German ingredients firm Nutrinova is expanding its presence in the
omega-3 market with new projects underway with Chinese supplement
makers and producers of infant nutrition products.
Probiotic chocolate bars and cereals could emerge on the market
next year as strong demand for the gut health ingredient pushes
food makers to invest in the complex processes required to
formulate with live bacteria.
The bolt-on acquisition of Rhodia Food Ingredients earlier this
year helps boost sales for Danish ingredients and sugar group
Danisco in an otherwise challenging 2004/05 first half.
Widespread procurement and more than 100 years in business help
French hydrocolloid producer Colloides Naturels International (CNI)
assure supplies for gum arabic amid global shortfalls in stock,
writes Lindsey Partos.
Low carbohydrate bakery products have become common place in the
US, but competition is about to get tougher as the growth surge
slows, according to a new report from Euromonitor International.
A team of ex-aerospace engineers and geologists in the United
States claim to have developed a pioneering biodegradable packaging
for ovenable and freezable baked goods which is cheaper than
aluminium and most plastic alternatives,...
A new 'healthy' café concept, providing branded breakfast cereals
and milk-based drinks all day long, is looking to take off in
Chicago led by a former executive of successful coffee chain
Starbucks, reports Chris Mercer.
Prices for cocoa remain relatively volatile as political unrest in
Ivory Coast, that produces some 40 per cent of global cocoa crops,
keeps the market nervous.
North Sea fishermen should play a greater part in taking care of
the marine environment, says a new scientific report into
sustainable fishing and environmental protection. Anthony
Fletcher reports.
PepsiCo is now in a prime position to dominate the blossoming
European snacks market, especially the emerging eastern sector,
after US food maker General Mills pulled out of their 12-year-old
joint venture to pay off mounting debts,...
Finnish packaging manufacturer Huhtamaki plans to carry out a
restructuring programme over the next two years in order to improve
efficiency and cost base, especially in its rigid packaging
operations.
Bunge Agribusiness Singapore, has agreed a 10-year exclusive
throughput agreement with Phu My Port inVietnam. The agreement aims
to enhance Bunge's position as the leading supplier of soybean meal
to the growing Vietnamese animal...
Iggesund Paperboard has launched a number of paperboard packaging
products designed not only to protect products, but also to add
value and shelf appeal.
The investigation into a possible cartel in Australia's highly
concentrated corrugated box sector has widened, exposing the
problem of duopolies within the country's isolated economy.
Irish baker IAWS is taking on France's specialist bakery,
confectionery and foodservice sectors by acquiring leading domestic
distributor Groupe Hubert, and could exploit the declining number
of independent on-site bakers in...
UK supermarket Tesco has launched the country's first fully
automated recycling machine designed to encourage customers to
recycle more packaging waste.
Nearly half of the world's vanillin supplies are sourced from China
but since tighter production rules arrived there a few years ago
there are now only two major Chinese producers left in the country,
reports Lindsey Partos....
Arcelor Packaging International (API) has launched Creasteel, a new
steel for food packaging that could revolutionise the sector by
opening up a whole new world of design possibilities.
Danish biotech company Poalis, in a ground-breaking move, says it
has developed a new vanilla flavour using yeast and sugar which
will be drastically cheaper than its chemical counterpart, and be
better for the environment, reports...
Booming sales for its popular sweetener give UK starch and sugar
business Tate & Lyle the necessary leverage for the firm to
re-enter the FTSE 100 index after a seven-year break.
A development programme to enhance the appearance of steel for
packaging has been carried out by Arcelor Packaging International,
Corus Packaging Plus and Rasselstein.
Royal DSM has acquired NeoResins, the coating resins business of
Avecia, for €515 million, underlining increasing industry and
consumer demand for environmentally-friendly coating technologies.
Meat manufacturer Perdue Farms has incorporated a new zipper into
packaging for its carved chicken and turkey strip products in order
to enhance convenience and improve overall appearance.
A breakthrough into the US market boosts the bottom line for UK
natural flavours firm Treatt that saw sales for the year across the
Atlantic rising by over 40 per cent to €10 million, parallel to a
sales dip elsewhere, writes Lindsey...
