Horsemeat: learning the lessons of an avoidable crisis
WRBM
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UK and European food industry representatives have urged Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) to vote in favour of the revised nutrition claims list, which aims to make food reformulation easier, during their plenary vote tomorrow (February 2).
The Treasury has pledged to support the growth of UK food and drink manufacturers by creating the conditions in which the sector can thrive.
Two Norfolk firms have been fined a total of £8,000 after a worker’s hand was crushed in a vegetable packing plant.
With a performance co-efficient of 7, IsoCool says its NAX-ID inverter water chiller has the highest energy efficiency ratio in its category.
CFB Boilers' range of Loos horizontal packaged steam boilers all feature a graphic thin film translator display with a touch-sensitive screen for more intuitive operation.
Ishida Europe has launched an enhanced version of its weigher designed for granular products, which can be easily damaged by auger or volumetric cup fillers.
A hand hygiene specialist has designed a new compliance system in a bid to stop foodborne outbreaks.
Tong Peal, kit manufacturer for the vegetable industry, has introduced a new generation crop cleaning system.
Waste solutions firm Greenbank has solved a food company's waste storage problem and preserved a rare breed of water vole at the same time.
Firms may have taken the use of digital photographs for auditing validation too far, experts say.
Cleaning efficiency is under attack. Firms have expanded production schedules, leaving less time for cleaning, while cutting down on water and energy use. This trend has reached a level where firms with older facilities are struggling to maintain standards.
S+S Inspection has expanded its capability with the introduction of the GHF metal detector with three frequency detection, including 600kHz, for enhanced stainless steel detection
Analytical equipment has been developed for detecting arsenic contamination in apple juice. This coincides with recent consumer concern about elevated levels of arsenic found in juices in the US.
Mettler-Toledo's Safeline Profile Select metal detector systems offer sensitive detection for both wet and dry products on food production lines.
Food authenticity crime, where substandard or fake products are sold as premium or regional specialities, is on the rise. According to Genetic ID, sister division of Cert-ID Europe and FoodChain Europe, it is being asked to carry out tests to check authenticity more frequently.
The discovery last November that more than three-quarters of British oysters contained norovirus highlighted an anomaly in the food testing industry.
US food and wine research centre, the Robert Mondavi Research Institute (RMI), is using an automated colony counting system to speed up studies on the growth of bacterial pathogens in food. This work could help prevent a recurrence of last year's large outbreak of E.coli in Europe, which was associated with contaminated salad vegetables.
Food poisoning incidents have the potential to cause serious damage to the most famous brands whether the fault lies in the manufacturing process or elsewhere in the supply chain. Muck tends to stick.
As supermarkets encourage consumers to buy more milk in bags, there are growing opportunities for dairies to compete for this work. And a bagging machine developed for this purpose, now available in the UK, should help dairies to meet supermarket demands.
Premier Foods is introducing a new headstand valve dispensing closure designed for the jams and condiments sector on Hartley's Squeezy Jam.
Tear tape has enabled a New York-based packaging firm to create a tamper-evident yet easy-to-open clamshell food pack for lettuce and bakery products.
To ensure that investment can continue despite budgetary restrictions, Quorn Foods has purchased a reconditioned T400 traysealer from Multivac for its plant at Methwold in Norfolk.
Will you still need me? Will you still feed me? When I'm 64." So sang The Beatles back in 1967. If you're not concerned about how you're going to be fed when you're 64, then good luck to you. But food manufacturers should certainly be thinking about how best to feed the 64-year-old consumer if demographic predictions are anything to go by. Mintel data indicates that the UK's 60 plus category will grow by 13% to reach 11.85M by 2016. That's 18.3% of the population. Age UK projects even further to the year 2083, by which time it says one in three people in the UK will be over 60, with reduced sight and dexterity.
Decoration and shaping technologies for board and paper are creating new opportunities particularly in confectionery, as witnessed by visitors to the recent ProSweets show in Germany.
Cow shuffling may never make it as an Olympic sport, but dozens of British dairy farmers have taken it up recently on behalf of Robert Wiseman Dairies. They've spent months testing their animals and rejigging multiple herds in order to form an elite squad of cows that produce only A2 milk. Never heard of it? According to Wiseman it's already the fastest growing grocery product in Australia and it will be hitting British shelves this summer.
