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More than half the jobs at a frozen food and storage distribution centre in Lincolnshire could be under threat. Pinguin Foods has announced that 34 out of 55 staff at its Marsh Lane site on the Riverside Industrial Estate in Boston could lose their jobs. The Belgian-owned food services provider has given staff a 90-day notice of redundancy, blaming competitive market conditions. But the firm said it was hopeful the final figure would be lower. The frozen... read more →

Supermarket group Morrisons has reported a rise in annual profit but has also warned that 2011 will be challenging. The company announced a pre-tax profit of £874m for the 12 months to the end of January, up from the £858m it made in the same period a year ago. Like-for-like sales, excluding fuel and VAT, rose 0.9%. The group also said it planned to launch an online shopping service in the coming two years. Morrisons is the UK’s fourth largest supermarket... read more →

More than 100 people could lose their jobs after a Lincolnshire food produce company announced plans to close its site. Exotic Farm Produce (EFP), owned by Icelandic company Bakkavor, employs 116 people in Kirton. All employees have been notified of a 90-day consultation period stating the company’s intention to close. A statement from Bakkavor said the business had been unprofitable “for a sustained period of time”. “This is due to... read more →

Asda adverts promoting price competition against other supermarkets must be changed, the advertising watchdog has ruled. (BBC News Business) The adverts promised to refund customers the difference during their next shop if they found groceries cheaper at the other major stores. But Morrisons and Tesco complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) that there were significant exclusions from the price comparison. Asda argued the comparison was robust. Cheaper? Tesco... read more →

US-based doughnut giant Krispy Kreme is opening its first UK manufacturing unit, as it bids to double its number of stores in the country within the next five years. (Foodmanufacturing.co.uk) Krispy Kreme UK has taken up a 10-year lease on a 5,392 sq ft production unit on Heywood, Manchester, which will create up to 40 jobs and house a manufacturing line and processing kitchen with the ability to produce 3,000 doughnuts per hour. Chief financial officer... read more →

Savoury ingredient supplier Jardox has completed a £1 million factory upgrade project that has doubled its production capacity. (Foodnavigator.com) The modernisation programme, which has just been finished, includes production areas, staff facilities and new equipment to improve efficiencies at the firm’s Sevenoaks, UK base. As a leading supplier into the UK chilled ready meal, soup and sauce market, Jardox provides wet stocks, pastes and dry ingredient... read more →

Major players in Europe’s organic meat industry have expressed relief after the European Commission (EC) chose not to ban the use of nitrates and nitrites for curing products. (Foodnavigator.com) Sodium nitrite (E250) and potassium nitrate (E252) are widely used in cured meats to prevent the growth of pathogens such as clostridium botulinum, the bacterium responsible for botulism, and add flavour and colour to products such as bacon. But opponents claim... read more →

Slaughterhouses may have to install additional ventilation and air extraction systems after scientists discovered bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) can be spread to livestock by air. (Meatinfo.co.uk) They have found prions – the infectious agents triggering the disease – are not necessarily transmitted only by eating contaminated material. The researchers from the University of Zurich, Switzerland, and the Institute of Immunology, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut,... read more →