Food businesses have suffered from confusing government policies,
said the UK's Food and Drink Federation (FDF), which hopes Prime
Minister Brown's new strategy will provide greater clarity.
Knife crime, obesity and skiffle music. Out of all the evils
currently threatening the welfare of Western teenagers, recent US
headlines finger the main culprit as the caffeinated alcoholic
beverage.
Tate & Lyle discusses how it presents ingredient concepts to customers around the world, using prototypes that will appeal to different cultural preferences.
Olam and Wilmar have entered a joint venture to acquire a 20 per
cent stake in PureCircle in a partnership aimed at strengthening
the supply chain and increasing sales of natural high-intensity
stevia sweeteners.
UK sweetener group Tate & Lyle reduces risk to earnings from
today's volatile commodity markets, announcing the sale of its
international sugar trading operations to US oilseed giant Bunge.
For the first of a new series to air reader views on controversial
topics affecting the food industry, FoodNavigator is seeking
comments on whether or not the sweetener high fructose corn syrup
should be considered natural.
Swelling domestic stocks for Malaysian palm oil, widely used by
bakers, left crude palm oil futures closing lower on Monday,
offering a slight relief for prices.
Sweetener manufacturer Niutang Chemical is opening an office in the
UK in a bid to expand its share in sucralose, aspartame and folic
acid in this important geographical market.
National Starch has identified a range of different crispy and crunchy textures for crackers and snacks to help food manufacturers meet consumer demand for gourmet, indulgent and healthy products.
SAFC has obtained Halal certification for 200 more of its raw
materials for flavours to its range, bringing the total offering to
550 and acting as a platform for sales on a global basis.
New outsourcing contracts for industrial cocoa from new and
existing chocolate makers boost volume growth for cocoa supplier
Barry Callebaut, helping to offset harmful exchange rates, energy
prices and inflation.
Last month's devastating earthquake in China has severely damaged
the country's agricultural supply, resulting in $6bn (€3.8bn) worth
of damage in the Sichuan province.
The global shortage of molasses and competition from biofuels
continue to put upward pressure on prices for yeast, but
opportunities for yeast players lie squarely with the emerging
market for speciality yeast products, and specifically...
The 31st session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission in
Geneva this week will discuss over 30 texts concerning
international food standards for subjects including the use of
flavourings and product labelling.
Nutrinova has announced progress in its mission to identify
compounds that could yield new natural sweeteners for the food and
beverage industry, in collaboration with BRAIN.
Bakery ingredients company CSM opened a new innovation centre in Germany yesterday to focus on developing bakery ingredients for the international market.
Following substantial investment and global research, Givaudan has
developed an in-depth profile of wide ranging orange flavours and
identified key future trends to help customer innovation.
German ingredients company Nutrinova has increased the price of its
sorbate products by an average of 10 per cent, effective from next
week or "as contracts allow".
Beating the high costs linked to the price of wheat flour on
today's market, bakers in the African country of Ghana can now
access a cheaper alternative produced with cassava and maize.
Danisco's emulsifiers sector is getting back on track after being
affected by rising cost prices, but global supply issues have
impacted heavily on its sweeteners division.
As the UK's Carbon Trust initiates a scheme to reward companies for genuine carbon emission reduction, a new study will determine how influential a company's sustainability image is in terms of consumers' purchasing decisions.
Acrylaway, the acrylamide-reducing enzyme from Novozymes, has
received approval in a slate of countries worldwide and is now
being applied across broad range of bakery and snack products.
Unilever's new global Centre of Excellence Ice Foods is aimed at
increasing ice cream innovation by developing healthier products
that are more exciting and provide varied sensory experiences.
Ingredients and flavours supplier Synergy has developed a range of
natural bread aromas designed to capture artisan bakery qualities
in products with a reduced salt content.
Food industry voices are joining those of politicians in the GM debate, hailing the controversial technology as the answer to the food supply crisis. But the hearts and minds of consumers must still be won.
Genetically modified (GM) crops could help address spiralling prices, said UK ministers, sparking yet another European debate on their role in the global food arena.
A UK-based breakfast cereal association says it is teaming up with
its dairy counterparts to this month kick off a new promotion
scheme playing up the nutritional benefits of consuming the
products.
Chr Hansen is introducing a new natural hibiscus extract to give a
bright red colour to beverages that also comes with a standardised
anthocyanin content.
A workshop convened by the FSA has identified some food categories
for action on portion sizes, as a report finds that some products
sold in the UK may have increased in size over the last 15-20
years.
The functional foods industry in France is booming, according to a
report from Invest In France that claims the sector attracted 7 per
cent of all new foreign investment projects in the country between
2002 and 2007.
Unilever has announced that it is selling its edible oils business
and palm oil plantation interests in the Ivory Coast, and will
instead invest in a soap business in the country.
UK company Ulrick & Short has received new Soil Association
accreditation for two of its products, allowing it to market these
already clean label ingredients as organic.
Bakers designing muffin and bread formulations for the health
conscious consumer can soon access a high-fibre barley grain as
Australia's national science laboratory (CSIRO) signs a deal to
bring large scale commercial crops...
The acrylamide-reducing enzyme Preventase has been granted approval
for use in Switzerland, marking a new step down the road towards
industry-wide adoption for biscuits and other baked goods.
Denmark's Chr Hansen is set to launch a second-generation
Fermentation Produced Chymosin (FPC) for the cheese market,
promising cost-efficiency and better process control.
Rising food prices are not a short-term problem so food
manufacturers must adapt accordingly, making wise strategic
choices, strengthening innovation and streamlining operations, says
a new report.
Vegetable oil prices are expected to remain high into the coming
2008/09 season as surging demand from the developing world outpaces
production, predicts the US agriculture department.
Cadbury is Britain's most trusted chocolate and confectionery
brand, according to a 2008 Reader's Digest survey, despite
Cadbury-Schweppes being fined £1m last year for allowing the sale
of salmonella-contaminated chocolates.
Children's favourite snacks are crisps, biscuits, cakes and
confectionery but the healthy eating message is filtering through,
according to a new survey.
Wild is introducing a new version of its Fruit Up sweetener,
specially designed for use in fruit jelly confectionery products
and angled towards helping manufacturers tap the healthy
confectionery market.
Beneo-Remy has announced a price increase of 40 per cent across its
rice-derived ingredients portfolio to help counter the pressure of
greater demand on rice supplies and higher costs.
Swiss-based CreaNutrition is demonstrating the value of approved
health claims by inking a deal with Kraft on the back of recently
approved oat-based cholesterol-lowering claims in the Netherlands.
The FAO food security summit concluded with a declaration
calling for the international community to step up
assistance to developing countries, but no decision is reached on
biofuels policy.