PAL-Cut, which specialises in equipment and consumables for automated palletising systems, is launching a new sheet dispenser designed for continuous operation in industry cold stores.
Starfrost has supplied five spiral freezers to a leading chicken processor in Thailand.
Interfood Technology has added the German company Fessmann to the list of manufacturers for which it distributes in the UK and Ireland.
Russell Finex says its self-cleaning liquid hygiene filter is the highest specification model on the market.
Potato processor Greenvale AP has been given the go-ahead needed to generate energy from wind at its site in March, Cambridgeshire.
Manufacturers are being urged to take advantage of increased government support to increase their exports this year.
Slovenia-based Vitiva has launched its stevia line, under the brand Sweet'nVit, following recent European Commission (EC) approval for its use in food and beverage applications in Europe.
DSM has launched a range of processed yeast extracts to meet the continuing demand for 'natural' ingredients.
Arla Foods is promoting its egg replacement products as a way of easing the impact of Europe-wide animal welfare legislation, which could result in rising egg prices and supply shortages.
Stratum Nutrition has announced that the Taiwanese Food and Drug Administration has recently approved the chitin-glucan fibre from Aspergillus niger, branded Artinia, as a food ingredient that can be used without any restriction.
Pecan Deluxe Candy has added an indulgent double chocolate alternative to its cookie dough range with bittersweet chocolate chips and cocoa powder.
Kaneka Pharma Europe has developed new ways of incorporating its coenzyme Q10 into functional food applications. One of these is an extra virgin olive oil that promises high antioxidative power developed by Costa d'Oro, called Olisana K-Young. Kaneka says olive oil promises huge market potential as a good matrix for optimal Q10 bioavailability.
National Starch Food Innovation/Corn Products International is expanding its clean-label portfolio with pulping agents Novation Indulge 2550 and Novation Indulge 2450. The aim is to enable processors to improve texture in savoury applications and reduce expensive ingredients such as tomato and cheese solids in pasta sauces or fillings.
Fiberstar and Gum Technology have joined forces to develop Hydro-Fi: a line of texturising ingredients that combine the moisture-management qualities of Fiberstar's Citri-Fi with hydrocolloid-based stabiliser blends from Gum Technology.
Professor Judy Buttriss knew very early in her career that nutrition was where her heart lay. But these days, as director general of the British Nutrition Foundation (BNF), it's not just nutrition research that puts demands on her time. She has to juggle the competing duties of running an organisation dedicated to disseminating sound nutritional information to a world awash with uninformed comment and fad diets much of it emanating from self-appointed celebrity 'experts' and tabloids in search of sensationalist headlines.
The Paramount 21 story started for me 10 years ago when I was invited down to its former site in Brixham, Devon (I was working for a Marks & Spencer supplier at the time).
The evergreen Tim Lang, professor of Food Policy at City University London, has never been afraid to rattle cages and elicit strong reactions.
Nestlé's decision to close its Hayes coffee plant by 2014 and transfer production to Tutbury in Derbyshire, follows hot on the heels of news that it planned to close its HQ in Croydon and move to Gatwick by the end of 2012.
Müller's announcement that it had launched an agreed takeover of Britain's "leading" liquid milk supplier Robert Wiseman Dairies was the biggest surprise of the past month.
Premier Foods is stepping up its Power Brand plan after announcing a major TV advertising push as md Michael Clarke continues his plan to stabilise the business after a troubled 2011.
Country of origin labelling (COOL) looks set to cause manufacturers serious headaches and extra cost burdens when the new rules start coming into force in 2014.
David Cameron's promise to run "the greenest government ever" has proved "hollow", according to Melanie Leech, director general of the Food and Drink Federation.
Despite facing huge challenges – from plummeting consumer confidence to food security – delegates at Food Manufacture's 2012 Business Leaders' Summit were more optimistic about the industry's prospects than they were at last year's event in January 2011.
Britain's food manufacturing sector is facing a potential skills crisis, with an ageing workforce and an image problem that is putting young people off choosing food and drink as a career.
More British food and drink firms could find themselves the targets of overseas takeovers this year, with some analysts predicting mergers and acquisition (M&A) activity surpassing the £4.2bn achieved in the UK last year.
