Food bites... Invest in the trends

"You can argue that every time there is a restriction on marketing or the composition of products — ie lowering sugar or salt — the companies that are going to benefit in the long term are those that are going to see the potential for enormous innovation and invest in it significantly, which is what we are doing. It is about making sure that the marketing today ... is increasingly targeted towards healthier lifestyles and healthier eating."  

Editor's Stuff - Danisco snaps up SA's Research Solutions

What a great success story for two South African food scientists! One of the foremost ingredient groups in the world, Danisco, nogal, announced this week that it has bought Research Solutions, a go-getting product development consultancy in Cape Town, that's also been doing brilliant business with its own ingredient compounds, mainly for the dairy sector.

Research Solutions was established five years ago by two senior Woolies' dairy specialists, Chris Botha and Tertius Cilliers, who quit the corporate world to set up an innovation and technical solutions centre that would supply holistic product development and technical support to the food industry.

"We saw a market weakness as a big opportunity, namely the lack of follow-through and deep understanding of the local environment from mainly European ingredient houses," Chris told me yesterday in a telephonic interview.

Now with a head count of 27, and a fully-equipped pilot plant in Klapmuts near Paarl, Research Solutions has found its success in both new product development consulting, as well as an ingredient innovator. "Our ingredient business has been the sustainable platform for our consulting arm, and we have developed cost effective and competitive products, with no compromise to quality, and they've been very well received," he explained.

The financial details of the deal have not been revealed, but I'm sure Messrs Botha and Cilliers are feeling pretty chuffed with life right now.

Danisco in SA is headed by the urbane and astute Paul Vet who clearly know a good thing when he sees one — as evidenced by the huge growth in its bakery business following its acquisition of another local entrepreneurial independent ingredient outfit, Innovative Ingredients, back in 2007. Savvy work, fellas! Read more here

But THREE days to go! You can still register for IUFoST 2010!

At last tally, SAAFoST reported that 1 681 delegates had registered for the congress, and it's probably more by now as D-DAY approaches. After months and months of work by a large and committed team of mostly volunteer SAAFoSTites, the big day is almost here!

Here are thirty things to know, and 30 compelling reasons to be at the food industry's own "World Cup" of food science, technology, trends, breakthroughs and challenges. Come for a day, or four, or just the expo - this is an event that every food industrialist needs to be at!

It promises to be a brilliant and inspirational world-class event, and is, by far, the most important and biggest food industry gathering ever held in this country. It's not too late to register — go to the IUFoST 2010 website for all the details: http://www.iufost2010.org.za/. I'll be there most of the time... hope to see you!

Enjoy this week's read!

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Local Food Industry Stuff

Cider shows year-on-year growth

According to Kay Pillay, who heads the Distell's cider and Ready to Drink (RTD) business division, genuine ciders, taken to be those made from fermented apple juice, showed an 8% year-on-year growth in volume for the 12 months to May 2010. This compares with the entire liquor category, which remained flat for the period, according to figures supplied by the SA Liquor Brandowners Association (SALBA) and Nielsens. At the same time, the Flavoured Alcoholic Beverage (FAB) segment of the RTD market, that includes wine and spirit coolers, as well as malt-flavoured drinks, grew by 3%.

Distell is the third biggest producer of ciders globally. Euromonitor currently lists Hunter's cider range that debuted in 1988 and Savanna brand, launched in 1996, as the world's second and third largest cider brands respectively. Both brands are the foremost players locally and every year new export markets continue to open up for each. BizCommunity. Read more

Health snacks for vending machines

Philip Rubin launched Health Island in June 2010, described as the first vending business in South Africa to supply healthy snacks and drinks to the corporate market, especially designed and selected to provide excellent, nutritious snack food to companies, gyms, hospitals, schools and tertiary institutions. The first six machines rolled out in July 2010. The company offers a full range of organic and natural snacks, drinks and smoothies, guaranteed to have great taste, no artificial flavour, colouring or preservatives, no hydrogenated oils or trans fats and no high fructose corn syrup. BizCommunity. Read more

Talking to Foodcorp's development chef

Michael le Borgne is one of the judges of the Sunday Times Food Awards. Hilary Biller spoke to him about his role as a product-development chef for Foodcorp. TimesLive. Read more

