It’s been a big year for science, with innovations, reformulation, and sustainability all under the microscope. In this festive edition, the FoodNavigator team highlights some of our favourite science stories from this year.
From killer ice cream to Nestlé and Danone cancelling or suspending local operations in China, 2011 was a roller-coaster ride for the world dairy industry. So fasten your seatbelts and enjoy our whirlwind tour of the year's top news tattle...
FoodQualityNews.com 2011 in pictures details the highs and lows of food quality and safety around the world in 2011.The month-by-month picture gallery takes you through the year's top stories from January to December, with links to the full story...
Continuing on its recent acquisition trail, French botanicals group Naturex has bought up Polish pectin and juice concentrates manufacturer, Pektowin, in a bid to strengthen its concentrates portfolio and expand into emerging regions.
German ingredients supplier, Wacker, has released a new starch-based emulsifier, using alpha-cyclodextrin, for stabilizing oil-in-water emulsions in products such as salad dressings, margarine and mayonnaise, reducing reliance on hydrocolloids.
New research revealing how food ingredients are interconnected by their flavour compounds could help industry formulators develop new flavour combinations, say researchers.
Early dietary exposure to foods containing added salt shapes a greater preference for salty tastes throughout infancy and childhood, suggests a new study.
The co-operative owner of bakery and cereal ingredients supplier Limagrain Céréales Ingrédients (LCI) has reported a hike in net income of €23m in its full-year results.
Cargill has adopted high-pressure processing (HPP) at its ground turkey production facilities in an attempt to prevent future contaminations, the company announced.
Simply filling a soft drink bearing a trademarked brand name does not itself violate an EU directive regarding use of that sign, according to the European Court of Justice (CJEU) in a high-profile ruling involving Red Bull.
The European Commission has banned all pork product exports from the Italian island of Sardinia to member states due to an African swine fever (ASF) outbreak.
Is there appetite for M&A activity in 2012? Food market watchers reckon the sector could see some heavyweight deals next year despite the on-going credit lending challenges.
The second part of this exclusive interview sees Beneo executive board member, Yves Servotte, explaining the cooling but not crushing effect of EU prebiotic health claim rejections on its inulin-chicory business.
Optimised methods of extracting the food colourant carmine could offer industry lower allergenicity and higher stability than currently used extraction techniques, say researchers.
UK-based United Biscuits (UB) may have attracted bidders from Asia and major companies like Kraft and PepsiCo amid rumours the company has split its operations into a snacks and biscuit division, according to an analyst.
Swedish confectioners Cloetta and Leaf have sealed a €753m merger making it the largest confectionery company in Scandinavia, according to an analyst from Euromonitor.
Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) says it is focusing on the London 2012 Olympics to spur sales, but admits that any French soda tax could lead to retail price rises there of around 10 per cent.
Socio-demographic factors such as gender and education play a large role in consumer choice when it comes to buying health-orientated ready meals, but sensory appeal is still the dominant purchasing driver, finds a new study from Norway.
Inconsistencies exist in advertising regulations across different media, enabling companies to market high in fat, salt and sugar products (HFSS) to children online, claims new report.
A new process could help to selectively separate out high-value protein components in foods such as soy and thus produce higher purities and yields with high nutritional value, at cost-savings, says Solae.
In the first part of this exclusive interview, Beneo Group executive board member, Yves Servotte, explains how European Union health claim rules have informed strategic thinking at one of Europe’s biggest and most vocal ingredient vendors.
French concerns over bisphenol A (BPA) have not been dispelled in the wake of the opinion from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) that the chemical poses no health risk through dietary exposure, said France’s food safety agency.
By 2050 the world’s burgeoning population will consume two-thirds more animal protein than at present, requiring huge efficiency gains in livestock production, say industry experts.
Leading members of the UK food industry have announced a partnership to fund and deliver a new comprehensive report on reformulation and sodium reduction methods.
There is an overriding trend within the world soft drinks market towards an overlap between categories, while economic unrest is expected to consolidate a trend towards cheaper products, according to Leatherhead Food Research.
Any growth in the mature Belgian confectionery market lies in fair trade chocolate and chewing gum, according to an analyst at Leatherhead Food Research.
Scottish-based Nisha Enterprises has acquired Millar Confectionery for an undisclosed fee and plans to open a new sweet factory in Livingston, Scotland.
Increasing use of innovative ingredients within soft drinks is one of the most notable trends witnessed by that industry over the past few years, according to Leatherhead Food Research.
Cheese intake lowers LDL cholesterol when compared with butter intake of equal fat content, and does not increase said cholesterol levels compared with a normal diet.
New bakery emulsifiers and a stabilizer system for mayonnaises and dressing fulfil consumer demands for fat reduction, leaner labels and simpler production, claims developer Palsgaard.
Poll results: 66% of readers say the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) should block its staff from taking up ‘revolving door’ jobs …. and the head of the EU risk assessor agrees.
Earlier this month, farmers, meat processors, retailers, scientists, veterinarians and animal welfare lobbyists gathered in Amsterdam to discuss progress towards voluntarily ending pig castration in Europe by 2018. Carina Perkins reports on some of the...
The difficult and rarely successful task of taking a food product all the way from idea-to-shelf, particularly in the current stagnant European market, is not deterring small start-ups or individual entrepreneurs from trying, claims an NDP expert at the...
The £34.7M sale of Premier Foods’ four Irish brands, Chivers, Gateaux, McDonnells and the Erin licence, to the Boyne Valley Group underline worries about the food giant’s ability to generate cash, one leading analyst has warned.
Chr. Hansen claims its new Fresco 3000 culture series will increase customer’s cheese yield, reduce production costs and provide greater protection against bacteriophage attacks during fermentation, as the company targets growing consumption in Eastern...
British bakery firm, Warburtons, has announced plans to invest and diversify its business over the next ten years, both in the UK and abroad as it sees strong performance in gluten-free and eastern European markets.
Weak economic growth in developed markets and plentiful stocks will prevent any strong recovery in the price of commodities such as grains, sugar, skimmed milk powder and cocoa prices over the coming 6 to 12 months, claims Euromonitor.
If a new food product does not carry a clean label, it will prove extremely challenging to launch in the current retail climate, said Kampffmeyer as it released a slow-fermented flour at FIE last month that it claims allows an additive-free label declaration...
The European Parliament (EP) has approved new labeling rules for fruit juices and nectars that it says aim to prevent ‘potentially misleading’ names for mixed juices and ‘no added sugar’ claims.
Confectionery sales in Europe dwindle as new product developments (NPD) have not met consumer preferences which demands more definite health claims, according to an analyst at Mintel.
