Last year was not one of the best for sales of chocolate, with
political instability in the Middle East, a weak global economy,
lower tourist numbers in the Far East as a result of SARS and the
hottest European summer in decades all...
A large proportion of Russian sugar processors have experienced
recession over the last year - so says a survey of leading industry
figures. However, the abolition of import taxes on imported raw
sugar might make things easier in...
Haribo Dunhills, part of Europe's leading confectionery group,
German-based Haribo, is aiming to boost countline sales of bagged
confectionery in the UK with the launch of four new lines which for
the start of the new year.
With the failure of WTO talks in Cancun last year, pressure has
intensified on Europe's heavily subsidied sugar regime - trading at
three times the world price- to change. While critics want to see a
fairer regime with Europe...
Cloetta Fazer has reported signing a new long-term distribution
agreement with Brynild Salg for the continued sale of Cloetta
Fazer's products in Norway and the Nordic region as a whole.
Last summer's hot weather had a major impact on sales at Thorntons,
the British confectionery retailer and manufacturer, but the
company had a lot more to be happy about when it came to Christmas.
Innovation in cosmetics has taken an erotic turn. Pop singer
Jessica Simpson has launched a new line of beauty products that
features whipped body cream and chocolate body gloss.
The private equity arm of the bank Lehman Brothers has emerged as
the latest challenger to bid for Thorntons, the high street
chocolate retailer and manufacturer.
A WHO report on obesity prevention, which would urge governments to
promote healthy foods, is under threat from food makers supported
by the US administration, said consumer groups last week.
Forging a deeper share of the fat replacer market, the Circle Group
Holdings subsidiary FiberGel Technologies will supply its Z-Trim
zero calorie fat substitute to Swiss food giant Nestle, under a new
link-up announced this week.
Until recently, consumers with a sweet tooth have had little in the
way of choice when it came to reconciling their desire for sweets
and chocolate with the need to remain healthy.
ExxonMobil Chemical Films Europe has developed two new metallyte
films that provide an ultra-high-barrier alternative to aluminium.
According to the company, a major advantage of these films,
compared to metallised polyester or aluminium...
Food giant Cargill has opened a plant to manufacture erythritol, a
sweetener that is claimed to taste like sugar but contain no
calories. The group believes there is real potential in the
product, and has already signed an agreement...
As an army of chemists around the world continues the march towards
replicating in the laboratory the sweetest gifts from nature, a
small group in West Africa is determined to stake a claim in the
process.
Confectionery giant Cadbury Schweppes has announced plans to
increase the efficiency and productivity of its Trebor Bassett
manufacturing sites in Bournville and Somerdale, UK. The company
has warned that as part of this programme,...
Sales of the high intensity sweetener acesulfame K look set to rise
for ingredients firm Nutrinova with the company confirming this
week that the FDA has approved its non-carbohydrate sweetener
Sunett as a general purpose sweetener...
Forthcoming European legislation on health claims could pose a
roadblock to rapid market expansion of polyphenols, the plant-based
antioxidants gaining increasing attention for their
disease-fighting actions, warns a new report.
Investment fund Russia Partners II has acquired the Moscow-based
Ice-Fili ice cream producer and confectionery group Zvezdny,
according to a report in the Vedomosti newspaper.
Food giant Cargill has acquired OCG Cacao, a major supplier of
industrial chocolate to the European food industry. The deal, which
was initially announced in September, has been completed following
the necessary regulatory approvals.
Spain might well have a culinary heritage to rival that of France,
but like it trans-Pyrenean neighbour, consumption patterns have
been changing over the last few years, with more hectic lifestyles
(even in the land of the siesta)...
The Confectionery Manufacturing Expo has said that ZDS Solingen,
The Central College of the German Confectionery Trade, will be
organising the seminar programme at the event in Germany, 27th to
29th April.
Scientists warn this week that our traditional christmas snack of
brazil nuts might not be for much longer if intensive harvesting
practices continue in 'persistently exploited' areas.
In response to an increasing worldwide demand for pectin, Danish
ingredients company Danisco is to expand its Czech production
capacity by 40 per cent to accommodate an expected growth rate of
5-6 per cent on the world market.
The British are the biggest consumers of chocolate in Europe,
munching their way through more than 10 kg each every year. A
reflection of Britain's ongoing love affair with snacking - and
consumers' reluctance to choose...
The European Commission has approved the proposed functional
confectionery joint venture between Swiss consumer goods company
Nestlé and the US-based personal care company Colgate-Palmolive,
but approval is just the first of several...
