There are many factors that impact on a sensory panel’s performance. Campden & Chorleywood Food Research Association (CCFRA) has issued two guidelines for sensory panel monitoring and motivation.

Furrowed brows, frenzied scribbling and impassioned speeches were commonplace at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural affairs' (DEFRA) Innovation Centre in Reading last month, as food and drink industry representatives brainstormed their way through a recruitment crisis.

The British Frozen Food Federation (BFFF) has published a booklet to provide information on the benefits of frozen food.

More than a third of all industrial accidents every year are caused by mishandling loads, according to Toyota Material Handling.

The Society of Dairy Technology has worked with Blackwell Publishing on a series of technical dairy-related handbooks.

Maintenance lubricants firm Rocol is opening the doors of its Leeds headquarters and manufacturing plant to engineers and production managers in the food and drink industry.

StePac has launched a web-based real-time system to monitor food freshness and quality of produce in the supply cold chain.

A twin-screw cooker-extruder has been added to the Baker Perkins range of expandable lines for snack and cereal manufacturing. The SBX Master is a solid-barrel extruder offering process flexibility through a modular barrel design and a high torque motor and gearbox combination.

Double D Food Engineering has developed a customised browning unit designed to produce authentic high colour generation simultaneously on all sides of the product being treated, and without the need for coatings or additives.

The EBI 11 miniature temperature data logger from Ebro Electronic in Germany is designed to monitor temperatures of up to 150°C in severely restricted spaces.

Two upgraded washrooms used by Premier Foods production staff at its Batchelors Cup a Soup plant in Ashford, Kent, have Rada Sense digital water control technology at the heart of the 'no-touch' washing facilities.

Cadbury has placed a £1.2M order with CKF Systems for an automated robot palletising system for its Sheffield factory. The system being installed will convey cases from eight production lines, running at up to 22 cases per minute, through to three robot cells and a pallet handling system that includes pallet dispensing and a high speed stretch wrapper.

The Bulk-X-Change bulk materials heat exchanger from Coperion Waeschle in Germany can now be integrated into pneumatic conveying systems. This improves heat transfer, allowing the combination of conveying and heat exchange within one system.

Conveyor Systems Limited (CSL) has designed, manufactured, and installed a pizza handling system for a leading producer and distributor of fresh chilled foods. The system will transfer individual or stacked film-wrapped pizza bases between high and low-care food quality areas.

Prepared fresh fruit and vegetables supplier Crewmint has invested in end-of-line metal detection equipment from S+S Inspection.

It may not be the sexiest food ingredient on the block, but fibre has a lot going for it. Not only does it perform some nifty technical functions as a fat replacer and texturiser, it is also claimed to have some pretty impressive health benefits as well. Effects vary according to the fibre in question, but fibre is variously claimed to decrease intestinal transit times, increase stool bulk, reduce 'bad' cholesterol, stimulate the growth of 'good' gut bacteria and even keep the hunger pangs at bay, among other things.

Kingspan Controlled Environments has moved to new facilities in Sherburn, North Yorkshire, to allow it to manufacture an improved insulation panel for temperature-controlled and hygiene-safe building applications.

Union Industries, manufacturer of the Matadoor range of Hi-speed roller doors, has helped a distribution centre rise from the ashes of a devastating blaze.

Sustainability is sexy. Self-sufficiency, being eco-friendly or going 'green' is as in vogue in relation to plant design as it is when it comes to food miles and packaging. But if you thought it was just about installing wind turbines and solar panels, think again. There are more routes to sustainability than there are varieties of confectionery in a tuck shop.

Breaking news as Food Manufacture went to press that Hill Station's finance director had quit and its shares had been suspended is the latest serious blow to the UK's third largest ice cream manufacturer.

It's all systems go at Mars' snackfoods division now that the firm has announced plans to reduce packaging by 10% by 2010. "Across Europe we're looking at a 10,000t reduction," says, packaging development director Amanda Davies. "We launched the initiative six months ago and we have task groups in each country scouring internal associates and suppliers to find potential opportunities. We're about 60-70% through the identification process, though we've still got a way to go on the implementation."

While the world's leading confectioners have had their fair share of bad press over the years, Cadbury would probably nudge just ahead of the competition in the public relations disasters Hall of Fame going by its record over the last two years.

