Leading Australian experts in gut research, gastroenterology, nutrition and dietetics have released their key recommendations for actions to be taken to improve digestive and bowel health for Australians. The recommendations come out of an Expert Roundtable panel made up of representatives from the Gut Foundation and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). The CSIRO is an Australian government-funded agency and is one of Australia’s leading scientific institutes.... ...Read more »

Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing, Catherine King, announced today that Australia’s leading food manufacturers and retailers have voluntarily agreed to reduce salt levels in soup products over the next three years. The agreement between the Australian Government’s Food and Health Dialogue and leading manufacturers and retailers was reached in Canberra this morning. Leading manufacturers Unilever, Heinz, Campbell Arnotts and Nestle, along with major retailers Woolworths, Coles and... ...Read more »

The breed of barley developed by one of Australia’s leading science research bodies, the CSIRO, has now reached national distribution status in Australia’s leading supermarkets three years after being introduced as a breakfast cereal ingredient. The BARLEYmax™ ingredient is said to help control diabetes, improve digestion, reduce weight and lower cholesterol. It is a natural wholegrain with enhanced nutritional benefits, containing twice the dietary fibre of regular grains and four times the... ...Read more »

The Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC) has blasted South Australia Health Minister John Hill over a claim that voluntary limits on junk food advertising aimed at children are not working. Speaking at the Don Dunstan Foundation yesterday, Health and Ageing Minister John Hill said tighter regulation is needed on junk food advertising aimed at children. He referred to new research by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Australia’s most respected scientific... ...Read more »

The Chief Executive of Australia’s leading science agency, the CSIRO, has warned that scientists and food producers must first earn community trust if scientific developments in plant genetics are to improve health and support global food supply. In a statement published today, the CSIRO’s Chief Executive Megan Clark said there is a gap between the concerns of the community and the knowledge of scientists around genetic research. Ms Clark said, “We recognise that the modification of genes... ...Read more »

New technologies and techniques are enabling Australia’s leading agricultural scientists from CSIRO to track a reduction in the levels of livestock methane emissions and develop solutions for a more productive, profitable and greenhouse gas friendly beef industry. The CSIRO research leader Dr Ed Charmley, has just announced that research conducted in the high-tech respiration chambers shows Australia’s northern beef herd is actually more ‘methane-friendly’ than previously thought. “What... ...Read more »

Leading Australian scientists based at the CSIRO are working with the Australian ingredients manufacturer, Clover Corporation Limited, to improve the nutritional content of infant formulas. They are developing a better understanding of how nutritional bioactives can be combined in the milk formulas with natural essential Omega 3 fatty acid DHA (Docosahexaenoic Acid). The aim is to improve the ability of infants to absorb bioactive ingredients that can boost the immune system of the infant. CSIRO’s... ...Read more »

Early last Thursday, Greenpeace activists whipper-snippered a genetically modified wheat experiment on the outskirts of Canberra. Two women, one of them described as a mother concerned for the health of her family, wore protective clothing and set up a protective cordon before destroying the CSIRO plantation. “This is about the protection of our health, the protection of our environment and the protection of our daily bread,” said Greenpeace Food campaigner Laura Kelly in defence of the sabotage. Her... ...Read more »

Ants and termites may be the earthworms of dry-land agriculture, with a paper by scientists at CSIRO and the Univeristy of Sydney showing that the insects have a significant positive impact on crop yields in dryland agriculture. “Ants and termites perform the same ecosystem service functions in dryland agriculture that earthworms perform in cooler and wetter areas, but the potential for ants and termites to provide these benefits has received little attention until now,” said CSIRO’s... ...Read more »

Four of Australia’s leading research institutions will collaborate closely over the next three years to fast-track development of new ‘healthier’ varieties of three of the world’s most widely cultivated cereal grains. The new ‘High Fibre Grains Cluster’ will focus on wheat, barley and rice. One of the primary research goals is to boost the amount of beneficial compounds, such as beta glucans and arabinoxylans, which are key contributors to the soluble component of dietary fibre in the... ...Read more »