Chocolates, lollies and other sugar-rich foods will be off the menu next year in Victorian government schools under new changes to be introduced by the state government.Victoria’s Education Minister, Bronwyn Pike, said that, from the start of 2009, chocolates and lollies such as chocolate bars, marshmallows, jellybeans and sherbet will be banned from government school canteens and vending machines. “Research shows that around 37 per cent of a child’s total energy intake is consumed... ...Read more »
The health and wellness boom has been inextricably linked to the beauty industry this year, as food and drink consumers happily enjoyed as part of a healthy diet (e.g. superfruits and green tea) started to regularly appear in beauty products. Next year, we can expect to see food and beauty become even more intertwined, according to market intelligence firm Mintel. Mintel expects ‘good-for-you’ food ingredients, such as probiotics, to increasingly show up in our cosmetics and skincare... ...Read more »
The UK Government has launched Change4Life, a food industry supported initiative to tackle the alrming rates of obesity in Britain. If nothing is done, by 2050 90 per cent of today’s children will be overweight and at risk from serious diseases, according Health Secretary Alan Johnson as he launched the Change4Life coalition. Change4Life is a lifestyle revolution involving thousands of local organisations and charities which, it is hoped, will help mums, dads and families eat well,... ...Read more »
A high profile debate, organised by the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) and the UK Government’s Foresight unit, was held overnight to discuss the role of convenience foods and their impact on obesity. The event brought together senior industry executives and key stakeholders to mark the first anniversary of publication of the Foresight report on obesity. That report is widely credited with having reframed the debate on the causes and management of obesity and for setting out a long-term vision... ...Read more »
Despite more organic food and beverage products on grocery store shelves, all is not healthy in the world of pesticide-free, additive-free edibles. Mintel, a global supplier of market and consumer intelligence, predicts that market growth rates for organic food and drink will decline, especially if the economy falters further. According to Mintel, the market for organic foods and beverages should reach $7.2 billion in 2008, an increase of over 140% from the $3.0 billion recorded during 2003. But... ...Read more »
Popular UK chef Jamie Oliver has claimed there is a need for a minister of healthy eating to eradicate the obesity “horror show” engulfing the UK. “We are not in a great place, but we are in a place from which it can be fixed,” Oliver said. “If we leave it, it will be like America, where it is almost not worth it, because it’s so ingrained.” The star of TV shows including Ministry of Food and Jamie’s School Dinners and the author of a number of books... ...Read more »
A pan-European study by the European Food Information Council (EUFIC), presents interesting information for the food industry - with food labels found to be widely understood and recognised. “While there are several nutrition labelling schemes across Europe, our findings show that people recognise them and generally know how to use them to make informed nutrition choices,” commented Professor Klaus Grunert of the University of Aarhus, Denmark, who conducted the study for EUFIC. “Nutrition... ...Read more »
The CSIRO Food Futures Flagship has developed an automated instrument for accurately predicting glycemic index (GI) and resistant starch (RS) in food products. The prototype device is an in vitro (bench top) robotic machine that acts as an ‘artificial gut’ to process large numbers of food samples for a fraction of the time and cost required by the standard in vivo (human) method. The device has been validated as a rapid and reliable predictor of the GI and RS content of foods. Its principal... ...Read more »
While human consumption of lupins is presently at a very low level, with most of the crop sold to intensive animal industries, it has exciting potential for human use and a growing national and international market. With high protein levels of 30 - 40 per cent, high dietary fibre (30 per cent) and low fat, lupins have a very low glycaemic index. So, it’s little wonder that the world’s food industry is becoming increasingly interested in exploiting their benefits. However, the problem... ...Read more »
Coca-Cola North America has announced plans to place calories-per-serving and servings-per-container information on the front of all packages for its entire US beverage portfolio. Coca-Cola report that research shows calorie information is an important tool to help people make informed decisions about the calorie contribution of foods and beverages to their total dietary intake, and thus is important information in helping them achieve and/or maintain their healthy weight. In 2003, the... ...Read more »