The latest Fairtrade products to hit the UK market are organic
bananas, distributed by the British arm of Dutch company AgroFair.
The fruit is already being sold in one of the leading organic
supermarkets there.
Company results continue today with US ingredients company MGP
Ingredients reporting net losses for the third quarter ended 31
March 2003 due to a combination of factors including higher energy
costs and the lack of expected funds...
Despite a testing global economic climate, sales remained steady
and earnings before interest and taxes rose for German speciality
chemicals company Degussa in the first quarter of 2003. But guarded
optimism remains for 2003.
Somerfield continues on the road to recovery with a slight rise in
like-for-like sales in the last year. The steady progress made by
the company over the last few months is only likely to increase
speculation about takeover bids.
Cognis B.V., a subsidiary of the Henkel Group, has entered the
botanical extracts market with the acquisition of Spanish company
Laboratorios Dr. Vinyals...
The extent of the accounting fraud at US Foodservice, a subsidiary
of Dutch group Ahold, was greater than originally thought, the
company reported yesterday. Initial estimates of $500m were low:
the actual figure is nearer $880m.
Ingredients developer zuChem this week announced that it has raised
a considerable chunk of capital in order to develop new methods to
manufacture alternative sweeteners.
The UK Competition Commission has released an issues statement
concerning its investigation into the proposed acquisition of the
Safeway retail group. Among the matters still to be investigated
are whether any of the deals would lead...
Overcapacity continues to affect the organic food industry with a
new report from UK market analysts Organic Monitor that reveals
large volumes of organic meat products are coming into a market
that is showing slowing growth rates.
Food from Britain is to receive an additional £3m to help promote
awareness of the wide diversity of regional British food and drink
products, both within the UK and in key international markets.
After a turbulent few years and the wholesale sell off a number of
businesses, Portugal's Jeronimo Martins retail group appears to be
on the road to recovery.
Operating profit for Danish enzyme company Novozymes improved
marginally in the first quarter of 2003, despite the impact of
unfavourable exchange rates. On the back of favourable developments
in net financials, the company reports...
Netherlands-based Royal Schouten Group has merged four of its food
and health ingredients companies to form Acatris. The merger
involves Daminco, Orffa Health & Nutrition, Schouten USA and
SoyLife Nederland.
GlaxoSmithKline, the pharmaceutical and healthcare group, is to
relaunch its Plenty juice drink brand just six months after it was
withdrawn from sale. But has the company got the product
positioning right this time, asks market analysts...
Dairy group Arla Foods, in the news for the second time this week, in partnership
with German sugar manufacturer Nordzucker, has started production
of Gaio tagatose in a custom-built plant located near Hannover,
Germany
Krest'yanskoe, a Soviet-era brand produced by a number of different
companies, remains the most popular brand of butter in Russia, but
its popularity is coming under increasing pressure from
international brands such as Anchor...
The outbreak of the deadly lung infection SARS in Asia is starting
to impact on Arla Foods' sales in the area, the Scandinavian
company reported this week.
The leading US producer of kettle chips, Cape Cod Potato Chips, is
to extend its presence in the European arena via a deal with
Ireland's Largo Food Exports. Top of the list are Ireland, France,
Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.
Natural ingredient manufacturer Kemin Foods last week voiced its
support for the US Food and Drug Administration's new initiative to
strengthen labelling, manufacturing and product quality
requirements for the dietary supplement...
A new Future Store concept from Germany's Metro group was unveiled
last week, packed with all the latest electronic features designed
to make shopping easier for the consumer and category management
simpler for the retailer....
Qibla Cola, the UK-based drinks group which claims to offer Muslims
an alternative to US brands, has launched a number of new products
this week. But are they just another set of me-too products,
despite the company's posturing?
German enzyme company AB Enzymes, a subsidiary of ABITEC Group, the
food ingredient and specialty chemicals group, announced this week
that it has acquired Gamma Chemie, a German-based enzyme business.
Four of the five potential bidders for UK supermarket chain Safeway
have this week been presenting their cases to the Competition
Commission. The heads of Tesco, Sainsbury, Asda and Morrisons all
took at turn at highlighting why their...
Proof that the UK consumer is still very partial to a snack or two
comes in the form of new research from market analysts Mintel that
reveals in 2002, the UK accounted for a whacking 51 per cent of
total value sales of savoury snacks,...
A harbinger of problems likely to arrive when new tougher European
legislation on genetically modified foods enters into law, arrived
with the findings of a recent survey on GM foods that highlighted
the fact that a small section...
