As expected, Morrisons is the only retailer allowed to bid for the
Safeway chain, with rival offers from Tesco, Sainsbury and Asda all
blocked by the UK government. But Morrisons' bid is unlikely to be
as high as it was in January,...
Asda, the American-owned supermarket chain, is continuing with its
campaign to increase sales of British food and drink products, with
50 new UK-made items set to hit the shelves in 2003. Clearer
labelling and in-store promotions...
Bord Bia - the Irish Food Board - hosted a consumer food and drinks
industry day this week in Dublin. Entitled 'Paths to Growth', the
conference was attended by representatives from more than 100 Irish
food, drink and ingredients...
In the same week that the European Commission tables proposals to
overhaul the EU sugar regime, Belgian company Cosucra Groupe
Warcoing announces that its days of sugar beet processing are over,
opting instead to focus business entirely...
Guyenne and Gascogne, the French retail group, has continued to
improve its sales and profits in the first half of 2003, building
on the major advances made in the first six months of last year.
Parties interested in forging ahead with GM foodstuffs in the UK
have a battle on their hands as the widest public debate ever held
in Britain finds an overwhelming percentage of people uneasy,
suspicious or hostile to the introduction...
British sugar and sweeteners group Tate & Lyle said this week
that first half profits should be in line with expectations, and
the second half stronger than in the previous year.
A report commissioned for the UK's Food Standards Agency has
provided the clearest evidence yet that there is a link between
advertising food products aimed at children and the declining
health standards among the younger generation.
US spice giant McCormick & company posted an improved set of
figures for the third quarter boosted by strong sales, acquisitions
and better distribution.
Demand for natural ingredients must be met by ingredients companies
looking to make significant gains in the health arena. German Wild
group has taken up the challenge announcing this week the launch of
a new plant-based colour for...
Although trade talks in Cancun collapsed this month the pressure
remains on the European Union to shake up its heavily subsidised
sugar regime. At a time when the sugar industry continues to
struggle as fears grow over a worldwide...
Caprabo has become the biggest supermarket operator in the Spanish
capital Madrid after the acquisition earlier this week of the
Supermercados Alcosto chain.
Market Advice has carried out an in-depth analysis of the Moscow
sausage market. The organisation interviewed the sales and
marketing departments of the top 20 largest traders of sausages
& related products in the region.
When Cyclone Hudah struck the island of Madagascar in April 2000
destroying 15 per cent of the world's vanilla crop the news sent
prices rocketing for the peoples favourite ice cream ingredient -
and they still haven't recovered.
Nestlé Rowntree, the UK confectioner, has already got itself into
trouble with adverts for its Yorkie chocolate bar featuring the
tagline 'Not for Girls' but appears happy to step on a few more
toes with the latest development...
A bumper cocoa harvest for Ghana has pushed the country into the
number two global producer slot, behind the Ivory Coast and ahead
of Brazil. Fresh figures from the West African country show farmers
pulled in more than 500,000 tons...
Swiss co-operative retailer Migros has formed an alliance with
LeShop, an online shopping portal, to create a web-based
supermarket offering shoppers both Migros own label goods and a
full range of branded products for the first time.
Only months after buying Unilever's Indian fats business Hindustan
Lever, US agri-giant Bunge carves deeper into the Indian oils
market acquiring the India-based assets of private edible oils
company Prestige Foods this week.
A Europe-wide project is underway to assess whether local wild
vegetables eaten in southern Europe might have health-promoting
properties, opening the way for a new breed of nutraceutical.
Banking, insurance, mobile phones, holidays - areas not
traditionally covered by food retailers but which are becoming an
increasing part of the weekly food shop for many British consumers.
But as the major multiples expand their...
Price competition in texturants put pressure on Danisco ingredients
results for the first quarter of 2003/2004 but flavours and a long,
hot summer went some way to boosting the underlying performance.
Laurus, the Dutch retail group, has finally withdrawn from the
Belgian market, the source of some of its biggest losses in recent
years. Six of its last eight stores have been sold to the Colruyt
group, with the two remaining stores...
After several years of spectacular growth caused by meat-related
food scares, the UK vegetarian food market is expected to show a
slowdown this year. But the wide variety of products now available
will maintain the interest of even...
Philip Green, the British retail entrepreneur, has reacted angrily
to reports in the UK press over the weekend that his Trackdean
Investments company was no longer interested in bidding for the
Safeway supermarket group. The Competition...
