American Beverage Association president & CEO Susan K Neely has written to ABA members recommending participation in the InterBev Awards.

"One word sums up InterBev 2012 – innovation. This is clearly no surprise considering that is what our great industry is all about – from providing consumers with myriad beverage options to exhibiting leadership on important societal issues.



"That very innovation will be highlighted through the InterBev Awards 2012. Brought to you by FoodBev Media and Nürnberg Messe North America, there are more than 30 categories that will be recognized.

"With renewed energy and excitement, the InterBev Awards is just one more way that InterBev 2012 will provide a unique opportunity to reach industry decision makers.

"We encourage you to submit your products and your initiatives for consideration – and we hope to see you in Las Vegas October 16 to 18."

General Mills has said that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Yoki Alimentos, a privately-held food company headquartered in Sao Bernardo do Campo, Brazil.

General Mills currently expects the transaction to close during the first half of its 2013 fiscal year, which begins on 28 May, after satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

Yoki employs more than 5,000 people, and has established an operating infrastructure in Brazil, including multiple manufacturing plants and national retail distribution. Yoki reported IFRS sales of R$1.1bn for the year ended December 2011.

Chris O’Leary, General Mills’ executive vice president and chief operating officer International, said: “We are delighted to add Yoki’s talented people and strong brands to General Mills’ growing international business. Yoki adds key capabilities and geographic scale that will accelerate our growth in Brazil.

"We plan to focus on building the strong Yoki and Kitano product portfolio, expanding our current Haagen-Dazs and Nature Valley businesses in Brazil, and introducing additional General Mills brands in this important market over time.”

Source: General Mills

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Pepperidge Farm, a division of Campbell Soup Company, was honoured this month with two packaging awards: the DuPont Awards for Packaging Innovation and an Ameristar award from the Institute of Packaging Professionals.

Both awards recognise the company’s Deli Flats thin rolls and Goldfish breads for innovative packaging design, sustainability and waste reduction. The new packaging for these products reduced the use of materials by 65%.

The new package designs are made of flexible film lamination that feature improved graphics and are unique to the bakery aisle. They provide excellent seal strength, resist tears, and the tear tape provides the benefit of tamper evidence.

Source: Campbell Soup Company

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Nestlé Waters Direct has launched its new home water cooler in Portugal. mySpring is the new generation of water coolers, designed for home use to ensure comfort and simplicity to access to fresh water, all day long, for the family.

The new, compact family water cooler has been designed by Nestlé Waters Direct and produced by Ebac Watercoolers. Its modern design and space saving size fits with kitchen interiors today. It is available in white, light grey and black.

Nestlé Waters Direct is one of the leading healthy hydration companies for home and office delivery (HOD) in Europe. The company offers the highest-quality water solution through its brands including Dar Natury (Poland), Nestlé Pure Life (Russia), Nestlé Aquarel (Netherlands, Germany, Poland), Nestlé Selda (Portugal) and Aqua Spring (Greece).

Source: Nestlé Waters Direct

A Which? investigation into more than 700,000 supermarket prices has uncovered dodgy pricing tactics that could lead shoppers to believe they’re getting a better deal than they are.

Consumers tell Which? that special offers encourage them to buy products that they don’t really need. We identified four tactics that we believe were misleading, affecting products from fresh fruit to toiletries to pet food.

Products becoming more expensive than the original price per item when they go into a multi-buy offer – for example, Asda doubled the price of a single Müller yogurt from 30p to 61p as they went onto multibuy at 10 for £4.

The price went back to 30p when the offer ended. This meant the yogurt cost more per item when you bought 10 under the offer than when you bought one before or after it.

Products being sold on ‘offer’ when in fact they have been on sale at the reduced price for longer than the original price - for example, Tesco sold Beck’s beer for 190 days on discount and only 70 days at the higher price.

Prices being increased immediately before going on ‘offer’ making the discount appear more significant – for example, Ocado strawberries increased in price from £3.89 to £4.38 for 13 days. They were then sold as ‘was £4.38 now £2.19/£2.29/£2.25’ for 112 days, though there were nine days within this period when they were sold at £4.38.

