Findings from a new study on trans fats in UK food products drives
consumer group to call on food makers to cut these artery-clogging
fats out of processed food formulations, while industry declares it
is 'fully committed'...
A drop in the order book for low carb ingredients will impact sales
in the first quarter of 2005 for wheat protein and starch supplier
MGP Ingredients that has up to now enjoyed soaring revenues on the
back of the fad US diet, that...
Teenagers frequently opt for healthier drinks if given a choice,
claims the UK's food watchdog, after testing the response to
vending machines that offer fruit juices and milk in British
schools.
Cargill, the largest private firm in the US, will link up with
biotech giant Monsanto to bring food makers an alternative source
of soybean oil, used to reduce the artery-clogging trans fats in
food products.
KitKat may have lost its crown as the UK's biggest chocolate
countline brand to Cadbury's Dairy Milk last year, but brand owner
Nestlé Rowntree has wasted no time in its bid to regain the top
spot. Extensions of the core...
An editorial in the British Medical Journal this month that
concludes criticisms of aspartame are 'unfounded' adds fuel to the
ongoing debate surrounding this popular sweetener used widely in
food and beverage applications.
NDC Infrared Engineering has launched an updated version of its
at-line analyser Infralab 710, designed to achieve accurate
measurement of multi-component food parameters.
Foods of the future may well be anchored in individual taste
profiles as fundamental research by scientists at the Swiss food
giant Nestlé details the diversity of bitter taste receptors in
monkeys, chimpanzees and humans, writes...
The need of ingredients and equipment suppliers to reach Russian
food manufacturers is becoming increasingly urgent, but in the
absence of established B2B advertising channels, few avenues have
been open. Now a new alliance between...
Integrated material handling solutions provider FKI Logistex has
expanded its range of conveying surface options to make pallet
loading more adaptable and cost-effective for suppliers.
Switzerland's Nestlé will have to sell its Brazilian chocolate
business Garoto, acquired in 2002, after the authorities there
ruled that the takeover would damage competition, proof that even
the world's biggest food company...
Prices remain steady for cocoa, despite news that the start of the
new cocoa harvesting season from the world's biggest producer,
Ivory Coast, has been delayed due to a dispute.
AIM Global, the association for and worldwide authority on
automatic identification and data collection, has issued the AIM
RFID Mark, a standard way to clearly show the presence of an RFID
transponder, its frequency and data structure.
The loss from a security breach of just one shipping container
could cost companies up to $1 trillion, according to an alarming
new report from Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.
UK wheat quality has been pushed even further below the national
three-year average, according to the first survey of wheat
harvested during the worst period of the UK's summer rain,
confirming fears that bad weather will place...
Northern Foods is to close two of its UK factories with the loss of
1,000 jobs in an attempt to drive down costs as it struggles
against rising raw material bills and price squeezes from
supermarkets.
A new gum tax in Ireland proposed to help street cleaning could add
5 to 10 cents to the price of a packet of gum, potentially curbing
growth in a chewing gum market which has been revitalised by sales
of healthy and oral hygiene...
Artificial sweeteners will lead the growth in the food additives
market on the back of rising consumer demand for functional foods,
closely followed by nutraceuticals and food preservatives, but
flavours will remain, by far, the largest...
US-based packaging distributor Hughes Enterprises argues that
attention to packaging is vital in ensuring total supply chain
safety, reports Anthony Fletcher.
A new canola oil created by Dow AgroSciences and sourced from a
seed with a low saturated fat content could be the latest
alternative for biscuit and confectionery manufacturers looking to
eliminate trans fatty acids from their products.
Research from the US suggests that women could have a sweeter tooth
than men - good news for confectionery manufacturers looking to
roll out new products with a feminine slant but less so for women
seeking to keep control of their...
US chocolate maker Mars has licensed a number of its confectionery
brands to compatriot Bravo! Foods, which will roll them out as
vitamin-enhanced milk drinks targeting the growing market for
healthy and indulgent products.