The increasing value of pork in the UK has boosted sales at pork specialist Cranswick after the firm posted a strong performance in all categories in its latest financial statement, according to city analysts.
Canned food and soft drinks firm Princes has forged a partnership with its tomato supplier to form a new business in Italy.
The National Skills Academy for Food and Drink (NSA) has appointed Leicester College as its champion of bakery training.
Food and drink products containing nanotechnology ingredients are unlikely to appear on UK supermarket shelves anytime soon, despite research into their use taking place in Asia, the US and Brazil.
The use of lactic acid to reduce microbiological surface contamination on poultry carcases and raw beef has been strongly supported by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) Board in view of its ability to “significantly” reduce the level of pathogens.
Food manufacturers have backed the government’s new plan to boost UK food and drink exports to emerging markets such as India and China, which aims to help towards the drive for 20% industry growth by 2020.
The government’s decision to review the advice issued on vitamin D after research identified large deficiencies among high risk groups has been backed by the British Dietetic Association (BDA).
Demand from UK processors for frozen fish from Norway is expected to grow significantly, fuelled by lower prices and consumers’ preference for frozen product, according to industry experts.
Free sustainability training is being offered online to small-and-medium sized food and drink manufacturers in the UK as part of a European funded project to develop environmental awareness across the EU.
The UK poultry industry in 2012 must tackle legal differences between the UK and other EU countries and soaring feed costs, according to Philip Wilkinson, director of 2 Sisters Food Group.
Ethnic food specialist The Authentic Food Company (TAFC) is expecting its Chinese ready-meal range to almost double in value to £20M, after partnering with chefs from Gordon Ramsay’s favourite Chinese restaurant.
Premier Foods has refused to confirm or deny that Hartley’s Jam will be the next disposal at the firm after Manchester jam maker Duerr’s declared an interest in the business.
Prime Minister David Cameron has received a letter from the British Egg Industry Council (BEIC) urging him to ban imports of illegally-produced battery cage eggs.
A strong performance from its UK carbonates division, lead by “substantial” Pepsi share gain, has boosted revenues at soft drinks manufacturer Britvic for the all-important Christmas period, according to city analysts.
Premier Foods’ £30M Brookes Avana deal with food group 2 Sisters is unlikely to result in complications with the competition authorities, according to city analysts.
Unlikely allies billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates and the Crop Protection Association Society (CPA) have both called for more research into high-tech food production systems, including Genetic Modification techniques, as a way to tackle food poverty.
The Premier Foods botulism case is no closer to being solved, despite the completion of “extensive” research, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) has revealed.
Chilled food processors must remedy overcapacity and meet financial challenges, such as pension deficits, to realise the sector’s potential, according to Geoff Eaton, former chief executive of chilled firm Uniq.
Plugging the gaping skills gap in UK food and drink manufacturing is the subject of a free half-day conference at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham on Monday March 26.
Food manufacturers have reaffirmed their support for the introduction of a Groceries Code Adjudicator following yesterday’s (January 24) Opposition Day debate on rising food prices and poverty.
French pastries, such as brioche and pain au chocolat, are increasingly replacing traditional British baked goods, like English muffins, on the nation’s breakfast plates, according to new research from market research group Mintel.
Multi-million pound investment in the Scottish salmon industry has created more than 400 jobs over the past two years, a leading industry expert will tell a scientific meeting in Dundee this evening (January 24).
Food manufacturers have welcomed the government’s plans to hand local authorities new responsibility for public health, which will see more than £5bn handed out to curb issues such as obesity and binge drinking.
Cake manufacturer Finsbury Foods has reported strong growth in its latest trading update despite weak consumer confidence in the sector, according to city analysts.
Monument Foods expects to open a new Sunderland bakery “within the next few weeks”, its director Tracy Lyons told FoodManufacture.co.uk.
Adams Foods has confirmed the closure of its Wincanton cheese packing plant in Somerset, putting 180 jobs at risk.
A statement on the Premier Foods botulism case is expected in the next eight days, according to the Food Standards Agency (FSA).
2 Sisters Food Group’s chilled food business Brookes Avana, acquired from Premier Foods last year, will be returned to profitability within two years, according to its new owners.
