Premier Foods: We'll sell Quorn if the price is right
Premier Foods remains ‘open-minded’ about selling off assets - including its meat-free business - to pay off debts, provided the price is right, bosses have confirmed.
Archives for October 3, 2010
Industry calls for more meat waste in the food chain
More meat waste could enter the animal feed chain next year, if the EU relaxes controls introduced in the wake of the BSE crisis in 1994.
Who feels like Chicken Tonight? (Don't all shout at once.)
Who feels like some Chicken Tonight? Not many of us, apparently, which explains why brand owner Unilever now wants to get shot of it, along with fellow cooking sauce Ragu, sales of which are believed to be equally uninspiring.
Dairy Crest drive towards sustainable energy reflects wider industry move
Energy services company Dalkia's recent commission to build a combined heat and power (CHP) facility at Dairy Crest’s Davidstowe creamery reflects an increasing appetite for sustainable, efficient energy within the food industry.
Handle fragile product at high speed
PFM Packaging Machinery has launched a range of in-line multihead weighers with low-drop height for fragile goods and new control software to improve accuracy at higher speeds.
Focus on wieghing systems: Don't give it away
The challenge of filling to average weight while reducing product giveaway is one manufacturers continue to grapple with. Lou Reade reports
Northern Foods to build on skills pedigree
Northern Foods plans to build on its credentials as a food industry skills champion by upgrading its operations academy to form a degree-level training centre.
Spirits rising
Fairfax Hall and Sam Galsworthy from distiller Sipsmith are two archetypal Englishmen with one overrising ambition: to revive London's longstanding artisanl gin-making tradition. Ben Bouckley reports.
The natural truth about E-numbers
My Leatherhead colleague Alice Pegg was on TV recently explaining the importance of food additives. With the clever use of red food dye she easily convinced a group of experienced wine tasters that a dyed white wine was red wine.
Flavourings launch is simply smoking
Unique Ingredients has launched an efficient package of smoked flavourings for firms looking to cut costs in that arena.
Risk-based meat inspection scheme could soon be reality
A lower-cost, risk-based meat plant inspection regime could become a reality much sooner than previously thought, following the Food Standards Agency’s (FSA’s) strong lobbying behind the scenes in mainland Europe.
Bakkavör and the curious incident of the 'butter yellow that wasn't'
Good traceability systems helped prepared foods giant Bakkavör avoid a potentially costly recall earlier this year, when it experienced a problem with contaminated meat marinades supplied to other processors, according to the company’s group food safety...
Unions slam proposals to raise threshold for strike action
The CBI has unveiled a package of proposals to ‘modernise employment relations legislation’ including raising the threshold for industrial action and allowing businesses to recruit staff through agencies to cover stoppages.
Food manufacturers on tenterhooks as government cancels FSA GM dialogue project
Farmers and food processors are waiting to hear what position the coalition will adopt on genetically modified (GM) foods, following its announcement that the public dialogue project on the subject was to be cancelled.
Shift patterns
With government cuts and food security issues, food manufacturing must change the rules of its game, reports Rick Pendrous.
Rapid test for seafood launched
Neogen Europe has released a test that detects domoic acid: the naturally occurring toxin found in shellfish that causes Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning. The Neogen Europe Reveal test is designed to screen suspect samples containing the toxin at 10ppm or...
TDG in multi- million pound upgrade plan
TDG plans to plough millions of pounds more into improving the efficiency of its UK cold stores, following the announcement of £1M investments in facilities at Aberdeen and Newport, in Gwent.
Is the ‘tail wagging the dog’ when it comes to recycling?
Industry body PlasticsEurope has warned that brandowners and retailers, particularly in the UK, risk allowing consumer pressure to justify uneconomic recycling where other options would make far better environmental sense.
A fair enough share for all
The new Equality Act has profound implications for the food and drink industry, as Freddie Dawson discovers
Can we feed the world by 2050?
The world’s population had doubled to 6bn by the end of the last century. Global food shortages were predicted but averted. But can the food chain meet the challenge of feeding 9bn mouths by 2050? And will genetic modification technology have a place at...
BRC revises storage standard
The British Retail Consortium’s (BRC’s) revised Global Standard for Storage and Distribution is simpler, clearer and adds features covering cleaning, waste and contracted services, said BRC compliance manager Karen Betts.
