The Leading Source for Food Manufacturing News
Ten Steps To DIY Business Process Improvement
March 16, 2010 6:04 am | by Amy Radishofski, Features Editor, Manufacturing.net | Articles | CommentsCompanies are always striving to make their businesses leaner and more efficient, so the concept of business process improvement (BPI) is nothing new to them. However, many companies default to a third party to help with the process. “There are several reasons why companies use consultants, usually either because they think BPI is more complicated than it is, they don’t feel that their employees have the required skills to do the work, they feel that they need better facilitation skills to lead the work, or they don’t believe that existing employees will eliminate a step in a process if it negatively affects their job,” said Susan Page, Manager, HRIS for a major entertainment company located in Orlando, FL.
Soup Start-Up Finds Path For Growth
March 16, 2010 6:03 am | Articles | CommentsHaving recently retired, Philip Wilbur-with family in tow-opened the doors to HURRICANE'S Café & Deli in 2005. Among the traditional deli fare, HURRICANE'S offered quality soups and chowders, which were made entirely from all-natural, local ingredients. Soup sales took off, with volume quadrupling in a single year.
Metal Detection Equipment
March 16, 2010 5:48 am | Product Releases | CommentsGainco is now representing Fortress Technology in the sale of metal detection equipment to poultry and meat processors in the U.S. The agreement between Gainco and Canadian-based Fortress Technology enables both companies to supply and service the equipment and systems. One of the items being represented, the Fortress Phantom metal detector, is a highly-rated model equipped with the latest-generation digital equipment processing technology, and delivers the processing power needed to ensure superior detection accuracy, along with high-speed productivity and easy operability.
Ice Machines On The Web
March 16, 2010 5:47 am | Product Releases | CommentsKOLD-DRAFT®, manufacturer of high-performance ice machines, announces their newly revamped web site. The place to learn about “The Best Ice in the World,” the KOLD-DRAFT site not only allows easier browsing but also features a competitive comparison; independent (Penn State University) study results on ice density, hardness and melt rates; and a detailed explanation of KOLD-DRAFT’s exclusive ice-making technology.
Heavy Bag
March 16, 2010 5:46 am | Product Releases | CommentsThe new CNP310 Heavy bag now allows the heat tolerance and merchandising attributes of post-pasteurization bags to be applied to more abusive smoked and processed products without sacrificing merchandising appearance. This includes items with hard, abrasive surfaces such as brisket, fried turkey breast, open-rack cooked beef and products coated with coarse ground spices.
Coke To Invest $302M In Malaysia
March 16, 2010 5:44 am | News | CommentsNILAI, Malaysia (AP) — Coca-Cola said Tuesday it will build a new bottling plant in Malaysia and invest 1 billion ringgit ($302 million) over the next five years to boost growth in the Southeast Asian market. The investment comes as the world's largest soft drink maker gets ready to end its franchise with a local bottler after sales remained stagnant over the years.
Michelle Obama Talks Anti-Obesity With Food Companies
March 16, 2010 5:43 am | News | CommentsWASHINGTON (AP) — Michelle Obama has talked to schools and nutrition groups across the country in her effort to reduce childhood obesity. On Tuesday she will face the food companies that make the snacks and junk food that stuff grocery aisles and school vending machines. Not that the companies mind.
J.M. Smucker Sells Hungry Jack
March 16, 2010 5:42 am | News | CommentsORRVILLE, Ohio (AP) — The J.M. Smucker Co. on Monday announced that it has sold its Hungry Jack brand potato products business — but not the pancake and syrup business of the same name — to Basic American Foods, a privately held food company based in Walnut Creek, Calif. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Seafood Company Expanding With New Purchase
March 16, 2010 5:41 am | News | CommentsBLACKS HARBOUR, N.B. (Canadian Press) — A New Brunswick seafood company is planning to expand its holdings with the purchase of a company in Quebec. Cooke Aquaculture says it has signed a letter of intent to buy Montreal-based Ocean to Ocean and expects the deal to close at the end of the month.
NY Soda Tax Proposal Falling Flat
March 16, 2010 5:40 am | News | CommentsALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — A proposed new tax on sugary drinks appears unlikely to pass the state Senate, despite passionate campaigning by New York Gov. David Paterson and his health commissioner. Supporters have pushed the tax as a way to combat obesity while bolstering funding for state health programs.
