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Acrylamide: A scandal in the making

Acrylamide: A scandal in the making

By Caroline Scott-Thomas

Acrylamide is a recognised carcinogen that we’ve known is in our food at dangerous levels for a decade. Today, the food industry has tools to mitigate it, but uptake is slow.Industry, beware.  This is how scandals are made.

Will self regulation be enough to avoid a fat tax? Probably not, warns Drayton Partners

Will self-regulation be enough to beat the fat tax?

By Ian Pickett

The much debated launch of a consistent ‘front-of-pack’ nutrition label is currently the talk of the food manufacturing and retail industry, writes Ian Pickett, joint founder of specialist recruitment agency Drayton Partners.

Danone Actimel: Now reformulated with vitamins B and D in some countries, which are backed for immune claims, whereas probiotics are not (yet)

EU immunity health claims: Reformulate or reposition to win growth

By Diana Cowland

Europe’s new health claim laws are the strictest in the world, with only the most strongly backed nutrient-health associations permitted on-product and whole sectors enraged about stripped comms tools. But immunity claims have fared better than most,...

Does the nutritional value of organic produce really matter? So long as it's not worse ... I'd say no!

Organic nutrition: Does it really matter?

By Nathan Gray

Yesterday a large scale scientific review revealed that organic produce may not be more nutritious than ‘conventionally’ produced goods. But since that isn’t the main reason people buy them, does it really even matter?

‘Fat tax‘ – why is Denmark such a quitter?

‘Fat tax' – why is Denmark such a quitter?

By Rod Addy

‘Fat tax’ is a neat thought, but like all simplistic ideas it falls down at the execution, as the progress of the policy in Denmark shows – it simply doesn’t work in practice.

What kind of health claims will be made on the Vitafoods show floor this year?

Vitafoods: EU nutra space wriggles into new health claims clothes

By Shane Starling

Vitafoods celebrates its 15th birthday next week. It’ll be my 11th consecutive May visit to Geneva for the jamboree and promises to be one of the most intriguing chapters with the (partial and belated) resolution of years of ambiguity regarding health...

Desperate times: With EFSA rejecting clinical data en masse, Dr Glenn Gibson dons his magic, technicolour health claim dream labcoat in the hope of winning a claim. The NDA concludes causality has not been demonstrated between magic and dreamcoats

EU researchers revolted as EFSA clears health claims vault

By Shane Starling

The European Food Safety Authority last week delivered the fifth batch of article 13, general function health claim opinions bringing the total issued to 2723. There are just 35 to go – to be published next month in a final mini-batch that will conclude...

Sodium vs. salt: Let’s agree to disagree

Sodium vs. salt: Let’s agree to disagree

By Caroline Scott-Thomas

The United States lists sodium on nutrition labels while salt is more common in the European Union. Salt and sodium are not the same, and a standardized term would only cause confusion.

Ceci n'est pas un doughnut

Drawing a line between imitation food and innovation

By Jess Halliday

‘I Can’t Believe it’s Not Butter!’ When it comes to transparency you can’t get much clearer than Unilever’s famous exclamation-turned-margarine-brand. But new labelling rules to prevent one food masquerading as another should distinguish between intent...

Novel foods progress may mean removing clones

By Jess Halliday

All is not well down on the novel foods farm. If food innovation in Europe is to thrive anew, MEPs and the Council need to get past the recriminations over the failed talks and remove the troublesome question of cloned foods from the negotiating table.

Forget pancakes. I'm flippin' well going for the CEO's job

Women. The most wasted resource in food production

By Jess Halliday

Today is Pancake Day. It is also International Women’s Day. An important date, then, not just for food lovers in countries where Mardi Gras is a big deal, but a day to consider the role – and the potential – of women involved in food provision all over...

The naked truth about kids’ food advertising

The naked truth about kids’ food advertising

By Caroline Scott-Thomas

It was an Emperor’s New Clothes moment for the US food industry last week, when it was revealed that a major initiative touting its responsible advertising to kids actually allows promotion of many unhealthy foods. Is anyone really surprised?

The food industry in 2010: A retrospective

The food industry in 2010: A retrospective

As 2010 draws to a close, our journalists look back at the issues that have topped agendas across the food, beverage and dietary supplements industries in the last 12 months. Commodity prices, Bisphenol A, obesity, health claims, safety regulations, and...

PepsiCo pays a high price for a gamble in Russian dairy

PepsiCo pays a high price for a gamble in Russian dairy

By Guy Montague-Jones

When PepsiCo put up $5.4bn last week to acquire Wimm-Bill-Dann, it was seduced by the promise of high revenue growth but like any high-yield investment the Russian deal does not come without risks.

Local food doesn’t mean safe food

Local food doesn’t mean safe food

By Caroline Scott-Thomas

All food, if not properly handled, has the potential to cause foodborne illness – so why does local food get special legislative treatment?

For front-of-pack labels, smart choices take time

For front-of-pack labels, smart choices take time

By Caroline Scott-Thomas

Uh-oh, surely not another industry-sponsored front-of-pack nutrition label! Food industry engagement is welcome, but let’s take it slowly – no one benefits until we figure out a system that works.

Bisphenol A on the brink?

Bisphenol A on the brink?

By Rory Harrington

To BPA or not to BPA? While the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) backed the continued use of bisphenol A last week, the real question is whether the verdict was a full-blown reprieve for the controversial chemical or merely a stay of execution.

Why cavemen could hold the key to healthy eating

Why cavemen could hold the key to healthy eating

By Jess HALLIDAY

There’s something incongruous about the hi-tech modern food industry sniffing around the Palaeolithic era for the next big consumer trend. But hold the side order of cynicism. There might just be some logic to good old-fashioned instinctive eating.

Nanotechnology in food: What’s the big idea?

Nanotechnology in food: What’s the big idea?

By Caroline Scott-Thomas

Let's get talking about nanotech. The science of the very small has filled the food industry with big ideas – but industry is torn on how to present nanotechnology to consumers, stalling product development.

The quest for a radical new world for antioxidants

The quest for a radical new world for antioxidants

Here’s a radical thought for the marketers - the benefits of antioxidants may not be related to antioxidant activity. Last week’s NutraIngredients Antioxidants Conference suggested some tough choices are ahead.

Where next for ingredients since Cognis and National Starch?

Where next for ingredients since Cognis and National Starch?

By Jess HALLIDAY

‘Billion dollar deal’ was not a phrase bandied about the food ingredients industry much last year. With BASF buying Cognis for €3.1bn and Corn Products International paying $1.3bn for National Starch, M&A looks to be thawing – but best not get over-excited...

Europe must keep cool over country of origin labelling

Europe must keep cool over country of origin labelling

Always read the small print. Good advice and nowhere more so than in food labelling with today’s increasingly savvy consumers demanding to know what’s in their food, where it came from and what it’s going to do to them.

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