Breaking News on Beverage Technology & Markets

Self-cooling packs and cabbage aid drink innovation

Self-cooling packaging and unusual juices derived from vegetables and salad are just some of the latest innovations being adopted by the beverage industry to bolster sales of their goods, according to Datamonitor.

Brown marine algae mined for functional ingredients

Polysaccharides from brown marine algae could provide the ingredients for a new wave of beverages with health benefits, according to researchers in Ireland.

Scottish & Newcastle seeks white knight in takeover battle

Scottish & Newcastle (S&N) is considering teaming up with another brewer to buy Carlsberg's stake in Baltic Beverages Holding, the Financial Times reported today.

Trade show focuses on natural trend

Trade show Food Ingredients Europe (FiE) will kick off tomorrow in London, attracting 23,000 representatives from across the industry and the latest innovations in ingredients, formulation and processing techniques.

Bottled water springs towards soft-drink dominance

Bottled water consumption is set to outgrow the once dominant carbonated beverage segment within two years, according to new research.

Fake foods, drinks on the increase, says OECD

The amount of fake foods, drinks and agricultural products being traded worldwide is on the increase according to a new report on counterfeiting released today by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Mid-level oxygen-barrier film adds to range of options

A new mid-level oxygen-barrier film released on the market adds to the choices processors have for packaging foods and liquids.

Briefs: Coca-Cola, Anheuser Busch and Asashi

Rounding up the beverage business this week: Coca-Cola Enterprises and Anheuser Busch continue to increase profits against cost difficulties, while Japanese brewer Asashi takes steps to protect itself from declines in its native beer market.

Research identifies beverages, soups as beta-glucan carriers

Beverages and ready-to-eat soups are prime candidates as carriers of added beta-glucan so long as manufacturers maintain sensory properties, according to a new book.

RFID project launched to test electronic product code

UK processors and others are being asked to participate in a pilot project to test the use of the international electronic product code standard in conjunction with radio frequency identification (RFID) technology.

S&N strikes back in Carlsberg joint venture battle

Update: Since publication, Carlsberg and Heineken have tendered an offer of 720 pence per share for Scottish & Newcastle. In a statement, S&N said it rejected the offer, which would have amounted to £6.8bn (€9.7bn).

Russian Standard attacks global market

Russia's largest premium vodka maker, Russian Standard, is making a multi-million euro bid to conquer the rest of the world

Recycling survey adds to pressure on food sector

A government survey showing that 40 per cent of UK food packaging cannot be recycled will add to the pressure on manufacturers to make the switch

Weekly Comment

The weather excuse

With all the threats facing food and beverage production -- from contamination in the food chain, to rising input prices -- there appears to be one menace that towers above the rest, namely 'The Weather'.

No plain sailing for brewers' S&N aims

With a formal bid by Carlsberg and Heineken for European rival Scottish & Newcastle (S&N) yet to be submitted, the potential buyers already appear to be having difficulties with the deal.

Rexam to add new can plant in Denmark

Rexam said yesterday it would build a new beverage can plant in Denmark to meet increasing demand in Europe.

Remy Cointreau boosted by brand strength

Rémy Cointreau says it is confident of achieving "significant" improvements in organic profitability during 2008 on the strength of brands sales in emerging markets over the last half year.

Innovation needed to boost lactic acid profits, Purac says

Lactic acid producer Purac has said price increases for its product have not been enough to offset the cost of raw materials and energy.

News briefs: S&N sale, Coca-Cola and Britvic

In what is proving a busy week for the beverage business, Scottish & Newcastle may be bought out by a consortium of rival brewers, while profitability is up for soft drink manufacturers the Coca-Cola Co. and Britvic.

Lallemands cranberry powder gets green light

Lallemand Health Ingredients has reported a positive result for a pilot clinical study for its Nutrican90s supplement.

Raw coffee bean may aid obesity battle

Unroasted green coffee bean extract taken as a drink or supplement can help people reduce weight, according to a new study.

Berkem builds sports science behind Powergrape

Supplements of a polyphenol-rich Bordeaux grape extract increased power during exercise by 21 per cent, and increased recovery by eight per cent, says a new study.

Coca-Cola seeks medicinal and coffee kicks

Coca-Cola this week announced plans to scour China for traditional medicines to develop a more nutritionally beneficial portfolio of drinks.

Diageo claims responsible drinking ad success

Diageo claims that its recent television advertising campaign promoting responsible drinking is bringing major benefits to both consumers and its own brand identity.

