News
Jones Soda Signs Deal With Walmart
May 28, 2010 4:57 am | CommentsCHICAGO (AP) — Jones Soda Co. shares gained nearly 84 percent Thursday, after the drink maker said it inked a deal to sell its soda at Walmart stores. THE SPARK: Jones Soda said the deal will expose its products to millions of new customers while boosting the number of distribution outlets by 10 percent.
Japan, Australia Head To Court Over Whaling
May 28, 2010 4:56 am | CommentsCANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia said Friday it will challenge Japan's whale hunting in the Antarctic at the International Court of Justice, a major legal escalation in its campaign to ban the practice despite Tokyo's insistence on the right to so-called scientific whaling. Japan's Foreign Ministry called the action regrettable at a time when 88 member-nations of the International Whaling Commission were discussing a proposal that could allow some limited whaling for the first time in 25 years.
Could Molson Coors Bid On Foster's?
May 27, 2010 11:16 am | CommentsMONTREAL (AP) — A member of the Canadian founding family of Molson Coors Brewing Co. wants to see the company become a top global beer producer but won't say if it is interested in making a bid for Australia's Foster's. "Our appetite as Molson Coors Brewing Co. is to be one of the best and biggest brewing companies in the world and we're always looking for opportunities to grow," Geoff Molson told reporters Wednesday after speaking to the Montreal Chamber of Commerce.
Mexico Pull Junk Food From Schools
May 27, 2010 11:15 am | CommentsMEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico is looking to battle the bulging waistlines of its children by banning the sale of junk food in its schools, including many of the traditional treats generations of kids have grown up with. Getting the ax along with modern soft drinks and sweets will be salted tamarind candy, pork rinds and atole, the thick and sweet cornstarch-based beverage served piping hot in the morning.
Trans Fat Limits Equal Healthier Foods
May 27, 2010 11:15 am | CommentsLOS ANGELES (AP) — Holy fish sticks! Scientists finally have some good news about fat in our foods. Contrary to fears, most food manufacturers and restaurants did not just swap one bad ingredient for another when they trimmed artery-clogging trans fats from products and menus, an analysis finds.
Raw Milk May Have E. Coli
May 27, 2010 11:14 am | CommentsST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Officials are warning consumers about potential E. coli contamination in raw milk sold by the Hartmann Dairy Farm near the south-central Minnesota town of Gibbon. The Minnesota Department of Health said Wednesday it has linked three cases of E. coli to unpasteurized milk from the dairy.
Dairy Wants Review Of Abuse Video
May 27, 2010 11:13 am | CommentsMARYSVILLE, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio dairy farm has asked veterinarians to independently review an animal rights group's video of cows being punched, kicked and poked with pitchforks. Conklin Dairy Farms Inc. said in a statement Thursday that the undercover video shot by Mercy For Animals is missing context of how the farm is operated responsibly.
Green Groups Settle Farm Pollution Suit With EPA
May 27, 2010 11:13 am | CommentsDES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will gather information about factory farms to determine whether more should be regulated as part of a settlement with environmental groups concerned about water pollution. The EPA reached the settlement Tuesday with the Natural Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club and Waterkeeper Alliance.
Commerce Dept. Declares 'Fishery Disaster' In Gulf
May 26, 2010 5:03 am | CommentsNEW ORLEANS (AP) — U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke has declared a Gulf of Mexico fishery disaster for Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama because of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The declaration would authorize emergency unemployment pay for commercial and charter fishermen if Congress approves President Barack Obama's proposal for such payments.
Sabra Opens Virginia Plant
May 26, 2010 5:02 am | CommentsCOLONIAL HEIGHTS, Va. (AP) — Snack dip company Sabra is cutting the ribbon on its new Virginia manufacturing plant as it goes after a growing American appetite for hummus. New York-based Sabra Dipping Company makes a range of refrigerated dips and spreads that are all certified kosher and vegetarian.
