Toothfriendly Sweets International, a non-profit making association
which champions the health benefits of sugar-free confectionery,
has announced it has received charitable status for its work -
something which sugar-free confectioners...
Number one natural colours firm Chr Hansen makes inroads into the
lucrative Chinese market, this week unveiling a new food colour
factory to meet a rise in local demand, and marking the first step
in a raft of investments in the region.
Interpack 2005 will enable the packaging industry to gauge just how
far the development of automated, high speed flow wrapping, robotic
cartoning and shrink wrapping equipment has progressed.
As Europe's food agency finally makes the permanent move to Italy,
a framework plan for 2005 consolidates the key objectives for the
EU's major risk assessor.
Number six global flavours player Takasago International has
established a new division in Shanghai aimed at expanding its
manufacturing and retail presence in China as well cutting costs.
Israeli flavour firm Frutarom, with clear ambitions to become one
of the top ten flavour players, is seeking a listing on the London
Stock Exchange to raise funds for imminent acquisitions.
Barry Callebaut, the world's leading supplier of chocolate to the
confectionery industry, has reported a 6 per cent fall in first
quarter sales revenues to CHF1.15bn (€0.79bn) as squeezed margins
bit into its bottom line. The...
The European Commission is spending €12.7 million on research into
the relationship between diet, lack of exercise and the development
of diabetes to improve understanding of the rapid rise in this
disease in recent years.
Pursuit Dynamics has launched PDX Sonic 25 - a self contained,
fully integrated processing system that has the potential to reduce
cooking times by up to 95 per cent and reduce cleaning times by 80
per cent.
Food companies are expecting a tough year in 2005 with competition
and price pressures in the food chain rising to the surface as the
key issues, reports Lindsey Partos.
Ireland's lone sugar processor Greencore Sugar is to cease
operating at its Carlow production facility in anticipation of the
pending EU reform of the sugar industry, Tom Armitage
reports.
Aluminium packaging giant Alcan is investing $55 million to build
and equip two new Russian plants - a clear indication that foreign
firms are beginning to take notice of the Russian packaging market,
writes Anthony Fletcher.
As food ingredients suppliers take a stake in the burgeoning
Chinese market new figures released by the United Nations confirm
foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows to Asia and the Pacific
rose by a massive 55 per cent in 2004 on...
High blood sugar levels could be a risk factor in developing
several types of cancer, suggest researchers that tracked over 1
million Koreans for a decade.
US sweetener company zuChem will launch its initial mannitol
product in the first quarter of 2005 on the back of the FDA's
recent amendment to its legislation governing the sweetener,
reports Philippa Nuttall.
Markos Kyprianou, the new Commissioner for Health and Consumer
Protection in Brussels, will continue in his predecessor David
Byrne's foodsteps, pushing to maintain high levels of food safety
in the EU.
Polish confectionery manufacturer Jutrzenka has finalised financial
arrangements for the acquisition of rights to Nestlé Polska's
Goplana confectionery brand, giving it an instant growth platform
in the steadily expanding sugar...
The boss of UK starch and sugar group Tate & Lyle, currently
enjoying booming sales for its sweetener 600 times sweeter than
sugar, has hooked the European Businessman of the Year award from
leading US business magazine Forbes.
A Tetra Pak subsidiary has found a dipping and coating solution for
novelty ice creams, which it hopes will eliminate sub-standard ice
cream coatings - welcome news for ice cream manufacturers seeking
to satisfy the quality-conscious...
Opportunities for suppliers and users of low-calorie bulk sweetener
erythritol open up as Canada clears approval for inclusion of this
natural sweetener in a range of food formulations from cream
fillings to chewing gum.
Chocolate consumption in the UK is slowing down as health and diet
concerns impact sales, a trend which has created opportunities for
major players to roll out sugar free and low carbohydrate products,
according to market analysts...
The bolt-on acquisition of Rhodia Food Ingredients earlier this
year helps boost sales for Danish ingredients and sugar group
Danisco in an otherwise challenging 2004/05 first half.
