The National Food Agency of Finland has combined with provincial
governments to start a programme to assess the conformity of
municipal food controlthrough more regulation.
Ingredients giant Danisco leapfrogs into the second global position
for cultures as the Danish firm acquires the food ingredients arm
of ailing French chemical business Rhodia.
The market for functional food products has grown steadily for
several years now, focusing primarily on the dairy sector. But
other sectors of the food industry, such as bakery and snacks, are
beginning to see more functional products...
A new weighing and recording system designed specifically to track
bulk materials such as food ingredients has been launched by
international weighing and bagging specialist Chronos Richardson.
A strain of swine flu containing gene segments from birds and
humans as well as from pigs is sweeping across North America. Now
scientists in the US have developed a process called reverse
genetics to try and combat the spread of...
A small Canadian milling company has found a novel way of creating
more value from its by-products - by tapping into the growing craze
for low carbohydrate products made popular by the Atkins Diet.
Crown Holdings has developed a new heat-sealed peelable lid for
mackerel fillets. Once the preserve of beverage manufacturers, the
ring pull is increasingly being used in food applications to meet
consumer demands for convenience.
This year's Foodex Meatex exhibition - which the organisers believe
could be the most successful yet - promises to showcase the latest
innovations in meat processing. A quick look at a couple of planned
product launches suggests...
Plant closures and 'competitive pressures?saw profits slide for US
sugar giant Imperial Sugar despite a rise in operating income for
the first quarter. Global sugar surplus keeps the prices down and
competition up.
Supply chain management is becoming increasingly important in
efficient food production. A pilot project developed by Microsoft
Business Solutions and KiMs, a Danish snack manufacturer, is a good
example of how technology, especially...
German technology group Azo has developed a new automated system called
Dosibox which it claims allows for the cost-effective dosing of
additives and other minor ingredients.
In a move to protect home markets Chinese corn processor Global
Bio-chem will link up with Japan's Mitsui & Co to develop,
manufacture and sell the bulk reduced calorie sweetener sorbitol in
China under a new joint venture...
A real cross-section of product launches reflects the growing
importance of healthier processed foods which have just arrived on
Polish and Czech shop shelves, as we look at the most significant
offerings from the Mintel GNPD this...
Gostomel Glass Factory, Ukraine's largest glass-bottle producer, is
borrowing €13.3 million from the EBRD to build a new facility that
will enable it to produce 600,000 beer bottles a day.
Health conscious consumers that wish to avoid additives in their
diets are finding it difficult to recognise the ingredients and the
health risks associated with them because of a confusing labelling
system.
Consumers in the UK can eat their porridge safe in the knowledge
that their oat products are free from harmful toxins - mycotoxins -
after an extensive survey in the UK found very low traces, if none
at all, of the contaminant in...
The packaging sector is becoming increasingly important in the
accession countries, according to a new report from MINEFI - DREE
elargissement. And leading the way is the agrofood and mass
retailing industry - the mainstay of the...
Frito-Lay, the snack food arm of giant US food and drink group
PepsiCo, was one of the main drivers of growth for the company last
year, not least as a result of various new product launches
designed to tap growing demand for low...
A deadly strain of bird flu has been detected in several Vietnamese
pigs, heightening concern that the aggressive virus could decimate
pork production in Asia. However, the United Nations Food and
Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has...
Food manufacturers on both sides of the Atlantic will soon be
obliged by law to keep detailed records of the supply chain. As a
result, more and more bottling and packaging lines are adopting IT
technology to meet market - and legislative...
Expro, one of the biggest producers of crackers and sweet biscuits
in the Guatemalan market, has installed two additional production
lines from the UK's APV Baker group to help it double its capacity
and pursue aggressive growth...
Equipment specialist Carlisle Process Systems islaunching a new
range of Fischer heat exchangers, designed specifically for the
brewing profession. The Combi-flow system means that changing the
plate configuration can provide different...
Trade in food and drink has been a traditional mainstay between
Poland and Russia, but as accession looms ever closer Poland's
position on future trade outside of the European Union has still
not been made clear, authorities...
With Polish meat processers struggling to comply with rigorous EU
safety regulations, it seems that major consolidation by western
giants looks likelier as domestic players' budgets struggle to keep
pace with big budgets.
Raisio has opened up its first production facility in Russia.