Video Shows Dairy Cow Abuse
May 26, 2010 5:02 am | CommentsCLEVELAND (AP) — An animal welfare group said Tuesday that a graphic video it secretly recorded shows workers at a dairy farm beating cows with crowbars, stabbing them with pitchforks and punching them in their heads. The video was recorded in an undercover investigation at Conklin Dairy Farms Inc.
Australia Delays Decision On $1.4B Sugar Deal
May 26, 2010 5:01 am | CommentsSYDNEY (AP) — Australia has delayed a decision on whether to allow China's Bright Food Group to proceed with a 1.75 billion Australian dollar ($1.4 billion) offer to buy the sugar division of building materials producer CSR Ltd. The Foreign Investment Review Board filed an order on May 19 to delay the decision for 90 days while it considers the Chinese food and retail conglomerate's offer for CSR's Sucrogen division, which includes its sugar and renewable energy business.
Foster's To Separate Beer, Wine Units
May 26, 2010 5:00 am | CommentsMELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Foster's Group Ltd. said Wednesday it will split its global beer and troubled wine businesses into separate listed companies, as the Australian brewer and winemaker warned of a $1.1 billion write-down in the value of the wine operations. Foster's said in a statement that earnings for the fiscal year ending June 30 were expected between 1.
General Mills Joins Research Campus In N.C.
May 26, 2010 5:00 am | CommentsKANNAPOLIS, N.C. (AP) — General Mills is joining the North Carolina Research Campus where it will work with other companies on agricultural and nutrition issues. Multiple media outlets reported General Mills says two employees will begin working in June at the Kannapolis biotech complex.
Feds: Slaughterhouse Manager Hid Child Workers
May 25, 2010 5:20 am | CommentsWATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — A former supervisor at a kosher slaughterhouse raided by federal agents testified Monday that when child labor inspectors toured the facility, he took two workers he thought were underage and hid them in the basement. Former supervisor Brian Griffith testified Monday against former plant manager Sholom Rubashkin, who is being tried on 83 counts of child labor violations.
Workers At Venezuela's Polar On Alert After Warning
May 25, 2010 5:19 am | CommentsCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela's socialist president is threatening to "go after" the country's biggest food producer, and the corporation's workers are not happy about it. Union leader Richard Prieto says employees of Empresas Polar held meetings Monday and agreed to "defend our jobs throughout the country.
Louisiana Reopens Some Oyster Harvesting
May 25, 2010 5:18 am | CommentsBATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The state health department has ordered the reopening of an oyster harvesting area in Iberia Parish that was closed as a precaution after the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Alan Levine, secretary of the state Department of Health and Hospitals, says Area 28, which is west of the Mississippi River in Iberia Parish, reopens at sunrise Tuesday.
Analyst Expects Kellogg, General Mills To Up Prices
May 25, 2010 5:18 am | CommentsNEW YORK (AP) — Investors shouldn't worry that weak cereal pricing will last because top producers like Kellogg Co. and General Mills Inc. will likely raise prices later this year, and retailers will have no choice but to accept it, an analyst said Monday. Credit Suisse analyst Robert Moskow told clients in a note Monday that breakfast cereal has been the "golden child of the food industry" in the past several years because of its better-than-average sales trends, ability to maintain prices and improvement in operating margins.
California Bill Would Ease Asian Noodle Rules
May 25, 2010 5:17 am | CommentsSACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Restaurants and vendors could sell Asian rice noodles at room temperature without fear of being shut down due to health concerns if they follow provisions in a bill approved Monday by the state Senate. Sen. Leland Yee sought the bill after the state Department of Public Health cited San Francisco's Kun Wo Food Product Inc.
China Tries To Contain Food Prices
May 25, 2010 5:16 am | CommentsBEIJING (AP) — China's top economic planning agency Tuesday urged price regulators to take action against politically sensitive rising food prices amid worries about higher inflation. "Price stability is critical to overall economic development," the National Development and Reform Commission said in a statement posted on its website.
