August 18, 1990. Hot sunny weather has sent food and drink sales soaring, but despite the bonanza, experts are warning there are tough times ahead. Assistant director of the Retail Consortium Hugh Clark told The Grocer that many retailers were reporting high sales of fruit, salads and vegetables. But he warned that the significant increase in value of sales was largely due to inflation. "It would be wrong to assume that the July results herald an upturn in the sales trend. The medium term outlook is for tough trading conditions as retailers battle to progress with little or no growth and in the face of increased costs of staffing." {{COUNTERPOINT }}