Job cuts are underway for the number four flavours player Symrise
with the equity fund owned firm warning 500 employees will be axed
from the workforce under a new drive for cost effectiveness,
increased competitiveness and top line...
Claims by chocolate maker Mars that a brand of sweets provided
'instant hydration' have been repudiated by the Advertising
Standards Authority in the UK - a victory in particular for the
packaged water industry which continues...
As Dutch retailer Ahold sifts through more than 50 offers for its
Spanish retail business, the group could find itself faced with the
enforced acquisition of a 20 per cent stake in Nordic partner ICA.
But despite the wholesale changes...
Leading German food retailer Aldi says that it is looking at
markets in central Europe, with a particular emphasis on the Czech
Republic and Poland. But is it too late to try and enter two of the
most developed discount food retail...
Baltimor, the leading Russian sauces producer, says it is upping
production of tomato paste at its Uzbeckistan production facility
in an effort to increase its own supply of the key ketchup
ingredient while cutting costs, writes Simon...
Mayr-Melhof has confirmed the acquisition of a major folding carton
plant in St. Petersburg that will serve leading consumer industries
including the food and beverage sector.
Russian brewer and restaurant chain Tinkoff says that it is
planning to launch its premium beers in western Europe, following a
recent announcement that it is also to launch its beer in Ukraine.
Food and drink manufacturers set great store by the need to
advertise their products in an increasingly competitive
marketplace, but new research this week suggests that the food
purchases of many Britons are being influenced not...
Despite cheaper alternatives to cocoa butter on the market and new
European rules allowing vegetable fats in chocolate formulations,
uptake for the replacers has been slower than expected as reticent
food makers and marketers stick...
Discount stores have never been as popular in the UK as they are in
some other European countries - notably Germany - but British
retailers should not underestimate the power of low-price formats,
especially in international markets,...
Opponents of the low-carb diet fad in the US have joined their
counterparts in the UK in calling into question the safety of the
weight-loss regime. But whether the protests will be loud enough to
be heard over the increasingly raucous...
Food processors looking to boost sales in reduced-fat fried foods
are currently in the sight of hydrocolloid supplier CP Kelco that
has adapted an existing oil barrier coating technology.
Following its accession to the European Union Poland has reported a
significant surge in both the exports of dairy products and beef
since it joined the European Union at the beginning of May.
Leading Polish alcoholic drinks distributor Central European
Distribution Corporation has added a new alcohol distributor in the
southeast of Poland to its growing portfolio in the country and
leading it to further raise its outlook...
Although 2004 is now expected to yield a bumper grain harvest in
China, with provinces announcing record crop levels, Beijing is
taking action to halt the country's fall in per-hectare yield of
cropland over recent years, writes...
Despite Germany's blisteringly hot weather in 2003, the country's
soft drinks market was badly affected by a controversial mandatory
deposit system which saw many retailers remove one-way containers
from their shelves, according...
Affordable refreshment and convenience were the underlying drivers
of growth in the UK soft drinks market in 2003 - although the hot
summer weather also played a major role.
Regulations governing the relationship between Spanish food
suppliers and their retail clients have been tightened, a move
which should significantly speed up the time it takes for suppliers
to be paid for their goods - albeit several...
Just days before shareholders in symbol group Londis are due to
vote on a £60 million offer for the group, one of the potential
rival bidders, the Co-op, ruled itself out of the running. The way
now seems clear for Irish group Musgrave...
The bakery sector is keeping up the pace as the fastest growing
market in food enzymes in the US, although recent controversy over
genetically modified organisms is set to eat into market growth as
food makers think twice before investing...
Canadian firm Burcon NutraScience, which has teamed up with ADM to
bring a new plant-derived protein to market, has filed another
patent application that further strengthens its bid to take over
sales of egg and other proteins.
Economic uncertainty in a number of European countries has given a
boost to sales of private label products over the last year, as
consumers switched from mainstream supermarkets to discount stores.
But the UK's continued dominance...
A new report on optimising food texture and rheology has been
published to help food manufacturers achieve the specific qualities
consumers are looking for, reports Anthony Fletcher.
The European Commission used an international food conference last
week to announce its readiness to award €192 million to new
food-related research projects and networks.
As the food industry answers consumer health concerns expanding the
use of soybean-derived ingredients in food formulations, volatility
in price for the crop is set to continue with few signs that
supplies will improve this year.
