A NSW Food Authority survey of products from retail outlets across Sydney labelled as ‘gluten free’ has revealed a high level of compliance in gluten content labelling. NSW Food Authority CEO Alan Coutts said this was good news for people living with coeliac disease, a condition which is currently being brought to public attention through Coeliac Awareness Week (13-20 March 2011). “Of the samples tested there was 95% compliance with the labelling and content requirements of the Food Standards... ...Read more »

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission announced today that it does not intend to oppose Cargill Incorporated’s proposed acquisition from Agrium of the commodity management businesses of AWB Limited. “The ACCC concluded that the proposed acquisition would be unlikely to substantially lessen competition as post-merger Cargill would continue to face competition from a number of significant sources,” ACCC chairman Graeme Samuel said. The ACCC conducted a full review of... ...Read more »

Despite floods, locusts and heavy rain, Victoria’s food producers have broken production records for wheat, barley and canola, said Victorian Minister for Agriculture and Food Security Peter Walsh today. Walsh said the season’s results were an absolute credit to the state’s grains industry, which had faced extremely difficult conditions this year. “Although quality suffered because of the wet and results varied from paddock to paddock and farm to farm, the season still produced a big harvest,”... ...Read more »

This harvest, wheat farmers are being asked to spare a small portion of their crop to help feed Australian’s in need.Foodbank Australia, the country’s largest food relief organisation, has partnered with CBH Grain to provide growers with the opportunity to make a donation from this year’s production. The aim is to urgently source a supply of grain for processing and manufacturing into key staple foods, such as breakfast cereal and pasta. This will be distributed to the charities... ...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 »

Western Australian Agriculture and Food Minister Terry Redman has used an address to delegates at a major international grains forum to re-affirm the State Government’s commitment to agricultural research and development. About 200 people from around the world attended the International Grains Council Forum in Perth yesterday, to discuss issues surrounding grain supplies and global food security. In his welcome address to forum delegates on Tuesday evening, Redman said Western Australia was well... ...Read more »

The Western Australian Government has announced a $178.8million investment package to bolster the state’s grain freight network.Premier Colin Barnett said the funding package would secure the Federal Government’s commitment of $135million announced in the 2010-11 Federal budget. With previously committed State funds, it brings the total investment in the grain freight network to $352million over four years. Mr Barnett said farmers and road users would all benefit from the move. “This... ...Read more »

DuPont and the Australian Centre for Plant Functional Genomics (ACPFG) announced that they have extended their long-standing research collaboration and commitment to increasing productivity in leading production crops. DuPont business Pioneer Hi-Bred and ACPFG partnered in 2005 to discover and develop traits to increase drought tolerance and to decrease the need for soil-applied nitrogen fertilizer, as well as to grow overall crop yields in corn, soybeans, rice, wheat, canola, sorghum and barley.... ...Read more »

A new Western Australian noodle wheat class, developed specifically for the Japanese and Korean markets, is expected to give the State’s growers and marketers increased flexibility. The Wheat Classification Council (WCC), supported by the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) which oversees Australia’s wheat classification arrangements, has announced the new wheat class Australian Premium White Noodle (APWN). WCC chairman Robert Sewell said APWN would be segregated in WA starting... ...Read more »

AWB has raised its forecast wheat pool returns for the 2010/11 season for the third month in succession, this time by $9-22 a tonne, as the world wheat market continues responding to production concerns in northern Europe and the Black Sea region. AWB’s estimated pool return (EPR) for benchmark grade APW wheat in the Western Pool is now $353 a tonne, up $14, ANW1 noodle wheat is now $373 a tonne, up $19, and APW wheat in the Eastern Pool is up $12, to a new EPR of $345 a tonne (FOB, excl GST). AWB’s... ...Read more »