Bob Cork, head cider maker, Gaymer Cider Company

If you had asked me a few years ago which function would be the last to embrace supply chain thinking, I'd have got it wrong.

TDG's Temperature Controlled Services division is introducing a delivery service for its customers and has initially commissioned one 18t rigid and three 44t articulated lorries.

Spar UK suppliers are set to benefit from substantial savings and sales uplifts thanks to the launch of a major distribution programme: the National Consolidation Scheme.

Tradition as well as convenience is still big business when it comes to cheese, as demonstrated by two new arrivals in the chill cabinet.

A perforated foil stick-pack will take the humble tea bag into new, premium markets, claims machinery system supplier Sigpack Systems. No doubt the 'tpod' name will help.

Aseptic cartons for processed foods have, over the past year, created a niche for themselves in Europe, but only as a relatively minor part of the packaging mix, and for only a handful of companies.

Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) has adopted a change management process that aims to minimise downtime on equipment at its plant in Wakefield.

Wales-based ready meals firm The Authentic Curry Company at Hirwaun in Aberdare, has invested in new production equipment and infrastructure to fund its rapid expansion following its new business win of supplying 16 product lines to Tesco restaurants. The investment involved a six-figure funding package from The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Lombard, part of the RBS group, including a grant from the Welsh Assembly.

Researchers from Exeter University are developing a novel production technology called additive layer manufacturing (ALM). The goal is to widen the application of this rapid prototyping technique beyond its existing applications in aerospace, Formula 1 racing cars and medicine, and make the production of personalised chocolates cheaper.

Back in May 2007 the European Commission published a Recommendation (2007/331/EC) on the monitoring of acrylamide levels in food. This directed Member States to sample certain foodstuffs from their home markets to check levels of acrylamide. Sampling programmes are to run for three years and the UK sampling results for 2007 were recently published by the Food Standards Agency (FSA).

Scientists at the universities of Leeds, Manchester and Bradford are about to embark on a ground-breaking study exploring whether green tea polyphenols - taken orally rather than topically via creams - can protect skin against ultraviolet damage and ageing.

National Starch Food Innovation is set to launch a new texturising solution to improve the crispiness and texture of wafers. The approach allows manufacturers to manage levels and types of crispiness in a wide range of wafer-style biscuits and snacks.

In the quest to design new products we are concerned with sensory evaluations based on taste. But what is taste? As product developers we are acutely aware that taste is not a one-dimensional entity based on flavour attributes alone - it is a complex subject. A simple definition is that taste is a combination of both flavour and aroma. Yet how many know that more than 80% of what we 'taste' is from aroma alone or that the average human has the ability to detect as many as 10,000 different odours?

Ingredients firm, Macphie, has unveiled a Ginger Sensation cake mix to add to its range. It contains no artificial colours, flavours, preservatives or hydrogenated fats.

Dairy Crest has launched a new variant into its Cathedral City Vintage 20 range.

As well as putting the finishing touches to its Halloween range, Greggs is already thinking about new product development (NPD) for next year.

Snowbird foods has launched a reduced fat, low-salt, high-fibre range of sausages in response to rising demand for healthier products. Its dextrose and gluten-free Gourmet Plus sausages are frozen and fully cooked. They have a minimum meat content of 85%.

Southover Foods Company is in the process of tweaking its cooked meat recipes to produce a low salt ham.

Whether regulations should be amended to allow you to call soya drink 'soya milk' on food labels has reached the European agenda once again. The European dairy industry says that the word 'milk' shouldn't be permitted for vegetable 'milks'.

Food manufacturers have welcomed proposals to revise controversial biofuels targets to take into account their impact on food prices and the environment.

Tate & Lyle aims to fight on in its patent infringement case against rival sucralose suppliers, despite an unfavourable initial ruling from the International Trade Commission (ITC).

The future direction of the own-label cake market partly "depends on whether Tesco & Co want to become the next Lidl", according to the new boss of Finsbury Food Group.

Primary meat processors want a review of increased government charges planned for 2009/10 in the light of unavoidable cost increases from rising minimum inspection charges.

Intensive livestock farming is needed to stem runaway global growth in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from increased international meat consumption, a leading United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) specialist has argued.

