Juice and dairy manufacturer Harvey Fresh has been fined $12,000 by the Perth Federal Court for mislabelling cheese products, ABC Online reported. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission instituted proceedings in May against Harvey Fresh, alleging misrepresentations about the origin of some cheese products. The enforcer of the Trade Practices Act said that Harvey Fresh had represented the place of origin of its one kilogram blocks of Matured Cheese and Semi Matured Cheese as being the... ...Read more »

Kellogg Company, the world’s largest cereal maker, has reported a strained relationship with a key Australian retail customer – either Coles or Woolworths – during a conference call following the release of better-than-expected results. The manufacturer did not say which chain they were having difficulties with, but advised that there was an “issue” with one of the two major chains down under. “In Australia, we were negatively impacted by challenging negotiation... ...Read more »

Italian dairy firm Parmalat has seen profit fall as a result of decreased proceeds from legal proceedings relating to their 2003 collapse, while revenues were hurt by foreign exchange rates. Restated at constant exchange rates, however, Parmalat saw sales rise by 2.6 per cent in the first half. Savings from lower raw milk costs helped offset competitive pressures, the company said. “During the first six months of 2008, the Group continued to face strong competitive pressure from private labels,”... ...Read more »

Australia’s largest organic body – the Biological Farmers of Australia (BFA) – has rejected claims by Britain’s Food Standard Agency (FSA) that organic produce has no health or nutritional benefit over conventionally produced food. Shane Heaton, nutritionist spokesperson and researcher for the BFA, said that, despite the review finding that organic produce contains only slightly higher nutrient levels, the wider health and environmental benefits of organic over non-organic... ...Read more »

Domino’s Pizza has today upgraded their profit forecasts after a better than expected second half. The Australian operation of the global pizza chain has maintained momentum during the downturn thanks to demand for convenient, low cost meals. Domino’s will report full year results on August 19, with today’s release made as they have become aware that the result will differ substantially from their forecasts. At their half year results announcement in February, Domino’s management... ...Read more »

Kellogg Company has posted double-digit growth in second quarter, surpassing expectations of analysts as private label growth begins to slow. David Mackay, Kellogg’s Chief Executive Officer, said the cereal manufacturer had so far managed to efficiently negotiate challenging conditions and ongoing cost pressures. “We remain committed to delivering sustainable and dependable performance as we work through the current tough economic environment,” he said. “This focus continued... ...Read more »

The passage of sweeping reforms of the US food safety regime faltered yesterday (29 July), when the proposed measures failed to generate enough support in the House of Representatives.The proposed bill aimed to tighten US food safety by requiring manufacturers to “conduct a hazard analysis, implement preventive controls and implement a food safety plan”. It would also have provided US food regulators with additional powers. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would have been able to... ...Read more »

The world’s largest dairy exporter, Fonterra, has indicated that the price of milk may have reached its floor, after a major decline saw it plummet from record highs last year. The New Zealand dairy firm has also upgraded operating profit forecasts on the back of Australian acquisitions and strong demand for premium goods. Fonterra Chairman, Henry van der Heyden, said there were now tentative signs of strengthening demand and firming prices for some products in international dairy markets. “Along... ...Read more »

Coles has sought to further capitalise on the spectacular success of of MasterChef by hiring one of the show’s judges, renowned chef George Calombaris, to assist with product development. The supermarket chain was the lead sponsor of the show, which surpassed all expectations and connected with the Australian public in a way many could not believe. They saw sales of key ingredients featured in the series surge by up to 200 per cent, with the show boosting the trend toward home cooking. Coles... ...Read more »

Australia’s largest soft drink producer, Coca-Cola Amatil, is considering making its own plastic bottles once again, seven years after selling their bottle manufacturing operations. The Australian bottler of Coke is seriously considering the proposal, according to a report in today’s Australian Financial Review. Amatil sold their bottle manufacturing operations to Visy in 2002 for $157 million as they focussed on manufacturing, selling and distributing their beverages. However, improvements... ...Read more »