Major Dutch bakery ingredients firm CSM confirms the sale of its
confectionery unit to focus on core business. The
Diemen/Breda-based company said it expects to complete the sale of
the unit to CVC Capital Partners in the first quarter...
Widespread procurement and more than 100 years in business help
French hydrocolloid producer Colloides Naturels International (CNI)
assure supplies for gum arabic amid global shortfalls in stock,
writes Lindsey Partos.
Increasing investment in new product development is expected to
help British confectionery and soft drinks producer Cadbury
Schweppes to achieve its ambitious targets for long-term growth,
according to analysts Goldman Sachs. And...
Prices for cocoa remain relatively volatile as political unrest in
Ivory Coast, that produces some 40 per cent of global cocoa crops,
keeps the market nervous.
Prices for the popular hydrocolloid gum arabic used in a range of
food applications have doubled in 12 months as political turmoil
and poor stocks leave the market exposed, writes Lindsey
Partos.
Restricting the diets of mice reduces the build-up of plaques in
the brain that are linked to Alzheimer's disease, according to a
new study that offers further evidence of the benefits of calorie
restriction.
Consumers' health could be at risk depending on where they shop and
how much money they earn, a bleak assessment by the National
Consumer Council of the current state of healthy eating promotions
in many of Britain's leading...
Nearly half of the world's vanillin supplies are sourced from China
but since tighter production rules arrived there a few years ago
there are now only two major Chinese producers left in the country,
reports Lindsey Partos....
Booming sales for its popular sweetener give UK starch and sugar
business Tate & Lyle the necessary leverage for the firm to
re-enter the FTSE 100 index after a seven-year break.
A breakthrough into the US market boosts the bottom line for UK
natural flavours firm Treatt that saw sales for the year across the
Atlantic rising by over 40 per cent to €10 million, parallel to a
sales dip elsewhere, writes Lindsey...
Fundamental research from the US sheds light on how the memory of a
food can influence the eating habits of consumers, and how food
makers could ultimately tackle false beliefs about a food product.
The announcement yesterday that DMV International and Arla Food
Ingredients could merge is a further example of how the rising
power and ongoing growth of the multiple retailers is putting
constant pressure on ingredients companies...
CSM, the €2.8 billion Dutch bakery ingredients company, is still
hoping for a year end close on the sale of its confectionery unit,
that together with biochemicals, sugar and bakery supplies complete
the CSM stable.
Breakthrough science for the popular fruit ingredient, the
strawberry, as UK scientists construct the world's first molecular
map for the wild strawberry, opening up opportunities to create
market leading varieties with improved...
The controversial issue of nutritional profiles will remain one of
the biggest hurdles for EU legislation on health claims but recent
reports suggest that Germany may be ready to concede some elements
of profiling, reports Dominique...
Food and ingredients producer Greencore has warned early that its
Irish sugar business could be seriously damaged when the EU finally
implements its sugar reform, expected next December, writes
Chris Mercer.
Tate & Lyle, the world's only maker of the increasingly popular
sweetener sucralose, must prioritise needs of existing customers as
demand for the additive 'far exceeds our expectations.'
Japanese aspartame supplier Ajinomoto will ramp up production of
its sweetener on the back of growing demand for low calorie food
and beverages, the Tokyo-based firm announced this week.
The UK confectionery market has seen a burgeoning trend for
sugar-free confectionery, bolstered by innovative product launches
and continuing consumer demand for healthy products, writes Tom
Armitage.
UK retailer Sainsbury will be the first of the country's four large
grocery chains to launch 'traffic light' healthy eating labelling
in January, according to reports.
Leading Swiss chocolate manufacturer Chocolat Frey has installed a
high-speed robotic packaging line, as part of an ongoing attempt to
consolidate product quality and productivity amidst a declining
Swiss chocolate market, Tom Armitage...
Merisant, the US maker of tabletop sweetener Equal and NutraSweet,
takes the marketer of sugar subsitute Splenda McNeil Nutritionals
to court, alleging advertising for the product is misleading.
Plans for EU sugar reform are unfair and would only benefit the
biggest producers, according to 10 member states including
Slovenia, Hungary and Latvia, as new discussions split opinions in
eastern Europe, reports Chris Mercer.
