Major state-owned company of China, Bright Foods Company, is reportedly opening a permanent office in Sydney, signaling an intention to expand its Australian operations. The reports come after the Chinese food group’s acquisition of a 75% stake in Australian food manufacturer Manassen Foods has been approved by the Australian Foreign Institute Review Board. Bright Foods is one of China’s largest dairy producers and a major manufacturer and distributor of consumer food products. The company... ...Read more »

The findings just released of a nationwide survey by Australian consumer research group, Roy Morgan Research, reveal which confectionery brands Australians are choosing to buy, and why Australians decide to eat sweets in the first place. Roy Morgan Research sampled the views of 18,483 Australians aged over 14 years who said they had consumed sweets such as lollies, toffees, éclairs and caramels in the past four weeks. The survey was carried out between October 2010 and September 2011. Of those surveyed,... ...Read more »

Australia’s leading supermarket chains have been accused of using “copycat” packaging of leading Australian food brands to mislead consumers into buying the supermarket’s own private label products. The Australian Food and Grocery Council’s Chief Executive, Kate Carnell, said today that supermarkets are targeting brands with a strong market share and copying their designs as closely as possible without infringing trademark laws. Private label products are forecast to grow strongly and could... ...Read more »

Kraft Foods has launched a project to drive sales of its “entreprenuerial” or ‘ghost’ brands – smaller products than its “power” brands like Cadbury – but lines from which the US food giant wants to drive growth. The company has developed “Operation Spark”, a project to “stimulate the capabilities” of brands like Athenos Greek yoghurt, Stove Top stuffing and Breakstone’s cottage cheese and sour cream, a spokesperson told... ...Read more »

Private-label sales could account for 50% of the global food retail market by 2025, putting pressure on manufacturers of brands that do not lead their categories, research group Rabobank has predicted. In a new research report, entitled Private label vs. Brands, Rabobank said that the share of private-label sales will likely double from 25% to 50% by 2025, driven by retail consolidation in established markets and the deveopment of modern retail in emerging markets. Increased consumer acceptance of... ...Read more »

Casella Wines, producer of the country’s ‘most powerful’ wine brand, is suing a competitor for trademark infringement. Casella is the owner of the Yellow Tail brand, which has been a remarkable success story over recent years. Since creation around the turn of the century, it has become Australia’s leading wine export and the most popular imported wine to the United States. Despite its low price point it is now under attack from an array of competitors who are looking to take... ...Read more »

UK retailer Marks and Spencer is set to review the sale of branded food in the company’s stores, according to reports. The Financial Times reported that M&S chief executive Marc Bolland is examining whether the retailer should continue to sell branded lines. M&S has been selling brands, including Heinz baked beans and Cadbury Dairy Milk, for over two years. In 2008, the retailer, which had traditionally offered only own-label products, opened up a select number of stores to certain... ...Read more »

The fifth annual Millward Brown Optimor BrandZ Top 100 was released today, ranking the world’s most valuable brands by dollar value. Food and beverage companies featured strongly in the top 100, with Coca Cola and McDonalds taking spots in the top 10.  Coca-Cola took 5th place at US$67.9 billion, and McDonalds 6th at US$66 billion. Wal-Mart took 13th place, with a drop of 4% to US$39.4 billion and UK supermarket Tesco came in at 17, with a growth of 12%, up to US$25.7 billion. Other brands... ...Read more »

New consumer research released today by Millward brown, using the ‘TrustR’ metric, named Cadbury Dairy Milk as Australia’s third most trusted brand, after Colgate and Nokia. Nescafé came in fifth, Coca-Cola’s Mount Franklin at seventh, and Woolworth’s/Safeway in the tenth place. The metric measures consumer responses to the question “How trustworthy is this brand?” and “Would you recommend this brand?” The scores are indexed and combined to... ...Read more »

The latest Nielsen Top 100 Brands – released this week – has shown food products dominating the leading grocery products in 2009, with Cadbury claiming top place in consumers’ hearts. The UK-based confectioner – soon to be purchased by Kraft – saw their Cadbury brand surpass the ever popular Coca-Cola beverage and Bega cheese. Rounding out the top five were Smith’s and Kleenex Cottonelle. “Recognising that consumers own and determine the performance and... ...Read more »