The research found that almost two fifths of consumers said special offers encourage them to buy products that they don’t really need, and a third had bought a special offer they’d regretted. A quarter of people even try to avoid end-of-aisle displays so that they don’t get sucked into buying special offers.

Which? wants government guidelines on pricing to be tightened. While the existing rules are supposed to make sure that supermarket special offers don’t mislead shoppers, Which? feels they leave too many loopholes.

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In line with its vision of delivering yield to farmers sustainably, Monsanto Company has reached an agreement to purchase planting technology developer Precision Planting.

The Precision Planting team will become part of Monsanto's Integrated Farming Systems unit, which utilises advanced agronomic practices, seed genetics and innovative on-farm technology to deliver optimal yield to farmers while using fewer resources.

Precision Planting has a long history of innovations that optimise planter performance and increase yield potential, including the new FieldView technology, which offers an application designed to monitor all critical aspects of planter performance and crop data analysis.

That will complement Monsanto's planned Integrated Farming Systems offering of science-based agronomic seed prescriptions combined with next-generation precision equipment to help farmers boost yields and reduce risk.

The Precision Planting operations will remain in Tremont and all Precision employees will be offered their continued jobs in Tremont. Monsanto agreed to pay $210m for the business, plus a performance-based payment of up to $40m.

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close this summer.

Source: Monsanto Company

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Royal FrieslandCampina and Danube Foods Group, owned by Salford Capital Partners, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding regarding Royal FrieslandCampina’s intended acquisition of Imlek and Mlekara Subotica, two dairy companies in the Western Balkans.

The parties were unable to reach agreement on the terms of the transaction and have therefore agreed to end the talks.

Danube Foods Group, owner of Imlek, Mlekara Subotica, Bambi Banat and Knjaz Milos, is considering the possibility of further consolidation of foods and beverage industry with Imlek as the anchor of further integration.

Royal FrieslandCampina will continue searching for opportunities to enable the company to achieve its route2020 strategy, which is designed to result in sustainable growth.

Source: FrieslandCampina

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The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has produced guidance to help meat processors comply with the moratorium on the production and use of 'desinewed meat' (DSM) from pig bones and poultry carcases.

The moratorium comes into effect from Saturday 26 May.

This follows advice from the European Commission (EC) that DSM produced by mechanically separating residual meat left after boning must be regarded as mechanically separated meat (MSM) and labelled as such.

A moratorium on DSM for cattle, sheep, and goat bones has applied since 28 April, following EC advice that DSM cannot be produced from the bones of those animals. The FSA published relevant guidance on 27 April.

Source: FSA

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Consumers across Europe are waiting for signs that economic conditions are stabilising before returning to spending freely - they plan to spend less per meal in the coming year, according to a new study.

The study says that this makes it as important as ever for restaurant operators to focus on brand differentiation and consumer relevance to drive revenue growth.

According to AlixPartners, a clear understanding of consumer preferences, global and regional supply chain execution, and the competitive and landscape in each country will be critical in the contest for dining dollars across Western Europe.

In the UK, 32% of respondents say they dined out at least weekly over the past 12 months; in the coming year, they expect to reduce slightly their frequency and per-meal spend.

British diners cite a worsening of their current financial situations and the cost of meals out as the top reasons for staying home, along with concerns about the future economy and its potential impact.

AlixPartners identifies the following trends as essential for restaurant operators to follow and align their offerings to:

• Convenience, Value, and Quality: Consumers are demanding high quality, on-the-go options along with easy ordering, value-pricing, speed, and variety. Those that offer it are already succeeding, and Fast Casual and QSR growth is likely to continue.

• Modernisation: Reinvention can mean relevance. To stay current, older brands should explore conversions, re-imaging, modular concepts, and new formats.

• Social Networking: As consumers become more mobile - accessing the Internet via smartphones and engaging with social media outlets - restaurants need to follow suit. Digital and social media offer new opportunities for innovation in ordering, payments, and continuous communication with customers.

