Fonterra Foodservices is pleased to announce entries are now open for Fonterra Foodservices Proud to be a Chef 2011 for apprentices across Australia and New Zealand. Fonterra Foodservices Proud to be a Chef is designed to publicly recognise and reward the dedication and commitment of apprentice chefs, giving 24 apprentices the opportunity to participate in master classes conducted by highly acclaimed world leading chefs. One participating apprentice will receive the major prize of an international... ...Read more »

The weather may still be cool, but the team at Charlie’s Cookies are already preparing for a warm spring and summer full of seriously delicious gourmet treats! Charlie’s is a true Australian success story, run by Melbourne husband-and-wife team Ken Mahlab and Jacky Magid. Since 2004, former property developer Ken has transformed a much-loved local cookie shop into a boutique food service brand. Lawyer Jacky left behind the corporate rat race in 2007 to concentrate on tempting potential... ...Read more »

General Mills’ dispute over its US licence for the yoghurt brand Yoplait could take years to resolve, the US food giant’s chief executive has said. The company has filed for arbitration at the International Chamber of Commerce in New York after Sodima, the licencing arm of Sodiaal, one of Yoplait’s owners, said it wanted to end the licence agreement. Ken Powell, General Mills chairman and CEO, told investors at the company’s AGM that the licencing deal, which has run since... ...Read more »

The EU’s plans to allow member states to decide on whether they should allow or ban GM crops on a national basis have suffered a setback after a meeting of the bloc’s agriculture ministers failed to agree on the proposals. Speaking at a meeting of EU farm ministers in Brussels on Monday (27 September), many of the traditionally anti-GM countries opposed the plans, according to reports. It is understood that Germany, France, Italy and Spain all expressed doubts over the viability of the... ...Read more »

A Heart Foundation investigation into margarine and butter has shown that butter has, on average, 20 times the trans fat levels of margarine. “This news will come as a big surprise to many people who choose butter believing that it’s ‘natural’ and therefore healthier – but it simply isn’t the case,” said Susan Anderson, the Heart Foundation’s National Director Healthy Weight “Butter is mostly made of the fat that raises your bad cholesterol levels – saturated fat at... ...Read more »

The sushi bar in David Jones’ famous food hall is among five businesses added to the NSW Food Authority’s Name and Shame list, after it was found to have breached the Food Standards Code in relation to temperature control, Primary Industries Minister Steve Whan said on Sunday. “The business failed to demonstrate that the temperature or any heating or cooling process in use will not adversely affect the microbiological safety of food and was fined $660,” Minister Whan said. “Prawn... ...Read more »

Nadav Kander, arguably one of the globe’s best stills photographers, has taken on an ice-cream made in Melbourne as his newest subject. Connoisseur ice-cream has snared the multi-award winning photographer, whose impressive list of subjects ranges from the world’s most powerful, Barack Obama, to the world’s most gorgeous, Brad Pitt. In a commission designed to capture the artistry involved in making the gourmet ice-cream, Kander collaborated with acclaimed British set designer Hana Al Sayed,... ...Read more »

Chinese food group Bright Food is in talks to purchase UK-based United Biscuits, owner of the McVities brand, according to reports. It is understood that the deal, which would be the largest-ever overseas acquisition by a Chinese company in the food industry, would be worth around US$3.2 billion, Reuters reported yesterday. The board of United Biscuits allegedly gave its private-equity owners, Blackstone and PAI Partners, permission in July to sell the business. Shanghai-based Bright Food controls... ...Read more »

The first cultivar of ‘ōhelo berry, a popular native Hawaiian fruit, has been released by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists and their university and industry cooperators. ‘Ōhelo (Vaccinium reticulatum Smith) is a small, native Hawaiian shrub in the cranberry family, commonly found at high elevations on the islands of Maui and Hawaii. As people scour the landscape to harvest this delectable berry for use in jam, jelly and pie filling, they unfortunately disrupt the fragile... ...Read more »

US food giant Cargill said yesterday that it believes there will be demand across the EU for stevia, the natural, low-calorie sweetener awaiting regulatory approval from Brussels. Cargill, which develops stevia sweeteners for food and drink makers and sells its own branded tabletop sweetener under the Truvia trademark, is eyeing opportunities in the EU for the ingredient. Zanna McFerson, assistant vice president of Cargill’s health and nutrition arm, told just-food that the company has been... ...Read more »