Damage from Hurricane Ivan that struck the US last week could send
prices for peanuts, a common confectionery ingredient, rising as
reports suggest that virtually all of the nation's 2004 peanut crop
could be at risk.
Buhler has unveiled the latest model in its range of extrusion
systems. The BTSK-30 is a co-rotating twin-screw extruder, which
the company claims is suitable for laboratory use and corresponding
production capacities.
Chocolate makers could see savings from new research that sets out
to tackle the common problem of fat bloom, an unsightly white
powdery film that forms on the outside of chocolate, writes
Lindsey Partos.
A strategy of concentrating on a handful of core confectionery
brands has left Sweden's Cloetta Fazer group with significant
overcapacity - and an inevitable programme of factory closures.
A new campaign to reduce sugar levels in foods and consumer diets
in order to tackle the national obesity problem is reportedly being
considered by the UK government, to run after the current attack on
salt is over, writes Chris Mercer.
Leading UK biscuit and snack manufacturer United Biscuits (UB) has
begun transporting products in recyclable flat-pack boxes in order
to achieve cost savings and waste reductions.
The majority shareholder in Danish vegetable oil firm Aarhus United
could soon place its considerable stake on the market, citing a
potential difference in long-term investment interests.
The European Commission is funding a project to find out how food
labelling and advertising policies could be used to stem the rapid
rise of obesity in many member states.
The recent bolt on acquisition of Rhodia Food Ingredients lifted
sales for Danisco in an otherwise challenging first quarter for
2004/2005 but efforts to improve margins appear to be paying off,
writes Lindsey Partos.
Fibre-fever may be the new trend poised to sweep the United States
food industry over the next few years as low-carb diets begin to
stutter and the US government raises the bar for healthy eating -
good news for bakers, pasta makers...
Continued consolidation in the hydrocolloid industry seems imminent
as leading pectin supplier Citrico International goes into
liquidation, but the firm's German-based production plant Citrico
GmbH is not up for sale, reports...
Automated packaging developer Bradman Lake is launching its latest
robotic top load cartoner for throughputs of up to 300ppm, an
innovation that the group hopes will build on its international
reputation.
German-based ingredients firm Nutrinova has announced a
double-digit price hike for its sorbate range of additives, used
increasingly by global food developers to preserve food products
such as confectionery and baked goods.
Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) has been rewarded for its innovation
in the field of edible oils and fats for its development of the
NovaLipid line of zero and low trans fat oils.
Patchi, a London-based company producing popular Middle Eastern
confectioneries such as baklava and mamoul, is keen to spread its
gospel of quality to the rest of Europe. But while France is its
first export destination, the company...
In just two years, the UK's Glisten group has garnered a
substantial share of the confectionery market by supplying most of
the country's leading retailers with an increasing range of niche
products, from chocolate buttons...
Switzerland's Barry Callebaut group has made no secret of its
desire to move into the added-value segment of the confectionery
market, reducing its reliance on the volatile commodity segment
through a number of acquisitions....
Northern Foods is facing the possibility of a rapid decline in its
biscuit profit margins as its main customers - the British
supermarket groups - seek to cut costs. The company must now decide
whether to invest in new products, or...
Barry Callebaut is creating dedicated Centres of Excellence to
achieve production efficiency and maintain cost leadership within
the competitive cocoa market.
Zahor, Spain's biggest own label confectionery producer, is hoping
for strong growth this year following its merger with cocoa
processor Natra Cacao. Access to cheaper raw materials and more
R&D capacity following the deal...
Almost all innovation in the UK's food industry is being driven by
the three key themes, according to a new report, with those meeting
criteria for all three likely to score the biggest hit in the
marketplace.
Sugar producers from Serbia and Montenegro will once again benefit
from preferential access to the European Union market, following
the EU's recent lifting of a 15-month ban on duty-free sugar
imports from the country - a move...