Niman In Trouble

The financially-beleaguered Niman Ranch, suppliers of all good things meat, was forced to merge with a division of its largest investor, Natural Foods Holdings: "Niman CEO Jeff Swain said in a letter to shareholders that the Bay Area company was in default on loans, owed key vendors money, and was facing a decline in sales. Swain told shareholders that Niman had been unable to secure additional credit and that without merging it did not have the funds to continue operations past the end of this month." [Gourmet via 7x7]