Asia Pacific consumers are increasingly turning to the back of food packaging to check ingredient lists, before considering any front-of-pack health claims, with interest in clean label products seemingly gathering pace.
Beverage giant Kirin has been focusing extra marketing efforts into its non-alcoholic beer option Kirin Green’s Free and its own-brand whiskey Riku in a new push to expand market share.
South Korea’s Health Functional Food (HFF) production value was up nearly 20 per cent in year 2021, latest data from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) showed.
Thai silk pupae firm Kokoonic is marketing its new high-protein, low-sodium savoury snack range Eri Rocket as the ‘Snack of the Generation’, believing it can draw in health-focused and sustainability-seeking consumers.
The South Korean government has announced that it will no longer be working with one of the nation’s largest dairy industry associations, the Korea Dairy Beef Cattle Association, in its plans to reform the sector, citing a ‘lack of trust’ and ‘damaged...
Thai plant-based meat firm Let’s Plant Meat has launched a wave of new Thai-focused plant-based meat and seafood products to meet rising demand in the region, which the firm says is being driven by both consumer health awareness and rising meat prices.
India sports nutrition company MuscleBlaze has developed and launched a test kit designed to detect the presence and amount of whey protein present in protein powder.
Vietnamese rice product specialist Duy Anh Foods is using fruits and vegetables as crucial ingredients in its novel product innovation drive, having developed unusual combination products including watermelon vermicelli and dragonfruit rice paper thus...
Non-alcoholic spirit brand Seedlip believes that the strength of new product discovery as well as health and wellness trends in the Asia Pacific region are key industry drivers that are set to propel the sector to new heights, especially in Singapore.
Singapore food giant OTS Holdings aims to export its plant-based brand ANEW to markets where plant-based awareness, penetration and adoption rates are already high to overcome the Asian consumer reluctance to “let go” of conventional meat.
Cultivated seafood pioneer Shiok Meats has revealed that its production costs have now dropped to the coveted US$50/kg milestone, bringing it even closer to realising its commercial launch plans by the end of 2023.
Unilever’s major subsidiary in India Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) has highlighted a renewed focus on its tea and health foods portfolios in order to counter continuing inflation challenges faced in the country.
Attaining global leadership in the tempeh or traditional fermented bean cake market requires innovative formulations and securing buy-in beyond health-conscious vegan consumers, according to the founder of Singapore’s Angie’s Tempeh.
From sustainability advances to embracing alternative production methods, major players Thai Union and CP Foods, plus alt-protein pioneers Shiok Meats and OmniFoods have shared their exclusive insights on how the industry can meet Asia’s seemingly insatiable...
Pioneering cultivated seafood firms in the APAC region are now establishing individual pilot production plants to work on bridging the gap between laboratory R&D and manufacturing, in the industry’s next big step towards mass commercialisation.
Nestle Malaysia believes that the rest of 2022 will be a tumultuous time for the food and beverage giant with supply chain and commodity costs continuing to rise, even after having pulled off a stellar performance by leading the ASEAN zone growth for...
The Health Supplements Industry Association of Singapore (HSIAS) has voiced its support for a newly introduced voluntary notification scheme, explaining that it could support the credential of locally made products in both domestic and overseas markets....
Edible oils giant Sime Darby believes that the future of the oils and fats industry lies in product innovation for the plant-based and wellness sectors, and has upgraded its research and development to provide both industry and consumers with more of...
Personalised nutrition intervention could be more beneficial than conventional methods in improving the health statuses of overweight and obese Chinese adults.
Snacking giant PepsiCo has highlighted food security, healthier choices and packaging as major sustainability and business objectives in the Middle East and Asia.
Nestle has launched China’s first carbon-neutral product, a stage three formula for toddlers said to be sourced from Switzerland-based farms that do not use herbicides and growth hormones.
Rice noodle brand Foodle Noodle has launched its first clean label instant cup noodles range in Thailand, offering local flavours with all-organic ingredients as a healthier, more convenient option to appeal to younger consumers leading a fast-paced lifestyle.