SA: WoSA chief tempers EU wine contravention reports

Sue Birch, the CEO of trade body Wines of South Africa (WoSA) has suggested a “reality check” following reports that the country's wine producers may flout EU production regulations. Several news stories, including one from Decanter, reported last week that wine producer Wine Cellars South Africa has proposed a change in the country's wine legislation to allow water to be added to grape must in controlled quantities before fermentation. Just-Drinks. Read more 

Lollipops for expecting mums

Tiger Brands has launched Purity Mama, a range of products specifically developed for pregnant women. The first two products to form part of the new range are Purity Mama Organic Rooibos & Ginger Tea and Purity Mama Ginger Lollypops. Both of these products are aimed at helping to alleviate the symptoms of nausea so commonly experienced by pregnant women. [No link]

Iconic Bashew’s returnable glass bottle turns 40

Bashew’s, the oldest soft drinks company in the Cape dating back to 1899, is celebrating the 40th anniversary of its iconic returnable glass bottle that's still delivered from door-to-door today in the famous wooden crates. A favourite in the coloured community, Bashew's is also now starting to move into mainstream retail. FOODStuff SA. Read more

Food Industry News

Cargill recognised for food security efforts

Cargill’s global food safety activities have landed it recognition by the International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUoFST), which will next week present the firm with this new award in the field at the IUFoST 2010 congress in Cape Town next week.The group’s President’s Award is a new category in its Global Food Industry Awards.

IUoFST president Geoffrey Campbell-Platt said the award recognises efforts to sustain traditional foods and bring them to a wider number of consumers. “Cargill has been recognised for its food safety leadership, its collaboration and commitment to improving access to food and to ensuring food safety through education,” he said. FoodNavigator. Read more

US: Massive egg recall

A new food scare is gripping the US after Wright County Egg, in Galt, Iowa, ordered the recall of an estimated 228 million eggs amid fears of salmonella poisoning. Health authorities have reported hundreds of cases of people in California suffering from salmonella enteritidis, which can be fatal.

The company announced on Friday that it was recalling 228 million eggs that it had sold since mid-May. On Wednesday, it added another 152 million eggs to the recall. Many of the affected eggs have long since been cooked and eaten, but millions could still be stored in refrigerators. NY Times. Read more  

Egg recall renews questions on battling salmonella

The recall of 380 million eggs by Galt renews questions about whether it's feasible to keep the microbe — the most common bacterial source of food-borne illness in the nation — out of the henhouse. The answer from experiences in Denmark and Sweden seems to be a qualified yes. It can be done, but at what cost? ... "We're speculating they could have had a highly infected flock or the product could have been mishandled, but we don't really know," says Mindy Brashears, a professor of food safety at Texas Tech University in Lubbock. USA Today. Read more  

US: CSPI won't appeal Enviga ruling

Lobby group, the Center for Science in the Public Interest, will not appeal a federal appeals court decision blocking a New Jersey woman’s lawsuit over false weight-loss claims made by Coca-Cola for Enviga. Enviga is a line of artificially sweetened green tea-based soft drinks whose labeling and advertising claims that the drink “burns calories”.

Launched with considerable fanfare in 2006, Enviga has since faded into obscurity ... “It’s ironic that Coke, a company that has been a major promoter of weight gain, is now pretending that it is coming to the rescue of overweight people,” said CSPI executive director Michael Jacobson when the lawsuit was filed in 2006. “They should have called this drink ‘Fleece,’ since that’s what they’re trying to do to consumers." BevNet. Read more  

UK: ‘Household names’ trial new fruit-based sweetener

‘Household names’ in food and drink manufacturing are conducting trials with fruit-based sweetener Sweet Freedom following its successful launch in the retail market. The sweetener, which is derived from naturally-occurring sugars in carob, apples and grapes, has secured listings in Tesco, Holland & Barrett, Waitrose and Ocado, where it is sold in 400ml bottles. Food Manufacture. Read more Or go to the company website here  