A shift towards lower priced table wines helped lift Spanish wine
exports in the first quarter of the year, but the lower revenues
mean that double-digit volume gains were rather more modest when
converted into value figures.
Tesco, Britain's biggest supermarket group, continued to show why
it is the leader of the pack in the first quarter, posting an
impressive 12.3 per cent increase in sales for the 12-week period.
When food retailers and producers all over the world met at last
year's CIES industry summit, they were set five 'tests' by
celebrity speaker Bob Geldof to see if their company's business was
sustainable. Meeting...
Wal-Mart, the world's biggest retailer, is to extend its electronic
products code (EPC) initiative to more stores and more suppliers,
announcing a timetable this week which will see the radio frequency
identification (RFID) tags...
As grain stocks are depleted across the world, China's food
producers have found sourcing the commodity an increasingly
expensive and time consuming issue, writes Simon Pitman.
However, a report from independent intelligence...
Controversy linked to the most common food ingredient in the world
continues as the UK health minister sparks a row with the food
industry after rejecting their plans to slash salt levels in food
products. The minister accuses the...
The less than sparkling, but stable, full year results for Danish
ingredients giant Danisco mirror the current state of play for
ingredients companies in today's market marked by squeezed margins,
higher raw material prices and...
Ingredients supplier Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) said on Thursday
that it had reached a $400 million (€333m) settlement in an
anti-trust case that claimed the US firm conspired to fix the price
of the food sweetener high fructose...
It is six months since Dutch retail group Ahold announced plans to
sell its Spanish supermarket business as part of its wider
restructuring programme, and a number of foreign and domestic
players have expressed an interest in buying...
Philip Green, the billionaire owner of Bhs and Top Shop, has been
rebuffed once again in his bid to acquire ailing British retailer
Marks & Spencer. A new offer for the company, valuing it at
£8.3 billion, was rejected yesterday...
Keeping French consumers interested in chocolate has been the
driving force behind brand owners' investment in innovation in
recent years, and the latest product launches highlighted by the
Global New Products Database (GNPD)...
Last year's exceptionally hot summer weather gave a major boost to
soft drink consumption in the UK, but a new report from market
analysts Canadean shows that the heatwave merely accelerated
the already rapid growth in one of...
In response to market demand natural lactic acid, lactate and
gluconate supplier Purac wlll ramp up production of its sodium
lactate powder, unveiling a new production facility in Spain.
Leading ingredients firm Danisco heads deeper into the growing
semi-refined carrageenan market acquiring all the assets for
processing the ingredient from liquidated firm Scottish Scotcol.
Nestlé Romania has confirmed that it is to invest a further €3.5
million in its factory in Timisoara, as the company reaffirms its
ambitions to dominate the all-important wafer market in the region.
Number two vitamin maker BASF and the former number one Roche have
been told by the US Supreme Court that a case brought by customers
outside the US against the companies for price-fixing cannot
proceed, reports Dominique Patton.
As the buffer zone for global cereal stocks continues to fall and
raw material prices rise, the UN-backed Food and Agriculture
Organisation (FAO) warned this week that cereal stocks will
continue to fall, predicting that although...
Australian food ingredients firm Burns Philp could be close to
announcing the sale of its North American spice business, Tones
Brothers, for up to $500 million, say Australian media reports.
A common, but increasingly expensive and popular, food ingredient
is the focus of a new global initiative to protect production.
Ingredients firm Aarhus United has linked up with other
stakeholders in the food industry to push a plan...
Facing up to changing tastes and demands is part and parcel of
everyday business for the global food industry, but a recent survey
in the US suggests that assessing just exactly what today's
consumer wants is becoming increasingly...
Old World wine producers – who just 15 years ago had the British
wine market almost to themselves – still need to do more to counter
the ongoing threat from New World producers, a new report suggests.
But solving the problem is likely...
The European Investment Bank, the European Union's financing
institution, is making available a total of €70 million for Small
and Medium Sized Enterprises in Serbia and Montenegro.
More than 777,000 bottled water cooler units were installed at the
end of 2003 across East Europe, 26 per cent more than in 2002,
according to the fourth report on East Europe Water Coolers from
drinks consultancy Zenith International.
Russian market research company Market Advice has conducted an
extensive study into sauce preferences in the country's capital.
The study reveals that mayonnaise remains a firm number one, with
leading condiment maker Unilever...
Britannia Health Products, the company set up to market the evening
primrose oil brand Efamol, is introducing a range of breakfast
cereals containing Hi-maize prebiotic resistant starch.
