To be successful, any improvement programme needs not only a vision, but also progress and goal indicators. Therefore, establishing the right measures and metrics is critical in providing the structure and framework that will hold the whole of the programme together.

"Run, run as fast as you can ... " We all know how the rest goes, but unfortunately for the industry, it seems young people aren't running as fast as they can into a career in food and drink, which is where Dunkan the gingerbread man comes in.

It's an age-old problem but one that manufacturers still face today - how to train your staff without causing major disruption to your business; not to mention making sure the training is worthwhile.

The functional foods dossier: building solid health claims (second edition) shows companies how to prepare the scientific dossier for health claims on European functional foods.

In a bid to help manufacturers gain a better understanding of functional food, experts from various fields representing five continents have compiled Functional foods and nutraceuticals.

The Institute of Food Science & Technology (IFST) will publish the fifth edition of Good manufacturing practice: a guide to its responsible management in early 2007.

Tesco retail and logistics director David Potts is certainly a fan of Retailing logistics and fresh food industry. "I see no end to the development of practical and innovative solutions to continually improve our performance and this book on fresh packaging is a contribution to that process," he says.

Weighing equipment and product inspection specialist Mettler-Toledo has supplied Northern Food subsidiary Park Cakes of Oldham with a range of precision weighing and inspection equipment to replace ageing equipment at the bakery.

The Bradman Lake Group has launched a combined infeed and form, fill and seal flowrapper that enables large volume confectionery manufacturers to pack bar products in continuous operations at speeds of up to 1,000 packs per minute.

Refrigeration specialist Starfrost has developed a way of using carbon dioxide to freeze seafood products that previously could only be frozen using liquid nitrogen.

Sewtec Automation has increased the throughput of one of Britain's favourite snacks. It has installed a top-loading robot on the Mini Jaffa Cakes production line at United Biscuit's McVitie's factory in Manchester.

A low-cost label print-and-apply system has been unveiled by Weyfringe. Designed to complement its high volume labelling system range, the DB2 is aimed at users who need to automatically label up to a few thousand products a day.

Addition of alternating current (AC) technology is key to the increased productivity of the latest platform pallet range from Mitsubishi Forklift Trucks.

Over the years the relationship between Sandiacre Packaging Machinery and Tryton Foods has shown that close co-operation and understanding can result in reduced labour costs, easier service and spares management. Sandiacre's latest addition to Tryton's machinery consists of three TG320-LD bagmakers to bag Aunt Bessie's Yorkshire Puddings in two sizes.

Could a robot pick up a poppadum without breaking it? Could it pick up four in succession and put them down together? Could it do this at 100 picks a minute, 24 hours a day, seven days a week?

US-based Wright Pump has introduced its TRA500 series of sanitary centrifugal pumps for beverages, dairy, confectionery and oils.

Netzsch Pumps' range of progressing cavity pumps has been designed with the co-operation of EHEDG, the European Hygienic Equipment Design Group for the hygienic design of food processing equipment.

Blackmer Pumps has developed a pump that goes easy on chocolate. The new Mouvex pump uses an oscillating eccentric piston to produce the pumping performance of a rotary positive-displacement pump.

The latest addition to Castell Iso-lok's range of ball valve lockouts has been designed for use with ball valves of up to 1 inch (25mm) diameter, ensuring the highest possible standard of personnel safety during maintenance shut-downs. The lockout allows ball valves to be locked in either an open or closed position.

Saving energy in 2006 is a no-brainer. Even if you're not the tree-hugging type, the barrage of dire climate change warnings is enough to penetrate all but the thickest of skins.

Union Food Machinery and Equipment has launched a high-speed sausage cutter. The WT05 cutter can process 1.85m of sausage per second, in any casing, and has the capacity for up to 1,800 cuts per minute.

Meat supplier, Chitty Food Group, has secured a contract to supply 28 pre-packed British beef, pork and lamb lines into Nisa-Today's, the independent buying consortium.

Genetic indicators of beef tenderness are being used to help milk producers add value to their calf production.

Interfood Technology, the distributor of US-based Weber slicers, now offers five models from the Weber range. These start with the entry level 302 designed for those food manufacturers producing average-volume sliced products, through to latest addition, the top of the range 904.