Located just outside Moscow, the Finland-based company says it is
hoping that the move will help it to expand its margarine portfolio
in Russia and neighbouring states.
Higher margin ingredients continue to offer financial gains for
textured wheat protein supplier MGP Ingredients. Driving deeper
into the market in 2004 the company will pour millions of dollars
into doubling production of this speciality...
Fazer Maiznica Druva, the second largest bread maker in Latvia, has
refitted one of its production facilities in the city of Ogre, some
40 kilometres outside the capital Riga.
Braby, the
UK-based designer and manufacturer of silos, has recently supplied
Village Bakery, a Welsh bread and pastry maker, with a silo package
for the storage of savoury flour.
The control system of a feed production plant in Austria has been
converted from a traditional relay-based control system to a
state-of-the-art PLC (programmable logic controller) system -
another example of how traceability within...
US ingredients companies continue to make moves into the European
marketplace with FiberGel Technologies, a supplier of the fat
replacer Z-Trim, announcing it has linked up with Swiss company
DKSH to target European consumers with...
Hiestand, the Swiss baked goods producer partly owned by Ireland's
IAWS group, has become the biggest producer of deep frozen baked
goods in Germany with the acquisition this week of the Back &
Friends company.
Dairy innovator Valio has extended its lactose-free milk drink to
Switzerland through its first licensing agreement for the
technology with the Swiss firm Emmi.
The European Commission has set up a new online help desk for the
development of trade from developing countries. The Commission says
the tool aims to assist the likes of food and drink manufacturers
in Central and Eastern Europe...
Dessert giant Müller is looking into reports that a batch of its
apple Müllerice creamy dairy rice with apple pieces in syrup may
have been spoiled, and may pose a health risk. Around 220,000 pots
of the rice pudding dessert have...
The price paid to British farmers for chicken needs to increase by
8p a kilogramme if the industry is to survive, the National Farmers
Union said yesterday. Poultry producers are getting an average of
2p less than the cost of production...
A previously unidentified protein on the surface of intestinal
cells has given researchers in the US clues on how to prevent
disease. The scientists believe their results could eventually lead
the way to preventing food-borne Listeria...
Danish packaging firm Lachenmeier has launched a new stretch hood
machine that can be used by the food packaging industry. "A wide
range of products will benefit from this technology, such food and
beverages, which in the past...
The European Commission has warned that it might challenge
member-state bans on biotech crops in the European Court of
Justice. Bans have been imposed by Austria, France, Germany,
Greece, Italy, Luxembourg and the UK.
UK-based testing and inspection systems provider Dimaco is to
unveil a number of line inspection systems at the forthcoming Total
Processing & Packaging exhibition.
Probiotics, the bacteria thought to help gut health disorders,
allergies and even some forms of cancer, contain immune
system-stimulating DNA, which makes them just as effective when
inactivated as when consumed as live microorganisms...
A brewer in Sweden is facing the GM debate head on. The company
claims to have launched the first food product to use genetic
modification as a marketing tool.
An extensive analysis of foodstuffs carried out in association with
the National Food Agency of Finland reveals that there are still
high levels of pesticide residue in plant origin foodstuffs and
that a significant number exceed...
Continued growth has meant the redevelopment of Guinness' Waterford
site in Ireland. Amongst the renovations has been a change to a
single tank yeast system to optimise quality.
Wagner, a Germany-based producer of frozen foods, has seen
demand for its pizza snack brand Piccolinis rocket over the last
few years, a welcome development but one which has left it with a
major problem: how to step up its packaging...
Leading UK ready meals manufacturer, Kwoks, has opened a vastly
extended and modernised facility in Grimsby, Yorkshire, which it
says will help meet increasing demand from supermarket chain Asda.
Global packaging supplier Ball has reported a strong fourth quarter
and full year 2003, pushing the company's profits significantly
higher than the previous year, on the back of a strong performance
from its European operations.
Once the preserve of technology-driven corporate executives,
wireless technology is increasingly making its mark in the food
processing sector. One of the leading exponents of the technology
has been APV's, which has developed...
There was a time when a widespread wheat shortage spelt inflation,
and a global shortage meant global inflation. This year, with
stocks at a 30-year low and wheat prices soaring, it is possible
consumers may never even notice. All...
