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Editor’s Stuff: Rx Exercise!
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Bad news for couch potatoes. The good news about exercise keeps rolling in… Forget the pills — there’s new evidence that exercise may be as effective as medications in treating heart disease and diabetes.
Starting Monday! SAAFoST’s 20th Biennial International Congress and Exhibition: Pretoria, CSIR International Convention Centre from 7-9 October 2013.
Food industrialists, scientists, technologists, marketers, suppliers, academics and students will be gathering for three days in Pretoria for the SAAFoST Congress next week – and it looks to be another excellent event organised by the association’s Northern Branch.
I’ll be there, and presenting on food and beverage trends on Monday. Hope to see you!
Enjoy this week’s newsletter!
SAAFFI’s Precise Short Training Courses – 5 November 2013, Gauteng
Flavours & Fragrances – What they are made of & how they are regulated – See more at: http://www.saaffi.co.za/index.php?page=pstc#sthash.ZdmSZ1DK.dpuf
Flavours & Fragrances – What they are made of & how they are regulated – See more at: http://www.saaffi.co.za/index.php?page=pstc#sthash.ZdmSZ1DK.dpuf
- Flavours & Fragrances – What they are made of & how they are regulated
FOODStuff SA is a hub for food-bev industry recruitment: look for a job or advertise your company’s positions! Click here
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Local News and Developments |
Following months of hostile clucking between chicken producers and chicken importers, government has finally acknowledged that the industry is threatened by cheap imports and has imposed a new import tariff regime on it – effective September 30.
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Pioneer Foods CEO Phil Roux warns of a challenging trading environment for the rest of the year… |
South Africa needs a fresh economic philosophy to ignite its true growth potential, Woolworths chairman Simon Susman says in the retailer’s annual report, released this week. |
Ambitious BOS iced tea eyes further expansion
After the successful launch of its products in Europe earlier this year, fast-track home-grown organic ice tea brand, BOS, sees scope to expand into the rest of Africa.
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Fab new FABS for SA’s summer season Riebeek Retail Brands is on a mission to grow its South African market share in the alcoholic fruit beverage (FAB) category via innovative product concepts, flavours and carton packaging.
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Despite difficult economic conditions, South Africans are not shying away from drinking premium alcohol brands. Top whisky brands experienced substantial growth last year from the previous year and that trend is set to continue.
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Everyone loves a bargain and, with this in mind, online wine sites are jostling for attention using discounted wine to lure foot-traffic to their sites.
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Dave Steward, executive director of the FW de Klerk Foundation, and Leon Louw, co-founder of the Free Market Foundation, have expressed concern about the “tsunami” of health regulations and laws Minister of Health Aaron Motsoaledi is promoting.
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KFC Africa’s highly-regarded chief marketing officer, David Timm, will be leaving SA to take up a promotion as marketing head of KFC UK & Ireland, starting December.
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Tetra Pak has appointed Penny Ntuli as cluster leader communications for sub-Sahara Africa.
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To bring some of its Good Business Journey stories to life in a new two-part summer Foods TV ad campaign, Woolworths is taking it a step further by giving consumers the opportunity to see the behind-the-scenes realities of where its food comes from.
Liquor industry gets ready to fight off ban Cabinet has approved the draft bill banning alcohol advertising and it was due to be gazetted for public comment on Wednesday – and industry has vowed to fight it vehemently.
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International Developments
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Reuters reports that Cargill, one of the world’s leading cocoa traders, is in the final stages of a deal to buy Archer Daniels Midland Co’s cocoa business, citing sources familiar with the situation and potentially creating a price-setting global giant.
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South Africa is the trial country for a new collaborative social responsibility program launched by the Coca-Cola Company – an initiative to erect thousands of green-tech, community kiosks globally. Dubbed EKOCENTERS and to be run and managed by women, they will deliver safe drinking water and basic necessities such as electricity and Internet connections to rural communities.
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Paul Polman talks about authenticity, transparency, a sense of purpose in business and why profit warnings don’t worry him… The Guardian conducts a comprehensive interview with Unilever’s charismatic CEO.
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Philip Clarke, chief executive of UK’s Tesco, on why firms must keep pace with their fast-changing clientele. |
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Trends, Marketing and NPD |
Mondelez South Africa reports it went the extra mile in researching and creating a new marketing campaign for its famous Oreos cookies – embarking on a qualitative market survey to find out what effect modern lifestyles are having on South African families. |
Protein powder is being added to foods from bread to ice-cream – brands worldwide are bulking up with a host of protein-enhanced products in an effort to create a new lucrative niche.
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More snacks made from brown rice, vegetables, legumes aim to satisfy the craving for ‘permissible indulgence’…
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Move over lattes. Juice made from green leafy vegetables is the latest health-food trend. Is it really good for you, or just an expensive fad?
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Coca-Cola has lost its crown as the world’s top brand, unseated by the iconic iPhone and iPad maker Apple. Coke’s has reigned as No 1 brand in marketing consultant, Interbrand’s annual brand rating report for 13 years since it began, and has now lost its crown to Apple.
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Hold the fries, pass the salad! McDonald’s reports it will let customers choose a side salad, fruit or vegetables instead of french fries.
Burger King has introduced lower-fat french fries as consumer groups and nutrition experts in the US increase pressure on the food industry to offer healthier alternatives.
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Food Science, Technology and Ingredients |
Imagine: You can now create french fries and ketchup from THE SAME PLANT. This week UK and New Zealand companies have both launched viable, commercialised versions of a tomato-come-potato plants for home horticulture. Introducing the TomTato and the DoubleUp Potato Tom, single plants that produce both tomatoes and potatoes at the same time.
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Is raw milk worth the risk? European study says ‘no’ From increased immunity to beneficial milk enzymes, raw milk advocates turn to generally non-scientific data to base their claims. In a new study, published in the journal Food Control, Belgian researchers reviewed data surrounding the risks and benefits of both raw and pasteurised milk. The results: Pasteurisation does not substantially change the nutritional value of raw milk or benefits associated with raw milk consumption. |
Popcorn lung: Diacetyl butter flavour alternatives may also carry risks Butter flavour alternatives touted as replacements for the potentially harmful popcorn butter flavour diacetyl may be just as unsafe, warn researchers. |
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The search for a better fat replacer: swap in new starches for old fats Fat mimetics derived from carbohydrate or protein sources can perform the functions of fat at lower calories. |
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Food bites…2013: Social media and online grocers transforming the bood business
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 “FINDING the right balance of ingredients is essential to any recipe. Without butter, for example, a particular dish might not come together or taste right. Such is the case with the recipe for the future of food—where the butter is digital technology, the essential element enabling consumers to break away from the decades-old habit of turning to supermarkets for all things comestible.
“The public, it is clear, is going back to its hunter-gatherer roots, but the bows and stone knives are now blog posts and tweets.
“A study by The Hartman Group points out that social media is changing “the way we think about, talk about and experience food,” finding that 52 percent of Facebook users have “liked” a food/beverages brand while 43 percent regularly use social media and other digital platforms to plan meals.”
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