Despite the saturation of the UK's grocery market and a gloomy
Scottish retail price index, Sainsbury's and Waitrose have
announced expansion plans north of the border.
British supermarket giant Tesco has launched a British-grown tomato
that offers double the lycopene content of normal tomatoes, as the
company continues to expand its functional food range.
Testing soft drinks to reflect the effects of storage and transport
conditions will be crucial to realistically monitor benzene
formation in different drinks, a former industry scientist told
BeverageDaily.com.
Despite boosting exports last year, the EU's food and drink sector
share of the global market continues to shrink in the face of
overseas competition, according to the industry association's
annual report.
Swiss biotech giant Syngenta is to form a joint venture and
licensing agreement in the US with DuPont, a move designed to
expand access to the firms corn and soybean genetics and
biotechnology traits.
French dairy giant, Danone, has launched an action against Glanbia,
Yoplait International and Yoplait Marque Internationales in the
Dublin High Court, after alleged infringments on trademark after
the launch of the Yoplait Essence...
Following last week's spread of avian flu to Britain, supermarket
sourcing policy has come under fire from anxious government
ministers and poultry organisations desperate to placate concerned
shoppers.
The world's largest catering company Compass Group today announced
the sale of its core contract foodservice business to an investment
consortium headed by Macquarie Bank.
Swiss flavour giant Givaudan recorded sales of CHF 754.1 million in
the first quarter of 2006, driven in part by double-digit flavour
growth in Latin America.
McDonald's and a handful of major food ingredient suppliers have
been implicated by a leading environmental campaigner in the
destruction of the Amazon rainforest.
With Sainsburys muscling in on Asda's precarious number two spot -
and other competitors strengthening their positions - Britain's
food retail market is set for a cut-throat year.
CSM's decision to close a production facility in the US is the
latest in a series of initiatives designed to consolidate the Dutch
group's market position.
The current obesity crisis can only be tackled through a greater
understanding of all the related factors and an acceptance that a
lack of physical activity could be a major contributor.
The Vienna conference on genetically modified (GM) crops will lack
meaningful debate because key experts have not been invited,
according to Europe's leading biotech industry body.
Soft drinks firm Britvic has announced a 7.3 per cent drop in
half-year carbonates sales as a slump in the fizzy drinks market
impacts revenue and share price.
A growing conflict between the food industry and biofuel
manufacturers over rapeseed oil supply will be resolved at EU
parliamentary level, as members decide the future of edible oil
distribution.
German retailer Rewe has shown increasing reliance on its
successful Central and Eastern European (CEE) supermarkets, as
insignificant growth in the domestic market stunts overall
performance.
Although it has not seen the fine detail, elements of Pharmed
Medicare (PM)'s new sucralose process are unlikely to infringe upon
Tate & Lyle's patent suite, according to Goldman Sachs.
Cadbury Schweppes is awaiting approval for the sale of South
Africa's beverage firm Bromor, as the firm shifts global focus from
fizzy drinks to gum production to address changing consumer trends.
Cargill has welcomed the EC's decision to approve its acquisition
of Degussa's food ingredients operations, claiming that the
decision will accelerate the company's focus on creating value and
growth for its customers.
Soft drink consumption is the principal factor behind the growth in
global drinks, with health playing an increasingly important role
in consumer choice.
DSM has re-affirmed its commitment to the innovative field of
personalized nutrition, pledging $6.5m (€5.4) in follow-on funding
to US nutrigenomics company Sciona.
Despite a tough trading environment and serious fire damage to a
processing plant, British snack firm United Biscuits has delivered
a sizeable full-year profit rise of 25 per cent.
The launch of Asda's first hard discount store marks a new era in
budget grocery shopping as the 'big four' supermarkets compete with
discounters to attract price-savvy consumers.
Parmalat's profit before interest and tax rose 18.4 per cent in the
first two months of 2006 to € 45 million, with predictions that net
debt would remain stable over the year.
The EC has cleared Cargill's acquisition of Degussa's food
ingredients business after ruling that the move would not stifle
competition within the lecithin market.
Food and beverage firms making premium products will cope best with
the current surge in price of both Chinese and imported sugar, with
higher margins to cover the rise in costs.
As part of efforts to consolidate its production and business
portfolio in Europe, US food giant Campbells' says it is
considering the sale of certain of its UK and Irish businesses.
Codex has launched a searchable web-based version of its standard
General Standard for Food Additives (GSFA) to inform food firms
about the latest developments.
Wrangling between the UK dairy industry and the country's food
watchdog is set to continue over salt slashing targets, after both
failed to reach an agreement to cut salt in blue cheese.
The EC has approved measures designed to promote food products in
countries outside the EU in order to counter growing concern over
global competition.
The increasing availability of locally ingredients and food is
driving sales of products with a clear provenance, according to a
new report commissioned by Food from Britain (FFB).
The UK free-from food market, including dairy-, gluten- and
wheat-free products, is set to double on the back of growing
consumer concern over health and well-being.
Last week Morrison's supermarket chain opened the UK's first
ethanol pump at a forecourt in Norwich - becoming the latest firm
to embrace the burgeoning 'right-on' retail movement.
Danisco's consolidated profit plummeted 25 per cent as expected to
DKK 726 million for the nine months to 31 January, due largely to
costs associated with integrating enzyme business Genencor.
The success of soy drinks shows that the UK functional drinks
market is highly lucrative something that the dairy industry must
take full advantage of, says Organic Monitor.