Food Industry Trends

Energy drinks jolt but stall in attracting new customers

According to exclusive Mintel research in the US, energy drinks/shots manufacturers are having difficulties attracting new customers, despite a 136% increase in sales from 2005-2009. In fact, 74% of those surveyed say they don’t consume energy drinks/shots and 69% of those non-users are not interested in trying them. FOODStuff SA. Read more

World gone green

Today it’s increasingly difficult to escape the buzz around sustainable products in the news, advertising, politics, and on supermarket shelves. So in an environment with so much white (or in this case, green) noise, what do consumers really think about sustainability? How much has changed since the green movement began gaining momentum? And what impact has the recession really had on the way consumers buy sustainable food and drink? Food Technology. Read more

Australia: Pizza Hut to cut out 35 tons of salt

Pizza Hut will cut salt levels in its recipes by as much as 45% next year, taking 35 tons of sodium out of Australian diets. The company behind the chain, Yum Restaurants, has had a small group of consumers sample the healthier versions in its test kitchens. Trials will start in 10 unnamed NSW stores in November ahead of a national roll -out in its 280 outlets early next year. Australians eat nearly 20 million pizzas at Pizza Hut each year ... The biggest declines will be in the meat-laden menu items, some of which contain up to 13g of salt - more than twice the total recommended daily intake for an adult. Herald Sun. Read more  

UK: Basic biscuit sales crumble as consumers go upmarket

If Britain is a nation of tea drinkers, then the rich tea, custard cream and digestive have been the snack of choice for millions come mid-afternoon. But it would seem the humble biscuit is falling from favour. The Telegraph. Read more

Health and Nutrition Stuff

A “dirty dozen” list of supplements consumers should avoid

More than half of the adult population in the US have taken supplements for a variety of reasons — to stay healthy, lose weight, gain an edge in sports, or to improve their performance in the bedroom. What consumers may not realise is that the supplement manufacturers routinely, and legally, sell their products without first having to demonstrate that they are safe and effective.

A new investigation in the September issue of Consumer Reports and available online at www.ConsumerReportsHealth.org describes a striking lack of government oversight for the bustling $26.7 billion dietary supplement market and identifies a “dirty dozen” list of supplement ingredients that have been linked by clinical research or case reports to serious adverse events, such as cancer, coma, heart problems, kidney damage, liver damage, or death. Read more

Green tea sets weight-loss industry abuzz, but what's behind the hype

Like all industries, the herbal weight-loss business moves in cycles. Less than a decade ago, the stimulant herb ephedra was one of the stars of the scene. It sped up metabolism and weight loss, but it also raised the heart rate and, in some cases, caused strokes and heart attacks.

The FDA banned ephedra supplements in 2004, setting off an industrywide scramble to find another herb that could take its place. For now, the winner seems to be green tea. Its reputation as a healthful, revitalizing beverage goes back thousands of years, and it has recently started showing up in a wide range of weight-loss supplements. Read more

Seeing red: The health implications of meat consumption

Headlines continue to raise concerns over the health effects of excessive meat consumption, a situation that is boosting consumer interest in meat substitutes. But what does the science say about meat and health?

What are the risks and benefits of excessive meat consumption? In recent years, high profile studies have linked meat consumption, be it red or processed meats, to increased risks of various diseases, including cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. FoodNavigator. Read more

‘Satisfying’ labels may beat ‘diet’ in curbing consumption

Manipulating our preconceptions on how filling we think food will be before we eat it may offer an interesting avenue in weight control, according to results presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB). Test subjects were more satisfied for longer periods of time after consuming food of varying quantities for which they were led to believe that portion sizes were larger than they actually were. FoodNavigator. Read more  

Moderate drinking, especially wine, associated with better cognitive function

A large prospective study of 5,033 men and women has reported that moderate wine consumption is independently associated with better performance on cognitive tests. ScienceDaily. Read more

Food Ingredient & Science Stuff

Sniff Test: Bacteria may have a primordial sense of smell

Bacteria can really stink. It is a truth acknowledged by anyone whose nostrils have confronted a carton of curdling milk or a pair of socks still saturated with memories of a marathon. But a new paper suggests that bacteria do not just reek odour — they also can smell it, according to a study just published in Biotechnology Journal. Not only is this the first evidence for a sense of smell in bacteria, the results also might represent one of the earliest forms of olfaction in evolutionary history. Scientific American. Read more

Picture: The bacterial colonies on the right side of the plate developed a gradient of slimy biofilm in response to airborne ammonia molecules emitted by the better-fed colonies on the left side.

