The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has approved Lawson’s fried chicken (karaage kun) as a space food for astronauts after three years of testing.
The Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in an unprecedented milk surplus problem for many dairy farmers worldwide, and the Japanese industry was no exception with demand from schools and foodservice outlets slumping.
The world’s largest lemon myrtle grower and harvester Australian Native Products has set its sights on large tea brands in India and Sri Lanka as it seeks to market lemon myrtle across the region.
China recently announced new standards for dairy permeate imports, a first for the country and a prime example of how an industry can leverage resources to overcome regulatory challenges, according to a China trade regulations expert.
The China Food Tech Hub, which aims to forge close ties between MNCs and start-ups, is adding three new members to its consortium this year, including big names such as Nestle, Ajinomoto and Barilla’s Blu1877.
China’s COVID-19 focus has taken a clear food-related shift with a decided focus on stepping up food import regulations, despite this putting it at odds with foreign food firms and governments arguing against the probability of food-related virus spread.
Nestle China has responded to criticism from the plant-based industry about its recent CNY730m (CHF100m/US$98.9m) investment and plant-based facility, amid concerns over the lack of detail and sustainability focus.
BY-HEALTH is aiming to raise RMB$3.6bn (US$509m) to fund five new projects, including new manufacturing sites in China and Australia, and a health management centre.
Taiwan’s organic equivalence agreements policy means it risks losing over half of its organic imports, particularly those from its biggest trade partner EU, but despite this has shown no signs of shifting its stance.
Australian e-commerce platform BuyNatural believes there are “exceptional opportunities” in China for local dietary supplement brands, with consumers eager to purchase “newer and smaller” brands.
China should accelerate the development of its local cell-based meat sector to catch up with other countries that have a head start in this area, with a major focus placed on technology, regulations and innovation.
JD’s online fresh food business JD Fresh recorded a 800% increase in sales year-on-year in the first hour of its June 18th grand promotion (618) – with the firm tipping the trend that first appeared during the COVID-19 outbreak to persist.
China has revealed microbial contamination, excessive food additives and excessive drug residues to be the major food safety challenges that the country is facing, based on data from the government-administered 2019 National Food Safety Inspections.
New Zealand kiwifruit firm Zespri has its eye on new markets and consumers with its Zespri Red Kiwifruit variety as well as a range of sustainable innovations.
China’s ‘milk bars’ have been issued with new guidelines that place them under stricter regulatory control, with a stronger focus on maintaining the freshness and safety of products as dairy consumption in the country grows.
Japanese seasoning giant Ajinomoto has developed a new nutrient scoring system to evaluate the nutritional value of its products and help support future product development.
Japan has stepped up its efforts to promote recycling and sustainability in the country by amending its regulations to allow the sales of specified condiments and beverages in PET bottles without any labels or tags whatsoever.
New Zealand kiwi firm Zespri says sales to Japan have soared by 52% in the last five years, with a further 4% rise to 104,000 tonnes forecast for this year.
Japanese snack giant Calbee will build a new factory in Hiroshima Prefecture, which will feature extensive automated processes to help combat labour shortages caused by the nation’s ageing society.
China online commerce giant Alibaba has predicted that the retail sector in China will see a boom in digitisation as well as a rise in healthy food options moving forth as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak.
Fruit and vegetable juice firm China Huiyuan is ploughing resources into its e-commerce business as it seeks to hold on to its number one ranking in the China Brand Power Index
Replacing sodium chloride (dietary/table salt) with lower sodium salt substitutes containing potassium chloride could prevent up to 450,000 deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) in China.
Tensions between Australia and China have recently been running high over barley tariffs and beef bans, but this nothing new nor solely due to ‘punishing behaviour’ over COVID-19, according to several trade consulting experts.
Turkish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Bekir Pakdemirli and Trade minister Ruhsar Pekcan have announced that barriers to dairy products to be exported to China have been removed.
Energy drink brands are striving to develop products that are clean, healthier and with greater functionality beyond providing an energy boost to meet growing consumer demands in Asia-Pacific.
South Korea has moved to temporarily relax regulatory measures for food imports in view of the global COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, particularly concentrating on documentation and labelling requirements to prevent delays in custom clearance.
Japan’s Consumer Affairs Agency (CAA) has approved 2,887 products under the food with function claim (FFC) since its introduction in 2015 – but only 1325 are currently available on the market.
PepsiCo is putting local culture and comfort at the heart of its NPD strategy in China with the launch of its first domestic market-inspired launch – an Osmanthus-flavoured soft drink.
New industry analysis suggests that China’s fresh foods sales by e-commerce will continue to boom, after the Chinese New Year period and COVID-19 lockdowns initially caused trade to spike.
UK-based wine packaging and wholesaler Garçon Wines is eyeing Asia-Pacific, specially Australia, New Zealand and China with its flat PET wine bottles that can fit through a letterbox.
China’s infant formula and supplement retailer, GOVKING Group, is promoting GoldMax – a New Zealand infant formula and supplement brand – through its ‘livestreaming incubator’.
Nestle is conducting consumer testing with a view to expanding its customisable 'superfood' drink product, nesQino, to more APAC markets, after an initial launch in China via e-commerce platform Tmall.
Japan’s food seasoning giant Ajinomoto is proposing amino acids like monosodium glutamate (MSG) as a candidate to help fight dementia and is working on a new range of seasoning products to help improve cognitive health.
Korea-based plant-based product firm Phyto Corporation (PhytoCo) has officially launched its world-first plant-based salt in the country, PhytoSalt, which the firm claims is low-sodium and microplastic-free.
Investments in China’s eGrocery start-up sector continues to soar with funding reaching USD2.1 billion in 2019, a 25% increase from 2018, new data reveals.
Japan is still in the early adoption phase of sustainable confectionery, but there is plenty of potential for it to go mainstream, according to consumer research from Barry Callebaut.
Low-to-no alcoholic (LNA) beer brewery Nirvana Breweries has its eye set on the Asian market starting with Japan, and is convinced that its broad range and distinct flavour will set it apart from the competition.
Japanese confectionery company Ezaki Glico has reported strong demand for its Mental Balance Chocolate GABA for Sleep, which carries a food with function claim (FFC).
China’s online purchasing patterns throughout the country’s COVID-19 lockdown thus far have revealed a shift towards food products for home-cooking, a pattern that is expected to continue even beyond current restrictions.
Mondelez China has launched two limited-edition OREO flavours to tie in with the spring season: Sakura Matcha and Peach Oolong, going all-out with both colourful packaging and collaborative marketing to attract young consumers.
South Korea has seen an increase of over 90% in online food product transactions during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, but continues to face trade-related challenges even as the country has moved to relax some social-distancing regulations.
South Korea has made Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) certification mandatory for all foreign food facilities exporting into the country, in an effort to tighten its control over imported food safety hazards.
Ingredion will double the capacity at its Shandong modified starch facility by 2022, to tap into China’s growing hunger for innovative textures in foods.
Japan has temporarily relaxed its traditionally strict food labelling regulations to help accommodate food manufacturing firms that need to make adjustments to production processes or raw materials in their production chains as a result of the COVID-19...
