Kraft Foods has announced plans for a major European reshuffle and
a string of acquisitions, as US parent company Altria segregates
the food producer from its ailing tobacco subsidiary.
Private label popularity is challenging the reign of famous brands,
leaving European manufacturers with a tricky dilemma: should they
produce more private labels to recover profits or adapt their
trademarked goods to meet changing...
Britain's second largest supermarket Asda has announced a £102
million investment to lower prices on key products so far this
year, turning up the heat on rival chains.
Soft drinks firms will voluntarily ban advertising to children
across the European Union in an effort to curb public criticism
amid the bloc's growing obesity problem.
Food manufacturers could save up to £1,000 per employee by using
more effective waste management techniques, says UK-based
environmental agency Envirowise.
The changing nature of risk in global retail is forcing companies
to move away from traditional financial risk assessment to address
a different set of issues, says a new report.
Tate & Lyle's acquisition of US speciality food ingredients
firm Continental Custom Ingredients (CCI) could open new
opportunities in the value added dairy ingredients sector.
Following months of price disputes Albertsons supermarket chain has
agreed to sell the entire company to a syndicate, consisting of
rivals Supervalu, CVS and investor group Cerberus Capital.
EU claims that the stalling Doha round of negotiations in not the
fault of Brussels but the result of intransigence from other states
shows just how little was achieved in Hong Kong.
Recent regulatory measures by Italy againstimported wheat,
chocolate and poultryhave raised questions over whether the country
isusing the EU's food safety and labelling laws tobatter down
foreign competition.
The anticipated replacement of International Flavours &
Fragrances (IFF)'s chairman and CEO comes at a difficult period of
transition for the business.
Britain's largest off-licence chain Threshers will transform a
third of its stores into franchises and rival Bargain Booze has
been sold to venture capitalists as supermarket dominance takes its
toll.
It is ten years since the first large-scale planting of genetically
modified (GM) crops. Food Navigator looks at both sides of
the argument to assess the future of the technology and its
implications for the European food industry.
Foreign retailers eyeing China may be tempted by the alleged sale
of Trust-mart, the country's largest foreign-owned retailer, but
with a $2 billion price tag only global leaders need apply.
A recent commodity report focusing on edible oil and soy production
suggests that India's vegetable oil industry is not happy, while
global oilseed production could reach new heights.
Ajinomoto's joint venture agreement with Knorr Foods and three
Chinese firms is the company's latest forage into one of the
fastest growing markets in the world.
Following last week's collapse of British snack maker Golden
Wonder, more than 60 prospective buyers have approached the
administrators hoping to acquire the rights to some of Britain's
most well known crisp brands.
Once again Tesco has outperformed its rivals, enjoying strong
Christmas sales on core food items and substantial growth in
non-food sales despite rising energy costs.
I am beginning to feel like a freak among journalists. Good or bad,
my reporting is the product of hours of questions, fact-hunting and
often-times editorial debate. Yet, despite this rigour, every day
we receive emails from people...
Speculation is mounting that Rewe, Europe's fourth largest
retailer, will pull its supermarkets out of Poland following an
influx of foreign retailers.
Sales of olive oil in the UK have surpassed sales of standard
varieties - vegetable, sunflower and seed oils - for the first
time, according to Mintel.
Attracted by the promise of record sales and growing household
consumption, Western retailers are flocking to China's provincial
cities - but what success will they have?
French retail chain Carrefour has translated overseas success into
a total year-end sales growth of 6.1 per cent - a pattern echoed
across the European food industry.
The growing demand for nutritional food has had a positive impact
on the demand for flavours, with consumers unwilling to compromise
on taste according to a market analyst.
Givaudan has closed two production facilities in an attempt to
consolidate its flavour operating asset base and streamline its
savoury product portfolio.
Global commodity markets will have mixed fortunes in 2006, with
China prepared to surpass India as the world's largest importer of
edible oil, according to ASA's latest report.
The CIAA has urged the new EU presidency to push ahead with the
liberalisation of the global food trade in order to open new
markets and tackle the slowdown in productivity growth.
Joining the European Union may have created as many pitfalls as
opportunities for Poland's dairy industry, says a new report,
warning the sector may struggle to deal with production quotas.
Premier Foods has delivered slow 2005 interim trading results after
acquisitions strengthened total grocery sales but failed to bolster
like-for-like sales growth.