GOODLETTSVILLE, TN - As Dollar General recently reported its latest financial results, the discount grocer unveiled plans to exponentially increase its fresh focus—and up its produce programs.

“We are also accelerating the expansion of our produce offerings which provides the top 20 items typically sold in traditional grocery stores and covers approximately 80 percent of the overall categories they carry,” stated Jeffery Carl Owen, Chief Operating Officer, in a call to analysts. “Our plans now consist of adding produce in approximately 400 stores this year, up from our previous goal of about 250 stores, bringing the total number of stores with produce to more than 1,000 by year-end. I'm very proud of the team's ability to execute such high volumes of successful real estate projects, and we are excited about the continued growth opportunities ahead.”

Additional highlights from the retailer’s financial report included:

• Fourth Quarter Net Sales Increased 7.6 percent; Fiscal Year Net Sales Increased 8.3 percent
• Fourth Quarter Same-Store Sales Increased 3.2 percent; Fiscal Year Same-Store Sales Increased 3.9 percent
• Fourth Quarter Operating Profit Increased 12.9 percent to $720.9 Million
• Fiscal Year Operating Profit Increased 8.8 percent to $2.3 Billion; Fiscal Year Adjusted Operating Profit

“Our value-and-convenience proposition continues to resonate with both new and existing customers, and our unique real estate footprint remains a competitive advantage,” said Todd Vasos, Chief Executive Officer. “As we enter 2020 from a position of strength, we will continue to keep our core customer at the center of all we do, while remaining steadfast in our efforts to deliver long-term shareholder value.”

Will Dollar General continue to play into a fresh strategy? As more consumers continue to seek out affordable and healthy options, it seems reasonable that we will soon be seeing even more DG stores with produce aisles.

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