Adding odourants to foods can fool your taste buds into thinking foods are sweeter and saltier than they really are, opening up new possibilities for manufacturers trying to reformulate products, according to scientists at Dutch research organisation Nizo.

EU proposals to restrict pesticide use could devastate the UK meat and dairy industry, warns a report from Cranfield University School of Management.

A technological breakthrough could help manufacturers block the unpleasant, bitter, 'beany' taste that sometimes comes with soya-based foods.

A single quality mark could replace various schemes on food packs if a consultation among Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) levy payers gets a positive response.

A food industry skills strategy must address the wildly differing picture in different UK regions, delegates at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' Innovation Centre in Reading heard.

Sales of yoghurts, desserts and milk drinks are worth £3bn and growing by 6.6% per year, according to Food Manufacture's latest market report, compiled by RTS Resource.

A real-time online monitoring system at Greencore's cakes and desserts factory in Hull has delivered a step-change in factory efficiency by shifting responsibility for performance management from senior executives to the shopfloor.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) can progress its Global Standards Database thanks to a deal with software and risk management solutions firm Connected Sources. The agreement enables the BRC to establish an IT management system for the database, allowing retailers to check details on Global Standards Certification in areas including food safety for more than 13,000 suppliers' premises.

Supermarkets have witnessed solid sales growth during September, despite falling sales overall on the high street, according to the latest Distributive Trades Survey from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI).

The national minimum wage will rise 3.8% from £5.52 to £5.73/h on October 1. For 18 to 21-year-olds the rate will rise from £4.60 to £4.77, while the rate for 16 to 17-year-olds will rise from £3.40 to £3.53.

Frozen food value sales grew 5% to more than £4.8bn in the year to September 7, according to the British Frozen Food Federation.

Milk Link, the farmer-owned integrated dairy business, has completed the sale of its Staplemead Creamery and associated operations to Andros, the French food and dairy products business for an undisclosed sum.

Time is running out to register your vote for Food Manufacture's Personality of the Year award, part of the Food Manufacture Excellence Awards (FMEA).

Time is running out to sign up for free round table debates that Food Manufacture is hosting on product labelling and new product development (NPD) 'clean labelling'.

Seaweed could become a popular preservative in meat products and other foods, because of its ability to arrest the growth of pathogens, according to academics at Sheffield Hallam University.

Government must free up more funding and revamp education structures to address the food and drink industry's skills crisis in Scotland, according to delegates at a meeting in the Scottish Parliament.

Using carbon labelling on farm products was a "nonsense" because of the degree of variance involved in the methods used, according to National Farmers' Union vice president Paul Temple.

Government support for scientific analysis of genetically modified (GM) food and its benefits is growing, with leading members of the Labour Party publicly advocating it.

Heinz UK & Ireland has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2011 as part of a new sustainability plan.

Chocolates or other composite products containing Chinese milk powder contaminated with melamine should not make adults ill, according to the European Food Safety Authority.

Regulators must spend more time understanding the food and drink industry, according to Food and Drink Federation director general Melanie Leech.

Coca-Cola Enterprises is making its aluminium drinks cans 5% lighter. The Waste & Resources Action Programme claims the new design will save 15,000t of aluminium across the EU each year, slashing 78,000t of carbon emissions annually.

The Co-operative Group's proposed acquisition of Somerfield is good news for suppliers, according to Food Manufacture's latest online poll. Two thirds of respondents saw the move as positive, versus a third who saw it as negative.

Ice cream maker Hill Station has made significant improvements in operational efficiency in recent months, despite its cash flow problems, it has emerged.

Poor due diligence continues to push up numbers of allergen-related product recalls, according to a leading food safety consultant.

Failure to label 'use-by' dates on perishable foods sold loose by some small retailers may be boosting instances of food poisoning caused by Listeria contamination, according to microbiologists.

English Provender Company (EPC), the pickles and dressings manufacturer, is to incorporate its Alembic Products (APL) operation at Chester into its site at Newbury, following a review.

Altering the particle size of salt crystals can have significant effects on consumer perceptions of saltiness, according to Leatherhead Food International (LFI).

Manufacturers have been accused of endangering people's health by failing to co-operate with health authorities when they try to identify the sources of food poisoning outbreaks.