A member of the House of Commons select committee that questioned Kraft executives on the Cadbury takeover this morning has told FoodManufacture.co.uk that he is concerned by the company's failure to commit to safeguarding UK jobs beyond 2012.
Chocolate maker Bendicks has announced the start of a consultation on the future of its Hampshire chocolate facility that could see 87 UK jobs moved abroad.
By Lorraine Mullaney Demand for Moo Free’s dairy-free chocolate Easter eggs is so great that the manufacturer has doubled the size of the chocolate room at its Reading factory, taken on new staff and plans to move to new premises later this year.
United Biscuits has appointed UK md Benoit Testard as its new group chief executive as current boss executive chairman David Fish moves into a non-executive role.
Despite robust overall growth, Kraft is still suffering from costs associated with its £11.5bn Cadbury purchase, according to the US giant's full-year accounts.
Traditional boiled sweets maker Joseph Dobson has more than doubled its output, while reducing its energy costs, following the installation of two new air compressors from Thorite.
Food testing laboratory Eurofins UK has developed a new rapid approach for the testing of melamine contamination in chocolate, with same day results available by special request.
Burton’s Foods’ proposals to close its biscuit factory in Moreton would significantly increase costs for Manor Bakeries and Typhoo Tea, which share the same site, Labour MP for Wallasey Angela Eagle has warned.
The European Commission is still unable to say when the controversial nutrient profiling model in the EU health claims Regulation will be finalised, two years after food manufacturers were told it would be published.
Peppersmith - the premium gum firm created by former Innocent Drinks executives Mike Stevens and Dan Shrimpton – is venturing into premium mints in the spring.
London-based Bompass & Parr says its flavour-changing chewing gum that brings Willy Wonka’s famous three-course meal confection closer to reality could be on sale within 12 months.
Premium pudding firm Gü has “sincerely apologised” to consumers for a production error that means some chocolate truffles on UK sale could contain mould.
Union representatives will meet Nestlé bosses on January 16 to ask for a 'social audit' on the harm that could result from the firm's phased closure of its Castleford site from December 2011.
Nestlé Confectionery UK is proposing to close its Castleford factory and merge all of its UK 'seasonal' manufacturing into its Halifax site by the end of 2012.
French supplier Roquette is hailing the potential of polyols to boost dental health, following recent article 14 positive opinions for sugar-free gum from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
Dr Bob Hagan – who heads the global analytical network at Kraft Foods – has been appointed as the new md of Reading Scientific Services (RSSL). He replaces Kay O'Donnell.
After hammering out a definition of the term ‘nanomaterial’ in a draft resolution, the European Commission is now inviting comments from interested parties over the next four weeks.
Mars, a private company once famed for its secrecy, is cranking up efforts to engage with external collaborators via the launch of a new open innovation website, in which it will invite potential partners to help it solve its research and development...
Hotel Chocolat has vigorously denied claims by the GMB union that it has not properly canvassed staff over union recognition at its Huntingdon chocolate factory.
Artisan confectionery manufacturers are being undermined by a lack of clarity regarding the use of the word ‘hand-made’ on labels, according to chocolate maker Chocolaterie Casemir.
New product development is being disrupted by HM Revenue & Customs’ (HMRC’s) increased efforts to claw back value added tax (VAT) on food as the government tackles UK debt, according to lawyers and manufacturers.
Wigan-based handmade sweet producer Uncle Joe’s is keen to double its turnover "as quickly as possible" as it approaches full capacity at its current site.
A serious fire at a factory supplying packaging materials to United Biscuits’ McVitie's factory in Carlisle has not significantly disrupted production, the biscuit and snacks firm insists.
In a move that has caught market analysts by surprise, UK based snack and biscuit maker, United Biscuits, is reportedly close to a deal with leading Chinese food group Bright Food in terms of a buy out.
More than 360 staff out of 500 employed at the Tunnock's caramel wafer and teacake factory in Uddingston, Glasgow, downed tools yesterday and will strike again next Tuesday.
Production of more than a million teacakes could be in jeopardy if a strike at leading Scottish biscuit and confectionery maker, Tunnock’s, goes ahead.
Higher commercial sales coupled with new product development could help Thorntons offset its high street sales slump, according to Investec analyst David Jeary.
Beet sugar giant British Sugar could produce another 120,000t of sugar a year from refineries in Wissington, Newark and Bury St Edmunds by introducing raw cane sugar inputs to its refining process, the firm has revealed.
UK imports of Californian raisins increased by 26% during the 2009/10 season, according to the trade organisation representing the largest Californian growers.
Ben & Jerry, Green & Black, and, er, Mike & Dan? If Peppersmith gum co-founders Mike Stevens and Dan Shrimpton are not quite household names just yet, give it a few years and they might just turn out to be one of grocery’s more interesting...
“Extreme” cost increases have hit demand for nuts and seeds, but strong growth in chocolate, dried fruit and snacks has helped Zetar notch up double-digit rises in sales and profits this year.
Nestlé UK remains hopeful that it can prevent a long-running pay dispute with UK staff from spilling over into widespread industrial action by continuing to negotiate on a site-by-site basis.
Tate & Lyle could net a further £70m from selling its molasses trading and Vietnam sugar businesses following the £211m sale of its EU sugar division, according to Investec Securities.
Kraft has rejected claims made by the Unite trade union that it is behind schedule with the transfer of operations from its Somerdale factory to its new chocolate factory in Skarbimierz, Poland.
Mars-owned Wrigley will pay consumers up to $7m after settling a class action that challenged its right to claim its Eclipse gum was, "scientifically proven to help kill the germs that cause bad breath".
Flexibility and speed are the main benefits of a new Schubert automated packaging line chosen by confectionery maker Thorntons to pack a wide variety of its assorted chocolates.
Ending months of speculation, Asian confectionery giant Lotte Group will acquire the Wedel business in Poland from Kraft Foods, subject to regulatory approval.
Game-changing innovation is not – and should not – be the top priority for every new product development team, especially in the current economic climate, according to the boss of one of the nation’s biggest brands.
