Heinz Australia is undertaking a precautionary recall of the Heinz BBQ Sauce with Honey & Black Pepper. A small batch of this product was incorrectly labelled and consequently does not declare the presence of wheat and soy. The recall applies only to Heinz BBQ Sauce with Honey & Black Pepper, batch code 3248, best before 19/11/10. Customers are asked to return the product to the point of purchase for immediate full refund. Name of Product: Heinz BBQ Sauce with Honey and Black Pepper Package... ...Read more »

Boost Juice Bars, one of Australia’s most successful franchises, is the latest Australian company to take its brand to China with Shanghai to be the entry point. Boost, which opened its first store in Adelaide in 2000, already has 190 stores operating in Australia and has now set up in 16 countries. The company yesterday announced it had signed a franchising deal worth over $1 million to set up 100 stores in China over the next 10 years. The decision comes after studying the differences between... ...Read more »

Food manufacturer Heinz has consigned the pickle to the annals of food history with the launch of a new label for their iconic Heinz Ketchup. Heinz North America announced the gherkin pickle, which has been featured on labels since the 1890s, is making way for a vine-ripened tomato and a slogan communicating that the tomatoes in Heinz Tomato Ketchup are ‘Grown not made’. “The tomato is what makes Heinz Ketchup so extraordinary and so, with all due respect to the pickle, which has... ...Read more »

New food labelling and composition rules aimed at helping people who are intolerant to gluten have been published by the European Union, with a tightening of legislation bringing their laws closer to that of Australia’s. Under the new European Union regulations, only foods that contain less than 20 parts of gluten in a million will be allowed to use the term ‘gluten-free’ on their packaging. Recent evidence has shown that this extremely low level offers better protection for people... ...Read more »

As the old saying goes, ‘one man’s misery can be another’s good fortune’ and news from the US is that over 125 peanut based products have been recalled in America’s peanut butter salmonella food scare – and US officials have warned that the number may grow as the investigation widens. It represents the second major salmonella outbreak in the US within a nine months following last year’s jalapeno chilli contamination, and again puts the issue of food safety... ...Read more »

In line with growing health awareness and changing demographics, demand for fruits and vegetables is expected to increase in the long term, according to Rabobank’s recently published ‘North American Food & Agribusiness Outlook.’ With consumers increasingly preparing meals at home, overall produce sales are on the rise, according to Rabobank analyst Marieke de Rijke. “In the short term much of the growth will depend on the economy, which may temporarily drop demand for fresh-cut... ...Read more »

Two men accused of contaminating China’s milk supply have been sentenced to death by a Chinese court, while the former Chairwoman of Sanlu – the company at the centre of the scandal – will spend the rest of her life behind bars. The criminal contamination of milk with the chemical melamine was discovered in September last year, sparking a spate of recalls around the world. In the aftermath it was discovered that around 294,000 infants had fallen ill as a result of consuming contaminated... ...Read more »

As today’s ageing population spends increasing amounts on prevention rather than cures, the market for mood-enhancing foods will continue to experience healthy growth rates, according to the latest research from worldwide consulting and research firm Kline & Company. While the functional foods industry has so far focused mainly on physical benefits and health claims, mood, emotional, and cognitive health claims are emerging to form an important new market segment, according to Kline’s... ...Read more »

Australian-owned Coopers Brewery is not letting the economic downturn restrict a $6m plan to install new production equipment at its Regency Park brewery, which could see them contract brew international beers. Coopers’ Managing Director, Dr Tim Cooper, said that in the next 12 months, the brewery would be installing a new multi-pack packaging machine, rebuilding the pasteuriser, adding a new filter to the brewery’s lager line and purchasing more kegs. This follows the expenditure in... ...Read more »

Fonterra Co-operative Group, the world’s largest dairy exporter, has announced the appointment of Jonathan Mason as its new Chief Financial Officer. The dairy group also announced earlier this week that they had purchased the rights to the Ski brand three years ahead of originally planned. Mr Mason, who will take the reins from February 16, is a highly experienced finance executive and joins Fonterra from US-based company Cabot Corporation, where he has been Executive Vice President and Chief... ...Read more »