Breaking News on Food Processing & Packaging

News in brief

FSA warns manufacturers against fraud emails

20-Aug-2009 - The UK’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) is warning food business operators about a potential financial scam to extort money from potential rice exporters to the UK.

Weekly comment

Free farmers to farm and bank UK food security

17-Aug-2009 - How best should Britain plan to secure reliable supplies of reasonably-priced food? Should the nation put its trust in home production or food imports from the world market?

More difficulty ahead for food sector as European recession eases

14-Aug-2009 - France and Germany have emerged from recession but the global nature of the food industry may mean it takes longer to recover than other sectors, according to a senior economist at Wageningen University.

Martek teams with BP to develop fermented biofuels

14-Aug-2009 - Martek Biosciences is joining forces with petrochemicals giant BP to develop microbial biofuels derived from sugar feedstocks, and employing Martek’s lipid-based technologies.

News in brief

Monsanto CFO to retire after 32 years

14-Aug-2009 - Monsanto’s executive vice president and chief financial officer Terry Crews has announced his retirement at the age of 53, after 32 years with what is now the world’s largest seed company.

News in brief

Food marketing deals threatened by waste reduction efforts

13-Aug-2009 - Supermarkets in the UK could be offering half-price deals on perishable food items instead of buy one, get one free offers in an effort to reduce food waste, according to a report in Advertising Age.

Government urges radical rethink to ensure stable food supply

10-Aug-2009 - The UK government has called for a radical rethink of food production to secure sustainable food supplies at reasonable prices.

UK’s £2.3m carrot to boost biogas and mixed plastic recycling

10-Aug-2009 - Recycling companies in one part of the UK have been urged to bid for a share of grants totalling £2.3m to fund any initiative to divert mixed plastic and food waste away from landfill.

Calls for supplier relations watchdog; retailers disagree

06-Aug-2009 - The UK’s Competition Commission is asking government to establish an ombudsman to arbitrate in disputes between retailers and suppliers, as retailers have declined to act and the Commission does not have the power to do so itself.

Food gas sensor could show when fruit is ripe and meat fresh

05-Aug-2009 - A new sensor that analyses gases given off by foods could be used to check their safety, quality and reliability quickly and economically, said the German research team behind the device.

EFSA to meet stakeholders following GM corn decision

03-Aug-2009 - The European Food Safety Authority will meet with stakeholders in September to discuss its recent opinion on Monsanto’s GM corn, MON810.

SIG relishes aseptic supply chain challenges

31-Jul-2009 - SIG Combibloc has outlined the challenges in attaining full supply chain sustainability of the major raw material for its Europe-made aseptic cartons and hailed the environmental and commercial benefits secured.

UK’s largest food waste processing plant given green light

27-Jul-2009 - Proposals to build the UK’s largest food waste processing plant have been given the go-ahead.

Commission raises alarm over dairy supply chain imbalances

24-Jul-2009 - The EU Commission has raised the alarm over the failure of dairy prices at the check-out to follow commodity prices downwards as competition authorities in the UK extend a dairy price-fixing probe.

Meat Institute urges court to dismiss ‘nuisance’ hotdog lawsuit

23-Jul-2009 - The American Meat Institute has urged a New Jersey court to dismiss a lawsuit from vegan advocacy group Cancer Project that claims hotdogs should carry a cancer warning label.

Huge differences in salt levels found in global food brands

23-Jul-2009 - New research on salt levels in global products from some of the biggest food manufacturers has revealed wide and random variations.

News in brief

GM maize decision bounced to Council

23-Jul-2009 - The decision on whether to authorise three genetically modified maize in Europe will now pass to the Council of Ministers, as member states have failed to reach a qualified majority.

Walmart sustainability index to put suppliers under spotlight

17-Jul-2009 - More than 100,000 suppliers to Walmart will be asked to prove their green credentials after the company unveiled plans yesterday to develop a world-wide sustainable product index.

Anaerobic digestion scheme key to cutting food and packing in landfill

16-Jul-2009 - A UK Government initiative on anaerobic digestion that includes using food and bioplastic packaging waste to create energy could play a key role in helping cut landfill volumes, said an industry body.

E. coli remains a mystery as cookie dough production restarts

10-Jul-2009 - Nestle USA has said that it is gradually restarting production of its Toll House chocolate chip cookie dough after FDA inspections failed to find E. coli at its Danville, Virginia plant.

Egg production prices to rise following new regulations

09-Jul-2009 - Egg prices may rise as producers are hit by new costs as a result of food safety measures.

EU funding vital to cushion extra animal welfare costs, say meat processors

06-Jul-2009 - Europe’s meat processors will suffer unless the European Commission meets extra costs resulting from a new regulation on improving animal welfare at slaughter, said an industry body.

Weekly comment

Confusion reigns in cosmeceutical name game

29-Jun-2009 - The term cosmeceutical has always been controversial, but the blurring boundaries between the worlds of nutrition and cosmetics are highlighting divisions that neither industry can ignore.

Wild looks to maximise chocolate-fruit filling potential

17-Jun-2009 - A supplier of fillings for confectionery goods says that it is can now allow manufacturers to maximise fruit content in their chocolate products without compromising functionality or regulatory approval.