Probiotic chocolate bars and cereals could emerge on the market
next year as strong demand for the gut health ingredient pushes
food makers to invest in the complex processes required to
formulate with live bacteria.
Low carbohydrate bakery products have become common place in the
US, but competition is about to get tougher as the growth surge
slows, according to a new report from Euromonitor International.
A new 'healthy' café concept, providing branded breakfast cereals
and milk-based drinks all day long, is looking to take off in
Chicago led by a former executive of successful coffee chain
Starbucks, reports Chris Mercer.
Only two out of over 100 'standard' food products in a recent
survey of retailers' own brand foods met with salt slashing targets
set by the UK's food watchdog, suggesting ongoing research into
reducing the content...
Scientists in Ireland claim to have dramatically improved the
quality of gluten-free bread, presenting an opportunity for bakers
as the number of people with a known gluten intolerance grows,
writes Chris Mercer.
Tate & Lyle, the world's only maker of the increasingly popular
sweetener sucralose, must prioritise needs of existing customers as
demand for the additive 'far exceeds our expectations.'
Retailers and suppliers are increasingly turning to high quality,
speciality breads to try and jazz up Britain's dormant bread sector
and raise profits by inspiring consumers, writes Chris
Mercer.
A new bakery capable of producing up to 70 million bread loaves per
year is set to be built in Moscow by Swedish firm Cerealia to serve
the growing convenience food industry with cosmopolitan products -
and by-pass customs duties,...
Bread with reduced carbohydrates is unlikely to become a long-term
trend but the bakery sector could do more to capitalise on the
rising interest in fibre and wholegrains, suggests an analyst.
Understanding the genetic make-up of rice will help scientists to
map the genomes of corn and sorghum crops, say US researchers, at a
time when scientists are keen to promote the gluten-free benefits
of sorghum in food formulations.
The use of labels to 'signpost' healthy foods is getting strong
support from the UK, as it steps up its public health campaign
against obesity and related disease.
Manufacturers of oat-based products in the UK can now position them
alongside cholesterol-lowering foods, following the approval of a
health claim by the country's voluntary claims body.
A combination of increasingly fast-living lifestyles and weird and
wonderful flavours is helping Poland, Hungary and the Czech
Republic to emerge as some of the most dynamic savoury snacks
markets in Europe, writes Chris Mercer.
Health benefits of chocolate continue to grow with UK researchers
isolating an ingredient present in this popular foodstuff that
could help stop persistent coughs.
Falling pasta sales at leading US company American Italian Pasta
reflect an industry-wide problem and demonstrate how a low-carb
legacy may still undermine foods with a higher carbohydrate
content, as Chris Mercerdiscovers.
Traffic light labelling would be a primitive, unworkable and
pointless way of highlighting unhealthy foods according to the UK
food industry, speaking in reaction to the newly published
government policy paper on public health. Chris...
Russian consumers are just as concerned about whether they are
unwittingly eating genetically-modified (GM) foods as their
counterparts in most of the rest of Europe, and companies such as
baker MBKK Kolomenskoe are increasingly seeing...
The drive towards complete supply chain traceability is putting
incredible pressure on food manufacturers, especially private-label
processors. But one industry expert believes that the industry must
view this revolution as a golden...
Rising prices and transport costs are looming for UK millers and
bakers as final results on the rain-drenched UK grain harvest
confirm that yields are up but quality is at its lowest for 10
years in some regions, reports Chris Mercer.
The European Commission will this week host a major conference on
the challenges for diabetes research, in a bid to raise political,
academic and industrial awareness of the disease.
Staff at one of the UK's leading biscuit and snack manufacturers
have been challenged to walk 10,000 steps every day as the company
highlights a link between healthy bodies and healthy profits.
A groundbreaking £8 million initiative to stimulate innovative
packaging design and at the same time significantly reduce food and
packaging waste has been launched in the UK.
Foods high in trans fats may be damaging consumers' brains more
than other high fat foods, leading to memory loss in old age and
problems performing simple jobs, according to new animal research.
Chris Mercer reports.
Russia is a bread country - it has been a staple part of the diet
there for centuries, and to many people it is as much a part of the
Russian way of life as tea or vodka. But even a product with such
an impressive heritage needs to...