Weekly Comment

Time to get serious on health claims criteria

The European Food Safety Authority's task to assess thousands of health claims is a headache in anyone's book - and one made worse through vague instructions to industry.

SABMiller defies cost challenges through global growth

SABMiller continues to drive volume growth with the announcement today that lager volumes have increased 11 per cent for the first fiscal half of the year, attributed to the group's expanded global presence.

New colour shades put the gloss on PET

Ampacet has added seven shades to its colour line, which give polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottle packaging the look of highly reflective metal.

Pepsi profits despite commodities crunch

PepsiCo's third quarter revenues increased by 11 per cent to $10.1bn (€7bn) over the same period last year, the company reported yesterday.

Tesco joins food processors in piloting carbon mapping

UK-based Tesco said today it would map out the carbon dioxide output involved in getting 30 products to the shelves, a bid to develop international labelling standards rating products according to their impact on climate change.

Sara Lee steps up sustainable coffee sourcing

Sara Lee is to double the amount of sustainable coffee used in its brands to 20,000 tonnes, a move the company says will make it the market leader in the category.

Blowmoulder regulator provides automated quality control

A new automated regulator for blowmoulders can improve polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottling line efficiency, its manufacturer claims.

Beer giants outline US merger plan

SABMiller and Molson Coors yesterday announced plans to combine their US operations to improve cost efficiency in the market place.

Cadbury Schweppes to list soft drink arm

Cadbury Schweppes today opted to demerge its €10bn beverage arm from its confectionary business by listing the unit as a separate company on the New York Stock Exchange.

Weekly comment: Food prices

Will value-added lose out to the basics?

Food companies have been focussing on value-added products in a bid to reduce their reliance on commodities, which can fluctuate wildly and deliver slim margins. But now that prices of basic foods are at an all-time high, can value-added foods still compete for their share of the consumer buck?

Global consumers steer towards premium beer

Sales of premium beer continue to outgrow globally over private label and discounted varieties, according to the latest findings by beverage research group Canadean.

Bud maker denies GM accusations

Anheuser Busch yesterday denied claims by environmental organisation Greenpeace that batches of its beer, including the flagship brand Budweiser, contain genetically modified (GM) materials.

New resins cut material use, ups productivity, claims manufacturer

Three new polypropylene (PP) resins can help food processors cut down on costs by reducing the weight of their packaging, according to the manufacturer.

UK proposes to tighten protection for whisky

The UK government yesterday announced new production, export and labelling measures to protect whisky from the threat of counterfeit goods.

Companies face investor pressure to reduce CO2

Investors are stepping up the pressure on companies to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases produced by their manufacturing operations.

News briefs: Portuguese beer, P&G and metric measures

This week's news brief finds Portugal's largest brewer having to close a plant, Procter and Gamble possibly going off coffee and another victory in the battle against forcing metric measurements.

Sunny Delight shines focus on Kraft brands

Juice maker Sunny Delight hopes to profit from Kraft's latest restructuring drive with the acquisition of the food giant's fruit-based soft drink and vitamin water brands in the US.

Pepsi raises profit estimates amidst restructuring aims

Pepsi Bottling Group (PBG) has lifted its full year operating profit guidance by about two percentage points to between 10 per cent and 11 per cent after revenues rose by eight per cent to $3.7bn (€2.6bn) during the third quarter.

Innocent found guilty over antioxidant health claim

UK's Innocent has been rapped on the knuckles for making a health claim about its smoothie having a high antioxidant content and detoxifying effect.

Biodegradable packaging giants extend market reach

Alliances formed between Cargill and a Japan-based company, and between DuPont and Plantic, indicate that a new strategy is underway to expand the biodegradable packaging market.

DSM claims beer stability breakthrough

The manufacturer of a new brewing enzyme claims its latest innovation will shake up beer production in Europe, by cutting the time and cost of processing.

Bridge too far in Absolut maker counterfeit case

Sweden-based group Vin and Spirit (V&S) has lost a legal bid in the country's appeal court to continue using a former partner's trademark on its wine labels, following allegations that it had supplied counterfeit products.

Weekly comment

Ripping the red tape

They say that patience is a virtue. But when it comes to the regulatory process on both sides of the Atlantic, patience too often results in dust gathering in the "to do" box on some regulator's desk.

Trendy beer gets fruitier with new flavours

France's Aromatech has developed a range of flavours the company claims can help brewers take advantage of the growing demand for trendy beer.

Netherlands to launch carbon-based packaging tax

A decision by the Netherlands to put a carbon-based tax on packaging could have far reaching consequences across the EU for processors.