ANZ Focus: Cage-free eggs, Hemp Foods Australia, caffeine maximum limits and more feature in our round-up

Cracking on: NZ supermarket giants stand firm over egg strategies despite producer outcry​

NZ supermarkets Foodstuffs and Countdown say reinforcing direct partnerships with egg producers is crucial to tackle widespread supply chain disruptions given the government’s ban on battery-caged hens coming into force.

But egg suppliers say the country’s two supermarket giants have exacerbated the shortages by insisting on moving to a totally cage-free approach.

Talks between supermarkets and egg producers have been under way since 2016 and 2017 to prepare for the transition, first announced in 2012. Since then, there have been other unprecedented stresses on the supply chain, posing greater challenge to egg buyers and sellers-alike to manage the transition.

“The current challenges with supply that we’re seeing are reflective of a very disrupted couple of years for our farmers with Covid-19 causing significant peaks and troughs in demand, the war in Ukraine resulting in feed prices spiking, and supply chain disruptions making it challenging for farmers to source raw materials to build new farming systems,” ​a spokesperson from the Countdown supermarket chain told FoodNavigator-Asia​.

Hemp at the helm: Hemp Foods Australia unveils expansion strategies to make products mainstream​

Hemp Foods Australia hopes to create higher value products in the functional food space, as well as targets expansion in New Zealand, Japan, and the United States.

Hemp Foods Australia (HFA) recently secured a distribution deal with Woolworths supermarkets, which would see its organic hemp seed oil stocked in all 948 stores across Australia as of January 2023.

Their product range is currently distributed in an estimated 2,300 stores across the country, and is made available on online and offline channels.

Sports foods impact: Limit total caffeine to a maximum of 200mg per day – Australia / NZ regulator​

The Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) has proposed new regulations to limit caffeine consumption through sports foods.

This follows its findings that individuals who regularly consume sports foods with added caffeine are under increased health risk.

As such, FSANZ has proposed to introduce a new permission for adding caffeine to Formulated Supplementary Sports Foods (FSSF).

Specifically, it proposes to permit total caffeine in FSSP up to a maximum of 200mg in a one -day quantity. New product labelling will be needed to display such information. 

Opportunity in the Middle East: How Manuka honey and Lingzhi firms are tapping on strong immune, plant-based demands in the Gulf​

APAC companies are starting to tap into growing demands for health foods and dietary supplements in the Middle East after the COVID-19 pandemic stirred consumer interest in preventive health.

Singapore’s HQ Gano and New Zealand’s The True Honey Co. were two companies that recently exhibited at Arab Health held in Dubai on January 30 to February 2.

Appetite for Australian coffee: Black Bag Roasters’ new plant revs up capacity for South East Asian expansion​

The facility gives Black Bag Roasters the ability to roast up to 300 tonnes of coffee beans per week and easy access to the city’s port, facilitating the export process.

Located at Truganina, a suburb in Melbourne, Australia, the plant houses a 600kg Italian-made Brambati roaster, which is fitted with a catalytic converter that significantly reduces greenhouse gases emitted during the roasting process.

“With this state-of-the-art production centre and the additional capacity, it allows us to explore new business opportunities in South East Asia (SEA). We are now able to provide an end-to-end solution and get a product to market within 16 weeks,” ​Lance Brown, Director of Sales at Black Bag Roasters, told FoodNavigator-Asia​.