Evidence is emerging that sprouted seeds could present an unacceptable risk to human health unless effective control measures such as irradiation can be used to make them safer.
Food and drink manufacturers need urgently to attract a new generation of fresh talent, Jon Poole, chief executive of the Institute of Food Science and Technology (IFST) told FoodManufacture.co.uk. In this podcast, recorded at Food Manufacture's Business Leaders' Summit in London last week, he explains the way ahead.
The health of UK food and drink manufacturing, government intervention in the industry and the struggling organic sector were just three of the hot topics at Food Manufacture’s Business Leaders' Summit. Here is a flavour, captured in quotes, of the conference that attracted food and drink industry leaders from throughout the UK and beyond.
The UK liquid milk market could be a target for further foreign takeovers following German yogurt maker Müller’s accepted offer for Robert Wiseman dairies earlier this week, analysts have said.
Dairy supplier County Milk Products has secured a £4M investment from the NatWest bank, to support the firm’s continued growth this year.
An unexpected rise in demand from Turkey contributed to rising beef prices in the EU at the end of last year, according to financial services firm Rabobank.
Scotch Beef, recently named as Great Britain’s biggest Scottish food and drink brand, this week received nearly £600,000 to help it boost exports to EU countries.
Food manufacturers have backed new “urgent” measures introduced by the European Parliament aimed at halving food waste by 2025 and improving access to food for EU citizens.
The British government’s apparent eagerness to gold-plate EU regulations can make the difference between profit and loss, delegates heard at Food Manufacture’s Business Leaders’ Summit this week.
Higher sugar prices have lead to “encouraging” growth at Associated British Foods (ABF), according to city analysts, after the firm announced its latest financial results for the period ending January 7.
Nearly all (99%) of British egg producers are now fully compliant with EU legislation banning the use of battery cages, according to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).
The use of innovative flavourings and a consumer drive for healthier food is expected to contribute to major growth in the UK frozen yogurt market, according to industry experts.
Food firms in Scotland are taking further action to tackle the industry's skills shortage by launching a new initiative designed to attract more young people to the sector.
The Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (USDAW) has hit out at Nestlé UK following its decision to restructure its UK coffee factories.
A plastics firm has been fined £160,000 after a worker died when he was crushed between the plates on a machine used to make plastic lids.
Premier Foods has confirmed that it plans to axe up to 600 jobs by 2013 following its latest trading statement for the period ending December 31.
The decision by UK supermarkets to cut shelf-space for less profitable products has hit sales in the organic food market, according to industry representatives.
Nestlé UK today unveiled proposals for a further £200M extension to its Nescafé factory in Tutbury, Derbyshire.
Putting more frozen food on UK dinner plates could help slash household food waste, according to the British Frozen Food Federation (BFFF).
German yogurt manufacturer Müller is seeking to strengthen its position in the UK dairy market, according to city analysts, following the acceptance of a £279.5M bid for dairy giant Robert Wiseman.
Premier Foods boss Michael Clarke has received a resounding vote of confidence from city analysts, six months into his role, as he continues his plan to guide the firm out of trouble.
Canadian firm Maple Leaf has confirmed that it plans to close its West Midlands bakery, after failing to find a buyer for the site, with the loss of 236 jobs.
Manufacturers will be expected to raise their food hygiene game considerably following the introduction of the sixth edition of the British Retail Consortium's (BRC's) global standards audit, which takes effect this month.
Dairy giant Robert Wiseman has confirmed that it is subject to a takeover bid by German firm Müller Dairy following a rise in the firm’s share price.
Confectionery firm Ferrero Group has appointed Pieraldo Oldano as the new md of Ferrero UK & Ireland.
Drink distributor Tradeteam's decision to cut 128 jobs at its Hams Hall, Warwickshire plant has left employees “disgusted”, according to Unite the union.
Leading pork producer Tulip is to close its Tranfoods Abbey Street site in Birkenhead with the loss of 218 jobs.
Eating processed meat, including bacon and sausages, has been linked to a 10% increase in the risk of pancreatic cancer, according to new research from Sweden.
