Sourcing cocoa from certified farms can minimise incidence of child labour, but if that’s enough, why else should chocolate manufacturers commit to third-party certification?
Biotech firm Lycotec has developed an ingredient that it claims can harness the health potential in both dark and milk chocolate and lead to products with anti-ageing, injury recovery and increased physical performance properties.
The International Cocoa Organisation (ICCO) anticipates a lower than expected global cocoa shortage in the 2011/12 season due to ideal weather conditions and higher grinds in some cocoa producing countries.
A consecutive deficit in 2012/13 is set to move cocoa prices higher as supply struggles to meet rising demand for chocolate products in Asia, according to financial services group Rabobank.
Demand for cocoa is expected to climb 30% in the next 10 years creating a 25% shortage of current supply, according to North American cocoa processor and chocolate ingredients supplier Blommer Chocolate Company.
Finnish company Fazer has set a target to certify its entire cocoa supply by 2017 to ensure its cocoa comes from traceable sources and is free from the worst forms of child labour.
Chocolate manufacturers will face a serious cocoa supply shortage unless they work to improve the livelihoods of cocoa farmers and allow them to invest in sustainable production, according to an academic.
Nestlé has recorded 7.1% growth for its confectionery business in its first quarter (Q1) results released today driven by emerging chocolate markets such as Latin America and Asia.
Cargill has added a center of expertise to its cocoa processing facility in Wormer, the Netherlands and automated warehousing at the Port of Amsterdam following a €57m ($82m) investment.
New product launches for Easter have soared on last year, but consumers are favouring familiar brands in their Easter confectionery choices, according to an analyst at Mintel.
A combination of sensory and analytical flavour analysis that is hardly commercially available can optimise the taste of chocolate, according to a flavour consultant.
Cargill has announced plans to invest €20m in two cocoa and chocolate production facilities in Germany as it looks to boost its presence domestically and in Eastern Europe.
Ingredients firm Herza Chocnology has launched a range of bake-stable chocolate batons for baked goods that can be tailored to meet manufacturers’ precise size, shape and flavour requirements.
Any growth in the mature Belgian confectionery market lies in fair trade chocolate and chewing gum, according to an analyst at Leatherhead Food Research.
Ingredients firm ADM has launched range of mildly fruity cocoa powders; cocoa masses and chocolate that it has said can reduce bitterness in chocolate based products and appeal to more consumers.
The second largest player on the Romanian chocolate market Kandia Dulce has acquired former competitor Supreme Chocolat, the third largest player, which could put pressure on market leader Kraft, according to an analyst.
Spanish chocolate confectionery market leader Nestle has invested €10m on a new production line its factory in La Penilla de Cayon to drive growth in the Mediterranean.
Industrial chocolate supplier, Barry Callebaut, expects a lower rate of growth for the global confectionery market next year - 1 to 2% - and warns of continued volatility in raw material prices.
ADM (Archer Daniels Midland) Cocoa has released a new addition to its Unicao range of cocoa liquors from Ghana cocoa beans, following the release of a similar product from its Ivory Coast facilities last month.
German supplier Sternchemie claims recent in-house trials demonstrate that sunflower lecithin is a viable alternative to IP soy lecithin for chocolate manufacturer, but greater dosages are required to achieve the viscosity and sensory properties of soy...
Nestlé’s scheme to expand operations at its Product Technology Centre in York cleared the final hurdle last week at a planning meeting of City of York Council.
Mars has announced that Maltesers will be its first brand to carry the Fairtrade mark from June 2012, the commitment follows similar moves from Cadbury and Nestle.
ADM (Archer Daniels Midland) Cocoa has extended its Unicao range of cocoa liquors produced from Ivory Coast cocoa beans, for use in premium milk and dark chocolate products.
Surging cocoa supplies did little to prevent front month prices for cocoa (cocoa futures) creeping up by 4 per cent throughout August, according to Euromonitor. “The big surprise has been that this rise has taken place on the back of strong supply projections,”...
A German research team has identified key aroma and taste compounds of cocoa relying on molecular sensory science and report a way to improve the taste of chocolate, which could manufacturers control and improve the flavour of cocoa products.
Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) has announced that it will expand its cocoa processing capabilities at its facility in Singapore to enable it to keep pace with growing demand for cocoa and chocolate products from Asian markets.
Results from recent research aiming to better understand variation in chocolate consumption behaviour suggest that formulation experts at leading brand owners might consider developing different products targeted at suckers and fast chewers.
Children and parents can say goodbye to sticky faces and fingers and stained clothes thanks to the globe’s first non-melting chocolate, claims confectionery manufacturer Choc-o-Bloc.
Consumer advocates Foodwatch say a chocolate product from Ferrero has the ‘most misleading advertising’ by any food manufacturer this year; the chocolate maker has rejected the claim.
Pod-to-pallet industrial chocolate supplier Barry Callebaut has flagged up the potential for growth arising from the fact that independent analysts, Moody’s, has given the company an ‘investment grade’ status.
A new dark cocoa powder aims to deliver an indulgent rich taste for bakery goods, but also cut costs by reducing the product’s overall cocoa content, claims ADM.
With cocoa per-tonne prices standing at about €2080 in the aftermath of the Ivory Coast crisis, chocolate suppliers are coming to the fore with solutions to deliver ‘chocolateness’ with less chocolate content in goods like muffins and baked foods.
Reflecting the continuing industry trend toward outsourcing, Barry Callebaut said a new supply deal it has agreed with Hershey will put its annual deliveries beyond the current 80,000 metric tonnes.
The conversion of Green & Black’s whole range and Ben and Jerry’s ingredients to Fairtrade this year could influence other companies to roll out further products under the label, said the Fairtrade Foundation as it announced its first £1bn in UK retail...
An explosion in Fairtrade chocolate sales last year in Australia has seen it overtake coffee to become the biggest selling Fairtrade certified product in that market, said the organisation behind the standard.
A novel cocoa cultivation method and a new approach to fermentation are resulting in cocoa beans with enhanced quality, claims industrial chocolate supplier, Barry Callebaut.
The first 100 per cent single source chocolate from Vietnam is being launched by Belgian B2B producer, Grand-Place, who in a bid to increase output is investing heavily in improving the quality of the cocoa beans from the region.
Formulating reduced fat chocolate using defatted cocoa powder may indeed by the ‘best compromise’ for confectionery producers, says a new study from Nestlé Product Technology.
There is enough volume of Fairtrade cocoa available to supply more large brands switching product lines to Fairtrade, according to the Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO).
The Indian confectionery market witnessed the launch of over 200 products in various categories last year, thus ranked, according to Datamonitor, in the top 20 in terms of global new product launches in 2009.
Convergence in the confectionery market has slowed since the acquisition of UK confectionery group Cadbury by Kraft Foods in February this year, according to a market analyst.
