A new partnership between UK research bodies, universities and food companies is preparing to bridge the skills gap in the UK food industry with post-graduate training on meeting challenges posed by national and global food security.
Concerns over health have benefited the healthier sweet biscuits segment, according to new research by Mintel, as the industry seeks to improve its health credentials by reducing saturated fat levels and calorie content.
DuPont has appointed the existing head of its Nutrition & Health unit to lead the business as it takes on the task of joining up with Danisco Food Ingredients.
UK-based clean label ingredients company Ulrick and Short has developed its Synergie and Eziglaze range of range of functional clean label starches to aid marinade and glaze adhesion for meat products.
Prolonged drought in northern Europe has already capped yields of cereals and sugar beet and, without significant rainfall over the next two months, could significantly boost prices, warn analysts.
Volatility in cocoa prices was the prompt for the development of a new cocoa replacer for bakery applications that enables savings of up to 40 per cent, said UK supplier Fayrefield Foodtec.
Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) is to source UTZ certified cocoa for the first time, after Nigeria was granted sustainable recognition for its beans.
The EU has agreed with Switzerland and Liechtenstein to protect geographical indications for agricultural products and foodstuffs in their respective territories.
The growing urbanization of global populations will make food security even more challenging in future, delegates were told at the Save Food congress, staged at the Interpack trade event in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Continued growth in the global confectionery market will be driven by increased demand for ethical and functional products in mature regions, and a rise in disposable income in emerging markets, according to industry analysts.
UK retail giant Asda has settled its long-running legal dispute with ingredient supplier Ajinomoto out of court, after the latter took legal action against the retailer for describing aspartame as a ‘nasty’ on own-label product packaging.
A voluntary approach to reformulation is crucial to reflect differences in tastes, habits and food preferences across Europe, claims Sylvie Chartron of the CIAA (Confederation of the food and drink industries of the EU).
CSM has opened a new facility for dry bakery mixes and mixes in China, which will allow it to step up capacity to meet demand from Asia and better serve local tastes.
Use of high intensity sweeteners is growing around the globe, but different sweeteners are more popular in different markets. Mintel’s David Jago explains the subtleties of all things sweet.
The UK Food Standards Agency is canvassing views on the use of chia seeds after a novel foods application from the Chia Company to market them in baked goods, breakfast cereals, and fruit, nut and seed mixes.
Alpro, the leading European soy player its chief says has “sustainability in its DNA”, has become the first European food company to sign up to the World Wildlife Fund’s Climate Savers programme.
Soaring sugar prices have inspired Tate & Lyle to develop new beverage prototypes under its Optimize platform, which replace as much as 45 per cent of the sugar with blend of sweeteners but without impairing taste.
Global dairy prices were down 2.4 per cent from March after seven months of steady growth, according to the latest figures from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).
UK food and drink manufacturers are under-represented in the European Economic Recovery Plan, says the Food and Drink Federation (FDF), which is aiming to promote the sector more at EU level in the coming year.
Ivory Coast’s cocoa trade has been normalised, but uncertainly remains about the mid-crop, and and all eyes are now on the weather for the main crop, to be harvested this autumn, notes commodities specialist Rabobank it its latest review.
April saw sharp rises in grain prices due to exchange rates and oil prices, with the future curve to be determined by how much production increases and ability to replenish reserves.
Leatherhead Food Research has developed a new online platform of demographic opinions, which can be used to test product concepts against preferences in the marketplace.
A consortium of flavour firms seeking to raise awareness of the sector and encourage a new generation of researchers has renewed its bursary scheme for Phd students, and is hoping for applications from right across the EU.
Ivory Coast cocoa exports are unlikely to resume by this week, said Mintel, in response to reports that the country will start shipping the commodity from the beginning of May.
Novozymes saw double-digit growth for its food and beverage enzymes business in the first three months of the year, helping the Danish firm towards solid results and maintained ambitions for the full year.
The United States lists sodium on nutrition labels while salt is more common in the European Union. Salt and sodium are not the same, and a standardized term would only cause confusion.
Premium Ingredients has launched two new products for UHT chocolate milk, created to stabilise cocoa particles, avoid sedimentation and improve mouthfeel.
A new ‘clean label’ dough hydrator, used in conjunction with standard dough conditioner, provides savings on raw material inputs and boosts bread quality, reports French supplier Limagrain Céréales Ingrédients (LCI).
French supplier Roquette says recent positive health claim opinions from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) linking sugar replacers with dental health, are applicable to soluble fibres.
LycoRed is launching a new water-soluble beta-carotene colour, which can be used as a natural colour to generate the same orange and yellow hues as out-of-favour Southampton colours Quinoline Yellow and Sunset Yellow.
To effectively cope with the innovation demands from accelerating development of science and technology, academia and the food industry must work together, according to a new review.
Barry Callebaut, in a bid to meet its strategic need to diversify its cocoa origin and boost the viability of cocoa production in Malaysia, has announced a new research programme.
Simply changing the name of a product is enough to alter the perceptions of a food’s healthfulness and taste, and so change its consumption, according to new research.
Companies and individuals “face harsh punishment” – including a raft financial penalties - if found to be adding illegal non-edible materials to food, said China.
Rapidly rising food and oil prices threaten to reverse economic growth and push millions into extreme poverty, warns a report from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
A new fragrance confectionery that claims to leave the consumer smelling like roses is one of the most innovative products to hit the shelves recently, according to a Datamonitor analyst.
Higher fruit content is a big draw for consumers of sweet spreads in the UK, as they are still looking for nutritional value and fewer additives, according to a new report from Mintel.
Algal flour may provide a one-step solution to the challenges of fat-reduction in foods, with low-fat cookies, crackers, and salad dressings possible new arrivals on supermarket shelves, according to Solazyme-Roquette Nutritionals.
The downward trend in sugar prices is likely to continue, but this recent correction in the market may be undermined by tight global supplies, a factor also likely to curb the fall in cocoa prices, according to Rabobank.
Eight of the top 12 soy drink consuming countries are Asian with Hong Kong residents consuming the most at 17 litres per year each, according to TetraPak data.
Another milestone has been achieved in the UTZ certified sustainable cocoa programme, with the first-ever shipment of cocoa beans from Ghana that meets that standard’s economic, environmental and social criteria.
Social media can often be seen as the more fun side of communication; A way to have more fluid interactions with people. But when it comes to communicating risks social media may offer great benefits.
Kemin has debuted a clean-label version of its Fortium rosemary extract in the cereals market, with initial tests showing product integrity after three months compared to controls.
Growing scrutiny of food suppliers means an increasing focus on food safety issues. In this special edition article on risk, we look at how producers can communicate potential risks to consumers while protecting their brand reputation, in the event of...
A pioneering new multi-screening allergen method is more effective, accurate, quicker and cheaper than existing methods used in the food industry, said Eurofins.
Givaudan is working towards sourcing decisions based on qualitative, sustainability-related factors rather than just quantitative, economic factors, and is asking suppliers of 80 per cent of its raw materials to join SEDEX by 2015.
UK infant food manufacturers have insisted their products are safe and comply with all regulations, said the sector’s trade body in response to a study this week that raised concerns over levels of trace elements in some products.
