Bakery

FI Asia 2017

Halal status raises Morinaga's sales hopes for immunity-boosting Lactobacillus strain

13-Sep-2017 By Gary Scattergood

Japanese ingredient giant Morinaga is hoping for a South East Asia sales boom for its 'immunogenics' probiotic LAC-Shield product after recently receiving halal accreditation.

Egypt ripe for Britannia biscuits expansion

06-Sep-2017 By RJ Whitehead

Egypt is among the countries under consideration by Indian snack major Britannia Industries as it seeks to expand its international footprint.

Australia

Woolworths Father's Day cake sparks outrage online

05-Sep-2017 By RJ Whitehead

A Woolworths mud cake sparked widespread controversy during this year’s antipodean Father’s Day.

Australia

Arnott’s ends relocation rumours at opening of A$22m packaging plant

16-Aug-2017 By RJ Whitehead

Australian bakery major Arnott’s opened a A$22m (US$17.5m) packaging plant in its traditional heartland of Sydney’s western suburbs.

Inflation and interest rates pile on hurt for Egyptian F&B majors

09-Aug-2017 By RJ Whitehead

Food businesses have been suffering in Egypt, where rising interest rates and spiking inflation have caused a squeeze on consumer purchasing power.

India

Britannia announces plans for Maharashtra mega-factory

09-Aug-2017 By RJ Whitehead

Indian FMCG major Britannia Industries is planning to build a new plant at a mega food park in Maharashtra.

Novacap’s first sodium bicarbonate plant in Asia opens in Singapore

20-Jul-2017 By Cheryl Tay

Novacap has officially opened a sodium bicarbonate plant in Singapore, the first of its kind for the French firm in Asia, to boost sales to bakery and pharmaceutical sectors, among others.

NZ childcare services fall short of guidelines for child nutrition

13-Jul-2017 By Cheryl Tay

A large number of childcare services in New Zealand that provide food to pre-schoolers aged three to four do not meet current nutrition guidelines, a recent study has found.

Asia-Pacific

DuPont introduces new enzymes for bakery

06-Jul-2017 By RJ Whitehead

DuPont has been granted approval for three bakery enzymes used as processing aids in Japan.

Lupin added to mandatory allergen labelling list

20-Jun-2017 By staff reporter

Lupin has been added to the required list of allergens that have to be declared on labels in Australia and New Zealand.

Nutritional ingredients firm Barentz International expands in Vietnam amid rising APAC sales

15-Jun-2017 By Cheryl Tay

Dutch ingredients firm Barentz International recently has opened its first office in Vietnam, on the back of 15% annual Asia Pacific growth.

French yeast giant Lesaffre establishes APAC hub in Singapore

22-May-2017 By Cheryl Tay

Lesaffre, a 164-year-old French company specialising in yeast and fermentation products, has officially opened its regional expertise hub in Singapore, consolidating its different APAC business streams.

Bakery China 2017

China to familiarize Western market with ‘pinyin’ baked treats

12-May-2017 By Gill Hyslop

China’s diverse bakery industry – encompassing bakers of traditional ‘pinyin’ (literally translated as ‘Chinese style cakes and snacks’) and producers of modern items like croissants and waffles – is growing at a rate that far exceeds most other segments.

Food Vision Asia 2017

Social science: The world's big 'metatrends' define global tastes

01-May-2017 By RJ Whitehead

Nutritional biochemist and food marketeer Rachel Cheatham looks at five of the biggest global food trends based on her analysis of social media reporting.

This week Down Under

Australia finds 1/2m new weekly bread shoppers in a year

20-Apr-2017 By RJ Whitehead

Australia’s ultra-competitive bread market has picked up nearly half a million new customers in the last year, with almost 11m shoppers now spending an average of A$8.20 (US$6.16) each on their weekly loaves, buns and baguettes—though specialist shops...

Dateline Southeast Asia: Halal

Mindanao eyes US Islamic trade, though it must first tailor standards

13-Apr-2017 By RJ Whitehead

The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao’s advance on the global halal market continues as it prepares to sign an agreement with Islamic authorities in America.

Cargill, General Mills and Unilever agree to fortify flagship wheat flour brands with vitamins and minerals in India

10-Apr-2017 By Gary Scattergood

Major brands and millers have agreed to fortify wheat flour with iron, folic acid and vitamin B12 under India’s drive to boost nutrition levels through a mass fortification programme. 