The arguments for adopting automated and robotic processes in the meat industry are well-rehearsed and compelling: lower labour costs, improved efficiency, and a better quality product. But while companies from Sydney to Stockholm bought into the R2-D2 revolution as far back as the 1990s, UK firms have, by and large, stuck resolutely to traditional working practices ... and, thanks to a paucity of investment, fallen further behind the competition.

With more than 1M hectares of crop surface free from pesticides and fertilisers, Italy is the most organic country in Europe, and fourth in the world. But it seems that the Italians, who already enjoy what is generally accepted as one of the healthiest diets in Europe, aren't willing to fork out the extra money for an organic product. A recent survey found that the number of consumers unwilling to pay higher prices for organic products rose 13% in three years. Instead, Italy's main export markets include the UK and Germany, which absorb around 30% of its organic output.

The glittering Food Manufacture Excellence Awards ceremony was a roaring success as leading food processors from all over the UK gathered to celebrate their outstanding achievements.

Tony Wadley, md, The Chocolate Factory (Michton)

I should by now have finished a job that required a client manager to work with me to install a cost-to-serve process that produces true customer and channel account profitability every month.

As road pricing rises up the government's agenda, the food and drink sector - a major contributor to atmospheric pollution and congestion on our roads - is being forced to look at novel ways of raising its supply chain efficiency even further.

Major users of plastic pots and tubs, including Unilever, are considering moving away from high-quality, in-mould labelling as new technology improves the results achievable with traditional direct print.

After 12 months of rising energy and materials costs, packaging manufacturers are planning double-digit price increases, with aluminium food and beverage cans leading the field.

A new Scandinavian vending system, where chilled and frozen food can be microwaved to order, is using the resilience and insulating qualities of fibre to package its ready meals.

This dish fits well with Iglu's ethos of using local, wild, seasonal and organic produce. I chose it because the sauce, flavoured by Arbroath Smokies (smoked haddock) and a decent mirepoix (selection of vegetables) supplements the crab omelette flavour in a near perfect way. It is also full of nutrients, zinc, calcium and omega-3 to name but a few.

The food industry faces the problems of an explosion in the global population like no other. The challenge in the future will be to operate supply chains in the most efficient ways possible with minimal impact on the environment.

Environment secretary David Miliband's desire to crank up the pressure on businesses to find alternatives to landfill will provide a spur to new green composting and biomass waste disposal technologies. Landfill costs are currently rising each year by £3/t, but are set to accelerate.

Hello from Boston!

Ingredient developer Lycored has launched a line of oily blends using fatty acid premixes designed for infant formulae. Manufactured at the firm's new lipid formulation facility in Kent, the oily blends will use a custom-made composition of long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids and other oily soluble ingredients.

Rosemary may replace manmade antioxidants in meat manufacture in order for products to maintain a clean label, claim scientists.

Environment secretary David Miliband (pictured centre) has officially opened a new rice mill at West Midlands-based Indian food specialist East End Foods.

An 'Ethnic and cultural foods' section is being launched at next year's international food and drink trade event, IFE 2007, which takes place at the Excel exhibition centre in London from March 18 to 21.

Patak's Foodsolutions builds on Patak's expertise as one of the UK's leading authentic Indian food companies, offering food processors, distributors and end-users inspirational ideas and solutions for new meal concepts.

Traditional British dishes are making a comeback with consumers dining out, according to The Authentic Food Company.

Cadbury Schweppes has launched an attack on the UK's Wrigley-dominated gum market with several new products under its Trident brand.

I remember my days at United Biscuits; one of our core values was 'stretch' - an 'attribute to inspire others' by showing the amount you can stretch your role and responsibility. Or, in the majority of cases, be stretched by your role and those with responsibility!

Start-up firm Natural Beverage Company is making its mark on the beverage sector with the launch of the UK's first Fairtrade smoothie range.

One trend that certainly seems to be catching on is celebrity chef-endorsement.

Yorkshire-based ingredients firm Pecan Deluxe Candy (Europe), has been picking up a few tips from its US parent company.

