Daily Sound Bite: The Debate over Subsidizing Soda
June 19, 2013 12:36 pm | News | CommentsIn a letter to congressional leaders, the mayors of 18 cities are pushing against letting food stamps be used to buy soda and other sugary drinks. The mayors say it's "time to test and evaluate approaches limiting" the use of the subsidies for sugar-laden beverages in order to help fight the obesity crisis.
Starbucks Pushes Food Items To Energize Sales
June 19, 2013 12:29 pm | News | CommentsStarbucks wants coffee fans to think of it as a spot to grab lunch or a late afternoon bite — not just a place to get a cup of morning joe. The Seattle-based coffee chain is looking to increase its sales in the U.S. by making its food a bigger attraction, particularly in the slower afternoon and evening hours.
Missouri Lifts Ban on Foreign Farm Owners
June 19, 2013 12:27 pm | by ALAN SCHER ZAGIER,Associated Press | News | CommentsWeeks before a Chinese conglomerate agreed to buy Smithfield Foods Inc. in the largest such takeover of a U.S. business, Missouri lawmakers quietly approved legislation removing a ban on foreign ownership of agricultural land. Missouri is one of several Midwest states with little-known laws passed in the 1970s amid concerns over Japanese investment that prohibit or restrict foreign farmland ownership.
Consumer Trends: Gluten-Free Trend Translates to Takeout
June 19, 2013 12:00 pm | News | CommentsWith approximately one in three Americans trying to cut back or avoid gluten in their diets, the analysts at GrubHub tracked the trend at U.S. takeout restaurants. An analysis of 2013 GrubHub orders reveals that menu items identified as gluten-free have grown in popularity with diners by nearly 60 percent since April 2012.
Food & Beverage Manufacturers Still Unsure of FSMA Implications
June 19, 2013 11:45 am | by Sudhakar Kaup, CTO, iRely | Articles | CommentsWithin highly regulated industries, uncertainty surrounding guideline changes has been cause for alarm for many business owners. With the recent enactment of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), this feeling of concern especially holds true for food and drink manufacturers.
Strong Tours Show ‘Em What You’re Made Of
June 19, 2013 9:45 am | by Cory Schaeffer, Co-Founder of Listen Technologies | Articles | CommentsHumans are curious creatures. We like to see how things work, and we want to know what makes things tick — we have a deep-seated desire to make a connection with our environment by understanding the process of creation. That, in part, is what is so appealing about facility tours.
New Rules Let Wis. Meatpacker Sell to Other States
June 19, 2013 9:41 am | News | CommentsMeatpacking companies usually can't ship across state lines unless their products are inspected by the USDA. But Wisconsin is one of three states to sign a deal with the federal government under USDA rules finalized in 2011. That pact makes interstate sales of state-inspected meat acceptable.
House Considering Cuts to Food Stamps
June 19, 2013 9:39 am | by MARY CLARE JALONICK,Associated Press | News | CommentsPassage of the five-year, half-trillion-dollar farm bill could depend on the level of cuts to the $80 billion-a-year program. Many House conservatives have said the cuts don't go far enough, while liberals have argued against any cuts, saying the House farm bill could take as many as 2 million recipients off the rolls.
Zimbabwe ‘Cattle Bank’ Takes Deposits that Moo
June 19, 2013 9:37 am | by GILLIAN GOTORA,Associated Press | News | CommentsZimbabwe's first "Cattle Bank" has just opened its books in a unique kind of banking where owners bring in their animals as collateral against cash loans. Owners accrue interest and have the option to get back their cattle after an initial two years or leave them with the bank for longer. Depositors can get loans of an equal value of the cattle they have put in the bank.
Photo of the Day: Zimbabwe's Cattle Bank
June 19, 2013 9:30 am | News | CommentsZimbabwe's first “Cattle Bank” has just opened its books in a unique kind of banking where owners are being asked to bring in their animals as a cash deposit enabling them to withdraw and borrow money against their value while retaining ownership.
Starting a Chocolate Business with $13
June 19, 2013 9:30 am | by CNN Money | Videos | CommentsSalma al Hajri and her aunt Aisha had a love of choclate, $13 and a dream. The duo paired up in 2009 to start Salma's Chocolates, the first chocolate business in Oman and have been making sweets — and steadily rising profits — ever since.
Dominicans Close Border Market over Food Ban
June 19, 2013 8:32 am | News | CommentsMerchants in the Dominican Republic have shuttered a large border market in protest over neighboring Haiti's ban on poultry and egg imports. The Dajabon market was closed Monday seeking to pressure Haiti to drop the ban. A Dominican board says the country sells about 25 million eggs and 8 million chickens to Haiti every month.
Industrial Cameras
June 19, 2013 1:00 am | by Food Manufacturing Staff | Product Releases | CommentsThe Cognex Industrial Camera (CIC) series is a new line of GigE Vision® digital industrial cameras designed for easy integration with VisionPro® and CVL® vision software.
Striped PTFE Tubing
June 19, 2013 1:00 am | by Food Manufacturing Staff | Product Releases | CommentsCompany offers a wide range of striped PTFE tubing for identifying chemical processes and fluid handling lines for other types of connections where quick tube identification is necessary.
Temperature and Humidty Loggers
June 19, 2013 1:00 am | by Food Manufacturing Staff | Product Releases | CommentsSeries II ThermaData Loggers are an effective way to remotely monitor temperature and humidity data from as many as 16 locations in a single software system, allowing readings to be captured over a wireless connection to be analyzed and archived as part of food safety and compliance programs.
Daily Sound Bite: A 'Natural' Look Takes Hard Work
June 18, 2013 12:42 pm | News | CommentsHere's the latest goal for food makers: Perfect the art of imperfection. Kraft Foods took more than two years to develop a process to make the thick, uneven slabs of turkey in its Carving Board line look like leftovers from a homemade meal rather than the cookie-cutter ovals typical of most lunchmeat.
Starbucks To Post Calorie Counts
June 18, 2013 12:35 pm | by CANDICE CHOI,AP Food Industry Writer | News | CommentsStarbucks has a new way to wake up its customers: showing the calories in its drinks. The Seattle-based coffee chain says it will start posting calorie counts on menu boards nationwide next week, ahead of a federal regulation that would require it to do so.
NYC Seeks To Require Composting of Food Scraps
June 18, 2013 12:29 pm | by BETHAN McKERNAN and JENNIFER PELTZ,Associated Press | News | CommentsLegions of apartment dwellers will soon be asked — and may eventually be ordered — to start collecting food scraps for composting, under Mayor Michael Bloomberg's latest bid to make the Big Apple greener. After launching a test program recently in 3,500 Staten Island homes and some Manhattan apartment buildings, city officials said Monday they planned to expand it to 100,000 houses and high-rise apartments in all five boroughs this fall.
Pa. Senate GOP Seeking Consensus on Liquor Bill
June 18, 2013 12:27 pm | by MARC LEVY,Associated Press | News | CommentsRepublican state senators remained unsure Monday whether they will vote for legislation that one of their members is writing to liberalize the sale of wine, beer and hard liquor in Pennsylvania, a key priority of Gov. Tom Corbett. Bucks County Sen. Charles McIlhinney is expected to unveil the legislation Tuesday, Republican senators said.
White House Threatens To Veto House Farm Bill
June 18, 2013 12:26 pm | by MARY CLARE JALONICK,Associated Press | News | CommentsThe White House is threatening to veto the House version of a massive, five-year farm bill, saying food stamp cuts included in the legislation could leave some Americans hungry. The legislation would cut $2 billion annually, or around 3 percent, from food stamps and make it harder for some people to qualify for the program.




