Here at last
The new Proficiency in Food Manufacturing qualification by Improve has been awarded to two UK companies – and not before time.
Archives for March 1, 2011
Head in the clouds
Despite the clamour to reduce food miles, the food industry relies on transporting products and ingredients whether it is milk, poultry or hops between locations, in order to add value to them.
Fat that got the cream
Reformulating foods to reduce levels of fat, salt and sugar is key to reducing the UK’s spiralling obesity epidemic. But it’s no mean feat.
Naturex to launch range of colouring foodstuffs
Naturex aims to launch a portfolio of colouring foodstuffs later this year to suit beverage, confectionery, ice cream, fruit preparation and dairy products.
Dairies demonstrate best practice in sustainability
By Paul Gander In the same month that Asda bafflingly began trials on a ‘paper bottle’ for milk, citing its sustainability, the fresh milk supply chain is demonstrating best practice with the existing high density polyethylene (HDPE) format.
Gangmasters use loophole to exploit illegal EU workers
Food and agricultural businesses are often unknowingly illegally employing workers from Romania and Bulgaria within the 'black economy' because of a loophole in the law regarding self-employment status, it has emerged.
Markets open for photovoltaic renewable energy
Britain may not be able to boast anywhere near the hours of sunshine of some Mediterranean countries, but that doesn’t mean companies based here can’t benefit from greater use of photovoltaic (PV) renewable energy sources.
A bigger slice of the artisan pie
Oliver James Foods’ pie factory must fulfil a tough brief to commercialise the delivery of artisan-style, quality products
New safety markets open up for high-pressure processing
As it plans to demonstrate how its vacuum and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) options can be integrated with high-pressure processing (HPP) at this May’s Interpack show in Düsseldorf, Multivac claims that the process technology is being driven by...
FSA goes Gaga over breast milk ice cream...
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is investigating whether a controversial ice cream made with donated breast milk, and sold in a London restaurant, breaches food safety regulations.
Relief for workers at fire-hit Findus site
Around 300 workers employed at a Newcastle frozen food factory who lost their jobs after the site was gutted by fire in early 2009 are finally starting to receive statutory redundancy pay.
Cold logic, warm profits
Automation can make a major contribution to the bottom line. But the logic behind where and how you automate processes is not as simple as might first appear...
Getting bitter all the time
Brewers enjoy experimenting with hops – and there are more available to them now than ever before...
Productivity in the stitched up bag
An automated bagging line by Pacepacker has enabled Merseyside chip shop potato grower Baxters High Brow Produce to improve pack presentation, increase throughput by 38% an hour and reduce production staff.
Forum aims to bring supply chain together
A new forum for food logistics has been launched, which will enable supply chain managers to collaborate and share ideas about new ways of working together.
Pump down the volume and compressed air use
Watson-Marlow’s MasoSine pump technology has solved a number of problems at Pukka Pies. The firm replaced pneumatically operated air pumps with MasoSine SPS 2.5 pumps to transfer meat fillings at its Leicestershire site, from where it produces over 60M...
What’s your basket case?
It’s going to be another challenging year for industry. With VAT increases, soaring fuel costs and extreme weather conditions influencing ingredients, it hasn’t begun well.
Goldenfry Foods wins trade secrets case
Goldenfry Foods has a won a legal judgement against three former employees who misused trade secrets to establish a breakaway company and appropriate a £5m supermarket contract for gravy granules.
Weigher overcomes a sticky problem
German barbecue-ready chicken processor Stolle has improved the speed and accuracy with which sticky marinated chicken pieces can be weighed since installing an Ishida Screw Feeder multihead weigher.
Join the culture club
Complacency about food safety threatens many food companies, with the risk of the next media feeding frenzy just around the corner.
Slash and burn waste
Manufacturers cooking or heat-treating foodstuffs can, for the first time, access revolutionary biomass boiler technology that will enable them to cut utility spending and carbon emissions.
Government boosts DNA testing to fight rising fraud
Increasingly frequent food fraud incidents and urgent demand for allergen and genetically modified ingredient testing have spurred on a government initiative to boost the robustness of DNA sequence testing for food
Use of late customisation is rising
The concept of late customisation looks to be expanding out of the confines of research departments and into mainstream manufacturing operations. It’s a way of cost-effectively making a variety of products that use a common ingredient by adding flavour...
Ardo launches frozen ingredients firm
Ardo UK has formed a new company, Ardo Food Ingredients, to break into supplying frozen fruit, vegetables and herbs to food processors.
Tomorrow is another tray
Cardboard could replace aluminium and plastic as the material for ready meal and sandwich trays in the modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) process, if a new development takes off in the UK.
Chivas Brothers makes a smart move
Chivas Brothers, the Scotch whisky and premium gin business of Pernod Ricard, has recently taken delivery of a new fleet of Hyster forklifts at its Paisley bottling operation, which produces up to 13M cases a year.
Variable speed drives cut costs for dryer users
Drying machinery maker Simon Dryers has reduced its operational and capital costs by installing ABB variable speed drives (VSDs).
‘eco Plastic’ packages extend shelf-life
A new packaging material derived from corn-starch can extend product shelf-life and boost green credentials, says its developer.
Low cost green way to cool meat
Research is underway to develop lower cost and greener equipment that can cool water-cooked meat joints such as hams safely and rapidly, without compromising flavour and texture.
Supply issues hamper market growth for venison processors
Venison processors are ready to expand their market presence but are hampered by a lack of supply.
Nutritional labels spice up sales
Chilli Jam Man has boosted sales by including specific nutritional breakdowns on all its labels with the help of advice from food group Deliciously Yorkshire.
Safety auditors in developing world are ‘cause for concern’
We report from the Global Food Safety Conference in London last month.
Approved food lube
Food-grade lubricants manufacturer Rocol says it is now the UK’s first ISO 21469:2006 certified lubricants producer, which provides independent assurance that products have been formulated, manufactured and supplied hygienically and safely.
Generation excess
Retirement guidelines are changing, but firms must tread carefully before retiring employees to avoid ending up in court.
Nut butter manufacturer boosts output by 500%
The combined application of Flexicon stainless steel screw conveyors and a range of bulk bag unloaders has helped manufacturers of the MaraNatha brand of organic and natural nut butters to increase productivity five-fold.
Call for support for total ban on food waste to landfill
Significant public and private sector initiatives look set to spur food and drink processors to meet urgent environmental targets, starting with a call from the UK’s largest food waste recycler.
All change please
To stay ahead in the ready meals sector, manufacturers must be quick to innovate and diversify.
Waitrose’s ordering system to underpin massive expansion
Waitrose is working with supply chain systems firm Aldata Solutions to roll out an ordering system across all its food categories.
Chess and the supply chain
The queen marched on, confident of her move. The bishop stayed near her, knowing that his position was vulnerable to attack. If the enemy struck, he would be the victim. Yet it would be an honour to die protecting his queen. The moment was tense. Then,...
Orders flow in for dairy-free chocolate eggs
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.
The Italian approach to food packaging
Responsibility for food labelling in England moved to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) from the Food Standards Agency (FSA) last year. Since then, there has been a deafening silence on the fate of the draft Date Marking...