Two of the world’s leading suppliers and manufacturers of dairy goods have moved to play up their commitments in China as the legacy of the ongoing melamine scandal continues to impact on their operations.
The Australian and New Zealand food safety regulator is mulling a part reversal of a 1990s restriction on the use of coal-based dye erythrosine, after receiving a petition for its use in colourings for bakery icings.
Calls to ban the Southampton colours are reverberating around the world, as week campaigners in Australia called on FSANZ to phase out the additives implicated in hyperactivity like its UK counterpart.
The European Commission has imposed anti-dumping tariffs of almost
40 per cent on monosodium glutamate (MSG) imported to the EU from
China, following an investigation into the effects of lower-priced
imports on EU industry.
There is evidence that European potato starch suppliers are losing
out to Chinese competitors, as anti-dumping measures drive rampant
growth for leading Chinese starch maker.
Western suppliers and manufacturers are contributing to earthquake
recovery in China while trying to cope with the effect the quake
has had on their operations.
Purac has officially opened its new lactic acid factory in
Thailand, where it hopes to build on lactic acid growth in Asia as
well as cutting production costs.
Danish ingredients group Danisco today inaugurated a new
application and research facility in China, which the firm hopes
will help it further expand operations in an "important growth
area".
Swiss chocolate company Barry Callebaut is to purchase a 60 per
cent share of Malaysia's KL Kepong Cocoa Products in a move
designed to increase its sourcing capacity in Asia.
Nutracea announced it has received an opening purchase order from
network marketing company the Cosway Corporation for launch of its
stabilized rice bran in Southeast Asia.
Australia can adopt commercialised genetically modified (GM) canola
production without compromising its organic agriculture, say new
findings from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and
Resource Economics (ABARE).
Asia's biggest dairy, Japan's Meiji, has started shipping
pasteurized milk directly to Shanghai from Japan, the first time a
foreign dairy has supplied fresh milk to the rapidly growing
market.
Food miles, the trendy catchphrase alluding to pollution caused by
food exports, is 'a red herring' that detracts from serious
environmental issues to be faced by food producers, says Fonterra's
trade strategy manager,...
Poultry processors in Australia are expected to implement
'significant price increases' for chicken meat, as drought leads to
surging grain prices, a major production cost for the country's
chicken farmers.
China will remove the import duty on Indonesian cocoa from 1
January next year, a move likely to increase demand for the beans
from the world's third biggest producer.
Chinese dairy Yili, one of the country's top two, has increased
sales and profits in the first six months of the year despite
rising raw material costs, reinforcing its market share in the
fast-growing dairy sector.
New Zealand's meat promotion board launched an appellation for beef
sold in the important Korean market this week, in a bid to
differentiate its meat from its sizeable competitors, Australia and
the US.
Sugar growers in the Philippines are calling on the public to
boycott Kraft's Tang and Kool-Aid brands because the US firm
refuses to pay a sugar import tariff on the powdered beverages.
The Philippines is seeking to boost production of dried cocoa beans
under a 10-year plan designed to reduce its dependence on imports
and target new export markets.
Several provinces in western and northern China are facing food
shortages due to a prolonged drought that has left hundreds of
reservoirs dry and tens of thousands of wells either dry or nearly
empty, reported the UN's Food and...
More productive sugarcane varieties can be delivered two to three
years earlier, say Australian scientists, helping the sugar
industry maintain its productivity and sustainability.
Vietnam has announced that seafood exports have risen during the
first four months of the year, despite ongoing trading difficulties
with the US, Tom Armitage reports.
The Philippines may have to import more rice than it has for seven
years if a prevailing drought cuts rice production as feared,
suggested a senior agricultural official.
Thirty-two Chinese companies are to appeal against a ruling by the
US Department of Commerce which found them guilty of dumping large
quantities of shrimps onto the US market and imposed punitive
import duties.
The Vietnam Food Association says that in 2005 turnover in rice
exports is expected to reach $1 billion, but with no plans to
increase crop growing areas, the target may well prove difficult to
reach.
A significant drive from Asian rice producers has helped boost
global paddy production in 2004 to an estimated record 611 million
tonnes. But the Food and Agriculture Organisation says that supply
is still not meeting needs, writes...
The rising price of global freight and fuel costs means that food
business worldwide need to streamline their operations. As the
transport requirement of China continue to put pressure on shipping
availabiliy, a new report suggests...
A rise in global stocks of wheat after a 30-year low will offer
continued relief to the tighter prices experienced by the food
industry in previous years, but the food chain still needs to stay
on the alert.
Vietnam plans to earn at least $2 billion in revenue from agro-food
exports to the European Union by 2010. The pledge comes in the face
of tough trade, health and safety regulations imposed by the EU
authorities, which should make...
US ingredients giant ADM saw double-digit sales growth for the year
but overall profits were dragged down by a volatile soybean market
in China. The company said that many cancelled orders from soy meal
buyers there had particularly...
French drinks group Rémy Cointreau has reported double-digit growth
in the first quarter of 2004, driven by strong gains in Asia and
the US, but continued weakness in its domestic market took a toll
on Champagne sales.
The Thai department of agriculture says its is rapidly moving
towards the development of its tropical fruit production in the
country in an effort to gain a leading edge in an increasingly
liberalised pan-Asia Pacific market.
Asian shrimp farmers have described a US ruling to increase tariffs
as 'regrettable' after increases of up to 112 per cent were slapped
on Chinese and Vietnamese producers' exports.
Although 2004 is now expected to yield a bumper grain harvest in
China, with provinces announcing record crop levels, Beijing is
taking action to halt the country's fall in per-hectare yield of
cropland over recent years.
After years of struggling to meet increasing domestic demand for
soy products, Chinese government officials believe that discussions
with the Brazilian government may have solved the problem. Trade
talks held in Beijing this week...
