Archives for November 5, 2013

← 2013

Creamy coconut milk powder has a long shelf-life

Sternchemie says its spray-dried coconut milk powder offers many benefits for large-scale food preparation. SternCream can be used in wet and dry products, is said to be easy to process, and has a long shelf-life.

Testing times in water vapour transmission

Absence of an ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH) layer in board pot packaging has been found not to adversely affect water vapour transmission rates (WVTR) in tests carried out by food research organisation Campden BRI.

Keep the freshness and crunch in bean sprouts

France's biggest producer of bean sprouts Heng Sieng has automated its packing operation with the installation of two Ishida multihead weighers that combine gentle and hygienic handling with fast and accurate weighing.

Our stock is soaring

By Gary Scattergood

Core products are crucial for BHJ Ingredients to weather the storm, says Gary Scattergood

Slash the salt

By Michelle Knott

Yeast extracts are helping food firms slash the salt, reports Michelle Knott

Mintel sees double for vitamin K2

By Gary Scattergood

New launches of food and drink products containing vitamin K2 almost doubled globally (+183%) between 2008 and 2012, according to research from Mintel.

Who's in line for an industry Oscar?

By Rick Pendrous

The shortlist has been finalised for the 2013 Food Manufacturing Excellence Awards and the winners will be announced at a gala awards dinner on November 21 at the Park Lane Hilton in London.

Alliance aims to fill skills gap in packaging

By Paul Gander

An alliance of the Institute of Packaging Professionals (IOPP) in the UK, the Processing and Packaging Machinery Association (PPMA) and Food and Drink Federation (FDF) aims to have a new apprenticeship scheme with a packaging technology focus in place by...

Box-ticking and delays after horsemeat crisis

By Gary Scattergood

Eight months after the horsemeat scandal, ingredient firms are still struggling to come to terms with the consequences. No-one in the industry would argue that the world has not changed in terms of traceability, inspections, audits and accountability.

Join the chilled food 'revolution'

Greencore Prepared Meals claims to have revolutionised chilled ready meals with the development of retorted meals with peelable film. The firm makes retorted chilled meals for customers such as Weight Watchers and retailer own-label.

Sea changes

By Paul Gander

Enriching foods with omega-3 fatty acids is right on trend. Paul Gander asks which new applications are emerging - and which ones might take off

Kit enters the industrial steam cleaning Matrix

Matrix’s Industrial Range incorporates two single-phase machines and three, three-phase machines designed to fulfil heavy duty cleaning. Each machine features a continuous stainless steel boiler with steam temperatures at source between 165°C to 180°C...

Be warned: sugar is the next battleground

By Rick Pendrous

The food industry should be warned. Sugar will be the next battleground after saturated fats. Some medical experts and lobbyists claim that high levels of sugar in processed food is a far more serious issue than sat fats.

Protein link to insulin resistance

The resistance to insulin seen in type 2 diabetics is caused partly by the lack of a protein that has not previously been associated with diabetes.

Danish poultry sector steps up to stem campylobacter

By Rick Pendrous

The UK could learn some lessons from the Danish experience as its poultry sector seeks to stem soaring levels of the bacterium campylobacter in the food chain.‘Quote marks’“Double quote”

In the bag for Surya Foods

Nottingham-based Premier Tech Chronos has recently completed the commissioning of the second of the two high-speed E-Series Nett weigher E25 NXT it has supplied to Surya Foods.

Bran plan for ferulic acid process

By Gary Scattergood

HGCA - the cereals and oilseeds division of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board - is spending £235,000 to develop a process for the production of ferulic acid from wheat bran.

Will Mushroom Packaging run rings round the competition?

In May this year, Sealed Air announced the “immediate” launch of mycelium-based Mushroom Packaging cushioning in Europe. In October, it was still not commercially available in the UK. Some suspect that, despite the eco–and media–friendliness of its...

It's time to give fat in food a good press

By Clare Cheney

Fat in food doesn’t always get a bad press. A recent headline in The Times on October 23 read: ‘Butter is good for you, says heart doctor’. This must have been music to the ears of the dairy industry. The first sentence of the column even recommended...

Tesco looks to transform its supply chain

By Rick Pendrous

Tesco has called for greater collaboration and a closer working relationship with its suppliers as it attempts to transform itself to restore its declining fortunes.Ellipsis …‘Quote marks’“Double quote”

Personalised nutrition poses data and security concerns

By Gary Scattergood

Personalised nutrition is perceived positively by consumers but they lack confidence over the protection of their health data and trust in regulators and service providers, a new study has found.‘Quote marks’“Double quote”

DSM targets oat success

By Gary Scattergood

DSM is seeking to create consumer awareness of its heart health ingredient OatWell oat beta-glucan after it was named one of the most innovative products of the year at the Food Ingredients South America awards 2013.

TFAs' effect on heart 'beyond dispute'

By Gary Scattergood

The detrimental effects of industrial trans fatty acids (TFAs) on heart health are beyond dispute and limiting their intake will lower cardiovascular disease (CVD), a new study has concluded.