The cutting edge of meat substitute innovation

Vegetarian protein options have come a long way from the once-ubiquitous lentils and tofu as food scientists have stepped up to the challenge of creating innovative meat substitutes. While popular meat alternatives include soy, wheat and Quorn — a mycoprotein derived from fermentation of the fungus Fusarium venenatum — there are a number of emerging opportunities in the meat substitutes market. Soy protein-based meat analogs are among the most established meat substitutes and they have become more popular in recent years, as the protein’s palatability has been improved with a high-moisture extrusion process. FoodNavigator-USA. Read more

What if you lost your sense of smell?

As senses go, smell gets little respect — except, it seems, from people who have lost it and the few scientists who study it. Bonnie Blodgett became part of the first group in 2005, shortly after using a zinc nasal spray that was later recalled. Unlike most victims, the garden writer from St Paul recovered. She doesn't know why. But during nine nose-less months, she tracked down experts and other sufferers to learn about what she had lost. The result is a new book: Remembering Smell: A Memoir of Losing — And Discovering — The Primal Sense. USA Today. Read more  

The human microbiome project

Unfortunately, when it comes to explaining how man and bacteria interact, we have surprisingly little idea. Scientists hope, however, that this is about to change, thanks to the Human Microbiome Project — an ambitious research exercise funded by the US government that might have a lower profile than the Human Genome Project that preceded it, but could have equally important implications.

As Professor George Weinstock explains, millions of years of evolution have seen man and microbe come to depend on each other to a remarkable degree, as if they’re more like additional organs of our bodies. The Telegraph. Read more

 Sustainability Stuff

Feeding the world in the next 40 years

But a major academic assessment of future global food supplies, led by John Beddington, the UK government chief scientist, suggests that even with new technologies such as genetic modification and nanotechnology, hundreds of millions of people may still go hungry owing to a combination of climate change, water shortages and increasing food consumption.

In a set of 21 papers published by the Royal Society, the scientists from many disciplines and countries say that little more land is available for food production, but add that the challenge of increasing global food supplies by as much as 70% in the next 40 years is not insurmountable. The Guardian. Read more  And see all the papers here   

Afghanistan and African nations at greatest risk from world food shortages

Soaring commodity prices and natural disasters in Russia and Pakistan have combined to put African nations and conflict-ridden countries such as Afghanistan most at risk from food shortages, according to a new report. Sharp price rises for wheat and other grains will hit the world's neediest countries hardest, mainly in sub-Saharan Africa, as they grapple with their own poor harvests and failing transport networks, according to a food security index by risk management consultancy Maplecroft. The Guardian. Read more

Scottish scientists develop whisky biofuel

It gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "one for the road". Whisky, the spirit that powers the Scottish economy, is being used to develop a new biofuel which could be available at petrol pumps in a few years. Using samples from the Glenkinchie Distillery in East Lothian, researchers at Edinburgh Napier University have developed a method of producing biofuel from two main by-products of the whisky distilling process — "pot ale", the liquid from the copper stills, and "draff", the spent grains.

Copious quantities of both waste products are produced by the £4bn whisky industry each year, and the scientists say there is real potential for the biofuel, to be available at local garage forecourts alongside traditional fuels. The Guardian. Read more  

Hot Stuff

Opinion: One hundred animals in a bun

Among the new discoveries we're making is scientific evidence that animals are conscious, meaning they are aware that they are alive. They experience life. They feel fear, pain, joy and love — maybe not exactly as we do — but the point is, they are not merely automatons that react to stimuli, they are individuals with their own unique personalities, characteristics, and quirks. Now, for those of us who live with dogs or cats, this comes as no surprise. But what about the animals we eat? Does it change our perception to think of them — the cows, the turkeys, the pigs, the chickens — not just as dinner, but as individuals, billions of individuals that are slaughtered each year? Huffington Post. Read more