Nestlé is stepping up its efforts to expand in China’s fast-growing dairy market with the construction of a new dairy farming institute in the north eastern city of Shuangcheng.
Recent research linking an increased risk of pancreatic cancer with sausages and other processed and red meats is unlikely to hit sales, according to informed industry insiders.
Food and drink exports from the Republic of Ireland have soared by €1bn or 12% to reach €8.85bn last year, reports the country’s food board, Bord Bia.
Meat packing firm Hilton Food Group will see sales “accelerate” this year after posting full year trading results in line with expectations, according to city analysts.
A disappointing performance from Tesco over the make-or-break Christmas period means that festive trade for the multiples was “worse than expected”, according to city analysts.
Chocolate retailer Thorntons has been accused of putting its staff at risk and fined £20,000, after a worker's finger was dragged into a wrapping machine at its Derbyshire site.
Leading analysts have advised Premier Foods to adopt a strategic approach to disposals and secure a “miraculously” good deal with its lenders, as one confirmed the firm's spreads business is up for sale.
Six key challenges face the food and drink industry in 2012 and beyond, says research organisation Campden BRI.
City analysts have described Sainsbury’s latest financial results as “excellent” with many of its retail rivals posting a sluggish performance for the all-important Christmas period.
Bakery retailer Greggs has performed ahead of analyst’s expectations during the festive season after posting “excellent” results for the period ending January 7.
Bakery firm Warburtons' move to axe 73 jobs at its Oldham site was a “difficult decision that had to be made”, according to the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union (BFAWU).
Burton's Biscuit Company has signed a deal with Canada's largest supermarket firm Loblaw in a move that will boost its total exports by £70M over the next two years.
The EU could lose out as the power in global agricultural production increasingly shifts east, according to a new report from the SAC’s (Scottish Agricultural Centre's) Rural Policy Centre. In the second of our two-part series, we examine the growing dominance of Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC nations).
Global flavour, colour and fragrance firm Sensient is to invest £13M ($20M) in improved UK production facilities.
Retail giant Marks & Spencer (M&S) expects trading conditions in the new year to “remain challenging” despite a rise in food sales over the all-important Christmas period.
Expansion at German dairy giant Müller's Market Drayton factory could result in new 300 jobs, following news that the firm has won full planning permission from Shropshire Council.
Plans to use British foreign embassies to promote UK food and drink overseas have been welcomed by food manufacturers after new figures showed exports for the sector were rising.
More help for small- to medium-sized enterprises, greater efforts to cut waste and the need to source local food all feature in our latest crop of New Year’s resolutions made by leading industry figures on behalf of the UK food and drink industry.
The balance of power in global food production is shifting away from national governments to multi-national firms and from western economies to emerging nations, warns a new report from SAC’s Rural Policy Centre. In the first of a two-part series, we focus on the growing power of trans-national corporations (TNCs).
An Evesham horticultural firm has been fined £12,000 and ordered to pay £6,835 costs after a worker suffered serious head injuries and fractured his hand when he fell through a glasshouse roof.
Intense competition in the UK retail sector and a strong performance from Asda has hit sales at grocery giant Morrisons, according to city analysts.
Only a last minute change-of-heart from consumer giant Unilever will prevent hundreds of its workers hitting the streets of London tomorrow to demonstrate over changes to their pensions.
General Mills has expanded its worldwide open innovation programme with the launch of new technologies to allow it to collaborate with external organisations that can help it to market its product range online.
Food and drink manufacturers should stengthen partnerhships throughout the supply chain, the chair of the Oxford Farming Conference told FoodManufacture.co.uk.
After years of speculation, confectionery giant Nestlé has finally confirmed its intention to move its UK head quarters from Croydon, south London to a site near Gatwick airport by the end of this year.
Soft drinks supplier Nichols reported sales up 18% in 2011 compared with 2010, adding that its brands, which include Vimto, had outperformed UK soft drinks as a whole.
Celebrity endorsements by TV chefs such as Jamie Oliver plus consumers’ perception of high-value and low-waste helped the UK frozen food sector grow by 5.2% to reach sales of £5.36bn last year, according to the British Frozen Foods Federation (BFFF).
British embassies in emerging nations are to be enlisted in the battle to safeguard UK food and drink export markets and to win new ones.