Seafood major Thai Union has taken the unprecedented step of partnering with NGO Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) and opening up its entire supply chain for auditing under the body’s internationally recognized Seafood Metrics system, to boost the...
Indonesia’s mushroom protein firm Meatless Kingdom is set to embark on a business strategy revamp, including international distribution and a focus on flavour enhancement.
The flavour innovation process for brands in the APAC region is being increasingly driven by culture and localisation, with many of the region’s bigger food firms already grasping the importance of this trend.
Food and beverage multinational CP Foods has big plans for its new plant-based Meat Zero line and other alternative protein innovations, citing strong category growth and rising consumer health consciousness as its main motivations for leaping into the...
The Food Safety and Standards Authority India (FSSAI) has specified supply chain traceability up to the manufacturer level as a key criterion for food firms manufacturing vegan products to obtain the relevant regulatory permissions.
Australia’s Healthy Care and Canada’s Jamieson Laboratories were the few overseas firms to receive China’s health foods filing approval in the first seven months of 2022, according to a new report.
The Thai authorities have stressed that stringent control measures will be enforced as more food and beverage firm seeks to use cannabis-derived ingredients, amid claims that 30% of products contain higher than permitted tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) levels.
Sesame’s nutritional and sustainable properties could make it Asia’s best option for traditional milk replacement, despite it being a relative newcomer in region’s plant-based dairy alternative space, claims a Thai firm seeking to pioneer the sector.
Innovations in blockchain, QR codes and a wealth of outside investments have propelled the global halal food sector, with Malaysia becoming a key beneficiary, according to new data.
Specific probiotics strains have showed immunomodulatory properties in women suffering from chronic inflammatory conditions, such as gestational diabetes and PCOS, according to a review of RCTs conducted by Nestle.
Kirin has dominated Japan’s Foods with Function Claims (FFC) immune health category in FY21, with it being the only company that has received the authority’s recognition for its immune health ingredient L. lactis strain Plasma – also known as LC-plasma.
Insect protein sector pioneers in Asia have cited both negative consumer perceptions as well as upscaling challenges as the most major hurdles the industry is currently facing in its battle to go mainstream.
Our first Mind and Mood Interactive Broadcast has heard that regulators are failing to match consumer demand for natural products to aid mental well-being spanning cognition, sleep, stress and anxiety in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A 12-week RCT funded by Mitsubishi Corporation Life Sciences has shown that nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) intake has significantly improved certain aspects of muscle mobility, especially gait speed and left grip strength – which the company says presents...
Snacking giant Lotte has revealed that low-and-no-sugar are key trends guiding its new product development across both its snacking and confectionery portfolios, while also reveal plans to boost sales in the Middle East and South Africa.
Thai juice giant Tipco believes that consumers are turning to beverages as a tasty yet convenient means of ‘drinking’ in additional nutrients, leading to a rise in popularity of items such as vegetable juices and herb-infused drinks.
Japan has updated its food labelling regulations for foods with genetically modified components, and will enact a national ‘non-GM’ labelling system update in 2023.
Corn and dried produce specialist V Foods has launched a new range of plant-based products with an emphasis on not being meat alternatives, looking instead to focus on the appeal of whole foods to draw in sceptical consumers.
Food and beverage MNC Charoen Pokphand Foods (CP Foods) has highlighted food safety, convenience and alternative proteins as major industry trends set drive consumer purchasing decisions in the next decade.
Premium spirits MNC Beam Suntory believes that the revival of travel retail is especially important for its India business to thrive, with the firm outlining how it plans to achieve growth in the category.
Singapore bio-fermented tonics firm Akesi hopes new research on the polyphenol content of its products will be the catalyst for the firm’s growth in APAC over the next five years.
China functional food firm BuffX has outlined its strategy to outgrow the bottleneck seen in tier one and two cities – by launching powder-based ‘breakfasts’ in lower tier cities formulated using traditional Chinese medicines (TCM) concepts.
The Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region local government has allocated specific funding for the development and revitalisation of the dairy industry in the region, aiming to work with local dairy giants Yili and Mengniu to maximise its potential.
