Nestlé has reported a better than expected sales jump of 4.4% with sales totalling CHF 20.9bn (€20.25bn), boosted by sales of bottled water and chocolate.
The Japanese diet can rival the Mediterranean diet for both health benefits and consumer pulling-power – with the added bonus of 'undiscovered' ingredients waiting to be developed by Western food manufacturers.
France may be notorious for its leisurely lunch breaks but less structured ways of eating are taking root, with a third of consumers saying they often eat on the run, according to an Ipsos poll.
An analysis of the G8 nations has highlighted striking differences in calories and other macronutrients purchased from packaged food in these countries with Mediterranean and Japanese diets being the healthiest, according to Euromonitor.
Growing demand for natural food colourings by manufacturers and consumers will continue to drive the Western European market in the near future, according to a new report by Future Market Insights.
A gluten-free diet is the only possible treatment for those with coeliac disease – so whose responsibility is it to increase affordability, availability and awareness? FoodNavigator asked experts for their views.
France's Solina Group will acquire the industrial flavouring division of Paulig to increase its presence in Nordic countries and Russia, the company has said.
Industry should be more pro-active in encouraging consumers to seek a diagnosis of coeliac disease before switching to a gluten-free diet, says Euromonitor contributing analyst Simone Baroke.
Fostering children's willingness to try new flavours and foods has clear benefits for the food industry - yet researchers say baby food manufacturers may be inadvertently creating picky eaters.
Taste is much more complex than the experience of basic flavours on the tongue – it also encompasses our other senses to a larger degree than most people realise, according to Professor Charles Spence.
Some of the best and brightest innovation in the food and drink industry comes from start-ups – so how do they approach NPD? And what can companies of all sizes learn from their approach?
Smaller plates may not encourage overweight teenage girls to reduce portion sizes because they may be less attentive to visual cues, according to a study.
Fresh-cut fruit and veg are sold as an instant vitamin boost. But chlorine disinfection, refrigeration and up to three weeks on the shelf mean their vitamin content is often low – so is there any point in buying them?
A novel cooking and cooling process for rice could help slash the number of calories absorbed by the body by more than half by increasing levels of resistant starch, say researchers.
Manufacturers need to be innovative and clever if costs to reformulate food products are to be kept low, says Cindy Beeren at Leatherhead Food Research.
Adding an exotic ‘superfood’ ingredient gives fresh appeal to a well-established product – and manufacturers don’t have to look far for the latest one as analysts say that post-recession consumers want local, simple ingredients.
As sugar has become one of the most maligned ingredients within food, Euromonitor International research analyst Jack Skelly says the future may prove trickyfor manufacturers.
By Fintan Hastings, external affairs adviser, British Retail Consortium
The close relationship between supply chain partners means they are well-placed to help each other tackle food waste, says Fintan Hastings, external affairs adviser at the British Retail Consortium.
The inclusion of new voluntary best practices in the organisation’s revised trader standard is an “interesting” element, said a representative at Voice Network.
The TTIP trade agreement pitches European legislative sovereignty against the workings of “free trade liars,” says the director of NGO Foodwatch Thilo Bode.
The drop in corporation tax, promise of increased investment funding and support for British farmers in the 2015 UK budget were largely supported by British food and drink manufacturers.
The idea that ‘real men’ eat meat could stand in the way of goals to improve dietary sustainability and health, according to a new study published in Appetite.
A food product’s sensorial characteristics and its place of production determine the perception of its quality for Italian consumers, a study has found.
Spray-on DNA or added bacteria may be the future of the fight against food fraud - but analysts warn that consumers could react against more additives being used to guarantee a product’s authenticity or naturalness
Online grocery shoppers tend to prefer navigating to product pages rather than searching for specific products, according to a study funded by the European Research Council.
Empowering women in small-hold agriculture is essential to boosting productivity, creating new product launches and generating business - and companies are starting to realise this, says a Fairtrade Foundation report.
Pesticide residues in raw and processed foods clearly exceeded legal limits in 1.5% of European foods in 2013, according to a new assessment from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
Growth at the fragrance and flavour company was fuelled by the acquisition of the Diana Group and a particularly strong quarterly earnings beating forecasts, said the company.
The Findus Group has snapped up Spanish frozen ready meal firm La Cocinera from Nestlé Spain for an undisclosed sum, following approval from the Spanish competition authorities.
The food industry has criticised the WHO’s recommendation to reduce the intake of added sugar for being backed by ‘moderate’ and ‘very low quality’ evidence.
The onus should not be on consumers to choose healthy foods but on companies to help reduce consumption, says Food Policy professor at City University London, Tim Lang.
