The GMA has said that while there are legitimate privacy
implications concerning RFID and EPC, the technology stills offers
manufacturers and industry significant benefits.
Competition for European suppliers of honey has ramped up with
Brussels clearing the way to end a two year ban on food imports
from China which should pave the way for cheaper raw materials for
honey formulations.
Welcomed by sweetener suppliers, scientists at the world's biggest
food ingredients exhibition claim this week that there is no
credible evidence to 'single out' the common sweetener high
fructose corn syrup (HFCS)...
Researchers at the University of Salford, Manchester, have
discovered a type of mint leaf, long used in traditional Chinese
medicine, that appears to destroy cancer cells.
Hanging as a persistent threat to the chocolate industry witches'
broom disease is capable of wiping out entire cacao crops and
sending the price of chocolate rocketing. Despite ongoing research
into the threat confirmed by the...
The thorny issue of the way in which the food industry promotes its
products to children is to be addressed by the UK's Food Standards
Agency. But will the latest government action plan - which is still
based on voluntary action...
Tough restrictions on the marketing of food products - along the
lines of those in place for many years in the tobacco industry -
are the best solution to the growing problem of obesity, claimed
researchers last week. But the food...
Food giants such as Unilever, Kraft and Campina have put in place
measures to achieve significant reductions in energy consumption,
underlining the trend towards growing corporate environmental
responsibility.
Danish ingredients firm Chr Hansen has benefited from the growing
demand by food makers for natural colours. Higher sales of natural
colours helped to lift profit figures in a third quarter that also
gained from the increasing popularity...
Although the market for honey in China has fluctuated in recent
years the country continues to be by far the leading producer in
the world. And with per capita consumption set to rise, a recent
report from Access Asia indicates that...
Pricing pressure on the global market for citric acid has forced
DSM of the Netherlands to lay off staff at its Citrique Belge unit.
And there's no sign of a recovery in the market, says an
independent ingredients consultant,reports...
Global warming is a real threat and needs to be addressed now,
argues BP group chief executive John Browne. He says that
manufacturers need to start taking steps immediately to reduce
carbon dioxide emissions in order to make a big...
Artificial sweeteners may disrupt the body's natural ability to
'count' calories based on foods' sweetness, claim US researchers,
suggesting mouthfeel plays a crucial role in gauging calories and
casting a potential...
A nasal spray which reduces calorie intake, promotes weight loss
and is safe in obese individuals has successfully completed early
clinical trials, raising hopes of a new treatment for obesity.
US agri-giant Cargill has carved a deeper position in the European
chocolate market after Swiss firm Nestlé sold two cocoa processing
activities to the acquisitive private company.
Cloetta Fazer Group, the Stockholm-listed Swedish-Finnish
confectionery group, says it is planning to tap into the huge
potential of the Poland market. According to CEO Karsten Slotte,
the company is set to play a role in the consolidation...
UK scientists are warning that world chocolate production could
fall dramatically if diseases, which have devastated South American
cultivation of cacao (the raw material used for producing
chocolate) over the past 15 years, were...
UK ingredients maker Tate & Lyle faces paying out a hefty sum
as the sweetener firm seeks to settle a US lawsuit alleging that
its US unit AE Staley played a role in fixing the price of high
fructose corn syrup, a sweetener used...
Leading Australian biscuit manufacturer Arnott's Biscuits, part of
the global food giant Campbell Soup, says it wants to expands it
presence throughout the Asian region.
Despite cheaper alternatives to cocoa butter on the market and new
European rules allowing vegetable fats in chocolate formulations,
uptake for the replacers has been slower than expected as reticent
food makers and marketers stick...
Mars has been told to remove the main claims from its advertising
for the new AquaDrops range after they were rejected today by the
Advertising Standards Authority as misleading.
Ingredients supplier Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) said on Thursday
that it had reached a $400 million (€333m) settlement in an
anti-trust case that claimed the US firm conspired to fix the price
of the food sweetener high fructose...
AMR Research says that after years of caution, attitudes towards
supply chain objectives are changing. This in turn has led to a run
on investments in the sector, which the company predicts will lead
to a 5 per cent jump in the multi...
Nestlé Romania has confirmed that it is to invest a further €3.5
million in its factory in Timisoara, as the company reaffirms its
ambitions to dominate the all-important wafer market in the region.
