Confectionery

Lactose-free chocolate

02-Jul-2012 - Zurich-based chocolate firm Barry Callebaut has launched a lactose-free milk chocolate. The new product is made with a skimmed milk powder with "the lowest lactose content available on the market". This enables the firm to put higher amounts of milk powder in its recipe, which gives the product a similar taste to regular milk chocolate.

Packaging hit list 'could include food, drink and alcohol'

27-Jun-2012 - Campaigners have dismissed assurances from the Department of Health (DoH) that it has no plans to extend proposals for the plain packaging of tobacco to food and drink high in fat, sugar and alcohol.   

Real Good Food Company raises +£2M to cut debts

19-Jun-2012 - Liverpool-based baking ingredients and sugar supplier The Real Good Food Company (RGFC) has raised £2.4M by issuing new shares to shareholder and strategic partner Omnicane. The money will be used to help the firm reduce its debts.

MPs tour Mars to ‘see inside food manufacturing’

13-Jun-2012 - Mars Chocolate UK in Slough – home of Mars, Snickers, Galaxy and Maltesers – hosted a visit by MPs and Peers yesterday (June 12) as part of ‘See Inside Manufacturing’ (SIM) initiative.

Mars urges action on cocoa to beat shortage

13-Jun-2012 - Urgent action was necessary to avoid the “bleak situation” of a serious global shortage of cocoa supplies within a decade, Fiona Dawson, president of Mars Chocolate UK, warned yesterday (June 12).

Feature

The dark star rises

30-May-2012 - A healthy image and premium profile are helping to make dark chocolate a rising star, reports Lynda Searby

Nestlé should diversify product range: GMB union

28-May-2012 - Food giant Nestlé should diversify the products and markets served by its Girvan factory in Scotland to help safeguard jobs, according to the GMB union.

Kraft to recruit 50+ food manufacturing apprentices

21-May-2012 - Kraft has pledged to recruit 54 food manufacturing apprentices this year with more to follow next year.

Zed Candy to move Oatfield confectionery to UK

09-May-2012 - Irish retro confectionery maker Zed Candy is to close its Letterkenny facility in County Donegal and transfer production of its Oatfield Sweets brand to Kettering in Northamptonshire.

Cane import restrictions threaten TLS Silvertown

04-May-2012 - Tate & Lyle Sugar (TLS) Silvertown refinery could be doomed and lose over 700 jobs because it cannot obtain sufficient raw cane sugar at a price that would make its future viable, claim informed sources.

Feature

Curry Queen

01-May-2012 - Eleven years have passed since I last visited Derby to interview Perween Warsi, the founder and chief executive of ethnic chilled ready meals producer S&A Foods. Much has changed in the world since then, but one thing has remained constant and that's her passion for food.

British bakers rise to baby gender cake opportunity

30-Apr-2012 - Trendy parents-to-be could open a new niche market for British bakers by commissioning cakes for so-called gender reveal parties, held to reveal the sex of their unborn baby to family and friends. 

Retailers 'undermine' kids' healthy eating, says CFC

25-Apr-2012 - Retailers Asda, Morrisons and Iceland have been slammed by the Children’s Food Campaign (CFC) as the worst offenders for allegedly targeting children with junk food and undermining healthy eating.

News in brief

ABF results sweetened by sugar prices

24-Apr-2012 - Soaring sugar prices have boosted results at Associated British Foods, according to city analysts, after the firm announced its half year results for the period ending March 3.

Cadbury in Daily Mail Milk Tray web row

23-Apr-2012 - Milk Tray maker Cadbury has rejected claims reported in the Daily Mail that it has secretly reformulated its Milk Tray chocolates.

Six food and drink firms feature in hot 100 list

16-Apr-2012 - Alcoholic drinks maker Halewood International, egg products producer Noble Foods and sweet maker Tangerine Confectionery are the top three food and drink firms included in a list of 100 British private companies with the fastest growing profits.

Lees Foods management buy-out welcomed by experts

11-Apr-2012 - The £5.6M management buy-out of Scottish confectioner Lees Foods and its plans to restore the business to private ownership has been welcomed by city analysts.

Kraft boss paid £14M after Cadbury savings

05-Apr-2012 - Kraft chief executive Irene Rosenfeld’s pay packet soared by 13.5% to nearly £14M last year after hitting targets relating to the controversial Cadbury takeover.

Lib Dem MP slams Easter egg packaging

29-Mar-2012 - Confectionery manufacturers have come under fire from Liberal Democrat MP Jo Swinson, who accused some firms of being too complacent on the packaging efficiency and recyclability of Easter eggs.

Real Good Food ‘on track’ to double business by 2015

21-Mar-2012 - The Real Good Food Company (RGFC) is “on track” to double its size within three years after posting half year continuing profit before tax up 148% to £5.7M, said Pieter Totté, its executive chairman.

Nestlé Easter egg packaging now 100% recyclable

21-Mar-2012 - Nestlé UK and Ireland has become the first major confectioner to deliver 100% recyclable packaging for its Easter egg range.

Mars given ASA all-clear in Rio Ferdinand Twitter row

07-Mar-2012 - Chocolate manufacturer Mars has been given the all-clear from the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) after the watchdog judged Twitter endorsements from Manchester United footballer Rio Ferdinand and glamour model Kate Price to be “acceptable”.

Confectioners more to do after Nestlé ‘no ads’ claim

02-Mar-2012 - UK confectioners could still do more to make their products healthier following Nestlé’s claim that it has become the first major firm to remove all artificial ingredients from its entire range, according to industry experts.

Kraft opens £17M R&D centre at Bournville

01-Mar-2012 - Kraft Foods has opened its new Global Research and Development (R&D) Centre at Bournville, as part of a £17M investment in the UK.