Rocketing utility and stock holding costs have forced Heinz to take the radical step of temporarily halting production at its Kitt Green site in Wigan for four days this Easter.
The government must adopt a more unified policy framework to improve the health of the nation and curb the growth in obesity, food policy experts have urged.
Food and drink manufacturers are predicting that the London 2012 Olympics will give the industry a big boost – provided effective plans are put in place.
Manufacturers must review any health claims they make – on TV, in products, print advertising, and online – over the coming eight months or risk falling foul of new EU legislation, experts have warned.
Consumers’ confusion over how to lose weight is a big opportunity for diet manufacturers, says research group Mintel.
Workers infected with norovirus could put firms at risk of poisoning consumers through contaminated products, experts have warned.
“Bitterly disappointing", is how Labour MP for Easington, Grahame Morris summed up his reaction to the news that Young’s Seafood is to axe 550 jobs at Cumbrian Seafoods.
‘Naturality’, energy and muscle, bone and joint health will be among the top 10 food, nutrition and health trends for 2012, according to a report just published by New Nutrition Business.
Confectionery giant Nestlé has confirmed that a new chocolate bar, designed by a talented youngster as part of a Jim’ll Fix It Christmas special, could hit UK stores this year.
The British Soft Drinks Association (BSDA) has rejected the Children’s Food Campaign’s (CFC) decision to include it in a report of firms that allegedly made the “dodgiest” junk food claims of 2011.
Scottish food group Baxters’ acquisition of the Fray Bentos brand from Princes has received approval from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT).
Hot and spicy food could soon replace the traditional British fry-up on the nation’s breakfast menu due to increasing multiculturalism in the UK, according to a report from cereal giant Kellogg’s.
Have you made any New Year’s resolutions yet? Perhaps you have broken a few already? We asked key industry figures and opinion-formers to make three resolutions on behalf of UK food and drink manufacturing.
British egg producers are to mount a legal challenge to the government’s failure to ban imports of illegally-produced battery cage eggs and egg products.
The policing of food industry employment standards could suffer if the Gangmasters Licensing Authority's (GLA's) remit widens while its budget is cut, as is feared.
Eclipse Magnetics, a maker of food processing contaminant separation and detection systems, has extended its product line with the launch of the Artemis range of metal detectors.
Membrane filtration for the treatment of effluent can bring significant cost savings, according to Axium Process.
A custom-made, carbon infra-red oven from Heraeus Noblelight has boosted the efficiency of Premier Foods' Loyd Grossman cooking sauce production line by 10%..
Poultry, chilled, frozen and bakery products supplier 2 Sisters Food Group has installed a Microsoft Dynamics navigation-based LINKFresh supply chain business management system from Anglia Business Solutions.
Compressed air products and pneumatic process systems specialist, Thorite has refined the selection of sterilisation filter systems that it supplies to the food and drink process and packaging industries.
ABB can now offer a complete range of high-efficiency motors for explosive atmospheres since the launch of its IE2 motors in frame sizes 80 to 132.
To improve bacon slicing capacity, Weber has launched twin log slicing of bacon primals on its 904 machine, which is supplied by Interfood Technology.
Marel's new advanced variable angle slicer – Marel I-Slice 1068VA – automatically slices flat muscle – such as flank, skirt and other cuts – which have traditionally been sliced by hand.
Elsewhere businesses are feeling the chill, but frozen food firms are keeping their cool, says Michelle Knott
Food factories can be dangerous places. John Dunn looks at ways to make them safer
Refurbishment projects that take place while food production continues could avoid delays and escalating costs through better communication, according to Todd Hallam, health and safety manager for Chalcroft Construction.
Momentum is growing for greater capital investment by small and medium-sized food and drink manufacturers (SMEs) to improve their productivity. This is despite the harsh economic environment facing the sector and problems reported by some SMEs in obtaining finance from the banks.
The limited reduction in supply chain product and packaging waste in the latest phase of the Courtauld Commitment is due to its relative recent introduction as a target, said the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP).
Food packaging will need to adapt to major changes in demographics, social trends and the supply chain in the future. Just what this could mean for the industry emerged in a recent series of seminars.