Leading China biscuit manufacturing Fujian Dali Food says that
construction of its new €19 million biscuit factory in Changchun,
Jilin Province, is now well underway, moving it closer towards its
goal of dominating the biscuit market...
Huhtamaki's Chinet range of moulded fibre foodservice plates has
just been certified for biodegradability - the latest step in an
industry-wide trend towards greener packaging.
With a plethora of brands from which to choose and long-established
patterns of consumption, the prospects of significant growth in the
French chocolate market might seem remote. But a new report
suggests that there is plenty of movement...
Zebra Technologies has launched the R110Xi RFID printer/encoder,
which it claims is the first printer available with fully
integrated support for Class 0 (read only) and Matrics Class 0+
(read/write) smart labels.
Three companies have announced a technology that allows the deposit
gum bases and incorporate gums into candies and lollipops, which is
said to provide new opportunities for the confectionery industry.
As the decision to purchase a product is frequently made on the
appeal and attractiveness of its packaging, more and more firms are
choosing to process packaging twice to achieve the best results,
says French foil group Kurz.
Long term investments in added-value products contributed to
British starch group Tate & Lyle's end of year results with
strong US performance offsetting squeezed margins due to surging
raw material prices. A lift in demand...
Shipments of aluminium foil for the first quarter of 2004 have been
promising, with sales increasing by nearly one per cent compared
with the first three months of 2003, writes Anthony
Fletcher.
As companies move toward complying with RFID mandates, the real
value has been lost in the rush, claims research group Aberdeen. Mandates
issued by retail giants such as Wal-Mart are forcing the industry
to meet some very aggressive...
Small daily doses of flavonoid-rich dark chocolate eaten over a
two-week period significantly improved blood vessel function,
report US researchers this week, without increasing blood
cholesterol levels.
A roasting system equipped with state-of-the-art debacterisation
has been developed for US chocolate and cocoa producer Blommer. The
process is claimed to preserve the properties of cocoa better.
UK politicians have called for immediate industry action to counter
the rising numbers of obese in the country, offering food marketers
three years to show significant improvements in product labelling
and formulation, writes Chris...
The world's health ministers gave their support on Saturday to a
new policy produced by the World Health Organisation that is
designed to tackle the world's growing problem of obesity and
diet-related disease, said to account...
US Agro-food giant Cargill has confirmed that a $24 million
class-action lawsuit accusing the US food giant of price-fixing
will be settled following federal court approval. The end is now in
sight for a law suit that dates back nine...
A new study conducted by the FDA says that acrylamide found in
fried and baked goods is unlikely to cause reproduction problems if
the general public consume it as part of the average daily diet -
but research is ongoing for its carcinogenic...
The European Commission has given the nod to Sygenta's Bt11
genetically modified sweetcorn, granting authorisation for it to be
sold within the European Union over the next ten years. Although
the Commission says that the sweetcorn...
Changes to laws governing waste, energy consumption and emissions
are forcing plants to alter their methods of operation. Anthony
Fletcher spoke to the UK Environment Agency's head of waste
management to find out what plant managers...
Cadbury Adams has signed a 16-year lease for a new science and
technology centre that will be built in Hanover Township, in the
state of New Jersey, US for confectionery innovation.
Leading Swiss Chocolate processor Barry Callebaut says that on the
back of strong six monthly results it will be looking to increase
its presence in the consumer sector.
At least 155 million school-age children worldwide are overweight
or obese, a growing problem which needs to be tackled now if more
serious ailments such as type 2 diabetes or heart disease are to be
avoided, according to the International...
A food product on the shelf must satisfy a range of senses to earn
consumer appeal. But US scientists claim that little understood
contextual cues - food display, colours - can lead to people eating
much more than they need.
The dynamic performance of the Romanian chocolate sector continues
to gather pace with the announcement from Supreme Chocolat that it
has increased its sales in the first quarter by an impressive 120
per cent.
Acquisitive ingredients firm Kerry will spend €170 million on four
bolt-on flavour acquisitions announced yesterday as the €3.7
billion Irish company continues to consolidate its position in the
highly competitive flavours market....
Real-time supply chain execution (SCE) software provider ClearOrbit
has launched Purchase Order Change Management, part of its Advanced
Collaborative Replenishment Suite. PO Change Management automates
the communication of order changes...
The all-important market for caramels in Russia continues to be
encroached upon by cheaper imports from Ukraine helped by good
sugar supplies, according to findings from a recent market report.