How much you know or care about this one will depend on where you live! If you're resident or familiar with Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Georgia, Mississippi or the Carolinas, you'll probably have shopped at a Southeastern Grocer's store before. You might not have realized it though. They're actually the parent company of a number of better-known stores, including the Winn-Dixie grocery and Bi-Lo.
As with the other grocery and pharmacy casualties we've seen on this list, they've been squeezed hard by Walmart and the internet. Southeastern surrendered to Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in order to survive, ditching over 100 of its stores and shaking off $600m in debt in the process. It now believes that it's over the worst and will turn its attention to re-branding and reshaping the stores which survived. Expect to see new brand names where the old stores once stood, but it will still be Southeastern Grocers behind it all.
Over the years, weve seen so many food trends come and go, such as ramen burgers, matcha, and spiked ice-cream. Nowadays, were seeing another trend making waves in the food industry. How many times today have you seen an Instagram photo of a scoop of black ice cream, or a cup of black yogurt, or hamburgers with black buns? Indeed, the charcoal trend has taken the world by storm.
So, what gives your latte that deep black shade? Activated charcoal, or coconut ash, is produced by heating coconut shells to insanely high temperatures until theyre burnt to a crisp. The ashes are then increased in size by steaming at high temperatures. Through this process, the ashes become a strong detoxifier, mostly because they become extra absorbent. This product may be purchased in pill form, and promises to alleviate hangovers, minimize the effects of food poisoning, and fight the visible signs of aging.
Activated charcoal is said to boost ones energy as a result of decreasing toxins in the body. However, no evidence proves that detoxifying can lead to increased energy. Also, while it can help cure a hangover, it doesnt necessarily remove alcohol from your blood. It is also said to aid in debloating your stomach because it cleanses your colon but again, this all anecdotal and isnt supported by scientific evidence as of yet. All we can say for sure is that it is a proven detoxifier.