ICA, the Swedish retail group, has changed its name and simplified
its structure in order to meet the challenges facing the
supermarket sector in the Nordic region. The fact that it has
dropped the name Ahold is no reflection on that...
Americans' knowledge of genetically modified foods remains low and
their opinions about its safety are just as divided as they were
two years ago, according to a new survey released last week by the
Pew Initiative on Food and...
The spread of cola brands from the US to the rest of the world
could be copied by the spread of health drinks and iced tea and
coffee westwards from Japan, claims a new Datamonitor report. But
if cola growth is slowing, reports of...
Our run up to the Food Ingredients Europe exhibition in Frankfurt
continues with a look at the selection of ingredients nominated by
the jury for the most innovative food ingredient award. Winners
will be announced at the show.
After a heated tug of war with the board, the man who last year
took speciality chemicals company ISP private has abandoned efforts
to gain control of US chemicals company Hercules.
Not for nothing does the acronym of Friends of the Earth spell
'foe' - the environmental organisation has been the most vociferous
critic of UK supermarkets for years. Its latest broadside concerns
pesticide levels in fruit...
The hot summer weather in the UK gave a major boost to sales at
Waitrose, the upmarket supermarket chain owned by the John Lewis
Partnership. A programme of store openings and refurbishments also
helped the company's first half...
Sales and profits at Jeronimo Martins continued to grow in the
first half, despite the weak economic conditions in Portugal and
Poland. The disposal of loss-making businesses appears to have paid
off, but the company is not completely...
Consumers tempted by bigger portions for less money might be
getting better value but they are also putting their health at
risk, the World Cancer Research Fund in the UK claimed yesterday.
Rising obesity levels - caused in part by...
Visitors expecting to see flavours company Flachsmann at the
upcoming Food Ingredients Europe exhibition will take note of the
'Flachsmann is now Frutarom' motto. The company - recently taken
over by Israeli company Frutarom...
Morrisons' business model would have a major beneficial effect on
sales and profits at Safeway if the Yorkshire-based chain emerges
as the eventual winner in the battle to acquire the troubled
company. Like-for-like sales growth...
Hypermarkets and supermarkets dominate food sales in Spain, a new
report has confirmed. But the complaints of traditional retailers
there are nothing compared to their counterparts in Germany, France
and the UK, where the major retailers...
As growth in the organic food industry starts to slow down in
Europe, the food industry is deliberating ways to boost sales. A
new project launched by the UK food safety agency could provide the
answers.
Germany's third largest chemical company Degussa is to invest a
massive €350 million in a new amino acid plant, representing the
merged company's biggest single investment to date. Degussa - the
world's biggest producer...
Six months after Europe voted in a permanent ban on the use of the
food additive E425, otherwise known as konjac, in jelly
confectionery, food safety agency finds these illegal products for
sale in the UK.
Danish food ingredients group Danisco has denied rumours
circulating in the local press that it is in talks to sell its
stake in US biotech company Genencor.
Henny de Ruiter, chairman of the Supervisory Board at embattled
Dutch retailer Ahold, has agreed to stand down, bowing to pressure
from shareholders. De Ruiter was blamed for agreeing a €10 million
pay package for new CEO Anders Moberg,...
Tesco, the leading supermarket operator in the UK, stretched
further ahead of its rivals in the first half of the year thanks to
a combination of volume growth, the roll out of new store formats
and strategic acquisitions.
Sainsbury is to launch a range of 2,500 non-food items, ranging
from cookware to electrical goods. But is the launch - ambitious as
it is - simply another example of the retailer running to catch up
with its more successful rivals...
Anders Moberg, new chief executive of embattled Dutch retailer
Ahold, has his work cut out to persuade investors and shareholders
that he is the right man for the job - and merits the €10m salary
he will receive. His first task may...
Increasingly mobile and health-conscious consumers are forcing food
and drink manufacturers to become even more inventive when it comes
to creating new products. Positive nutrition, convenient packaging
and even food which is good...
Innovation courses through the food and drink industry as
businesses continue to strive for oneupmanship in an increasingly
competitive market. As different sectors seek to satisfy key
consumer needs - 'beauty from within'...
Snapple is to be the official beverage supplier of all public
amenities in the city of New York in a deal worth more than $200
million over the next five years. The drinks supplied to the city's
schools will meet strict nutrition...