A fashion parade in the freezer
Consumer belt-tightening and lively competition between the main frozen food brands are triggering a welter of packaging innovation. But this still leaves key areas such as frozen ready meals with more questions than answers.
Cargill works with UK manufacturers on stevia-sweetened products
Cargill Health & Nutrition is working with a number of UK food manufacturers so that products containing its natural Stevia-based high-intensity sweetener Truvia can be launched soon after it receives approval for use in the EU. Approval is expected late...
Strike action averted at Maple Leaf Bakery Walsall
Threatened strike action at Maple Leaf Bakery UK’s Walsall factory has been averted after the Bakers Food and Allied Workers Union (BFAWU) agreed a deal with management.
Dairy and whisky firms test novel technology to clean pipes
A novel technology that uses air instead of gallons of water and cleaning agents to clean process pipe work is being installed at a UK whisky manufacturer this week and will shortly be tested by a UK dairy manufacturer.
The intelligent way to slice costs
Bizerba says the integrated weighing function of its A510 slicing machine is a world first: meat, sausages and cheese are weighed and sliced in exact portions according to the predefined weight. The software constantly compares the total weight of the...
LGC develops new method for characterising nanoparticles
A new method for characterising nanoparticles in food has been developed by the UK national measurement institute LGC (formerly the Laboratory of the Government Chemist), which claims it is much quicker and less labour-intensive than other approaches.
Walkers fined £200,000 for man’s toxic gas death
Walkers Snack Foods has been fined £200,000 plus costs after an accident four years ago that killed one man and injured another.
Small firms could benefit from new research focus
Small UK food and drink manufacturers could benefit from government plans to refocus its research spending on areas more likely to produce a commercial return on investment.
Tax snatchers stall innovation as government tackles debt
New product development is being disrupted by HM Revenue & Customs’ (HMRC’s) increased efforts to claw back value added tax (VAT) on food as the government tackles UK debt, according to lawyers and manufacturers.
Focus on clean-label ingredients: Batten down the hatches
As consumers continue to demand ‘natural’ ingredients, processors must prepare for the clean-label challenge, reports John Dunn
Manufacturers must wait for allergen threshold
Manufacturers are no nearer to finding out when if ever a maximum in-plant threshold for the adventitious presence of allergens such as milk, peanuts and egg will be published by regulators.
Focus on energy efficiency: Pay back time
Saving energy takes effort. But it does pay, says Freddie Dawson
Findus Group MD Mark Escolme quits after only 12 months
Mark Escolme has quit as UK frozen foods MD at Findus Group after only 12 months in the role, with current chief marketing manager Leendert den Hollander appointed as his permanent replacement.
Campaigners boost efforts to protect healthy school meals
Campaigns are underway to counter threats to healthy school meals provision, with the Labour opposition looking to co-ordinate cross-party initiatives on the issue.
Copper poisoning threatens food chain
Experts fear farmers may be endangering human health by over-supplementing dairy cattle feed with copper to prevent infertility in their stock.
All for one – and one department for all
Upon learning that responsibility for food labelling in England is to be distributed between three government departments, these words from Gilbert and Sullivan’s Mikado sprung to mind: “but the laws of common sense, you oughtn’t to ignore”.
The strange case of the brewer and the jellyfish
Many beer producers are investing in microplants for reasons that range from the eminently sensible to the just plain weird, Graham Holter reports.
‘Gluten-free haddock and chips to go, please’
Demand for gluten-free fish batter is increasing as more fish and chip shops recognise the growing 'free-from' market, according to a supplier of the product.
Escape the chill
Pioneering attempts are being made to redefine ready meals, as Freddie Dawson discovers.
Chef-made hot meals that you can eat in the interval
Spearheading the trend for better quality food ‘on the go’, catering firm Foodies To Go has launched a range of hot, chef-cooked meals aimed at busy people ‘on the move’.
John West makes canned fish look 10 years younger
By Lorraine Mullaney John West’s innovation team has been working on a makeover to broaden the appeal of the firm’s canned mackerel and sardine products among young and lapsed consumers.
Coca-Cola calls for councils to standardise recycling
Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) has called on the coalition to improve the UK’s poor recycling infrastructure by making local authority processes consistent.