large companies. Four of these are based in China. This is shown in a new report from Activate Consulting.

Despite the corona crisis, Unilever has had a more than solid quarter. In particular, the company sold more products through supermarkets, compensating for the decline in sales in the out-of-home segment.

Decathlon turns its Belgian webshop into a platform on which other brands and partners can sell their sporting products – from Adidas to local start-ups. The project will be rolled out to other countries as well.

Procter & Gamble is not hurt by the corona crisis. The FMCG giant saw a sharp increase in sales and profits in the past quarter, fuelled by increasing demand for laundry and cleaning products during the pandemic.

Electronics retailer Fnac Darty reinforces its omni-channel model and focuses on additional services and new product groups. This led to good revenue growth in the third quarter, with strong online sales.

(update) Gap plans to leave Europe: the American clothing chain announces the possible closure of all its stores on the European continent. Nearly 120 stores are affected by the decision.

From now on, Ace & Tate will offer recycled glasses on second-hand platform Depop. It is the first optics chain to start working with the app, giving old frames a second life.

Hema has a (preliminary) deal with acquisition candidate Parcom and Jumbo family Van Eerd. The consortium has eight weeks to complete the financing. Meanwhile, the department store chain is also announcing good quarterly results.

Investigations into bankrupt fashion group FNG are now also leading to the Netherlands: over the years, the retailer has channelled 110 million euros to a dubious fund, without any explanation.

Fast-growing Chinese discount chain Miniso is now also set to conquer the French market: on Tuesday, the first branch in Paris has opened its doors. The retailer wants to open two more French branches this year.

At the Delvaux head office, a well-known dilemma in the luxury sector flares up: are discounts and platforms an option, or should exclusivity take precedence? The quarrel even threatens to lead to a reorganisation.

Asda has opened its new, sustainable test store and proposed a new plastics reduction strategy. In addition, the UK supermarket chain is promising that customers will never pay more for the greener options.

Coffee and tea giant JDE Peet's (Douwe Egberts) wants to significantly increase the production of aluminium coffee capsules in the coming months. Partly as a result of the corona crisis, demand for such capsules is rising sharply. Competitor Nestlé (Nespresso) also announced a production increase earlier.

European Parliament is voting this week on a possible ban on terms such as 'veggie burger' and 'vegan sausages'. According to the meat industry, such terms only confuse consumers.

In France, Carrefour launches a new personalised solution that recommends products to customers based on an individual profile with their food preferences and allergies. The retailer wants to roll out the tool to other countries as well.

French retail group Auchan withdraws from China: the company sells its Chinese division Sun Art to Alibaba for 3 billion euros. Both groups have been working closely together there for some time.

In order to adapt to a new COVID world and return to growth, Danone will restructure its organisation and divest some activities. The company sees vegetable dairy alternatives performing strongly.

HelloFresh is raising its forecast for the fourth time this financial year. Turnover will easily double this year, according to the mealbox delivery service.

Action is testing a new store concept, which is twice as big as usual: in France, a 1,600 m² store has opened its doors, the largest of the non-food discounter to date.

Zalando acquires a Swiss developer of mobile body scanning technology. The startup, Fision from Zurich, should allow both shoppers and brands to determine clothing sizes more precisely and reduce the number of returns.

The Bestseller group, known from brands as Only, Vila and more, is setting up a 'Fashion FWD Lab' to develop sustainable initiatives and materials. The company is working on leather from fruit waste and circular textiles.

LVMH sold more handbags and leather goods in the third quarter, although there was still a sharp decline in the duty-free and cosmetics segments. The luxury holding company sees "encouraging signs of recovery".

Delhaize discontinues its Fresh Atelier retail formula. The award-winning concept has fallen victim to the corona crisis: the demand for food 'on the go' has come to a standstill. However, the retailer is already brooding on a new concept.

There is only one takeover candidate left for Hema: Dutch investor fund Parcom and Jumbo owner Van Eerd are starting exclusive negotiations with the shareholders of the chain. Former owner Marcel Boekhoorn would no longer participate.

At the head office of Monoprix in Clichy, Casino presented the 'BlackBox': it is the first autonomous store of the French retailer. In contrast with Amazon Go, no expensive cameras are used here. But that is also the weakness of the system.

Uniqlo remains determined to overtake Zara. Although parent company Fast Retailing saw profits plummet by 44% in the past financial year and sales fall by 12.3%, the Japanese clothing giant is already expecting a strong recovery next year.

Ikea will soon launch a remarkable international campaign called 'BuyBackFriday'. It gives customers the opportunity to exchange their old Ikea furniture for vouchers. Critics see it as a publicity stunt.