Breaking News on Food Processing & Packaging

UK firm offers revenue streams for used cooking oil

08-Oct-2008 - Finding new ways to use cooking oil waste could cut costs and potentially generate revenue for food processors, claims UK based company Bio Driven.

UK food and drink sector backs MEPs targets on emissions

08-Oct-2008 - The energy package voted through by the European Parliament’s Environment Committee yesterday has been welcomed by the UK food and drink sector.

RFID temperature logger could enhance cold chain quality control

06-Oct-2008 - A new programmable temperature logger can identify problems incurred with produce during cold chain storage and transit, thus providing an improved quality control system for food manufacturers, says Caen RFID.

New toolkit could help green supply chain

03-Oct-2008 - Envirowise claims its new supply chain toolkit will help food and drink companies to cut costs while enhancing relationships with suppliers.

Melamine detection service offered to EU food and drink sector

02-Oct-2008 - A new melamine detection and testing service is targeted at companies in the European food and drink sector including food and ingredient manufacturers and food importers, says Leatherhead Food International.

Chick cage drive unleashes welfare debate

30-Sep-2008 - Consumers and not legislators should choose whether they can purchase either free-range or ‘enriched’ cage produced eggs or products to better help industry adapt to new laws on chicken welfare, a farmers’ group has said.

Agrana: Supplies rise for commodity-sourced ingredients

30-Sep-2008 - Bakers will welcome fresh figures from Austrian sugar, starch and fruit preparation supplier Agrana that reports a lift in autumn harvest figures for commodity-derived ingredients, an encouraging sign that supplies for formulators may ease into 2009.

Farmed meat main source of campylobacteriosis: study

26-Sep-2008 - A new study has found that nearly all of the campylobacteriosis cases in the patients evaluated were caused by bacteria in animals farmed for meat, in particular chicken and cattle.

Sustainability less influential than cost on consumer habits: study

15-Sep-2008 - A new survey has found cost, quality and healthiness influence consumers’ purchasing choices to a much greater degree than environmental factors.

Weekly comment

Hurricane wake-up call for business and boy scouts

08-Sep-2008 - Louisiana was holding its breath when Hurricane Gustav made landfall last week. It promised to be the mother of all storms as it roared towards the Gulf Coast but fortunately the region, along with the food industry it supports, was spared.

News briefs: Diamant additive, dicing equipment enhancement and software acquisition

05-Sep-2008 - Diamant evaluates its bottling additive this month, while MPE announces an upgrade of its dicing machinery and APS Technologies announces acquisitions of other food and drink software suppliers.

Honey supply strain requires urgent attention - industry

03-Sep-2008 - Urgent action is required by the UK government to help prevent drastic declines in bee numbers, amidst global concerns over a possible honey supply shortage for consumers and industry, says a leading supplier of the product.

New tagging system could enhance supply chain monitoring

03-Sep-2008 - StePac, part of DS Smith Plastics, has developed a web-based real time cold chain management system to monitor produce freshness and quality as it travels throughout the supply chain.

DuPont invests in sunflower and corn seed research

26-Aug-2008 - DuPont-owned Pioneer Hi-Bred has opened two seed research centres in Europe in an attempt to deliver higher yielding corn and sunflower hybrids to farmers and “meet growing demand for food and fuel”.

Glass and aluminium groups upbeat to meet packaging needs

26-Aug-2008 - Production of glass and aluminium packaging within Europe is showing a positive turnaround amidst processor concerns over economic and environmental factors, according to their respective industries associations.

Weekly comment

Omega-3 reality check

25-Aug-2008 - The market predictions for omega-3 products are endlessly buoyant but a closer look at the state of play reveals very few omega-3 functional foods and beverages have moved beyond niche sales levels.

Labour shortage puts UK food sector at risk - claim

22-Aug-2008 - Falling numbers of migrants could have a disastrous effect on the UK food and drink sector, warns a new study from the skills council for the industry, Improve.

New software extends bakers’ traceability needs

20-Aug-2008 - Updated business management software for bakers will boost traceability, and help bakers manage customer relations, says RedBlack Software.

Farmers over-reliance on antibiotics affects resistance, says UK organic group

14-Aug-2008 - UK farmers and veterinary surgeons are giving antibiotics to animals often to prevent rather than treat disease, which is contributing to the problem of antibiotic resistance through food, claims a UK organic group.

US chicken processors seek relief over high input costs

12-Aug-2008 - The US chicken industry has expressed disappointed that the Enviromental Protection Agency (EPA) rejected a waiver on ethanol production and are urging legislators to take action over rising input costs, as a processor freezes operations.

Weekly comment

Why food is the new oil

11-Aug-2008 - “Food is a weapon – don’t waste it.” This message, which featured on a Second World War poster issued by the US Office of War Information in 1943, is a lesson from history we would do well to heed.

Company refused gangmaster licence, claims UK authority

08-Aug-2008 - A new business that has not been able to meet standards on workers legality and was a front for a previously banned gangmaster has been refused a licence, said the UK Gangmaster Licensing Authority (GLA).

Boost for Scottish food and drink processors

07-Aug-2008 - Twenty-seven Scottish companies have been awarded a total of nearly £6m in a scheme to help food processors and producers construct new facilities, refurbish existing premises and purchase new equipment.

Low returns threaten potato supplies

01-Aug-2008 - Food manufacturers will have to start paying more for potatoes in the US to maintain future supplies, according to industry experts.