From links with obesity and type 2 diabetes to government taxes, sugar is currently experiencing a backlash. FoodNavigator met up with experts in the field at Food Ingredients Europe (FiE) to ask what this means for industry – is the future sugar-free?
A newly published review in Nutrition Research Reviews details how adipose tissue (AT) dysfunction can contribute to diabetes and gives more strength to the view that AT is able to produce, store, and send out hormones that can regulate metabolism.
Private label products have become the trusted brands of today and continuous innovation will ensure they remain so, says one analyst - but could it also hold some promise for brands as well?
It’s a crisis that is costing the UK more than war, terrorism and armed violence according to a 2014 McKinsey & Company report, but if the UK has the opportunity to become a global leader in tackling obesity it is less sure about where to start.
The ‘good for you’ trend in children’s food is growing, and small companies would do well to focus on healthy new product development in order to compete with big players who have the money to reformulate and rebrand, says one analyst.
Exclusive interview with FAO’s director for nutrition
After years of battling undernutrition, Africa is now facing an emerging threat of obesity and the two must be considered simultaneously, according to the director of nutrition at the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).
With children becoming more and more social media savvy, ethically conscious and keen to follow wider music and fashion trends, creating a successful kids' brand isn't easy. FoodNavigator spoke to market research company Future Learning for...
Food should taste and smell good but what else should and can it do when ‘visually stimulated’ consumers like millennials engage in eating occasions? Touch, sight and sound are increasingly in the mix and driving multi-sensory NPD as FoodNavigator discovered...
Tesco is to roll out sugar reduction targets to its own-label suppliers in new categories of food and drink in the New Year, following the success it has achieved in healthier reformulation of children’s soft drinks, its group quality director Tim Smith...
Evolva will begin producing valencene orange flavour through fermentation allowing for large scale production at a fraction of the cost of traditional extraction methods, it says.
Our teams of journalists were out in force at Food Ingredients Europe (FiE) last week. We’ve picked out some of our highlights from over one thousand exhibitors, a packed conference programme and talks on industry insights.
Scotland’s poor diet is not improving and urgent action must be taken to stop obesity from being the norm, according to a report from the country’s food body.
Putting the spotlight on innovative start-ups, sugar reduction, sustainable sourcing and the latest trends in colour, texture and flavour, FoodNavigator's special editions calendar and online events for 2016 spans the hottest topics for the European...
It’s that time of year where the food industry eagerly looks to market analysts’ predictions for 2016’s upcoming trends. But consumer rights group FoodWatch is asking Dutch consumers to take a look back at 2015 and vote for the most misleading product....
A limit on permitted levels of industrial trans fats in food is the most effective way to reduce Europeans' risk of heart disease, says the European Commission in its long-awaited report - but it does not say what that limit should be.
A report by health select committee MPs has called for bold and urgent action on child obesity, which includes a sugar tax - but industry has slammed the report as displaying a "worrying lack of understanding".
UK government:‘There is no one definition of sustainable palm oil’
Voluntary measures and government targets are great – but it is legislation that will push European palm oil users to true sustainability. The food sector could learn a lesson or two from biofuel here.
This paves the way for mass personalised nutrition, say researchers
Blood glucose levels vary widely across individuals even for the same food, say researchers who have developed an algorithm to calculate the ‘right’ diet – paving the way for mass personalised nutrition and casting doubt over the usefulness of universal...
Cocoa farmers operate in a chocolate supply chain that perpetuates poverty and bear the bulk of the risk, claims Cacao for Change as it proposes an alternative model.
UBM says security and comfort of attendees is ‘paramount’; registrations up 6%
Around 32 of 1400 exhibiting companies (3%) have pulled out of the industry event Food Ingredients Europe (FiE) next week in Paris following the city’s fatal attacks, despite efforts from the organiser to up security.
The European food industry has published voluntary research principles to ensure robust and transparent science – but questions remain over how they will be put in place and enforced.
The UK government appears ready to ditch an industry-led, voluntary approach to tackling obesity for something “more challenging,” the Deputy chief medical officer hinted last week.
Barry Callebaut has found previously undiscovered cocoa polyphenols as it works with Bremen-based Jacobs University to crack the commodity’s molecular code.
Parents are more likely to seek out ‘natural’ food and drinks than consumers without children highlighting a growing opportunity for formulating with natural ingredients, suggests study.
Not so long ago, pundits were predicting that the high-purity stevia extracts market would be worth a billion dollars as manufacturers ditched artificial sweeteners and embraced ‘all-natural’ alternatives.
Over 30 trade-association led campaigns promoting everything from olive oil to fresh meat have been named the recipients of the latest round of EU funding for agri-food products.
Concern over misuse of the term ‘free-from’ in relation to allergens in food products and a need for greater standardisation of manufacturing practices has led the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) to produce new...
UK palm oil imports were 72% sustainable in 2014 – up from 55% in 2013, according to an annual progress report from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).
The UK's Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) has changed rules to allow firms to target obese adults for the first time with ‘responsible lifestyle weight loss programmes’.
With over 1000 companies exhibiting at Food Ingredients Europe in Paris from 1 to 3 December, FoodNavigator takes a sneak preview at just some of the companies that will be there and the products they will be showcasing.
By Ewa Hudson, head of health and wellness research at Euromonitor International
Is organic still selling? Does the 'natural' trend mean fortified/functional food is now passé? And why are consumers turning their noses up at better for you (BFY) offerings? Ewa Hudson, head of health and wellness research at Euromonitor International,...
Acacia gum seems to have it all – manufacturers say it’s clean-label, organic, sustainably sourced and provides income in developing countries. So why is industry not doing more to promote this?
Nearly three quarters of the food and drink marketing seen by children in Scotland is for junk food, according to new research that the Scottish Government will use to push for stricter UK-wide advertising rules.
Stevia extracted from the leaf can be scaled up to compete with other methods – and is more in line with consumer perceptions of stevia’s naturalness, say researchers and industry.
A number of specific foods including potato chips, refined grains, processed meats, and soda are all associated with excess weight gain, finds new research.
The long standing recommendation of ‘everything in moderation’ may actually result in lower overall diet quality and may have negative impacts on metabolic health, say researchers.
A Spanish advertising watchdog has upheld a ‘no added sugar’ claim for a dessert containing sweetened chocolate – a questionable interpretation and clear breach of EU law, warn food lawyers.
Barry Callebaut lowers its growth outlook and predicts a challenging year ahead as high cocoa prices and high finance requirements hit 2014/2015 profits - despite solid sales growth.
If you didn't make it to Chicago last week for the inaugural Food Vision USA event, you missed a truly awesome ensemble of industry experts covering everything from our nutritional needs on a manned mission to Mars to the challenges facing small...
Media attention has focussed on the unsustainabilty of California's almond industry, with issues ranging from water overuse during drought and pesticide harm to bees during pollination - but this is unfair says the California Almond Board.
![Clean label headache for industry? “The technical issues they can handle, the health issue they can handle, but the social and ethical ones are [proving to be] much more of a challenge,” said Krishnakumar.](/var/wrbm_gb_food_pharma/storage/images/_aliases/news_teaser_medium/3/0/0/4/2374003-1-eng-GB/Clean-label-is-the-major-concern-for-EU-food-firms.jpg)