New Research Shared At Beef Safety Summit
March 15, 2010 6:44 am | News | CommentsDALLAS (NCBA) — The essential oils in orange peel and pulp kill E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella according to research presented at the 2010 Beef Industry Safety Summit. This ongoing study is looking at these natural byproducts, created by making juice, as a potential feed ingredient for cattle.
USDA Proposes Loan Guidance For Pork Operations
March 15, 2010 6:43 am | News | CommentsWASHINGTON, D.C. (USDA) — Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that USDA will expand guidance currently in place for loans to contract poultry operations meant to protect them from questionable business practices to include contract pork operations. USDA currently provides guidance to county offices on the analysis and evaluation of applications for direct and guaranteed loans for contract poultry operations, and how those loans are serviced, to avoid making loans that may exacerbate integrator business practices that have left some producers suddenly without contracts and unable to pay back their FSA loans.
FDA Update On Salmonella Outbreak
March 15, 2010 6:42 am | by Recalls Based on FDA Samples Collected at Daniele International Inc. | News | CommentsWASHINGTON, DC (FDA) — As part of the Salmonella Montevideo investigation, the Food and Drug Administration has been actively investigating the supply chain of black and red pepper supplied to Daniele International Inc., Pascoag, R.I. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 249 people have been infected with a matching strain of Salmonella Montevideo in at least 44 states and the District of Columbia.
Dairy Farmers Caught Up In Immigration Probe
March 15, 2010 6:41 am | News | CommentsBAKERSFIELD, Vt. (AP) — A Vermont dairy farmer who was among those targeted in a federal crackdown on undocumented workers says he thought three illegal workers had proper documentation. Clement Gervais believes his family's farm has been cleared following the November inspection by immigration officials, but federal officials say four cases involving farms are still pending in Vermont.
Senators Call On Japan To Reopen Beef Market
March 12, 2010 9:23 am | News | CommentsWASHINGTON (Kyodo News International) — A group of U.S. senators have tabled a resolution urging Japan to lift its restrictions on beef imports from the United States over fear of mad cow disease, according to a Senate farm committee statement. Blanche Lincoln, a Democrat from Arkansas, and Mike Johanns, a Republican from Nebraska, jointly submitted the resolution with 17 other senators joining as cosponsors.
U.S. Regulators Examine Competition In Agriculture
March 12, 2010 9:22 am | News | CommentsANKENY, Iowa (AP) — Federal officials concerned about how much control a few corporations have over the nation's food supply pledged Friday to begin a new era of antitrust enforcement, seeking to balance agricultural power between companies, farmers and consumers. More than 650 farmers, slaughterhouse workers, lobbyists and executives gathered for a hearing on competition in agriculture that will help shape how the Obama administration redraws its antitrust policy after decades of industry consolidation.
Collaborative Innovation: How To Partner For Profit With Retailers
March 12, 2010 8:30 am | by George Young, Founding Partner, Kalypso | Articles | CommentsAt first glance, today’s retailers and food and beverage (F&B) manufacturers appear to be in a fierce battle of the brands. Retailers facing mounting pressures to differentiate continue to successfully expand and launch private brands in the marketplace. Meanwhile, F&B manufacturers are trying to protect their brand value and win back market share.
How Does Your Gearbox Sound?
March 12, 2010 8:28 am | by To read the white paper in its entirety, click here. | Articles | CommentsSound can be a very subjective thing. What may sound “unusual” to one individual may very well sound “normal” to another. As a method of diagnosing a potential problem with a gearbox or gearmotor, the sound coming from it should not solely be relied upon to determine whether-or-not a problem exists.
Universal Signal Conditioners
March 12, 2010 8:13 am | Product Releases | CommentsThese universal signal conditioners, in plastic slim-line housings, convert, isolate and transmit scale signals from a wide variety of process sensor and controller I/O. The DIN-rail mountable models (884114 and 84116) support scalable input signals including mA, VDC, thermocouple with internal cold junction compensation, two to four-wire RTDs, linear resistance and potentiometer signals.
Dickies Clothing Line
March 12, 2010 5:11 am | Product Releases | CommentsReid Supply has added the Dickies family clothing line as well as more safety products to its online offerings. Dickies has made a wide array of work apparel since 1922 and is well known for their high quality and low cost. The company offers an extensive selection of Dickies work pants and work shirts, as well as garments such as denim jeans, bib overalls, shorts, high visibility, coveralls, jackets, and insulated goods in a variety of colors and washes.
