Moves to reform the European sugar regime will accelerate after the
EU loses its appeal against a World Trade Organisation decision
that its handouts to sugar farmers are illegal, reports Lindsey
Partos.
Vulnerabilities in the international food chain are evident as an
unapproved genetically modified corn leaks into feed, flour and
oils; but Europe's food safety agency says this week the illegal
Bt10 corn is unlikely to pose...
The value of the UK agricultural industry's gross output including
subsidies directly linked to product increased by 2.5 per cent to
£16.9 billion while intermediate consumption rose by 5.4 per cent
due in part to the rise in...
GM ingredients are here to stay as Brussels confirms 'full
confidence' in the regulatory framework that controls the entry of
biotech foodstuffs into the European food chain, reports Lindsey
Partos.
Finnish plant sterol maker Raisio has acquired a 25 per cent stake
in Polish dairy Obory that will allow it to launch new Benecol
products in the emerging market.
Managers at Estonia's Estmilk dairy group have warned that the
company is on the verge of collapse after its Russian shareholder,
Nutritec, failed to inject funds into the ailing firm.
Chr Hansen's innovative Eastern European marketing campaign, which
kicks off today, should help the Czech Republic's dairy sector find
new ways of adding value to their products, writes Anthony
Fletcher.
Food manufacturers need to consider a risk/benefit analysis of
activities on acrylamide, a harmful chemical recently identified in
carbohydrate-rich foods, conclude stakeholders after a recent
meeting in Brussels,reports Lindsey Partos.
The European Environmental Bureau (EEB) has slammed new EU
packaging standards, claiming they are likely to encourage
increased packaging volumes and do little to facilitate greater
recycling.
With the countdown extended, talks continue this week in Geneva
between the US and Brussels to move the entrenched trade dispute on
genetically modified organisms forward.
A legal action brought by a northern English cheese producer
against the European Commission over the right to use the label
feta on its products has finally reached the European Court of
Justice - the UK, however, has declined to...
The European food industry could see a unified version of labels on
foodstuffs, and accompanying cost-savings, as Europe's executive
arm calls for standardised labels across the EU, writes Lindsey
Partos.
Markos Kyprianou, the new Commissioner for Health and Consumer
Protection in Brussels, will continue in his predecessor David
Byrne's foodsteps, pushing to maintain high levels of food safety
in the EU.
Campina, the Dutch dairy co-operative, has announced it is to focus
investment across its milk, yoghurt and dairy-based dessert
divisions in 2005, a move which will allow it to penetrate the
burgeoning trend for branded dairy products...
Food packaging firms enter 2005 facing tough new rules on materials
used that entered into force in December 2004. Repealing the former
framework Directive 89.109/EEC, the new regulation ((EC) No
1935/2004) lays down stricter demands...
Unilever's cholesterol-lowering Becel Pro.activ milk drink has
become the fifth product to earn a product-specific health claim
under Sweden's health claims system.
The controversial issue of nutritional profiles will remain one of
the biggest hurdles for EU legislation on health claims but recent
reports suggest that Germany may be ready to concede some elements
of profiling, reports Dominique...
An illegal red colour identified in a popular food oil prompts a
recall in the UK, the latest in a series of similar moves by the
country's food watchdog.
Driving research in the area of chemical contaminants, nutrition
and microbiology the UK's food agency is calling for scientists to
fulfill a batch of new research requirements.
Plans for EU sugar reform are unfair and would only benefit the
biggest producers, according to 10 member states including
Slovenia, Hungary and Latvia, as new discussions split opinions in
eastern Europe, reports Chris Mercer.
Campina, the Dutch dairy co-operative, has blamed the strong Euro
and Europe-wide milk price instability in forcing it to lower its
milk prices, Tom Armitage reports.
The first ever EU conference held in a new Member State took place
last week, focusing on control with remote sensing (CwRS) of
area-based subsidies, an innovative way of assessing agricultural
subsidies.
The rise of snacks as grazing food has seen the Czech Republic,
recently identified by the European Commission as having the
longest working hours in Europe, emerge as one of the region's most
dynamic savoury snacks markets,...