Robertet, the French flavours and perfume group, announced on
Monday strong financial growth for the fourth year running. For the
year 2000 the company...
Paris, France-based speciality chemicals company Rhodia has
reported a disappointing set of first quarter figures that reflects
what the firm describes as "a difficult economic and geopolitical
environment" and "a trough...
Metro has shrugged off currency concerns and the tough German
economic conditions to post a rise in sales for the first quarter.
But most of the improvement came from non-food operations, and
there is still work to do to improve the...
As savoury marinades and cooking sauces gain in popularity, some
industry forecasters are predicting that the next product to fly
off grocery shelves will be dipping sauces. Meeting the trend, food
ingredients company Danisco has...
Edible oil sales were the highlight of food consumption in Spain
with consumers reaching for a healthy alternative and driving sales
forward. Total food consumption rose by 1.9 per cent in 2002
compared to the previous year.
The global economic downturn marked 2003 first quarter results for
Dutch life science company DSM, but strong autonomous volume growth
boosted figures to higher than 2002.
The US Food and Drug Administration has released a statement on the
National Academy of Sciences' report, 'Scientific Criteria to
Ensure Safe Food'. The report has been received as a reinforcement
of the FDA's...
Ahold is to sell its Indonesian supermarket chain Tops to the local
market leader Hero, the latest phase of the Dutch group's programme
of disposals of non-core assets.
Novis, a European online publisher of global industry and science
news for the food and beverage industries, has undertaken a major
partnership with 15 leading international market report publishers.
This agreement provides Novis'...
Future co-existence of GM and non-GM foods is further put under
question as Friends of the Earth claims to have obtained a report
destined for the UK government revealing that if GM crops are
commercially grown in the UK it would...
US food ingredients company Applied Food Sciences announced last
week that it has begun shipments of its green coffee bean extract
product - Green Coffee Antioxidant (GCA) - to customers.
An emphasis on convenience and ethical business practices has paid
off for the UK's Co-op group, with both sales and profits
increasing substantially in 2002. The company has also invested in
increasing its store portfolio -...
Despite an increasingly competitive environment and the impact of a
global economic downturn the biscuits market in Europe is alive and
well, according to a news report from Esmerk.
UK-based Food Industry Training - Reading is to organise a seminar
on current key issues affecting food safety, particularly in the
UK. 'Due diligence underpins everything that the UK food
industry does,' said the group...
Despite a tougher economic climate, Swedish ingredients company
Karlshamns managed to achieve volume growth in all business areas
for the first three months of the year with group net sales
increasing by some 9 per cent to SK 853...
Lower sales volumes and higher selling expenses resulted in a drop
in net sales for the first quarter ended 31 March 2003 for US
company Technology Flavors & Fragrances (TFF).
A new alternative to the traditional egg wash for bakery products
has hit the market with ICI subsidiary National Starch &
Chemical launching Versa-Sheen glazing agent.
In the face of mounting pressure and a distinctly aggressive
attitude from the US sugar industry, the UN Food and Agriculture
Organisation (FAO) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) went
ahead on Wednesday and published a report...
A proposed takeover bid for the UK retailer Somerfield was rejected
yesterday by the company's board on the grounds that it undervalued
the company. But this will not necessarily be the end of the
affair, with a higher offer...
Britain's third largest food retailer Asda has pledged its support
for British farmers with the launch of a new campaign designed to
promote British food and educate consumers as to the source of what
they eat. But is it just...
A challenge from the UK Food Commission accusing US-based food
group HJ Heinz of misleading consumers about the '5-a-day'
programme has broadly failed to win the support of the UK
Advertising Standards Agency - a victory...
Franco-German pharmaceuticals company Aventis continues the
divestment of French speciality chemicals company Rhodia with the
announcement on Tuesday that it has reduced its stake from 25.2 per
cent to 15.3 per cent by selling 17.8...
Sales for US food ingredients company Corn Products International
were on target for the first quarter of 2003 ended 31 March 2003
with the company announcing on Tuesday that sales had risen 23 per
cent, lifting earnings and increasing...
The US sugar industry, in Rome this week, will continue its crusade
against a recent report from the World Health Organisation that
suggests a severe reduction in sugar could help stem the global
rise of obesity-linked diseases.
An increase in taxation levels on RTD products introduced by
Chancellor Gordon Brown in 2002 was one of the reasons for the
decision to withdraw the Gordon's Edge gin-based premix, claims
brand owner Diageo.