Bite-sized coated desserts are the way forward, according to coatings firm Witwood Food Products.

Salt has been an essential ingredient in meat products for years, but pressure to meet the Food Standards Agency targets mean that manufacturers must work hard to reduce levels.

It's birthday time for sandwich lovers. This year marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the first pre-packed sandwich, which was first sold by Marks & Spencer in 1981. Since then the commercial sandwich market has grown to exceed the entire UK frozen food industry.

Now that the EU regulation on nutrition and health claims has been adopted, the industry is busily marshalling evidence to back up bids for inclusion in the UK list of permitted claims.

The food sector skills council Improve has secured £500,000 for training that helps women move up the career ladder.

A new shift pattern along with rationalisation of the product range and job cuts will help the troubled Minsterley desserts factory move back into the black in 2007, promised the owner Uniq.

Hardly a day seems to go by at the moment without some 'new' superfood being promoted to the consumer. Everyone seems to have their own list of what qualifies. On Tesco's website it is salmon, beans, tea, yoghurt, broccoli, blueberries, turkey, oranges, pumpkin, tomatoes, oats, spinach, soy, and walnuts; while a recent article in The Daily Mail dropped all but the first four of these in favour of apple, olive oil, wholegrain seeded bread, bananas and Brazil nuts. Quite a variation.

With the seafood we currently eat expected to run out in 2048, many processors are branching out into new species.

Food Manufacture editor Rick Pendrous has been given the Society of Food Hygiene and Technology's (SOFHT) Most Significant Contribution award for highlighting food safety issues.

Food manufacturers should "stop making unsubstantiated claims about the benefits of omega-3s for children's learning and cognitive abilities" until more research is conducted, according to an expert in nutrition and mental health.

There can't be many people that haven't either seen or heard about the British Heart Foundation's (BHF's) latest ad campaign featuring a young girl drinking from a bottle of cooking oil with the caption: 'What goes into crisps goes into you.'

Staff at Quest International's flavours facility in the Wirral were waiting to find out what new owner Givaudan had in store for the business as Food Manufacture went to press.

Unilever has rejected suggestions that it is reducing its commitment to research and development (R&D) after a decision to slash more than 20% of its research jobs in Europe.

The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) is being called on to investigate a proposed new type of food science degree which met the needs of both students and manufacturers.

Despite widespread recognition that the red meat industry needs to boost skills urgently, a new management course hangs in the balance because companies are reluctant to release production line leaders for training.

They're an erratic bunch, consumers. They also have a nasty habit of saying one thing and doing another. But when it comes to omega-3s, they are surprisingly consistent.

Food manufacturers are failing to capitalise on interest in traditional British grub from the growing expat market, according to a report from Food from Britain (FfB).

Manufacturers using front-of-pack guideline daily amounts (GDAs) are likely to escape having to run detailed nutritional labelling alongside.

More branded manufacturers are likely to follow the lead set by Heinz, Northern Foods and Unilever in signing up to a plan to cut packaging and food waste.

Collaborative distribution could cut food miles in the highlands by more than 3.6M a year, supply chain directors predicted.

When the likes of Tesco and Asda catch on to something, you know it's likely to be big news, and right now Halal food is a hot contender for shelf-space. A multitude of products are appearing in supermarket aisles, and larger manufacturers are starting to catch on. But the big question is: have they done their homework?

The UK's largest food and drink trade show ? Food and Drink World 2006 in March ? attracted more than 70,000 visits, according to ABC audits. The event comprised Food & Drink Expo, Foodex Meatex, the convenience Retailing Show and IFFE and was run by Food Manufacture's parent William Reed. The next Food and Drink World is on April 6-8 2008.

Ice cream maker Hill Station has five months to resolve its financial difficulties or be expelled from the Alternative Investment Market. Shares in the firm, which said it was in "advanced" talks to secure vital funding, were suspended on November 7 "pending clarification of its financial condition". Existing backers would not provide more overdraft and asset finance facilities, said md Charles Hall.

Currency exchange movements are likely to knock £2M off the profit of the world's largest sausage skin maker Devro this year, it said. The main problem was the strengthening of the Czech crown, which affects Devro's Czech business Cutisin. In the first half of 2006 sales were 1% higher year-on-year at £75.2M but pre-tax profit fell to £7.1M from £15.9M.

