KR Castlemaine has  launched a campaign for a pre-packaged ham product with the claim to be “natural”, using new technologies to become the “first Australian pre-packaged ham that is artificially preservative-free”. This new range of ham is said to be produced using cutting-edge High Pressure Pasteurisation (HPP) technology. The company claims that it “does not use heat”, thereby preserving texture and nutritional value for the product. HR Castlemaine also says  the new technology ... ...Read more »

A Brisbane-based start-up food technology company says it has developed the world’s first non-fermented, multi-strain probiotic milk and juice and is ready to introduce it to the market. The company, Progel, used a AU$250,000 Commercialisation Australia grant to commercialise an encapsulation technology developed by Professor Bhesh Bhandari at University of Queensland‘s School of Agriculture and Food Sciences. Progel says the technology will also enable the creation of omega-3 milk and juice... ...Read more »

German scientists claim to have developed a new way of identifying flavours and aromas in food products. Berlin-based research company, Metabolomic Discoveries, launched its ‘Flavour Profiler’ today – a platform that the company says allows the identification of taste and aroma components in food products. The company claims the platform is a big step towards being able to identify the underlying chemical basis of flavours in food. It also believes the innovation will help food and beverages... ...Read more »

Restaurants will soon use cutting edge DNA ‘barcoding’ technology to assure customers they are eating exactly what they ordered, rather than inferior substitutes, according to a leading U.S. scientist. Secretary of the Washington-based Consortium for the Barcode of Life, Dr David Schindel, believes the DNA ‘barcoding’ has potential applications for food companies and retailers. The Consortium for the Barcode of Life is an international consortium of scientists aiming to compile a comprehensive... ...Read more »

The Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology, industry body for the food technology industry, has announced the election of Mrs Jo Davey as President of the Institute, a veteran of the Australian dairy industry. “Jo brings to the position a wealth of experience in the Australian food industry through her participation in numerous facets of the industry including leadership roles in food industry associations and industry technical and research committees,” said a release from... ...Read more »

Entries are now open for the 2012 Product of the Year Awards, recognising Australia’s most innovative products to hit supermarket shelves this year. The winning products are selected by over 5,000 shoppers in the biggest independent consumer survey in the country. To be eligible for entry, products must launch between January 2010 and August 2011 and be either a completely new type of product or a useful innovation to an existing product or brand, such as a new ingredient, redesigned shape or size,... ...Read more »

The prestigious Keith Farrer Award of Merit has been awarded to Stuart Andrews, Associate Professor at the University of South Australia (UniSA) by the Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology (AIFST). The award, announced at the AIFST’s 43rd Annual Conference ‘Creating the future of food – body, mind, passion’ this week, is made for outstanding achievements in and contributions to food science and technology in the wide areas of research, industry and education, and recognizes... ...Read more »

Food scientist Vanessa Teter, of food-enhancement technology company Watson Inc, has published a review of the latest trends in food fortification for Natural Products Insider. The review named the top three vitamins and minerals for food fortification as calcium, vitamin A and vitamin D. Vitamins C and E are listed as up-and-coming additives, with their antioxidant properties and possible cancer treatment potential boosting popularity. Vitamin E weathered a number of negative and inconclusive studies... ...Read more »

Researchers at California’s Agricultural Research Service have released research highlighting the possibility of replacing gluten in oat and barley loaves to make fluffy, attractive wheat-free breads. In wheat and other gluten-containing breads, gluten traps air bubbles formed by yeast in the rising process, giving a high, soft, attractive loaf.  Existing oat and barley breads tend to be dense, heavy and less attractive to the consumer. Chemist Wallace Yokohama and nutritionist Hyunsook Kim... ...Read more »

The food sector in the UK has come in for criticism from a research committee for a lack of transparency when it comes to nanotechnology. The House of Lords Science and Technology Committee said that the food industry had “(failed) to be transparent about its research into the uses of nanotechnologies and nanomaterials”, a claim denied by the sector. In their report, Nanotechnologies and Food, the Committee noted that transparency and honesty are key components for ensuring public trust... ...Read more »