The flour industry in Pakistan has requested the government to exempt or at least subsidise all flour mills from taxes that would normally have to be paid in light of the sector’s significant contributions to food stability throughout the COVID-19 pandemic...
India’s Ministry of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) is aiming to put a stop to false claims for the treatment or prevention of COVID-19 by setting up a task force to evaluate products and practices.
Pakistan has enforced an import tax on sugar entering the country, adding another layer of complexity to the country’s ongoing war between sugar cane farmers and sugar mills.
India recently announced import tariff increases for many food and agricultural products in hopes of encouraging local trade, but the same move is likely to push it even further away from the possibility of entering free trade agreements within the APAC...
The FSSAI has allowed children’s complementary foods companies holding the proprietary license to renew their licenses for a further 12 months, in order to provide more time to meet new standards.
Indian beverage start-up GoliSoda is targeting 250% growth this year, and is banking on its ‘ancient wisdom’-inspired drink range, as well as diversification of its product portfolio to include traditional desserts for success.
In the wake of India’s nationwide lockdown due to COVID-19, Coca-Cola India, Nestle India and various other big MNCs in the country have called for F&B manufacturing to be made an ‘essential service’ in order to keep shelves stocked and avoid further...
Branded milk sold in the western Indian state of Maharashtra has seen a 5% increase in adulteration levels despite the implementation of stricter regulations, with 85% of all samples found to be tainted.
An Indian start-up specialising in making protein bread and cookies saw online sales go up by 15% in mid March, with the firm believing consumers are increasingly making more healthy food choices as COVID-19 continues to spread.
Pakistan’s Punjab Food Authority (PFA) has recently issued a set of COVID-19 guidelines aimed at the food industry in hopes of controlling the outbreak, amid rampant rumours and speculations about the virus in the country.
Coca-Cola has announced a US$200mn injection of funds into its Bangladeshi business to spur growth, after its local language labelling strategy and women-championing projects in the country have yielded positive results.
Thailand’s position as the largest exporter of rice from the South East Asian region is at risk as the country struggles to handle weather, economical and quality changes, whereas Vietnam looks to be going from strength to strength.
Indonesia has relaxed the quality requirements for sugar entering the country to allow Indian supply in, as part of a barter exchange to secure palm oil export access to the latter and to deal with dwindling local supply.
Local F&B companies in India such as Mother Dairy and Parle Products appear to have come out on top in terms of product healthiness in a new listing – but overall, just 16% of all companies’ products have been recognised as ‘healthy’ items in the...
Products from Nestle and Unilever in India have emerged at the top of a list of firms improving the nutritional quality of foods in the country based on criteria from the Health Star Rating (HSR) system used in Australia and New Zealand – but the highest...
The Pakistani government aims to reduce the skyrocketing prices of basic food items in the country by reducing taxes, amidst an unsuccessful bid to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to reduce its tax collection target.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has denied that the recent novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has had any impact on the local meat and fish industry, but said that it intended to ‘leverage’ the crisis to raise hygiene standards...
Researchers are pushing for India to focus on enhancing its production of crops other than rice, the country’s traditional staple, if it wishes to effectively address its triple threats of food security, climate change effects and malnutrition.
The government of Pakistan’s most-populated province, Punjab, is trying to halt the ongoing ‘sugar wars’ in the country between sugarcane millers and growers by raising the maximum penalty for illegal dealings by 10,000%.
Almost US$100,000 worth of well-known spreads were confiscated by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) from two local Indian dairy firms for ‘zero cholesterol’ and ‘low cholesterol’ mislabelling violations.
India’s Ministry of AYUSH has attracted criticism from medical experts for suggesting alternative medicines, such as Ayurveda, homoeopathy, and unani practices, could act as immunity booster against the deadly novel coronavirus.
With the food adulteration situation in India showing no sign of slowing down, an authentication expert has argued that food packaging developments can help improve the situation and raise food safety levels in the country.
An ayurvedic botanical-based ingredient has shown to reduce the symptoms of knee osteoarthritis, including knee pain and stiffness, according to an eight-week trial involving Indian participants.
