The US Food and Drug Administration has found traces of listeria at an Augusta, Georgia, bakery owned and operated by US cereal giant Kellogg.In a letter released yesterday (14 June), the food safety regulator said that listeria was detected at “several” points along a production line that comes into direct contact with food. The FDA added that other food safety issues at the plant included insects found near to food storage areas. The plant manufactures Kellogg’s Keebler and Famous... ...Read more »

The Consumer Goods Forum has unveiled a new set of industry-wide resolutions designed to promote health and wellness. On the first day of its annual global summit in Barcelona today (15 June), the Forum committed to improving access to healthier products, providing “transparent, fact-based” information to allow consumers to make informed dietary decisions and promoting educational programmes that raise awareness of healthy lifestyles. The collaborative work to promote these resolutions... ...Read more »

Queensland Minister for Agriculture, Food and Regional Economies Tim Mulherin today launched a food policy for Queensland to further build the state’s multi-billion dollar food industry. “As part of the 2011-12 State Budget, the Queensland Government has made an initial allocation of $2 million to support initiatives related to the policy,” Minister Mulherin said. “With Queensland’s food value chain worth $18.7 billion to the state economy and a workforce of around 267,000, it’s critical... ...Read more »

We can lower our risk of heart disease significantly, just by using flour containing 40 per cent lupin beans in the place of conventional wholemeal flour, according to research by Victoria University dietitian Dr Regina Belski and colleagues from The University of Western Australia. Over the course of a year, working with the Centre for Food and Genomic Medicine in Perth, researchers monitored more than 100 overweight, but otherwise healthy, Western Australian men and women, to whom they provided... ...Read more »

The European Commission has cleared Lactalis’s proposed acquisition of fellow dairy group Parmalat, producer of Australian milk brand Paul’s.Lactalis has made a EUR3.4bn (US$4.91bn) takeover bid for the 71% of Parmalat that it does not already own. The EUR2.60-a-share offer, which some Parmalat shareholders believe is too low, is open to investors in the Italian dairy company until 8 July. The Commission said today (14 June) that the deal would not “significantly impede effective... ...Read more »

Private-label food is here to stay in the US, according to recent research that found that almost 45% of consumers are purchasing more own-label products than before the economic slowdown.According to a survey released by AlixPartners today (13 June), nearly 45% of consumers say the shaky economy has motivated them to continue to consider and ultimately purchase more private-label and other lower-priced food items. “The American consumer is staunchly committed to value and is more open to private-label... ...Read more »

Australian noodle franchise Noodle Box has announced plans for four new gourmet dishes, designed for the group by Masterchef 2010 winner Adam Liaw. The dishes, to be launched in July, are Aromatic Black Duck Noodles, Malaysian Beef Rendang,  Prawn and Calamari Sambal, and a side dish of “Adam’s Dragon Wings”. Co-owner David Milne said the move aims to appeal to a new customer-base, with the specialty boxes including premium ingredients, many of which are new to the Noodle Box menu. “Adam... ...Read more »

The number of people killed by the E. coli outbreak in Germany has risen to 35 – although officials have claimed that the number of new cases of illness is showing signs of falling. The Robert Koch Institute said today yesterday that 35 people had died from either the EHEC O104:H4 E. coli strain or the HUS syndrome that, in some cases, has led from the contamination. A further 3,228 have fallen ill from the outbreak, which the Institute believes is linked to contaminated bean sprouts from a... ...Read more »

Quorn Foods has announced plans to focus its marketing budget on educating consumers about the vegetarian meat-substitute range’s health benefits. The company said last week that it plans to spend some GBP 6 million (A$9.25 million) over the next 18 months driving Quorn’s “core benefit”, which chief executive Kevin Brennan said is “enabling consumers to eat their favourite meals but healthier”. “With their help we can continue to revitalise the Quorn brand... ...Read more »

According to scientists at the University of Adeliade, a potential life-saving treatment for severe E. coli food poisoning outbreaks was pioneered more than a decade ago, but hasn’t gone forward into clinical trials because of lack of commercial interest. In the year 2000, University of Adelaide researchers produced a “designer” probiotic bacterium which binds and neutralises the toxin produced by E. coli, which causes life-threatening attack on the kidneys and blood vessels. The... ...Read more »