The Leading Source for Food Manufacturing News
Nestle Drops Palm Oil Supplier Over Environmental Concerns
March 19, 2010 5:27 am | News | CommentsGENEVA (AP) — Swiss food and beverage company Nestle SA says it dropped an Indonesian palm oil supplier over concerns about the company's environmental record. Nestle says it stopped buying directly from Sinar Mas Group "recently" following its own investigation into damage caused to rain forests and peat fields in Southeast Asia by palm oil plantations.
Kraft To Cut Salt In Its Foods
March 19, 2010 5:26 am | News | CommentsPORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Kraft Foods Inc. said Wednesday that it will cut the salt in its products that are sold in North America by an average of 10 percent over the next two years to appeal to health-conscious consumers. The changes at Kraft, the largest U.S. food maker, will affect more than 1,000 products and eliminate more than 10 million pounds of salt over the two-year period, the company said.
Was Snack Food Heir Murdered Over Business?
March 19, 2010 5:22 am | News | CommentsBIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — An angry letter and a bag of Golden Flake chips were taped inside Major Bashinsky's abandoned car when it was found near downtown Birmingham. Days later the snack food heir's body was fished out of a public golf course pond a few miles away, and now police are trying to find out if the chips that made his family wealthy had anything to do with his death.
Yogurt Plant To Open In Vermont
March 19, 2010 5:21 am | News | CommentsBRATTLEBORO, Vt. (AP) — Construction is getting under way on a new 39,000-square-foot Vermont yogurt plant that is expected to employ 50 people within five years. Gov. Jim Douglas and other state officials attended the ceremonial groundbreaking Thursday in Brattleboro for the $32 million Commonwealth Dairy plant, which is owned by German yogurt maker Ehrmann AG.
Bill Would Ban Selling Energy Drinks To Teens
March 19, 2010 5:18 am | News | CommentsBATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Lori McHughes calls energy drinks, those jolts of caffeine popular with teenagers and college students, "speed in a can." And she wants restrictions on who can buy them in Louisiana. Lawmakers will consider the idea of a ban on the sale of the drinks to anyone under the age of 16, after McHughes' health concerns about the beverages persuaded state Sen.
Tropicana To Reduce Carbon Footprint
March 19, 2010 5:17 am | News | CommentsPURCHASE, N.Y. (PRNewswire) — One year after PepsiCo and the Carbon Trust launched an innovative partnership that began with certifying the carbon footprint of Tropicana Pure Premium orange juice, Tropicana is announcing a groundbreaking pilot program that could drastically reduce its lifecycle carbon footprint and have a dramatic impact on the broader agricultural landscape for orange growers and producers of other agricultural products.
Keeping The Chocolate Flowing
March 18, 2010 11:40 am | Articles | CommentsEstablished in 1978, Kinnerton today is part of Zetar Plc, and can boast a turnover of £60 million. At its manufacturing plant in Fakenham, the company produces confectionery ranging from Easter eggs and Advent calendars, through to chocolate bars and chocolate miniature figures, as well as chocolate lollipops.
The Produce Safety Project Is On The Case
March 17, 2010 12:17 pm | Videos | CommentsThe Produce Safety Project is talking to fruit and vegetable growers around the country before making recommendations to the FDA about how best to make the food supply chain safer and increase consumer confidence.
DIY Fuel Made From Candy, Beer & Soda
March 17, 2010 12:12 pm | Videos | CommentsThe E-Fuel MicroFueler can turn regular food waste and a little bit of beer or wine into fuel for automobiles—and it can do it right in your backyard.
A Spud's Life: From Farm To McDonald's Fries
March 17, 2010 12:11 pm | Videos | CommentsMcDonald's Moms visit a Canadian potato farm to learn just what it takes to become a McDonald's french fry.
Meet Your Maker (And Buy Him a Beer)
March 17, 2010 12:09 pm | Videos | CommentsA father and son team up to open a beermaking operation, blogging their way through their first batch of beer in an attempt to initiate a craft beer movement in their home city.