Top sealing technology specialist G Mondini-Ulma has introduced a tray skin system for use with its Evo and Trave range of machines with the aim of revolutionising the sealing of meat, poultry, fish and ready meals.
A time/temperature monitoring and management system for perishable foods launched originally in the US is now being made available in Europe.
Packaging Automation (PA) has revealed that the next evolution of its Eclipse range of high-speed tray heat sealing machines will be the first in the UK to operate entirely without any compressed air.
At the ProSweets exhibition in Cologne later this month, Gerhard Schubert will demonstrate a picker line for chocolate bears, cookies, candies and much more.
Foil tray manufacturer Nicholl Food Packaging is one of the firm's behind Alupro's (the Aluminium Packaging Recycling Organisation's) recycling and awareness-building programme. This has enabled foil to qualify for the Widely Recycled at Recycling Points (WRRP) labelling in the British Retail Consortium's On-Pack Recycling Label scheme.
BD Foods, in St Leonards-on-Sea in Sussex, purchased a Thermocode 107M thermal transfer printer from Open Date Equipment to print data onto pouches of chutneys, sauces, dressings and soups, which it supplies to foodservice.
Pioneering technology is claimed to lie behind a machine designed to remove labels from most sizes of jars, bottles or plastic bottles.
Veal processor Ekro, part of the VanDrie Group, has installed a faster and more flexible printing and identification labelling system to meet increasingly stringent industry regulations, expansion and increasing customer demand.
The European Commission has granted Kaneka's liquorice extract novel food status.
Danish bioscience company Chr Hansen has entered into a five-year partnership with Japanese biotechnology firm Amino Up Chemical Co. The agreement is part of a bid to develop dietary supplements and use the firms' nutritional ingredient portfolios to explore opportunities within functional foods.
DSM has launched a range of savoury flavour ingredients called Maxavor YE All Natural. Globally certified as natural, the portfolio has a 'yeast extract' label declaration, and is the first of its kind to adapt to changing global flavour regulations relating to the term 'natural'.
Vegetable protein texturising specialist Sotexpro and starch manufacturer Roquette have teamed up to offer new prospects for meat substitution using a pea-based texturiser.
BHJ says its new high-functional, 95% beef protein powder can help beef processors cut costs.
Enzyme manufacturer Biocatalysts has broadened its dairy enzyme range with the addition of four new microbial enzymes for use in enzyme-modified cheeses (EMCs).
Solae has developed a new protein and fibre nugget, Supro 138, and a new soya protein isolate, Supro 430, for use in nutrition and snack bars.
AB Enzymes has launched the most recent addition to its Veron baking enzyme range: a monoglyceride replacer called Veron GMS+.
Does stevia have the wings to get the sugar-free/ tooth-friendly confectionery market off the ground? Lynda Searby reports
The first commercial products made using Crisp Sensation's coating technology will hit shelves in mid-2012, according to Axel Graefe, sales and marketing director, Europe, for the company.
Innophos is investing in global manufacturing to boost efficiency and production as it continues to launch new phosphate-based ingredients for the food industry.
The food and drink supply chain is gearing up to ensure consumers are kept fed and watered during the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Huw Griffiths tells Rod Addy how he took Besmoke from farmers' market to supermarket
Shadow minister for public health Diane Abbott is no friend of the food industry or the coalition government's health policy. Reports Rick Pendrous
Greencore has reported healthy results as it confirmed that takeover talks with a “mystery suitor” were now at an end. It has also announced it is seeking inclusion in the FTSE UK Index Series.
Manufacturers will to have to wait for the findings of the International Life Science Institute's (ILSI's) Food Allergy Task Force on allergens to be published before they will know whether 'action levels' for their operations are possible, claims the Food Standards Agency (FSA).
Shadow minister for public health Diane Abbott has called for tougher local planning controls to restrict the proliferation of fast food outlets in poor inner city areas. She says the outlets are feeding the obesity epidemic afflicting the nation.
With the new year upon us, I can't remember a time when there was so much uncertainty in the world economy, business as a whole and the food trade in particular.
The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) has announced plans to grow the food and drink manufacturing sector by 20% by 2020.
Hartpury College will launch a part-time higher level study skills programme for food industry staff at Foodex 2012, at the NEC in Birmingham from March 25-27.
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