By Han De Groot, executive director at UTZ Certified and Liza Murphy, senior relationships manager at UTZ certified.
Traceability is here to stay – and it is industry’s responsibility to put efficient and reliable traceability systems in place to provide real information for consumers.
Mars has committed to ending deforestation associated with its palm oil supply by the end of 2015, becoming the latest multinational to do so, alongside Unilever and Nestlé, among others.
Global per capita food supply has increased over the past 50 years – but it has become more similar among countries, increasing reliance worldwide on a narrow range of commodities.
Most of the world’s palm oil is set to be sustainably sourced, after Golden Agri-Resources (GAR) became the latest major supplier to commit to forest conservation last week, says Catapult, an organisation working to end deforestation-linked commodities...
The Committee of European Sugar Users (CIUS) has called on EU member states and the Commission to take adequate measures to avoid sugar shortages and guarantee a sufficient stock level at the end of this business year.
By Winnie Byanyima, executive director, Oxfam International
Food and drink companies can have a big influence over sustainability and ethical issues in their supply chains - and have the power to change them rapidly. One year on from Oxfam's first Behind the Brands sustainability scorecard, nine of the ten...
While the debate about deforestation due to palm oil rumbles on, new research has suggested that the release of methane from palm oil processing wastewater may also be a significant concern.
Food manufacturers have made significant progress in reducing the amount of waste they send to landfill, according to the results of a survey from UK trade body, the Food and Drink Federation (FDF).
Leading food and drink makers including Nestlé, Unilever and Coca-Cola have made good progress in the year since Oxfam released its first Behind the Brands sustainability scorecard – and only one company made no progress, according to the NGO.
Palm oil supplier IOI Loders Croklaan surpassed its goal to increase volumes of certified sustainable palm oil to 30% of total European sales last year – and has certified all its plantations to Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) standards.
Businesses must commit to building, supporting and operating agriculture systems that provide enough food and proper nutrition for every person on the planet, according to a UN Global Compact review.
The Kellogg Company has pledged to source fully traceable palm oil by the end of next year, a move that has been welcomed by NGOs that have been fighting for the cereal giant to change its policies for months.
There is a good chance that consumption of insects can be introduced to the food habits of Western European populations, according to new research that found Belgian consumers were 'ready to buy and cook' insects.
Rising global demand for vegetable oils has accelerated deforestation, claims a report from the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) – but there are deforestation-free alternatives available for businesses.
UK scientists have developed a new strain of hemp plants with 'dramatically increased' contents of oleic acid, making it an attractive oil for industrial use.
Slow Food has urged the European Commission to take a more holistic view of food sustainability, saying that food waste must be seen as part of broader sustainability issues.
Hurdles in food safety, taste and consumer acceptance await on the London South Bank University’s quest to join two big food innovations: 3D printing and insect-based ingredients.
Two-thirds of all fish harvested for food is likely to come from fish farms by 2030, according to a report from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).
Locusts, lentils, seaweed or “hybrid” meat? Researchers have found that consumers prefer the thought of non-specified meat substitute snacks over those containing insects or seaweed.
NGOs say human trafficking and child labor remain deep-seated problems of the cocoa industry as a Nestlé, ADM and Cargill court case stirs up old supply chain concerns.
An internal report on the World Bank’s multimillion dollar loan to a palm oil company embroiled in human rights allegations has concluded that the investment bank should have been more diligent in its assessments.
Europeans must reduce consumption of meat and dairy as part of a plan to cut agricultural land use by about a third, claims a UN report presented at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos on Friday.
Meat reduction – or ‘flexitarian’ eating – is on the rise. In this special edition article, FoodNavigator asks why are consumers reducing meat, and how prevalent is the trend?
In order to feed a growing global population that’s on track to reach 9 billion people by 2050, some scientists argue that people will have to adopt a predominantly plant-based diet to sustain both the environment and humans’ well-being. As part of FoodNavigator-USA's...
European public authorities will be able to preferentially choose Fair Trade products, after a majority of MEPs voted in favour of a new public procurement directive last week.
Mondelez International reached its 2015 goal of sourcing 100% RSPO-certified palm oil for all its purchases last year – two years ahead of schedule, the company has said.
Some people are repulsed by the idea of eating insects – but those aren’t the people to target when trying to introduce insect consumption to the mainstream, says edible insect expert Professor Arnold van Huis.
Lack of transparency in blended ingredients is harming trust in the food industry – but there is another way, says president and CEO of Premium Blendhub, Henrik Stamm Kristensen.
Increased demand for animal protein will push up meat prices – but not necessarily grain prices, claims a new report from UK think tank the Overseas Development Institute (ODI).
Promotion of an industrial policy to spur growth in the food and drink industry features on a wish list of priorities for the Greek presidency of the Council of the European Union, published by FoodDrinkEurope.
From the newest developments in sweeteners, fats and oils and flavours, to the latest trends in gluten-free formulation and plant-based diets, FoodNavigator's special editions calendar for 2014 spans the hottest topics for the European food and drink...
A sustainable cocoa supply chain is reliant on women, who provide a large portion of the labor and often invest earnings on items that benefit their community, says Mars Chocolate in a response to harsh criticism.
Before we take out our crystal balls in January and look ahead to 2014, let’s take a moment to ask, how accurate was our forecast for the past year? FoodNavigator takes a look back on its predictions for 2013.
Nestlé is in the 10 best global firms for corporate responsibility (CR) reporting, according to an independent survey published by audit, tax and advisory company KPMG.
UK retailers like Morrisons’, Sainsbury’s and Tesco are backing an international ‘responsible’ fish oil certification earned by 100 processing factories in 9 countries and representing 40% of global fish oil and fishmeal outputs.
Foods may taste better when they carry eco-friendly labels – at least for consumers who are concerned about sustainability, according to a study published in PLoS ONE.
A new sector-specific engineering degree at Sheffield Hallam University in the UK aims to tackle the current skills gap in food engineering, with the first students starting next year.In this guest article, director of employment and skills at the Food...
Tight supply of raw materials is affecting many hydrocolloids and prices are likely to rise as a result, according to hydrocolloids expert Dennis Seisun.
Enzymes were traditionally used to make foods cheaper and faster, but the role of enzymes is expanding, to also help make foods more sustainable and to add consumer benefits, according to director of DSM’s business unit enzymes solutions Lars Asferg.
Simply paying African cocoa growers more will not incentivize them to move away from the encroaching, more lucrative industries of palm and rubber, says Barry Callebaut.
Nestlé has become the latest member of the Save Food initiative, which aims to draw on both the public and private sectors to address massive food waste and loss in every part of the food supply network.
Mushroom salt reduction, award-winning algal flour and musical taste buds, Leatherhead takes us through the top three new products at this year’s Food Ingredients Europe (FiE).
Increasing intakes of soy and other plant-based foods and supplements can reduce environmental burdens – but does the political will exist to do it? Not really, says the chair of the 10-year-old European Natural Soyfood Manufacturers Association (ENSA).
HSBC has said that despite challenges market tides deciding the sustainability of the palm oil industry are changing - although an environmental group has published a damning report of the bank’s investment practices.