The Future of Chemical-Free Aseptic Packaging
March 17, 2010 6:08 am | by Josh Epstein, Director of Marketing, Advanced Electron Beams | Articles | CommentsThree dominant trends are shaping the future of shelf stable packaging technologies in the food and beverage industry. First, sustainable packaging and sustainable manufacturing practices are being adopted across the industry. Corporate social responsibility, the value of green marketing, and preparation for environmental regulation are driving consumer packaged goods manufacturers to reevaluate their packaging strategies.
Are You Overlooking a Prime Source of Cost Reductions?
March 17, 2010 6:08 am | by Bob Zak, President & General Manager, Powerit Solutions, North America | Articles | CommentsWe have a tendency to see energy as a largely uncontrollable cost—we need the energy we need when we need it, and often are dealing with a monopoly provider. But even the most energy-intensive businesses can cut energy costs significantly, and without compromising operational performance or quality.
Measure Twice, Criticize Less
March 17, 2010 6:08 am | by Karen Langhauser, Editor-in-Chief | Articles | CommentsDespite spending seven years writing about the technical advances in our modern-day food industry, I'm sometimes still guilty of letting sensationalized criticism of our nation's food production get to me. As I drive past the farmers market in my town in a hurry to get to the chain grocery store, I sometimes wonder if I am personally contributing to the downfall of our country's sustainability efforts.
Overcoming Jelly Belly Aches
March 17, 2010 6:07 am | by Karen Langhauser, Editor-in-Chief | Articles | CommentsRequests from overseas customers started almost immediately after it became known in 1980 that President-elect Ronald Reagan adored the jelly beans made by the Herman Goelitz Candy Company. Jelly Belly® jelly beans were different from the standard penny store jellies, instead manufactured through a meticulous process, with intense and unusual flavors in the candy shell as well as inside of the bean, using natural ingredients for flavoring.
UK Unions, Lawmakers Criticize Kraft CEO
March 17, 2010 5:42 am | News | CommentsLONDON (AP) — A Kraft Inc. executive apologized on Tuesday for raising — and then dashing — hopes that it would keep open a British factory after its takeover of Cadbury, as the U.S. company's chief executive came under fire from lawmakers and union leaders. Executive Vice President Marc Firestone said he was "truly sorry" for the uncertainty caused by Kraft's back track on the factory in Somerdale, western England, adding that the company did not plan to shut any more British factories or ax further jobs for the next two years.
Feds Talk Milk Prices With Dairy Farmers
March 17, 2010 5:41 am | News | CommentsALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., says Justice Department officials will meet later this month with upstate New York farmers and consumers over claims anticompetitive practices are driving down prices paid to dairies at the same time retail milk prices soar. The meeting with Schumer and the top federal antitrust investigator will be at Genesee Community College in Batavia on March 29.
Pet Food Maker Considers Sale
March 17, 2010 5:37 am | News | CommentsTORONTO (Canadian Press) — Three years after Menu Foods Income Fund became the centre of a tainted pet food scandal, the company says it is considering whether to sell all or part of its assets. The Toronto-based fund (TSX:MEW.UN), which operates Menu Foods Ltd., said Tuesday the move takes into account changes in federal tax rules for income trusts, which come into effect in 2011.
USDA: Climate Change Legislation Will Benefit Farmers, Ranchers
March 17, 2010 5:36 am | News | CommentsWASHINGTON (USDA) — Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack Monday discussed how properly structured climate change and energy legislation will benefit America's farmers and ranchers in a speech at the National Farmers Union 2010 convention in Rapid City, S.D. USDA also released a memo looking at assumptions in the FASOM model—developed by researchers at Texas A & M University that the Environmental Protection Agency—to study the impacts of climate legislation.
Judge Allows Genetically Engineered Beet Harvest
March 17, 2010 5:35 am | News | CommentsSAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A federal judge on Tuesday said farmers can harvest their genetically engineered sugar beets this year, ruling the economic impact too great and that environmental groups waited too long to request that the crop be yanked from the ground and otherwise barred from the market.
