UTZ Certified argues that guaranteeing cocoa farmers a premium distorts the market by discouraging them from adopting good agricultural practices as they are guaranteed a premium regardless of quality. Fairtrade International disagrees.
What are the leading confectioners serving up this Halloween? ConfectioneryNews explores the latest additions to Halloween lineups from big players such as Mars, Hershey and Nestlé.
Confectionery giant Mars has defended its use of artificial colors in M&Ms after being urged to ditch them in a petition on change.org accompanied by a press release from the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) describing them as “neurotoxic...
Mars Chocolate North America claims pushing year-round sharing occasions is key to getting US chocolate consumption on par with high levels observed in many Western European nations.
Mars and Nestlé have opted to settle a class action lawsuit over price fixing allegations in Canada but both still face criminal charges in a separate investigation from the Competition Bureau.
Mars Chocolate North America has announced nine product launches planned for 2014, which it will exhibit at the Association for Convenience & Fuel Retailing (NACS) show at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta between 12-15 October.
We’ve delved into the ConfectioneryNews archives to chart newly built factories and major investments on existing plants by the industry’s major players over the past five years to discover where capacity is moving.
The FDA’s decision to give the thumbs up to spirulina as a source of blue color in candy and gum finally gives US firms a natural alternative to artificial FD&C Blue #1 ('brilliant blue') and opens up new opportunities in natural greens,...
Wrigley is urging consumers to chew sugar free gum as part of oral healthcare routines and dismisses that it is contributing to dental diseases through parent company Mars’ sugar-based products.
Perceptions of the food industry are changing and manufacturing is becoming a more popular career for young people, according to Mars UK president, Fiona Dawson.
SPECIAL EDITION: HEALTHY AND FUNCTIONAL CONFECTIONERY
The EU energy market is set to grow by €1bn by 2017 and much of that could come from ‘natural energy’, a sub-sector that has been boosted by recent health claim approvals, says Euromonitor International analyst, Diana Cowland.
Bitesize confectionery has seen 40% growth over the last four years in the UK and is now worth £550m ($859m), according to Mars which has launched its first share bag versions for its Twix and Mars brands.
The UK's largest confectionery company, Mondelez International-owned Cadbury, has decided against signing up to the UK’s hybrid front of pack nutritional label as competitors Mars and Nestlé adopt the tags.
Mars Drinks says it sees huge global potential for single-serve hot drinks machines and consumables in the high-growth office environment, and predicts ‘tremendous growth’ in emerging markets.
Colombian researchers have questioned the clinical benefits of sugar free chewing gum to prevent dental caries and gingivitis after a double-blind, randomized controlled trial. A scientist from Mondelez has doubted the findings.
At the Sweets and Snacks Expo in Chicago, new confection and snack products on display reflect what flavors, ingredients and categories candy consumers are hungering for.
There is still a market for caffeine gums even after US Food and Drug Administration concerns prompted Wrigley to suspend production of its new Alert gum, according to private label gum maker Fertin Pharma.
The FDA says it will take a “fresh look” at the health effects of caffeine on kids following the launch of Alert Energy Caffeine Gum - a new caffeinated gum from Wrigley (Mars).
A 10,000 ton shipment of fertilizer arrived in the principal cocoa growing nation Ivory Coast today as part of an industry-backed initiative to double productivity on cocoa farms.
Consumers think candy bars with green nutrition labels, such as those used by Mars, are healthier than ones with red or white labels containing the same calories, according to new research.
Mars Chocolate promises to assess conditions for women cocoa farmers and will sign up to the UN Women’s Empowerment Principles after Oxfam accused it of neglecting gender inequality.
The industry has pledged $10m in new funds since 2010 to eliminate the worst forms of child labor, but a newly released report says the job is far from over.
Mars-owned Wrigley is to launch an energy chewing gum with the caffeine equivalent of half a cup of coffee in each piece but one analyst says the product misses the key youth market and could prove a lawsuit hazard.
Two major chocolate brands have been launched in block format as Mars Chocolate unveils Maltesers Teasers and Lindt introduces Lindor single serve bars.
Oxfam has called on the three biggest chocolate manufacturers to conduct independent audits on conditions for women on cocoa farms supplying their factories after finding evidence of unequal pay, discrimination and hunger.
Oxfam will step up its campaign to improve the treatment of people and resources that form part of the supply chain of the world’s biggest food conglomerates, after it cast industry responses to its damning Behind the Brands report as ‘bland’ and ‘complacent’.
Associated British Foods – worst-in-class in an Oxfam report critical of 10 food giants for essentially operating under a corporate social responsibility (CSR) “veil of secrecy” – has hit back, slamming the report ‘s findings as “ridiculous”.
Candy makers must take responsibility to tackle obesity and should act before regulators force their hands, says Mars Chocolate North America's president.
GMO Inside, a national coalition of companies and organizations, has marshaled a public Valentine’s Day campaign to pressure Hershey and Mars to drop GMO ingredients or to label them in their chocolate candies.
A US not-for-profit organisation has slammed the “murky issue” around potential risks of nanomaterial use and pledged to test products to assess their safety.
Eleven chocolate companies including Nestlé and Kraft have been fined over €60m ($82m) for colluding to raise chocolate prices in Germany, while price fixing investigations continue in the US and Canada.
The chocolate industry is behind in tackling some cocoa supply issues and must work more closely to avert shortages, according to Mars’ head of sustainability.