Packaging Stuff

Celebrating two centuries of canning

The invention of the canning process 200 years ago is undoubtedly one of the most important developments in food packaging history. It began innocuously enough in the late 1700s when Frenchman Nicolas Appert (lured by Napoleon Bonaparte’s promise of 12 000 francs to the first person who could preserve food for his army) applied heat to food sealed in bottles, inventing a method for safely conserving food without refrigeration. FOODStuff SA. Read more

Kraft plans melt-proof chocolate bars

US food giant Kraft is searching for hi-tech chocolate bar packaging that will prevent them from melting at temperatures of up to 40C. The packaging could also prevent the white "bloom" discoloration that appears on chocolate if it is stored in direct sunlight. NineSigma, a US consultancy, has issued the design tender on Kraft's behalf, as part of its open innovation programme. The Telegraph. Read more

Catch up on latest SA packs

Clive Glover is a renowned new packaging spotter, photographer and journalist. Catch up on what's caught his eye over the last two months. See more here and here

Miscellany

Early humans were butchers 3.4 million years ago

Our ancestors were carving meat some 800,000 years earlier than previously thought. Marks on fossilised animal bones found in Ethiopia indicate that early-human butchers were using stone tools as early as 3.4 million years ago.

Shannon McPherron of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, and colleagues say the find is evidence that Australopithecus afarensis — the only known hominin species present in the region at the time — used tools. The finds suggest that the evolution of toolmaking and meat-eating among our human ancestors is more complex than existing theories admit. New Scientist. Read more

UK: For fresh read frozen: false claims made by restaurants revealed

Modern restaurants exult in parading the provenance of "pan-fried, line-caught seabass", "wild-foraged oyster mushrooms" and other elaborate or homely ingredients, but a swoop by trading standards officers has revealed that many of the descriptions are false. The Independent. Read more

Eat your art out: Artists develop a taste for food

Next weekend, a huge multi-level garden of exotic and colourful flowers, with visible roots dripping with soil and insects, and velvety blooms covered in flies and bugs, all made out of icing sugar, cake and marzipan, will form the centre piece at Cake Britain – the world's first entirely edible art exhibition.

The show at London's Future Gallery (which is appropriately sponsored Tate & Lyle Sugar), celebrates a nascent British art scene that uses jelly, cake, candy or other fare instead of paint or canvas. Dreamt up by a group who call themselves the Mad Artists Tea Party, and curated by cupcake-maker Lily Vanilli (also responsible for the edible garden), everything produced by artists and confectioners will be devoured within 72 hours of the exhibition opening. The Independent. Read more  

Considering vinegar

If you date the birth of human culture to the discovery of alcohol — as proud a moment as any, in my book — then vinegar is as old as civilisation. Nobody had to learn how to make it: it turned up on its own, an immediate and subsequently persistent reminder of how tenuous and fleeting is our hold over nature. Vinegar develops when airborne bacteria settle on booze (beer, wine, fermented fruit juice, whatever) and turn the alcohol into the sharp, punchy overkill of acetic acid. That compound — one of the most useful things to have in the kitchen cupboard, or under the kitchen sink – gives the salad dressing its sharpness, the copper coin its sheen. The Guardian. Read more

Why there's more to cookbooks than recipes

The best cookbooks can be enjoyed for lots of reasons — fine writing, a spot of social or cultural history. And just occasionally, we might even try some of the dishes.

You can learn so much from reading cookbooks, and not only how to get good crackling on your pork. Turn their pages and you will see fashions waxing and waning (where once there were lashings of cream, now there is only creme fraiche and a stern lecture); social change will happen in front of your very eyes . . . The Guardian. Read more  

Starbucks attacked: "Skinny grande decaf latte? No, I just want a @#¡* coffee!"

Are you the kind of person who feels annoyed by having to order a 'tall white Americano' when you simply want a small coffee with milk? Then you'll be pleased to know a blow has been struck for plain English. Lynne Rosenthal, a literature professor at New York's Mercy College, was this week thrown out of a branch of Starbucks in Manhattan after getting into an argument over the chain's 'linguistic fascism' - and is urging others to follow her rebellious lead ... While some might feel Professor Rosenthal has as much of a problem with basic politeness as Starbucks does with plain English, I do feel a pang of sympathy for her. Daily Mail. Read more