Only two out of over 100 'standard' food products in a recent
survey of retailers' own brand foods met with salt slashing targets
set by the UK's food watchdog, suggesting ongoing research into
reducing the content...
The rising star of Britain's cake sector, Inter Link Foods, is
buying its way into Poland - hoping to benefit from the growing
dominance of multinational supermarkets across eastern Europe while
also using its new plant to ship...
The announcement yesterday that DMV International and Arla Food
Ingredients could merge is a further example of how the rising
power and ongoing growth of the multiple retailers is putting
constant pressure on ingredients companies...
Two of Britain's biggest agriculture companies, faced with an
increasingly unstable market and rising costs, have announced they
will merge to insulate themselves and compete more effectively
through local grain markets, writes...
Scottish fisheries minister Ross Finnie has underlined the Scottish
Executive's opposition to the proposed closure of certain areas of
the North Sea to fishing.
Scientists in Ireland claim to have dramatically improved the
quality of gluten-free bread, presenting an opportunity for bakers
as the number of people with a known gluten intolerance grows,
writes Chris Mercer.
Breakthrough science for the popular fruit ingredient, the
strawberry, as UK scientists construct the world's first molecular
map for the wild strawberry, opening up opportunities to create
market leading varieties with improved...
The Aston Group, which has ambitions of becoming the biggest raw
vegetable oil manufacturer in Eastern Europe, has begun supplying
retailers with refined deodorised oil from its $60 million
extracting plant MEZ Volshebnii Kray, writes...
Russia's OST group, one of the country's biggest alcohol producers,
has built a new bottle plant near Moscow which will supply it with
up to 600 million bottles a year - and save it more than $10
million, writes Angela Drujinina.
Lightweight conveyor belt manufacturer Habasit has launched a
plastic modular belt that offers the largest high friction rubber
contact surface available in the industry.
Nestlé is to buy almost half of German frozen pizza firm Wagner so
it can tap into the lucrative German market and expand Wagner's
brands abroad, as competition hots up in the European frozen pizza
sector, reports Chris Mercer.
Canadian food giant E.D. Smith & Sons claims to have made a 50
per cent reduction in day-to-day output processes by automating the
production and delivery of business documents across its supply
chain.
The UK is likely to miss its self-imposed target for reducing
carbon dioxide emissions, but the Confederation of British Industry
(CBI) has urged the government to acknowledge the contribution
business has made in addressing the problem...
The controversial issue of nutritional profiles will remain one of
the biggest hurdles for EU legislation on health claims but recent
reports suggest that Germany may be ready to concede some elements
of profiling, reports Dominique...
Amcor has sacked its CEO after an investigation suggested some
employees were running a cartel, while Rexam chairman Rolf
Börjesson has been appointed to the board of Avery Dennison.
Nestlé has hit back at a Chinese consumer who brought about a
lawsuit disputing that the Swiss food giant's infant formula is not
made from whole milk. The action is a particularly sensitive issue
in light of this year's...
Cargill is to increase its stake in the Romanian edible oils market
with the acquisition of the local company Olpo Podari. And with
another possible acquisition on the cards, the giant US
agribusiness group clearly sees significant...
Fishing should be banned in almost a third of UK waters to preserve
stocks and protect the environment, according to a Royal Commission
report set to send shockwaves through the industry. Anthony
Fletcher reports.
Food and ingredients producer Greencore has warned early that its
Irish sugar business could be seriously damaged when the EU finally
implements its sugar reform, expected next December, writes
Chris Mercer.
A new polyphenylene sulfide (PPS)-based paper that is claimed to
withstand highly caustic and hot sterilisation solutions has been
developed for filtration operations in the dairy industry.
Price increases for key raw materials used by the food industry
threaten over the next 12 months as low global stocks remain open
to unexpected disruptions.
After seven years of development, Swiss company Cybox unveiled its
square oak barrel, which triples barrel storage capacity, at the
Vinitech exhibition in Bordeaux last week, reports Kim Hunter
Gordon.
