Breaking News on Food Processing & Packaging

Food workers plead guilty in tomato probe

19-Feb-2009 - Two food company workers have pleaded guilty in an ongoing US federal investigation into various illicit activities in the tomato processing industry.

MEPs reject inclusion of food in Eco-label amendments

19-Feb-2009 - European Commission proposals to include food products in an extended Eco-label scheme have been rejected by MEPs this week.

Commission says dairy may gain from sustainable commitments

18-Feb-2009 - While no one sector should bare the brunt of European initiatives to drive sustainable energy, the Commission suggests that the dairy industry could be one area to benefit in the medium and long term from green initiatives.

Walkers crisps cut carbon footprint to retain carbon label

17-Feb-2009 - Improving its green credentials, Walkers' crisps becomes the first company in the UK to retain a carbon reduction label, after cutting its carbon footprint by 7 per cent in two years.

News in brief

Alcoa claims emission levels waning

16-Feb-2009 - Alcoa, a supplier of aluminium sheet and foil for food and beverage packaging, has announced that it achieved at 36 per cent cut its total direct greenhouse gas emissions from its aluminium production process last year.

Looking at life cycle key to product sustainability - CSIRO

13-Feb-2009 - Life cycle analyses for the greenhouse gas emissions and water use impacts of food products have been produced as part of joint research project with Mars, claims Australia’s national science agency.

Key food and drink processing drivers highlighted

09-Feb-2009 - Projects that foster collaboration between industry, funding bodies and science and technology providers will be given impetus by a new publication which outlines the future needs of the food and drink processing industries, claims Campden BRI.

Keep in your suppliers' loop, urges new report

05-Feb-2009 - Close monitoring of suppliers will help mitigate supply chain risk for food and drink manufacturers in a volatile trading environment, claims a new report.

Consumers cannot be king in a sustainable world

05-Feb-2009 - Depending on the consumers to drive the food system down a more sustainable route is misplaced as government, food manufacturers and other industry players need to take the wheel, according to a new report.

New, tougher sanctions on illegal worker hiring

04-Feb-2009 - Employers of clandestine immigrants will be penalised throughout the EU, as a new Directive laying down standard penalties, from fines to prison terms, to combat illegal immigration and trafficking in human beings has received backing by MEPs.

Food and drink sector critical of green road charging

26-Jan-2009 - The industry body for the UK food and drink manufacturing sector claims the proposed new European Commission transport directive would result in food and drink companies having to pass on the resulting costs to consumers.

Weekly comment

In praise of pesticides

19-Jan-2009 - Who likes pesticides? Misunderstood by consumers and misrepresented by pressure groups, pesticides are a soft target for legislators. The latest blow to that soft target could have hard consequences for the European food industry and for developing countries.

Manure a costly option for dairy’s uncertain green future

16-Jan-2009 - Manure and other waste products like leftover whey are heralding a new era for powering cheese production at one US dairy, however the jury is out on the cost and practical feasibility for wider rollouts across Europe.

Dairy players look beyond ‘short-term’ private label pressures

14-Jan-2009 - As European consumers reportedly flock to own brand products in a bid to offset fears over the global economic downturn, dairy processors are bracing to adapt their operations to meet short-term demand challenge at the very least.

News in brief

New sustainability director at UK industry body

12-Jan-2009 - The UK industry trade body, the Food and Drink Federation (FDF), has appointed Andrew Kuyk to the post of Director of Sustainability and Competitiveness.

InBev mulls closures and prices amidst brewer woes

08-Jan-2009 - Recently formed brewing powerhouse Anheuser-Busch InBev is already having to take difficult decisions in its European operations as it mulls price increases and brewery closures to offset industry-wide financial concerns.

Food and drink transport logistics under review

07-Jan-2009 - A new survey of UK food and drink transport operations will give food companies a benchmark of their efficiency in this area, according to Scala Logistics Consulting.

Food companies warned about fake payment demand

22-Dec-2008 - The UK’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) has warned the food sector to be on alert regarding a bogus letter which falsely identifies the sender as an agency official demanding payment for alleged breaches of food safety regulations.

Move to end working hours opt-out mistake, says FDF

17-Dec-2008 - The UK food and drink sector claims the vote today by the European Parliament in favour of ending the opt-out clause in the EU Working Time Directive (WTD) will not serve industry well during the current economic slump.

Euro ‘cow tax’ talk is all hot air – says EDA

15-Dec-2008 - Ongoing talks in the US over a potential tax on methane emissions from dairy cows and other livestock farming is unlikely to be rolled-out globally and would not be welcomed within European dairy, according to one industry expert.

News in brief

GMA appoints new president and CEO

12-Dec-2008 - Pamela Bailey, president and CEO of the Personal Care Products Council (PCPC), has been named the Grocery Manufacturers Association’s (GMA) new president and CEO.

Abattoir efficiency report welcomed

04-Dec-2008 - The UK meat industry and taxpayers will both benefit when ways of improving efficiency in abattoirs suggested by a new report are implemented, according to the British Meat Processors Association.

EU policy change could double crop prices, study

02-Dec-2008 - New pest management legislation in Europe could result in crop production shifting to other countries and prices for commodities shooting up, a study has warned.

Weekly comment

Why farm support puts food on plates

01-Dec-2008 - “Four legs good, two legs bad.” When the pigs take over the land in George Orwell’s Animal Farm, they have no hesitation; any creature with four legs is beyond reproach and any human is bad, mad and dangerous to know.