Coca-Cola has confirmed rumours in the US trade press that it is to
launch a flavoured milk drink later this summer in a bid to gain a
foothold in the fast-growing nutritional beverage market. But
Choglit, its joint venture brand...
One of Europe's leading suppliers of plastic packaging, Superfos,
has redesigned its hot and cold filled food container in an effort
to harmonise shelf displays and increase warehouse utilisation.
Among the new products highlighted by Mintel in this month's look
at the Global New Products Database are lettuce cake, a
controversial opium energy drink and a new look for Kellogg's
Frosties.
Revolutionary Cooling Systems (RCS) has launched the new Cooper
Cooler rapid beverage chiller. The company claims that the device
can chill wine, beer and soft drinks in around a minute.
In the US, the American Association of Cereal Chemists (AACC) is up
in arms this week claiming that new definitions for dietary fibre
compiled by Food Nutrition Board (FNB) are totally inadequate.
Speciality products such as cappucino have boosted sales of instant
coffee in Germany, according to the latest figures. Young people
seeking alternatives to sugary soft drinks are the main consumers.
The goal of genuine global free trade in sugar is only possible
through the World Trade Organisation (WTO), said a US sugar
industry expert before a Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee
yesterday.
UK-based Feel Good Drinks Company has launched a new variant of its
functional soft drinks range, after good response to the line
introduced in July last year.
Torraspapel has extended its range of labelling solution in an
effort to muscle in on the ever-growing market for PET bottled
water. The company's new Creaset LWS paper range is said to offer
beverage manufacturers a harder wearing...
Bertie Ahern, Ireland's prime minister, called on alcohol producers
to act more responsibly this week, urging them not to produce or
market products such as alcopops which are targeted at young
drinkers. Ireland is to introduce...
Flachsmann, Swiss manufacturer of flavours and plant extracts,
presented its new Yuzu flavour at the Vitafoods show in Geneva last
week, following its worldwide launch a few weeks ago.
A small US water bottling company, Kolob, claims to have tripled
productivity and significantly reduced costs following investments
it has made in automation equipment sourced at last year's Pack
Expo in Las Vegas.
Dutch-based international food ingredients company CSM has reached
an agreement with Unilever on the acquisition of its bakery
ingredients business in Hungary.
Sabaté Diosos, the France-based wine barrel and closures
manufacturer, has said that it is to rename the company to reflect
greater unanimity for its brands.
Riverwood Holding, parent company of Riverwood International, and
Graphic Packaging International, have said that they will take the
name of Graphic Packaging Corporation upon completion of their
merger.
The average price of leaf grade Assam tea fell by 10 per cent to
64.20 rupees (€1.17) per kg at the Calcutta auction last week. A
few months ago, the tea was selling for anything up to €1.82 per
kg.
Improved volumes and a policy of cost management helped Coca-Cola
HBC improve its profits in the first quarter despite the impact of
currency devaluations, poor weather and a later Easter period.
Chilled juice is growing in popularity in the UK as a result of a
reduction in cost and its perceived health benefits. And the
category looks set to grow further.
Developed for Pati Prestige, French Group Mecaplastic has launched
a new packaging concept for ultra fresh traditional pastry under
modified atmosphere.
The German spirits market seems to be in almost terminal decline,
but there could be a ray of hope from FABs, the ready-to-drink
variants of popular spirit brands such as Smirnoff Ice and Bacardi
Rigo. But, as market analysts Canadean...
British companies looking to export to Southern Europe will get a
major boost next month. Food from Britain is organising an export
insight conference focusing on France, Italy, Spain and Portugal,
giving companies all the information...
Constar International, a leading producer of PET containers, has
collaborated with Mott's to redesign the ReaLemon and ReaLime
juices from concentrate bottles.
Alcan has confirmed further details of the acquisition of shares in
the Flexible Packaging Division of Hydro Aluminium Deutschland.
This will allow the company to expand its European operations and
penetrate the Asian market.
Australian bottled water company Neverfail Springwater is reported
to be looking for buyers in Europe, the US and Asia in an effort to
ward off a hostile bid from Coca-Cola Amatil.
GlaxoSmithKline's Plenty juice drink brand is to be relaunched six
months after it was withdrawn. Market analysts Datamonitor assess
the product's chances of success.
In the US, Tropicana Products has begun shipping its Pure Premium
orange juice to store shelves in a new wide-mouth 1.75-litre PET
carafe designed and manufactured by Graham Packaging Company -
packaging believed to be the first of...
UK-based drinks group Qibla Cola has launched a number of new
products this week. The group claims to offer Muslims an
alternative to US-produced soft drinks.
American Purpac Technologies, a new US-based company dedicated to
the blending, processing and filling of beverages is to open its
first plant on 1 July 2003.
Poor summer weather in 2002 kept growth in the Italian soft drinks
market to around half that seen in previous years. But, according
to Canadean, the glitch is likely to be temporary, with plenty of
growth expected in the years to...
Austria is not among the most well known wine producing nations in
Europe, but a quick glance at the latest export figures shows that
consumers around the world are becoming increasingly aware of the
wines produced there. For the...
Pullpop Technologies has announced the launch of its
cork-corkscrew, a device that might possibly spell the end of the
household corkscrew. The company believes that the product offers
greater convenience.
Travelling abroad is often exciting and rewarding, but there is
nothing worse than coming down with an acute bout of diarrhoea. An
incredible ten million people a year are afflicted.
Mad Cow, a milk-based energy drink to challenge market leader Red
Bull, has been launched in the USA. The product is manufactured by
New Jersey-based Liquid Billboards.
A year of acquisitions and growth has helped Nestlé Waters extend
its leadership of the bottled water market in 2002 - a performance
which the company has already continued into the first quarter of
the current year.
Despite a 17 per cent increase in sales of ready meals last year,
the traditional Spanish diet - high in olive oil, fruit and
vegetables and bread - is at little risk of disappearing, according
to the latest consumption data.