Cherryridge turkey firm near Cromer has cut 65 processing jobs, partly blaming cheap imports from Italy, Germany and Poland. This year, it dropped its weekly throughput from 15,000 birds to 10,000. About 15 turkey rearers will be kept on to grow free-range organic birds for Bernard Matthews.

Turnover of the mainly meats business Cranswick increased in the six months to the end of September by 14% year-on-year to £247.8M and pre-tax profit by 13% to £15.5M. Cranswick has bought the pre-packed cooked meats producer Delico, of Milton Keynes, for £17.9M. It already had cooked meats factories in Barnsley, Elland, Hull and Deeside.

A decision on whether to prosecute Cadbury for breaching food safety laws in relation to salmonella contamination of its chocolate products earlier this year could be months away.

Finsbury Foods was confident of finding a manufacturer to supply yum yums on its behalf by mid-December following the October fire at its United Central Bakeries.

The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) has appointed Callton Young to the new post of director of sustainability and competitiveness on a two-year secondment from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).

An artificial stomach, which sheds new light on the "black box" of human digestion and is so realistic it even throws up, has been developed at the Norwich Institute of Food Research.

Confectioners Leaf UK and Haribo were the latest firms to call a voluntary halt to TV and radio commercials aimed at children, as the regulator Ofcom began a consultation on extending its proposed ban on advertising food high in salt, fat and sugar from the under-nines to under-16s.

The food industry should not have to pay for the privilege of dealing with the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which it may be increasingly obliged to do by law, manufacturers insisted.

Golden Crumb Produce, which makes frozen breaded vegetable and cheese appetisers for caterers, has rebranded itself Innovate Foods as part of an expansion programme, which includes new products, the appointment of David Nash as commercial manager and the opening of a new on-site centre of excellence.

In Food Manufacture's recent online poll asking views on whether most food manufacturers would be able to comply with the new age discrimination laws, 46% of respondents said yes, 40% no and 14% did not know. To take part in the latest online poll, on the possible Ofcom ban on broadcasting commercials aimed at children, go to http://www.foodmanufacture.co.uk.

Product authenticity will fall under the spotlight in London on February 6 next year when the Food Standards Agency runs the Supporting Food Standards Enforcement seminar - primarily aimed at food law enforcers but open to other interested parties - on the methods for finding out if food is what that label says it is.

Lebanese dairy processor Milky's, which makes own-label Halloum cheese and natural yoghurt for independent retailers and restaurants, has restarted production after being forced to withdraw products made in unapproved new premises in Park Royal, London. Inspectors from the Ealing local authority have now approved the Milky's premises.

Up to 70 jobs will go at Glaxo-SmithKline's Horlicks factory in Slough when the firm outsources carton and bottle production at the end of 2007. "The equipment isn't up to speed with market demand," it said. "Horlicks needs to change its packaging and to install new machinery would be very expensive and require substantial capital." It aimed to relocate some workers to its Maidenhead site.

The relationships between congestion and environmental issues and between increased food transport efficiency and environmental and social benefits are up for comment in a discussion document to be issued early this month by the Food Ethics Council.

Problems of internal corrosion, erosion, cracking or fouling of inaccessible food and drink process pipework could be identified quickly if the development of a detector that uses guided ultrasonic wave technology taken from the oil industry proves successful.

Arla has been forced to allow for an exceptional charge in its accounts of £7.2M, related to a dispute over raw milk supplies.

Product recalls are set to rise because of greater media and regulatory attention, according to the leading risk and insurance broking firm Marsh.

A start-up firm on a mission to develop the world's first non-stick chewing gum has struck a deal with bleaching systems maker Warwick International that will create 50 research and development jobs in Wales over the next three years.

Government policies will lead to the death of the UK fish processing sector and the loss of all 9,000 jobs to overseas factories, the Scottish Seafood Processors Federation (SSPF) has warned.

Be it face-to-face or over the phone, it's no secret that people love to talk. But, when it comes to testing new products, talking is the one area where consumers fall down.