Unilever has joined the growing number of manufacturers exploring
new ways of delivering probiotics by launching an iced lolly aimed
at children in the UK.
Danisco has invested in pilot low temperature extrusion technology
to produce high-quality, low-fat ice-cream, to enable testing of
ingredients using the same systems as its customers use.
Unilever is to extend its presence within ice cream manufacture
after announcing this week that it has agreed to acquire Russian
ice cream company Inmarko.
This week, Starbucks drops organic milk form its US stores, a
Unilever manager is held at his own plant by angry workers and
Danone teams up with its suppliers to improve operational
efficiency.
Tasteless and edible antifreeze proteins could prevent the
formation of ice crystals in ice cream, and maintain the smooth,
silky texture, reports research from the US.
Greek dairy group Vivartia has sold its entire 24 per cent stake in
ice cream producer and retailer Dodoni to the National Bank of
Greece Group as it continues to restructure its operations.
The majority of US consumers say they believe full-fat ice cream is
worth the guilt, and would rather eat this than full-fat versions
of other snacks, according to a new survey.
A dose of early summer sun and talk of another record-breaking heat
wave around the corner has put the UK ice cream industry in a
cautiously optimistic mood for 2007.
Danisco has developed a new ice cream based on goat's milk,
plugging the formulation as a means for companies to target the
growing demand for speciality products.
Sales at the group rose to CHF98.5 billion (€60.5bn) while organic
growth was 6.2 per cent and net profit was up 13.8 per cent to a
record CHF9.2 billion (€5.6bn).
Danish ingredients group Danisco has launched a new stabilizer
ingredient designed to allow ice cream manufacturers to cut the fat
content of their products while still maintaining a creamy
mouthfeel.
Two top scientists claim to have developed a frozen dairy dessert
that contains no sugar, trans fats or lactose, heralding new
opportunities for dairy firms to target consumer health trends.
Ice cream and bottled water sales were saved from a rather
disappointing first half in Europe by the heatwave that has swept
across the continent this summer.
Vanilla ice cream carrying the Fairtrade symbol will hit British
supermarkets for the first time in August, as maker Ben &
Jerry's returns to the campaign trail.
Ice cream sales have shot through the roof in Britain over the last
week thanks to an almighty heatwave, leaving producers working flat
out to meet consumers' insatiable demand.
Swiss food maker Nestle has launched the premium ice cream brand
Movenpick on the Chinese market, where it says it sees growing
demand for luxury food products.
Unilever has developed a new genetically modified protein that it
says will serve up low-fat ice cream without compromising on taste,
as ice cream firms step up the race to please health conscious
consumers.
FMC Biopolymer has developed new technology that allows ice cream
manufacturers to slash the fat content in their products by more
than half, without altering the ice cream's taste and texture.
The frozen desserts industry saw further European consolidation as
an equity firm swooped in to take Richmond Foods, Britain's largest
ice cream manufacturer.
A newly developed vending machine in the US makes ice cream from
scratch while you wait, shows how dairy firms are finding new ways
to target consumer demand for convenience.
Nestlé's Americas division has established itself as the food
firm's most important business region for the first time following
difficult conditions and subdued sales growth in Europe.
Nestlé says it has opened up a clear lead on the global ice cream
market after getting full ownership of US firm Dreyer's and
successfully tapping into health and convenience trends.
Sensitivity to changing regional tastes, exotic flavour mixes,
labelling and packaging will determine how successful processors
are in attacking Western Europe's stagnant ice cream market.
Tate & Lyle has launched a new ingredient solution for low-
fat, no-sugar- added ice cream for the US market and vowed to
continue its ambitious expansion plans.
Nestlé is being sued in Puerto Rico by a local ice cream firm it
had agreed to buy, accused of deceit, fraud and breach of a
competition authority ruling, reports Chris Mercer.
Consumers watching their waistlines continue to drive low fat
formulations: ice cream giant Haagen-Dazs launches its first
'light' ice cream version of its classic brand.
Ice cream manufacturers gearing up for the lucrative summer season
should take note, as Haagen-Dazs and Unilever announce their
intentions to introduce a range of low fat products in the US,
Philippa Nuttall reports.
After the dank summer and sales of 2004, ice cream makers looking
to boost 2005 figures will find comfort in new research that claims
ice cream actually 'makes you happy', reports Lindsey
Partos.
In the same week that the world's number one ice cream maker
announces the roll out of health and wellness ice cream to fuel
growth, Israeli flavours firm Frutarom launches its functional ice
cream product range.
High taxes on raw materials and soaring energy costs are severely
hampering progress in Russia's ice cream industry, according to one
industry body which is campaigning for government intervention. Yet
consolidation and tighter...
Nestlé, the world's number one food company, hopes to appease
investors by offering a sizeable dividend payout, despite
announcing a disappointing overall drop in 2004 sales, Tom
Armitage reports.
Suppliers of ingredients to the developing ice cream market in
China will welcome news that Nestlé, the world's number one food
maker, will deepen penetration and sharpen competitiveness in this
burgeoning market through new...
Anglo-Dutch consumer giant Unilever is set to overhaul its
management structure - a move which it claims will help restore
top-line sales growth and allow it to draw a line under what it
called an "unsatisfactory" 2004 performance,...
A Tetra Pak subsidiary has found a dipping and coating solution for
novelty ice creams, which it hopes will eliminate sub-standard ice
cream coatings - welcome news for ice cream manufacturers seeking
to satisfy the quality-conscious...
Richmond Foods, the British ice cream manufacturer, consolidated
its position in 2004 with a rise in turnover despite less
favourable market conditions than in the previous year. And the
company is confident of further growth in 2005,...
Danisco believes it has made ice crystals in ice cream a thing of
the past by creating a technology that will help manufacturers
control heat shock, reports Philippa Nuttall.
A UK firm has come up with an innovative packaging and processing
solution that will allow smaller retailers to create their own
branded ice-cream products at the point of sale (POS), giving them
the opportunity to penetrate the highly-consolidated...
San Miguel Corporation has relaunched the Magnolia ice cream brand
in the Philippines after a five year absence from the market. The
move is seen as part of a bid to fend off stagnant food sales in
the domestic market. Simon Pitman.
A new ice cream product enriched with iodine is to be launched in
the New Year by Russian dairy group MiasoMolTorg JSC, the first
product of its kind on the Russian market and the latest to play on
the health credentials of dairy...
The increasing popularity of premium, indulgent or healthy ice
cream products - particularly in the winter months - boosted sales
and profits at the UK's Richmond Foods in 2004, helping the group
match last year's heatwave-assisted...
Spain's ice cream manufacturers are predicting another good year of
growth in 2004, but without searing temperatures which lifted sales
in 2003, the increase is likely to be rather more modest.
Dairy products remain an important growth driver for Swiss food and
beverages group Nestlé, despite the disposal of a number of assets
and poor weather conditions which affected sales during the first
half. But organic growth was...