UK dairy foods company Fayrefield Foods is to launch the first
foods containing Forbes Medi-Tech's cholesterol-lowering plant
sterols in the UK and Ireland next year, using the GM-free claim to
competitive advantage.
Coca-Cola Services S.A. has applied to the UK's novel foods
committee seeking approval to market fruit juices, fruit nectars
and tomato juice with added plant sterols.
The European Commission has proposed forcing companies to disclose
all financing done off the books as part of a four-point initiative
to prevent accounting scandals such as the recent bankruptcy of
Parmalat.
The EU Commission's announcement this week that Germany will be
referred to the European Court of Justice unless it establishes an
effective, simple and non-discriminatory deposit system for
beverage packaging is music to the...
A popular food oil used extensively in food formulations is the
latest product-type to be pulled from the UK supermarket shelves as
the country's food watchdog identifies the illegal carcinogen Sudan
IV in a batch of palm oil...
Brussels will fight to appeal against a new decision by the World
Trade Organisation that rules the EU illegally subsidises exports
of sugar, ruling in favour of a legal challenge by Australia,
Thailand and Brazil, the world's...
Slovenia's wine makers, buoyed by the news of EU funding for their
vineyards, face a long struggle if they are to conquer foreign
markets and compete effectively against the titans of the world
wine business - but one man is...
Gel-forming additives used widely in jelly mini-cups have been
permanently banned within the European Union following a ruling in
the summer by the European Food Safety Agency that they constituted
a choking hazard.
In her introductory speech before the European Parliament last
week, farm chief designate Mariann Fischer Boel signalled that
sugar reform and defending EU products at WTO talks were among the
key challenges for EU agriculture over...
This year's Czech harvest has been hailed as the best since 1993,
producing almost nine million tonnes of crops, showing that the
farming industry has recovered well from a poor 2003 and the
disastrous floods of 2002 - just in...
Steel packaging recycling in Europe increased by 1.3 per cent last
year to reach just over 2.1 million tonnes, though the EU15
countries remain way ahead of new member states.
Hungary's accession to the European Union has already led to
increased competition in the food industry there, prompting one of
the country's leading food manufacturers, Pick Szeged, to embark
upon a two-year restructuring...
Croatian food group Podravka says it is looking to expand
production at its Polish production facility to keep up with
demands in the Polish market and to increase exports to other EU
countries.
The majority shareholder in Danish vegetable oil firm Aarhus United
could soon place its considerable stake on the market, citing a
potential difference in long-term investment interests.
The lagging UK packaging industry is vesting hopes in the dairy
sector as the source of a next generation of innovative packaging,
but individual companies view this opportunity as unlikely to
benefit British domestic packaging sales,...
Revenues from Czech dairy exports might have increased by 30 per
cent in the first six months of the year, but the Czech Dairy
Association says it is increasing dairy prices, not higher volumes
due to accession, that is boosting the...
Russia has become a lucrative market for dairy product exporters in
recent years, in particular those based in eastern Europe. But the
threat of punitive import duties from the Russians, concerned about
the future of their own dairy...
Reform of the European Union's milk policy will mean a drop in
prices for skimmed milk powder, prompting Danish dairy group Arla
to take action to counter the expected decrease.
Norwegian CLA company Natural has seen profits fall considerably in
this year's second quarter after a major boost to revenue from new
licensing agreements last year.
Nearly four months on from Poland's accession to the European
Union, the country's dairy sector is reporting such heavy demand
for its products that it is struggling to keep up with demands.
Italy's antitrust authority says that it has fined packaging giant
Tetra Pak €95 million for not respecting a ban it had imposed in
Aug 1993, which barred Tetra Pak from acquiring Italpack.
A three year EU project funded by Brussels will seek to improve
understanding of the role phytoestrogens, found in a host of foods,
can play in reducing the risk of colon, breast and prostate
cancers.
Breakthrough talks at the weekend on world trade will have received
a reticent welcome from a European food industry likely to see the
phasing out of payouts to export food products.