Over 25% of food samples in the Indian state of Haryana have been found to fail food quality tests conducted by the local Food and Drug Administration (FDA), with the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India’s (FSSAI) claiming they are getting better...
Many big F&B brands in India have been making the shift towards the responsible labelling of products, but this is still lacking in smaller local companies – a situation that might be helped by implementing better and stricter labels and regulations,...
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has just released its new Action Plan for Safe and Quality Milk and Milk Products, with the majority of actions targeted at self-testing or self-monitoring by dairy companies, farmers and consumers.
India’s sports nutrition brand MuscleBlaze has launched two new whey protein products that are catered to improve absorption rates in the Indian population.
Kellogg India is collaborating with The Breakfast Revolution (TBR) and Sesame Workshop India (SWI) in an initiative to provide nutritious breakfasts to 100,000 children by 2022.
Smaller packaging for chocolates is gaining traction in India on the back of rising consumer awareness of portion control and health and wellness in the country, and F&B manufacturers have been urged to take advantage of this growing trend.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has proposed a set of legislations four years in the making, which would see F&B manufacturers banned from selling or promoting foods high in fat, salt or sugar (HFSS) in or around school premises.
Dairy industry would have suffered if PM Modi signed RCEP deal, experts say
India’s government has bowed to pressure from agriculture, and in particular the powerful dairy industry, and refused to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership trade deal with 15 other Asia-Pacific countries.
An internationally-backed Indian nanotechnology-based fruit and vegetable shelf-life extension formulation has moved beyond the research phase into commercialisation, claiming to extend freshness by a minimum of two weeks.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) recently released the results of its National Milk Safety and Quality Survey 2018, making numerous claims that these ‘demolish the perception of large scale milk adulteration in the country’ – but...
Tea Board India has warned manufacturers and sellers of tea and related products that adulterating teas with any form of artificial colouring will see legal action being enforced, stating that there is ‘no provision’ of any sort for using colour in tea.
The Indian state of Madhya Pradesh has prosecuted 31 food and beverage manufacturers for adulteration under the National Security Act (NSA), following test results that revealed just 54% of all food samples tested so far to be safe for consumption.
Pakistan’s Punjab Food Authority (PFA) has detected and discarded thousands of kilogrammes of adulterated food and beverage items over the past month, with over 100 brands deemed to be ‘unsafe’, amidst its efforts to intensify inspections in the province.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has pointed out supply and demand alignment as one of the key challenges in scaling up food fortification rates in the country.
Food and beverage firms in India have been advised to focus on high-protein product innovation, as over 25% of all Indian consumers feel that there is a lack of such items in the country, according to a new report.
Pakistan is looking to raise the value of its international fruit and vegetable exports to hit the PKR1bn (US$6.2mn) mark within the next three years, banking on a new marketing strategy and plan with a focus on dates, mangoes, potatoes, onions and kinno...
Walmart India has announced a US$4.8mn grant towards programmes to develop and boost local agricultural technologies and capabilities to help it source 25% of fresh produce from local farmers.
Prepared and packaged foods are one the five key categories identified by an India-World Bank collaborative programme to boost the nation’s food manufacturing sector, which has now moved to the cabinet approval stage.
Keeping products tasty and providing clear nutrition labelling have been found to be key factors influencing consumer appeal when it comes to food and beverage reformulation in India, a new report has found.
PepsiCo India is looking to double its local snacks business by 2022, based on an all-round local focus spanning people, ingredients, manufacturing, along with investment of some INR5.14bn (US$71mn).
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has urged that food samples be sent to private laboratories instead of government ones due to understaffing and inadequate facility issues.
Supermarket and food store sales in Hong Kong appear to have been unaffected by the high-profile protests that have repeatedly brought the territory to a standstill.
Indian cold-extracted juice company Second Nature is looking to conquer the local market using its unique juice extraction technique, which it claims is ‘one step better’ than the more common cold-pressed varieties.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has issued a formal order mandating compulsory third party food safety auditing for all food companies that deal in ‘high-risk’ product categories in hopes of reducing the need for frequent government...
