News
Goodbye Cabernet?
June 22, 2010 5:32 am | CommentsNAPA, Calif. (AP) — Want to drink in Chaos Theory? Or perhaps you'd care to give your palate an Educated Guess? We're talking wines, of course, specifically a new breed of quirkily named wines that aim to make you think while you drink. "I'm a big believer in the theater of the mind," says Jerry Prial, who decided to call his wine Debauchery to tickle the intellect as well as the palate.
Italian Mozzarella Turns Blue
June 21, 2010 4:48 am | CommentsROME (AP) — Italian police confiscated some 70,000 balls of mozzarella in Turin after consumers noticed the milky-white cheese quickly developed a bluish tint when the package was opened, authorities said Saturday. Agriculture Minister Giancarlo Galan ordered ministry laboratories to investigate what he called a "disturbing" development.
Akzo Nobel Sells Starch Arm For $1.3B
June 21, 2010 4:47 am | CommentsAMSTERDAM (AP) — Dutch paintmaker Akzo Nobel NV said Monday it has agreed to sell its starches arm to U.S.-based Corn Products International for around $1.3 billion. Akzo Nobel acquired the starches business, which operates under the name National Starch, as part of its 2008 acquisition of British paintmaker ICI and did not consider it part of its core business.
Roundup's Troubles May Mean More Chemicals
June 21, 2010 4:47 am | CommentsCHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — When the weed killer Roundup was introduced in the 1970s, it proved it could kill nearly any plant while still being safer than many other herbicides, and it allowed farmers to give up harsher chemicals and reduce tilling that can contribute to erosion. But 24 years later, a few sturdy species of weed resistant to Roundup have evolved, forcing farmers to return to some of the less environmentally safe practices they abandoned decades ago.
Heinz Buys Chinese Soy Sauce For $165M
June 21, 2010 4:46 am | CommentsPITTSBURGH (AP) — H.J. Heinz Co. says it has agreed to buy a Chinese food company that makes soy sauces and fermented bean curd for $165 million. Monday's deal for Foodstar would give the U.S. ketchup maker a bigger foothold in China, boosting sales in that region by $300 million a year.
Arizona Citrus Plant Closing 'End Of An Era'
June 21, 2010 4:45 am | CommentsMESA, Ariz. (AP) — One of the last citrus processing plants in the Phoenix metropolitan area is closing its Mesa facility after operating since the 1930s, and the future of the remaining groves is becoming more uncertain. The board of the Mesa Citrus Growers Association decided last month to close the plant as the number of citrus orchards has dwindled and crop prices haven't kept up with production costs.
Ralcorp To Acquire American Italian Pasta For $1.2B
June 21, 2010 4:45 am | CommentsST. LOUIS (AP) — Food maker Ralcorp Holdings Inc. says it has agreed to acquire American Italian Pasta Co. for $1.2 billion and is buying two cracker makers. But the maker of Post cereals and store branded products also offered third-quarter guidance below expectations due to tough competition in the cereal category.
Marie Callender Products Pulled Due To Salmonella
June 18, 2010 4:35 am | CommentsWASHINGTON (AP) — ConAgra Foods is recalling all Marie Callender's brand cheesy chicken and rice frozen meals after they have been possibly linked to a salmonella outbreak in 14 states. The company said it was recalling the meals after it was informed by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of a possible link between the meals and 29 illnesses.
Campbell Soup Recalls SpaghettiOs
June 18, 2010 4:34 am | CommentsWASHINGTON (AP) — Campbell Soup Co. is recalling 15 million pounds of SpaghettiOs with meatballs after a cooker malfunctioned at one of the company's plants in Texas and left the meat undercooked. The Agriculture Department announced the recall late Thursday. Campbell spokesman Anthony Sanzio said the company is recalling certain lots of the product manufactured since December 2008 "out of an abundance of caution" because officials don't know exactly when the cooker at the Paris, Texas, plant malfunctioned.