The long-running saga of the takeover of British supermarket chain
Safeway appears to have entered its final phase today with the
announcement by rival Morrisons of a £3 billion offer for the
company.
Leading Japanese emulsifier supplier Riken Vitamin is set to boost
production at its subsidiary in Malaysia with the opening of a new
plant this week. High hopes to increase market share.
Eating two portions of chocolate a day may help prevent
cardiovascular heart disease claims Masterfoods USA. The company's
new functional chocolate, CocoaVia, contains plant flavonols and
phytosterols believed to reduce cholesterol...
Finland's leading confectionery company, Leaf, has said that it is
to build a factory in St. Petersburg, Russia, for the production of
functional pastilles and lollipops.
Early depletion of African gum stocks have driven up global prices
of gum acacia. US company TIC gums this week passed the price rise
of gum arabic on to the market.
After getting off to a slow start at the beginning of the year,
Romanian confectionery manufacturer Heidi Chocolats Suisse has said
it is now estimating a 15 per cent increase in sales this year.
German confectionery manufacturer Alfred Ritter is readying to open
up two new production lines in a 50/50 joint-financed project with
Russian company Odintsovo Confectionery. The $20 million investment
will see Ritter Sport brand...
British shoppers are becoming increasingly ethical when it comes to
choosing what they eat, according to a survey of shoppers released
this week - a shift in consumer attitudes which has proven
particularly beneficial for Fairtrade...
One of Romania's leading and longest established chocolate makers,
Excelent, has relaunched its Kandia branded chocolate under a
multi-million dollar investment. The money has also included an
extensive revamp of its production...
Regular consumption of the sugar replacer Isomalt appears to have a
prebiotic effect on gut bacteria, according to preliminary findings
of a study being carried out in Germany.
More than three years after Danish ingredients company Danisco
filed an application to the EU for approval of its fat replacer
salatrim, the Commission finally rubber stamped the product on
Tuesday. The move clears the way for Danisco...
The European Commission this week gave the green light to
salatrims, a type of reduced-calorie fats, for use as novel food
ingredients following an application by ingredients giant Danisco.
The long-awaited approval opens the way...
Hard negotiations followed by new European rules put to bed
long-standing disputes over labelling issues that hung over
chocolate manufacturers. As more European manufacturers turn to
vegetable fats, the challenge is on for ingredients...
After several years of gains, growth in the Russian confectionery
market looks set to slow over the next six years or so, with only
premium chocolate products likely to bring big returns.
Controversial changes over two years ago to Europe's chocolate
rules - that had cocoa puritans and producers up in arms - came
into force in the summer, providing ingredients companies with a
raft of new opportunities.
Danish oils and fats company Aarhus United saw third quarter profit
falling by over 50 per cent as reduced margins, lower exchange
rates, a decline in bulk oil sales and heightened competition, ate
into the bottom line.
Balchem Encapsulates used the FiE exhibition in Frankfurt last week
as a platform to launch three microencapsulated forms of potassium
for the food and supplement markets to combat processing
challenges, the company claimed.
Jacob's has appointed Jeremy Hughes as the new commercial
development manager in a bid to strengthen Jacob's offerings to its
trade customers. As more European manufacturers turn to vegetable
fats, the challenge is on for...
Danone is on the verge of buying the Chocks & Roll business of
Spain's Chupa Chups, one of its last remaining foreign units.
Evidence that Danone is still determined to pursue its expansion in
Russia despite failing to buy...
According to YouGov, the on-line research company, a recent survey
has revealed that 81 per cent of UK parents would like to see
Vending machines removed from schools, and replaced with healthier
alternatives as a means of helping...
Balchem Encapsulates has launched three microencapsulated forms of
potassium targeted at the food industry. The company believes that
the products represent a breakthough in food processing.
Spurred on by criticism concerning the marketing of food to
children, several of Britain's leading food trade bodies have
joined forces to discuss potential solutions to the problem of
childhood obesity.
Massive savings for food manufacturers and new formulations for
health foods could be just around the corner as ground-breaking
research into how to trick the taste buds receives a cash injection
from three leading ingredients companies.
In response to increasing demand from food manufacturers and
consumers, the merged organisation of Cargil-Cerestar is launching
a new cereal bar into the burgeoning snacks market.
Cukrovary TTD, which is currently controlled by French company
Societe Anonyme Sucriere do Berneuil sur Aisne and Germany's
Nordzucker, has announced the closure of its sugar refinery in
Melnik, Czech Republic.