Thin, flexible and easy to handle - that is the major food
packaging trend emerging on the Polish market, helped along by
rising sales of dairy products and new hygiene laws on baked goods
in shops, writes Chris Mercer.
Foods offering consumers a quick-fix way to look fit and healthy
are on the rise in the US market, with bakery and cereals set to
remain at the heart of this trend for at least the next four years,
reports Chris Mercer.
Novis, now with almost half a million readers, yesterday earned
broad industry recognition with two further publishing awards,
following on from its best publication prize earlier this year.
AFSSA, the French food safety authority, has called for a
significant reduction of sugars added to processed foods alongside
stronger backing for foods containing wholegrains and high fibre.
Bread has been highlighted as the biggest single source of excess
salt intake in Ireland, according to the country's Food Safety
Authority, which is now stepping up the pressure on Irish bakers to
act, reports Chris Mercer.
UK family-baker Warburtons is gambling more than most on the growth
of the UK bread market, having doubled output in Scotland and
started building Europe's biggest bakery in Yorkshire - so just how
does the company see itself...
The battle for market share in the growing zero trans fats oil
marketplace has gathered pace after a small US co-operative joined
the large commercial players by rolling out its first batch of
trans fat-free soybean oil.
Breakthroughs in the lab provide food makers with a competitively
priced technology designed by Danish enzyme leader Novozymes to cut
the artery-clogging trans fats out of food products, writes
Lindsey Partos.
The UK's competition watchdog has moved to calm a potential storm
between the government and the food and drink industry after
warning an industry association that new goals for healthier
products could lead to a breach of competition...
Food companies around Europe are adding heart-healthy omega-3 fatty
acids to traditional products as they seek to meet increasing
consumer demand for healthy food.
This year's Czech harvest has been hailed as the best since 1993,
producing almost nine million tonnes of crops, showing that the
farming industry has recovered well from a poor 2003 and the
disastrous floods of 2002 - just in...
The rising pressure on US food producers to play their part in
improving the health of the world's fattest nation has led Kraft
Foods to promise more nutritional information on selected snack,
dairy and beverage products - a...
Confectionery manufacturers are increasingly turning to other food
categories to drive growth, building on the strong brand awareness
of their products to garner additional profits, suggest market
analysts Euromonitor.
Another cooker-extruder line from UK-based APV Baker is on its way
to South America to help a long-established family cereal company
increase its production as it strives to stay ahead of the leading
multinationals.
Food manufacturers offering products with a low glycaemic value
will help generate the necessary evidence to convince sceptics of
the merits of the nutritional strategy, suggests an industry
expert, even if they cannot carry a health...
A new bakehouse to be used exclusively to make gluten-free products
for those with special dietary needs has been opened by US-based
natural and organic supermarket Whole Foods Market, giving the
company a lead in providing fresh...
UK beverage group Diageo has sold 49.9 million shares in US company
General Mills to reduce debt, while US-based Sara Lee is to shed 60
of its smallest businesses to invest in its leading brands.
Elsewhere, Spain has instigated a...
The UK's booming sandwich industry has come in for criticism after
a survey found that some of their products contain around
two-thirds of the whole day's recommended fat intake for women.
The last 18 months or so have been tough for Cerealia, with
profitability well down on previous years as a result of a number
of disposals designed to refocus the group on a smaller number of
business units. But replacing disposed...
This week has seen more trials and tribulations in the Atkins diet
saga with the Partnership for Essential Nutrition launching a
campaign to prevent marketers of low-carb diets from distributing
information through the nation's...
UK wheat quality has been pushed even further below the national
three-year average, according to the first survey of wheat
harvested during the worst period of the UK's summer rain,
confirming fears that bad weather will place...
US-based packaging distributor Hughes Enterprises argues that
attention to packaging is vital in ensuring total supply chain
safety, reports Anthony Fletcher.
Cunning investment, joint ventures and an expanding foods division
have helped Irish baked goods and agribusiness group IAWS to
increase pre-tax profits by 19 per cent for the year to July. But
conditions in the agricultural sector...