Danone To Merge With Russian Dairy
June 18, 2010 4:33 am | CommentsST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) — France's Danone announced on Friday a deal to create the largest dairy in Russia and the former Soviet Union by merging its operations in the region with a Russian firm. Danone said that by combining its operations with Unimilk total sales in the former Soviet Union — including countries such as Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Belarus — would reach euro1.
Indiana Brewery Plans Expansion
June 18, 2010 4:33 am | CommentsBLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — A small brewery in southern Indiana plans to start selling its beer around the state as a new facility will boost its production capacity by 1,000 percent. The Bloomington Brewing Co. has been selling its beer for 14 years at one restaurant: Lennie's, in Bloomington.
Beef Processor To Pay $2M For Fish Kills
June 18, 2010 4:32 am | CommentsPHILADELPHIA (AP) — Federal authorities say a suburban Philadelphia beef processor has agreed to pay $2 million in penalties and damages to settle allegations that it violated clean water laws leading to three fish kills in the Schuylkill River basin. Officials said Wednesday that the consent degree was reached with JBS Souderton, formerly Smithfield Beef Group, which operates the Montgomery County rendering plant.
Arizona Lab Testing Fish For Oil Contamination
June 18, 2010 4:31 am | CommentsPHOENIX (AP) — Arizona's public-health laboratory will be a key player in the federal government's effort to find out whether oil is contaminating seafood in the Gulf of Mexico. The Arizona Department of Health Services lab is among four state facilities nationally that will team with four federal labs to measure the impact of the massive British Petroleum oil leak on the region's seafood.
Lindt To Process Cocoa In New Hampshire
June 16, 2010 4:44 am | CommentsSTRATHAM, N.H. (AP) — Swiss chocolate maker Lindt has finished a big expansion of its New Hampshire factory with the addition of a cocoa-processing plant that's transforming beans into chocolate under one roof in the United States. It's a milestone for the U.S. headquarters of the company, which is based in Kilchberg, Switzerland.
Nestle Sues Sara Lee
June 16, 2010 4:44 am | CommentsPARIS (AP) — Nestle SA has launched a patent infringement lawsuit against U.S. rival Sara Lee Corp. over a product that it says unfairly uses its popular capsule-based Nespresso coffee machines, the Swiss food giant said Tuesday. Nestle said it is suing Sara Lee in France, where the U.
Shrimp Prices Expected To Rise
June 16, 2010 4:43 am | CommentsThe Gulf oil spill probably won't steal shrimp from your plate, but it may take a bigger chunk out of your wallet to get them there. Though much of the Gulf of Mexico remains open to commercial fishing, Louisiana's biggest seafood item is down to just 30 percent of normal production, according to the Louisiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board.
Panel Wants Gov't To Cut Sodium Intake
June 16, 2010 4:43 am | CommentsWASHINGTON (AP) — An advisory panel is encouraging the government to recommend that Americans reduce their salt intake — even though they acknowledge that it won't be easy. The panel, appointed by the Agriculture and Health and Human Services Departments, makes dietary recommendations every five years that serve as the basis for the government's popular food pyramid and for a range of federal nutrition programs, including school lunches.
Regulators May Expand E. Coli Testing
June 16, 2010 4:42 am | CommentsYAKIMA, Wash. (AP) — The food industry and government regulators have focused for years on finding the most virulent strain of E. coli bacteria, which has killed hundreds of people and sickened thousands every year. But they don't regularly test for six less common E. coli strains that can cause illnesses equally as serious.
Campbell Ships Low-Salt Soups
June 16, 2010 4:41 am | CommentsCAMDEN, N.J. (AP) — Campbell Soup Co. said Tuesday that it will begin shipping 21 varieties of its lower sodium soups this month. The company has been gradually reducing the amount of sodium in its products over several years and said these soups have 25 to 45 percent lower sodium than earlier levels.
Wholesale Prices Fall In May
June 16, 2010 4:41 am | CommentsWASHINGTON (AP) — Wholesale prices fell for a second straight month in May, the first time that has happened in a year, reflecting big declines in the cost of energy and food. The Labor Department says wholesale prices dropped 0.3 percent in May following a 0.1 percent decline in April.
