National Starch has rolled out a range of natural ingredients
designed to help food makers appeal to health conscious consumers
by keeping their labels as 'clean' as possible.
Europeans in 39 countries spent a combined total of €1,363bn on
food and groceries in 2004, with Germany as the largest market, to
be overtaken by Russia in 2020, according to IGD Services.
Although Russia's food retail market is set to become the largest
on the continent, it will be a tough market for western European
food processors to crack.
European mistrust of GM ingredients is creating strong demand for
Chinese plant sterols and natural vitamin E, increasingly backed by
third-party certification, writes Dominique Patton.
Tate & Lyle has vowed to continue to pursue its ambitious
expansion plans despite warnings that proposed changes to the sugar
regime could begin to affect business as soon as 2007, writes
Anthony Fletcher.
Food officials in the UK have developed a model that ranks the
health status of foods according to the sum of their nutrients,
reports Dominique Patton.
Half the world's consumers understand the nutritional labels on
food packaging only 'in part', although two in 10 'always' check
grocery labels, according to a new study from ACNielsen.
Australian CSIRO has designed Moisture Control Technology (MCT) to
control free moisture found in stored or transported fresh food,
enabling food to stay fresher for longer.
The €3.77 billion European proteins industry must overcome consumer
health concerns if it is to capitalise on opportunities presented
by new functional products, claims a new report.
Novis seeks a bright, driven food scientist for a reporter's post
in southern France. The main mission is to deepen coverage of
scientific breakthroughs in food techniques and nutritional
understanding on flagship websites, FoodNavigator.com...
Five months after the illegal red colour Sudan 1 sparked the
biggest food product recall in the UK's history, the country's food
agency detects the colour in a batch of curry powders, reports
Lindsey Partos.
A new report that shows that whole grain consumption can slow the
progression of heart disease has strengthened interest in
whole-grain products that do not compromise taste, writes
Anthony Fletcher.
New study takes a fresh look at alternative emulsifiers, as
consumer suspicions of GM foods push food makers to source non-GM
versions of the popular emulsifier soya lecithin, and supply and
demand issues for the ingredient rise to...
With the rise in organic processed food comes a leap in demand for
organic ingredients, but is it still early days for local
ingredients sourcing, asks Lindsey Partos.
Edible food wraps made from fruit and vegetable ingredients could
appeal to food makers looking for nutritious, colourful and
eye-catching films for convenience foods, reports Lindsey
Partos.
Growth areas for the polyol sweetener xylitol highlighted, as
leading ingredients firm Danisco claims new health guidelines
recommend xylitol to prevent dental caries, reports Lindsey
Partos.
Number one food enzyme supplier Novozymes likely to move production
to the US and China as a result of the new EU sugar reform, the
daily Berlingske Tidende reports.
A prototype of electronic-paper could be the future for radio
frequency identification (RFID) tags and for intelligent packaging,
according to the company developing the technology.
It looks likely that Somerfield might be forced by the UK's
competition regulator to sell 14 of the 100 former Safeway stores
it purchased from Wm Morrison, a move that might provide a modicum
of relief to food processors under...
Driven by the EU's food regulations, more and more companies are
buying integrated software to manage and track products through
their supply chain, reports Ahmed ElAmin.
ConAgra Ingredients has streamlined its business in order to better
address the needs of its customers, and was at the IFT conference
last week to show off its potential, writes Anthony
Fletcher.
A company's ability to communicate the advantages of a product can
be critical to its eventual success, a lesson that DSM Food
Specialties has clearly taken to heart.
High quality ingredients are the single most important factor in
making a product premium, concludes a new report from UK market
analysts IGD, writes Lindsey Partos.
Suppliers to Carrefour will continue to be limited on what they can
charge for their products as the world's second largest retailer
fights to boost flagging sales across most of Europe.
Cocoa compounds can be extracted and marketed as functional food
ingredients, or even synthesised for use in pharmaceuticals, said
confectionery giant Mars this week, reports Dominique
Patton.
One starch for all temperatures that behaves as an instant,
lump-free thickener hits the market, as Dutch co-operative Avebe
extends its line of Paselli EZ potato starches, reports Lindsey
Partos.
French food and drink giant, Groupe Danone, has acknowledged US
PepsiCo's denial of takeover plans, as the French government
threatens to do everything in its power to stop such a bid from
ever taking place, writes Claire Johnston.
British food group RHM last week announced it will launch a
crustless bread under its Hovis brand, targeted at young children
who only like the soft part of a loaf.
Space travel to accelerate food science discoveries as the US space
organisation NASA calls on food researchers to answer the needs of
its astronauts, reports Lindsey Partos.
One cannot envy the chief executive faced with a scientific study
that casts doubt over the efficacy or safety of his core product.
But avoiding a sales slump, media vilification and even charges of
fraud means squaring up to such...
Food processors will soon be able to detect rogue pieces of plastic
in their products, if trials of a new machine that detects coloured
objects prove successful.
Job losses at the sweetener operations of ambitious ingredients
firm Cargill are imminent as the largest private firm in the US
appears to feel the squeeze of "market conditions".
Beverage fortification solutions on display at the IFT show suggest
that manufacturers do not need to sacrifice clarity or taste in
order to meet growing consumer demand for functional products,
writes Anthony Fletcher.
If food manufacturers can achieve a better understanding of how
consumers interact with brands, then product development could be
less of a hit-and-miss affair, writes Anthony Fletcher in New
Orleans.
Global supplies for the hydrocolloid gum arabic could creep up as
Lagos announces plans to sow 500 million seeds to produce the
popular confectionery ingredient, writes Lindsey Partos.
Harmful red colour Sudan 1 crops up in prepared pasta dish in
Italy, reports the EU's food risk alert system this week,
confirming food makers still risk contamination by this illegal
food colour.
ADM's promotion of two innovative ingredients at the IFT conference
this week illustrates how health awareness and regulatory concerns
have shot up the industry's priority list, writes Anthony
Fletcher.
Bottled water sales are booming in Britain thanks to a new
generation of consumers who see the sector as more than glorified
tap water and better for their health and well-being than fizzy
drinks, reports Chris Mercer.
New study that highlights a rise in sesame allergies reminds food
makers of the importance of tough European labelling rules on
allergen ingredients enforced later this year,reports Lindsey
Partos.
Low-fat deep fried food could be a real possibility in the future
thanks to a novel protein coating technique developed by Proteus,
writes Anthony Fletcher.
Food makers can expect tighter voluntary rules on additives in
vegetarian and vegan foods as the UK's food agency gets to grips
with fresh new definitions, reports Lindsey Partos.
Cadbury Schweppes unit will recruit the brains of flavour
technologists at Senomyx through a new agreement to develop cutting
edge flavour ingredients to beat the competition in gum
confectionery, reports Lindsey Partos.
