Collaboration with customers, cautious pricing, a simplified
structure and innovation all helped Kerry Ingredients achieve
profit increases despite soaring raw material costs.
Chocolate has come out on top as the star of the emerging mood food
category - but its future maybe under threat if companies fail to
win health claims for their products.
While most consumers agree that ethically-sourced cocoa is no bad
thing, an ever increasing number of different schemes risks
muddying the issue and puzzling chocolate fans.
An all-natural colouring derived from seaweed has put blue Smarties
back on the shelves following their removal two years ago in
response to concerns over artificial additives.
A panel of experts recommend that more countries be
recognised as fine or flavour cocoa producing countries in order to
provide new opportunities for trade.
Leatherhead Food International (LFI) intends to tap into a very
pressing technical challenge for manufacturers looking to produce
low fat foods that maintain an indulgent appeal.
Cadbury today launched a fund to aid its cocoa suppliers
in Ghana, after research suggested that average production in
the region is now 40 per cent lower than the potential yield.
Barry Callebaut reported increased sales volume for the first
quarter of this fiscal year as a result of a mounting trend for
food manufacturers to outsource their chocolate needs.
Freshness dates, nutrition facts panels and ingredients lists are
priorities for most consumers when reading product labels,
according to a new report.
AarhusKarlsmann (AKK) will face a difficult start to 2008 with
two months of delayed deliveries of it specialty fats after this
week's fire, though no raw materials were destroyed.
Sales in the UK food ingredients industry are falling on average as
a result of increased competition, both domestically and
internationally, according to a new market report by analysts
Plimsoll.
Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) has introduced a new line of
cocoa powders aimed at improving visual appeal and flavour in dairy
and bakery products.
Unreliable organic supplies are stunting the growth of over half of
US organic food manufacturers, according to a new report by the
nation's industry association.
Taste is a key challenge for makers of healthier chocolate: Henry Hussell, head of marketing at Cargill Sweetness, takes us through some of their solutions.
Barry Callebaut has reported growth in full year 2006/7 that
outstrips the chocolate sector at large, largely driven by sales to
food manufacturers with which it has several big new deals.
EU regulators and processors say they are examining the use of diacetyl for foods, following reports of hundreds of US workers falling ill from a deadly lung disease linked to the inhalation of the popcorn flavouring chemical.
The future of research into the potential health benefits of cocoa
should focus on the mechanisms and active compounds, with well
defined clinical trials key to this burgeoning segment, says a new
review by Nestlé.
A new aerated chocolate ingredient claims to allow manufacturers of
baked and dairy goods to cut costs and calories by reducing the
total amount of chocolate in their products without affecting taste
or visual appeal.
Agricultural firm Cargill has started construction of a new cocoa
processing facility in Ghana, in an expansion move designed to meet
increasing global demand for cocoa products.
The organic food and beverage market has been predicted to surpass
$86bn (€62bn) by 2009, with consumers increasingly turning
'organic' in search of health and safety in their food products.
Swiss based Barry Callebaut will start delivering chocolate to
Hershey in North America within the next few months, following the
completion of the partnership this week.
Zurich-based chocolate manufacturer Barry Callebaut said today
that like-for-like sales increased 6.1 per cent in
the nine months to 31 May, despite the unstable cocoa
market.
Chocolate ingredient manufacturer Barry Callebaut has announced the
opening of its new North American head office in Chicago, which it
claims is a step towards becoming the top player in the sector.
Agricultural giant Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) announced
today that it is to build a new cocoa processing facility in Ghana,
in a move expected to diversify and expand the firm's global cocoa
origination and processing...
Masterfoods' U-turn over its plan to reformulate its famous
confectionery brands using animal-derived whey sets a precedent
that will prevent any other food manufacturer from flying in the
face of the global trend towards the...
Leading cocoa producer Barry Callebaut has discovered the specific
bacteria responsible for flavour creation during extensive research
into cocoa bean fermentation - enabling the company to produce
better quality chocolate in the...
Chocolate giants Hershey and Barry Callebaut, have teamed up for a
landmark partnership which will see the Swiss cocoa producer
providing the raw material for Hershey's chocolate products and
expanding facilities in South America.
US based cocoa producer Cargill has developed a new method of
processing cocoa which allows for reduced fat content and greater
dispersibility in cocoa powder.
Chocolate giant Mars has filed a lawsuit against Natraceutical,
alleging that the Spanish company is infringing its patents on
polyphenol-rich cocoa extracts by selling CocoanOX extracts in the
United States.
The trend towards food manufacturers outsourcing their chocolate
ingredient needs translated into impressive volume and sales growth
for Barry Callebaut's industrial business segment for the first six
months of the fiscal year.
Converting food and beverage product labels from US to EC
format requires an in-depth understanding of European labeling
legislation, which is more complex than it often appears to be,
regulatory experts at consultancy firm Leatherhead...
Ethnic flavors are expected to expand this year, together with an
increased consumer demand for bigger, bolder tastes, according to a
new flavors and ingredients report.
Mergers and acquisitions in the food industry in 2006 took a turn
up compared to the year before, with almost one third of all
activity occurring in the food processing sector, according to a
new guide by the The Food Institute.
Tate & Lyle's appointment of a new head of global research and
development underlines the company's focus on the value-added end
of the ingredients market.
Chocolate producers Nestlé and Barry Callebaut have joined forces
to improve their respective positions in the competitive European
market as the maker of Smarties chocolate hands over facilities and
a supply contract to the Swiss...
New technology to extract pectin from sugar beet pulp could reduce
extraction times and expand the potential of the ingredient,
suggests research from the ARS.
Ingredients firm Bunge has continued to see an improved performance
in its last quarter, prompting the company to forecast a year of
"improved earnings" next year.
Leading US ingredient firm Cargill has announced the appointment of
a new chief executive officer, a move that comes in the same week
as a leadership reshuffle in competitor ADM.
The results of a consumer survey on healthy chocolate suggests that
the substance once considered solely as a sweet confectionery item
has made huge strides towards the realm of health foods.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has launched its consultation
regarding the implementation of EU directives in England on food
additives other than colours and sweeteners and sweeteners for use
in foodstuffs.
