Breaking News on Confectionery & Biscuit Processing

ABF sugar operations sweeten sales

Sugar producer Associated British Foods (ABF) has announced a strong performance from its operations overseas which have helped to offset rocky trading in the UK market.

Healthy, ethical chocolate taps growing market

UK speciality chocolate maker Venture Foods has invested in further innovation to extend its range of Fairtrade, vegan and organic confectionery.

Wrigley launches new Orbit flavours

Global gum maker Wrigley is broadening its confectionery portfolio with an extension of its core Orbit brand.

Weekly Comment

Turning advertisers into educators

Instead of trying to hide confectionery from children by restricting advertising, chocolate-makers should be encouraging them to make the same health-conscious choices as adults when it comes to confectionery they're sure to buy anyway.

Industry unites to aid cocoa growers

Members of the World Cocoa Foundation have extended their five-year plan to help 150,000 cocoa farming families in Ghana and the Ivory Coast – protecting the supply chain and ensuring ethical practices are in place.

Danisco welcomes EU sugar quota cut

Danisco has welcomed the EC's decision to introduce a temporary sugar quota reduction as a "necessary step to restore the balance on the market".

Adept calls its Quatro robot 'world's fastest'

Adept Technology said yesterday it has shipped the first of what it is calling the world's fastest light payload packaging and handling robot targeted at the food industry.

Healthy performance for nutrition-focused Nestlé

In a year dominated by acquisitions and changes within its operational structure, Switzerland-based food group Nestlé has still exceeded expectations with full-year organic growth boosted by the company's focus on nutrition, research and core brands.

Tate & Lyle appoints new R&D head

Tate & Lyle's appointment of a new head of global research and development underlines the company's focus on the value-added end of the ingredients market.

Honeydew honeys top antioxidant ratings

Honey produced by bees feeding on honeydew have more than double the radical scavenging activity than honeys from nectars, says new research from Spain.

Cargill adds new chocolate product to portfolio

Food ingredients manufacturer Cargill has launched a new fine cocoa powder for use in the confectionery industry which can be marketed as a 'pure chocolate'.

Gum rescues Cadbury from sticky situation

Even after a year marred by salmonella contamination, product recalls and financial irregularities, Cadbury Schweppes has posted 9 per cent growth in full year profits as the company's portfolio feels the benefit of strongly-performing gum brands.

Health concerns fail to sour the market for sweet makers

The UK sweet market remains buoyant in the face of healthier eating, according to a new sector report.

Weekly Comment

Coming clean in crisis management

In the area of crisis management, companies seem keen to repeat history by making the same mistakes -- over and over again.

Flavanol-rich cocoa for brain health, say experts

Flavanol-rich chocolate may boost blood flow in the brain and reduce the risk of dementia, experts have told attendees at the annual meeting for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

Nestlé teams up with Barry Callebaut

Chocolate producers Nestlé and Barry Callebaut have joined forces to improve their respective positions in the competitive European market as the maker of Smarties chocolate hands over facilities and a supply contract to the Swiss processor.

Rhodia expands diphenols production for vanillin

French chemical giant Rhodia have announced the continued expansion of its China-based diphenol production with the third manufacturing site set to open in June.

Hershey eyes expansion with new restructuring scheme

US chocolate maker Hershey has embarked on a three-year restructuring plan to further increase the company's global footprint and allow it to outsource production of low value-added products.

Profits dip as German candy makers feel the heat

High temperatures combined with the prohibitive cost of raw materials has led to a decline in the German sweet confectionery and chocolate sectors.

Tate & Lyle sells Canadian sugar business

Tate & Lyle's agreement to the sale of its Canadian sugar refining business represents another move away from the commodity end of the market.

Innovation gives Valentine's market a boost

This Valentine's Day 43 per cent of British gift-buyers will opt for chocolate as the way to their other half's heart and, with spending expected to top the £2.4 billion (€3.5bn) mark, confectioners are jostling to grab their share of the lucrative market, investing in innovation and capitalising on consumer trends at the forefront of the industry.

Confectionery growth pushed by emerging markets

Confectionery has seen modest growth worldwide over the past year but markets such as Latin America and Asia Pacific are proving particularly buoyant, according to a new report from market analysts AC Nielsen which identifies growth areas in the food industry for 2006.

Quest launches time release gum flavours

Quest has launched a range of timed flavour release chewing gums that it claims could revolutionise an already burgeoning market.

Cadbury faces prosecution over salmonella, newspaper reports

UK-based Cadbury Schweppes is set to be prosecuted under environmental health laws after the company allegedly released chocolate for sale that was contaminated with salmonella, according to the Guardian newspaper.

Weekly Comment

Allergens: no room for mistakes

It would be a mistake for governments and industry to misinterpret the recent progress in food allergen labeling as a final solution: there is much that yet remains to be done, for the well-being of both consumers and manufacturers.

Cognis launches low trans-fat emulsifier

Cognis has launched a new emulsifier with low trans-fat content to help food makers conform with consumer health demands.

Cadbury hit by product recall ahead of Easter boom

Cadbury Schweppes has been forced to recall over twenty of its core UK Easter products after failing to display nut allergy warnings on the packaging of brands such as Creme Egg and Dairy Milk.

Barry Callebaut boosts Ghana cocoa production

Major Swiss cocoa processor Barry Callebaut has expanded operations at a factory in Ghana - doubling the facility's bean processing capacity.

Small amounts of guar gum for stronger whey gels, study

Adding about 0.1 per cent guar gum to whey protein gel boosted gel strength twelve-fold, says new research from Ireland.

Royal Cosun announces indicative 2006 sugar beet price

Dutch firm Royal Cosun has announced an indicative sugar beet price of €48.25 per tonne of quota beet from the 2006 campaign.

Wrigley pursues European growth after strong results

Leading gum maker the Wm Wrigley Jr Company, has announced a positive fourth quarter performance with recent moves to increase its global footprint contributing to growing sales.

Confectioners urged to target French sugar-free market

Opportunities are rife within the French confectionery sector for those manufacturers willing to invest in innovation targeted at European consumers, according to a report by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Masterfoods vows to cut kids marketing

The owner of Mars and Snickers chocolate brands, Masterfoods, has pledged to stop marketing its products to children younger than 12 - a move that is sure to increase consumer confidence in the brand and appease advertising regulators.

High friction modular belts help protect products

A new range of modular belts come with a high-friction coating to reduce product damage and processing line downtime, claims the manufacturer.

Snack body asks for action on commodity costs

With the increasing use of some of their raw materials for the production of biofuels, snack makers have called on the European Commission to take measures to ensure they do not face further price hikes for their supplies.

Weekly Comment

Food versus fuel: is a happy ending possible?

The era of biofuels is here but this does not necessarily mean unending food price shocks or a critical diversion of agricultural production away from food.

Sainsbury's launches charitable chocolate

Major UK retailer Sainsbury's is diving into the charitable chocolate market this month with the launch of new Fairtrade chocolate slabs, Chocpix, in collaboration with the Divine chocolate company.

Test aids sugarcane extraction

A new test has been developed to aid sugar processors in the difficult task of extracting the substance from raw sugarcane.

Tate & Lyle to close UK citric acid plant

Tate & Lyle has been forced to close its UK citric acid operations in the face of intense competition from Chinese imports and oversupply in the world market.

Finsbury tightens hold on UK cake market

UK baker Finsbury Foods has consolidated its leading position within the cake sector with the £37.5m (€56.6m) acquisition of the Lightbody Group this week.