Almarai, ADM ‘preparing bid’ for Saudi milling monopoly sell-off

05-Apr-2017 By RJ Whitehead

Almarai is rumoured to be among the companies in line to bid for Saudi Grains Organisation’s milling monopoly.

VIDEO: The top consumer trends driving business innovation at Ingredion

27-Mar-2017 By Gary Scattergood

Ingredion may be best known for its clean label products, but according to the firm’s president for APAC and EMEA, there are a further three key trends driving business innovation at the company.

ASIA'S FOOD LEADERS VIDEO SERIES

VIDEO: Asia is still the growth engine of the food world, Singapore CEO

14-Mar-2017 By Gary Scattergood

Better productivity, more reliable logistics and enhancing export oppotunities - these are just three of the key benefits of Commonwealth Capital's new $70m manufacturing site in Singapore.

Africa and Middle East love sweet bakes, but want sugar reduction: DuPont

09-Mar-2017 By Gill Hyslop

South African, Egyptian and Saudi Arabian women see the appeal of healthier snacking options, but sweet baked snacks remain more popular.

Danisco cleared to release five bakery enzymes by Indonesian regulator

24-Feb-2017 By RJ Whitehead

Indonesia’s food watchdog has approved five DuPont Danisco range of bakery enzymes, giving the ingredients access for the first time to Indonsia’s sizeable flour milling industry.

Ülker in talks to secure MENA rights for McVitie’s

23-Feb-2017 By Oliver Nieburg

Ülker Bisküvi Sanayi A.Ş is in talks to acquire rights to McVitie’s products in Middle East and North Africa.

Lotte to face 'severe consequences' if it allows US missile system, warns China

21-Feb-2017 By Douglas Yu

China’s state media outlet Xinhua has urged Lotte to reject a US missile system on a golf course owned by the Korean conglomerate or face "severe consequences".

Hong Kong’s Swire to double down on Chinese bakery investment

14-Feb-2017 By RJ Whitehead

Cathay Pacific’s parent plans to nearly double the size of its retail bakery business by 202, to become one of the biggest bakers in China.

Expert panel established to drive forward India's national fortification plan

13-Feb-2017 By Millette Burgos

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has set up a panel of doctors and research scientists to prepare the final version of its food fortification laws – a move that would facilitate the inclusion of micronutrients to several food staples.

SPOTLIGHT JAPAN

Have a break...have a Kit Kat sushi

13-Feb-2017 By Gary Scattergood

Japan is known for its love of weird and wacky Kit Kat flavours, but Nestlé might have just taken the biscuit with its sushi version.

ASIA'S FOOD LEADERS VIDEO SERIES

Video: ‘We’re investing where the market grows…and that’s Asia’

31-Jan-2017 By Gary Scattergood

Distributor Jebsen & Jessen has been splashing the cash in Asia, having recently opened in its first ingredients site in the region – a $17m joint venture malt processing factory in Thailand alongside supplier Muntons – as well as spending a further...

Rice bran cereals could get antioxidant boost from Assam tea fortification

20-Jan-2017 By Millette Burgos

Rice bran cereals can be fortified with Assam tea extract (ATE) to boost its antioxidant properties without sacrificing taste and texture, states a new study.

Why cardiovascular health functional foods are primed to take-off across APAC: Euromonitor

11-Jan-2017 By Maria Mascaraque

Despite Asia Pacific being a region with high incidence of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), sales of cardiovascular health positioned foods and beverages are not high, writes Maria Mascaraque from Euromonitor International.

GI-reducing formula achieves ‘record low’ levels in white bread

21-Dec-2016 By Gary Scattergood

Holista CollTech says recent tests have shown its GI-reducing Panatura GI formula has recorded even lower results in ‘clean label’ white bread.

Ethical certification promises much - but it's been a tough year

14-Dec-2016 By David Burrows

Back in 2014 I interviewed Hans Jöhr, who at the time was corporate head of agriculture at Nestlé. We had a (refreshingly) open discussion about certification schemes. Some of them are “cheating consumers” and “cannot help farmers be better farmers per...

MENA Millennials driving demand for bakery and snacks, says Golden Agri-Resources

07-Dec-2016 By Gill Hyslop

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is developing a taste for luxury products, especially premium bakery goods, snacks and confectionery.

ADM sells stake in GrainCorp; completes revamp of Ukraine oilseed plant

06-Dec-2016 By Gill Hyslop

Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) has sold its stake in GrainCorp Limited soon after separately reopening  its oilseed processing facility in Chornomorsk in the Ukraine.

