The UK definition of ‘ice cream’ must be brought in line with the rest of Europe if the Food Standards Agency (FSA) wants manufacturers to make meaningful progress on saturated fat reduction, according to a leading supplier. (foodmanufacture.co.uk). However, swift action on this is now seen as increasingly unlikely given the uncertainty over the future role and remit of the FSA. Speaking to FoodManufacture.co.uk ahead of an ice cream meeting... read more →
Food manufacturers are being “far too cautious” when it comes to setting best-before dates for many ambient food products, according to a leading academic in the field of sensory shelf-life testing. (foodmanufacture.co.uk) Speaking at Leatherhead Food Research’s food innovation day last week, Dr Guillermo Hough said that consumer testing on products at the end of their shelf-life typically revealed that “many could have had their shelf lives extended”. Hough,... read more →
In a study by Harvard University, researchers found eating 50g of processed meat a day raised the risk of diabetes by 19%, as well as increasing the chance of developing coronary heart disease by 42%. (meatinfo.co.uk) However, the study also claimed there was no such risk from eating unprocessed red meat, such as beef, lamb or pork. The research has been published in the journal Circulation, and scientists speculate the risks are posed by quantities... read more →
Staff at the Food Standards Agency (FSA) are trying to function in a state of limbo as they wait to hear their fate under the new Tory/Lib Dem administration. (foodmanufacture.co.uk) In its green paper on health last year, the Conservatives said that under a Tory administration, the role and remit of the FSA would be scaled back: “We will put parts of the FSA which are responsible for the nutritional content of food … into the Department of... read more →
Marks & Spencer ready meals supplier RF Brookes will be powered by energy produced from its own food waste next year following the installation of a £5m anaerobic digestion facility at its site in Rogerstone, Newport. (foodmanufacture.co.uk) The factory, which is owned by Premier Foods, will use an anaerobic digester to convert food waste into heat, compost and power, generating 10% of its power. The facility is being built by Premier Renewable Energy,... read more →
An inventor behind a novel packaging concept that would enable food manufacturers to package multiple snack bars, coffee granules and other products at up to 12 times the speed of conventional flow wrappers, is looking for a partner to take his idea to market. (foodmanufacture.co.uk) CCL Concepts & Developments’ md Ted Coulson, who has 25 years’ experience in the packaging machinery trade, is seeking firms interested in commercialising his... read more →
The European food and drink industry is the largest manufacturing sector in the bloc, coming ahead of the automobile and chemical industries, but R&D investment remains “insufficient”, according to a new report. (foodanddrinkeurope.com) Published last week by CIAA (the Confederation of the food and drink industries of the EU) the report collates the latest available statistics on the industry, which provide a snapshot of its structure and economics... read more →
Reacting to suggestions that industry may be approaching the natural limits of lightweighting, Euromonitor has argued that there is still plenty of scope to reduce the weight of PET packs, glass bottles, and beverage cans. (foodproductiondaily.com) Lightweighting presents a seductive route to sustainability for beverage producers because it offers the opportunity to reduce the impact of packaging on both the environment and profit margins. But some industry... read more →