China’s tiny baked goods category now ripe for foreign investment

28-Nov-2016 By RJ Whitehead

Though its baked goods market is 125 times smaller than its counterpart in Europe, China still holds enormous potential for businesses exactly because of this low per-capita consumption.

Some RSPO members are ‘first-class hypocrites’: The scathing personal view of palm oil boss (who also happens to be the organisation’s co-chair)

09-Nov-2016 By Gary Scattergood

RSPO co-chair and boss of Malaysia’s United Plantations Berhad, Dato’ Carl Bek-Nielsen gave a measured address at the opening of the organisation's RT14 conference in Bangkok.

Gulfood Manufacturing 2016

Cake Concepts takes Japanese idea to develop Fun Cakes and sponge pancakes

08-Nov-2016 By Jenny Eagle

Cake Concepts has taken an idea from Japan and adapted it to American and US tastes to create a niche market in the bakery industry.

India

Arjuna launches Ayurveda-based clean-label preservative

08-Nov-2016 By RJ Whitehead

Kerala-based botanicals major Arjuna Natural Extracts will launch a range of preservatives that the company says will appeal to the clean-label food fixation of millennials by combining herbal extracts with advanced technologies. 

Despite recent surge, halal market still has huge long-term potential

19-Oct-2016 By RJ Whitehead

Global sales of halal products have surged in recent years, yet the potential for further growth, both in Islamic and non-Islamic countries, remains vast.

Malaysia

PureCircle begins work to double stevia production capacity

29-Sep-2016 By RJ Whitehead

Natural sweetener major PureCircle will build a new processing plant that will double its capacity to produce a proprietary stevia leaf extract. 

New baking enzyme being mulled by the Australia-NZ regulator

29-Sep-2016 By RJ Whitehead

The antipodean food regulator has sought public consultation on an application to allow the use of a new enzyme as a processing aid.

DuPont's Asia nutrition boss: Dow merger will make us faster, flexible and more efficient

28-Sep-2016 By Gary Scattergood

In the first of a two-part interview, DuPont’s Asia president for health and nutrition Dr Li Yongjing discusses the initial turbulence created by the ongoing merger with Dow, and explains why he believes the new relationship will make the firm better...

Reformulation of discretionary products would have limited impact

21-Sep-2016 By Gary Scattergood

Reformulating products such as biscuits, confectionary and sugar-sweetened beverages would have only a “small to moderate” impact on the diets of Australians, while simply telling people to eat less is “unsustainable”, an international diabetes conference...

Indian ingredient firm Roha opens German base

15-Sep-2016 By Gary Scattergood

Indian-based ingredient firm Roha has continued its global expansion by opening a German office to increase technical and consumer support in Europe. 

China’s fragmented bakery market likely to consolidate: Mintel

14-Sep-2016 By Douglas Yu

China’s fast-growing bakery market is likely to experience consolidation as larger players develop, analysts at Mintel have suggested.

China direct

Hongkongers warned to avoid unhealthy mooncakes

06-Sep-2016 By RJ Whitehead

Hong Kong authorities have warned the public against buying mooncakes with high levels of sugar, fat and sodium ahead of the Mid-Autumn festival later this month.

Singapore and Malaysia lead the way with voluntary GDA labelling roll-out

05-Sep-2016 By Gary Scattergood

‘Significant progress’ has been made in rolling-out voluntary Guideline Daily Amounts (GDA) nutrition labelling in Asia over the past four years, but more work is needed to educate consumers and emphasise their benefits to small and medium-sized enterprises...

Natural ingredients in India: The four hurdles facing suppliers and manufacturers

24-Aug-2016 By Gary Scattergood

Indian food manufacturers face four fundamental hurdles when it comes to expanding their use of natural ingredients, in addition to the extra cost that they can incur.

India’s food trends: What’s hot and what's not

23-Aug-2016 By Gary Scattergood

Indian consumers are increasingly aware that all fats are not bad, are demanding more products that offer “complete wellness” and are becoming increasingly opening to exploring alternative proteins and natural sugars.

South Asia radius

DuPont develops ingredients for pre-packaged rotis in India

02-Aug-2016 By RJ Whitehead

A “packaged roti” for a market that has been turning its back on homemade breads in favour of more convenient products with longer shelf-life is now available from a range of baking solutions by DuPont.