Source: AlixPartners

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Diamond Foods and Oaktree Capital Management have entered into definitive agreements to recapitalize Diamond's balance sheet with an investment by Oaktree of $225m in Diamond.

Concurrent with the closing of this investment, Diamond will amend its credit agreement with its existing lenders. The recapitalization will result in a capital structure that supports the Company's long term strategy as well as the execution of its current business plan.

The recapitalization will allow Diamond to further strengthen the Company's leadership position in the walnut industry, continue the growth of its snack business and reduce the amount of existing bank debt. The transactions are expected to close by the end of May.

Brian Driscoll, Diamond Foods' president and CEO, said: "Oaktree has an exceptional track record of supporting the growth of leading companies in the consumer sector. Their expertise and resources will be invaluable as we solidify our market position in the walnut industry and seek to continue to grow our snack brands.

"In connection with Diamond's thorough review of capital alternatives, the company received interest from a number of top tier investment firms.

"We are very pleased with our decision to partner with Oaktree, an experienced investor with an outstanding reputation. Looking forward, our balance sheet strength will provide a solid foundation from which to build as we position Diamond for the opportunities ahead that can deliver value to our shareholders, our growers and our customers."

Source: Diamond Foods

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Casa Montalvo Holdings, producers of Montalvo Tequila, has confirmed Montalvo’s entrance to the US market.

The award-winning, triple distilled tequila is being imported by MHW and will immediately launch in New York and California.

CEO Alex Viecco, said: “We couldn’t be more excited about introducing Montalvo to consumers in New York and California. We’re confident in Montalvo’s premium quality and unparalleled taste, and look forward to America’s response.”

Source: Montalvo Tequila

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Out of 42 countries surveyed by Nielsen, the Swiss led the world of private label with a 45% retail share in 2011, as reported in France’s LSA magazine on 10 May.

All the top 10 were from West Europe. Spain came 2nd on 39%, France 3rd on 36%, Germany 4th on 34%, Belgium 5th on 33%, then Britain alongside Portugal on 32%.

Outside Europe, Australia came 11th on 25%. Canada and the United States were 19th= on 18%. Turkey led the Orient at 10%, the same as Chile at the forefront of Latin America.

The BRIC countries have a long way to catch up, with Brazil on 5%, Russia on 6% and China on 1%.

In Europe, over 80% of people believe private label quality is a good as major brands in Germany and almost 90% feel the packaging is as good in Spain.

Private label is definitely becoming more of a force to reckon with.

Guests of Omni Hotels & Resorts will have the opportunity to support oceans, lakes, rivers and bays throughout America by purchasing Keeper Springs Natural Spring Water, which donates 100% of its profits to help protect and preserve US waterways.

Included as part of Omni Hotels & Resorts new 'Art of Water' cocktail menu, for each purchase of Keeper Springs, a further donation by Omni will be made to the Waterkeeper Alliance, a global environmental movement uniting nearly 200 Waterkeeper organisations around the world and focusing citizen advocacy on the issues that affect waterways from pollution to climate change.

Chris Bartle, co-founder of Keeper Springs, said: “The issue of clean water always moves to the forefront in summer. We are thrilled that Omni Hotels & Resorts wanted to partner with us as part of their commitment to sustainability.

"It’s great to see a company who has many properties near some of our greatest waterways give back and make sure our waterways are safe and clean for future generations to enjoy.”

Source: Keeper Springs

The Coca-Cola Foundation has awarded a $500,000 grant to the Abyssinian Development Corporation (ADC), a not-for-profit community and economic development organisation, to establish a student media centre within Bread & Roses Integrated Arts High School.

Muhtar Kent, chairman and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company, said: "The Abyssinian Development Corporation shares Coca-Cola's passion for education-for making sure today's young people get a strong start in life.

"It is our most profound desire, in all we do, to create value and make a lasting, positive difference for individuals and families in this community and around the world."

The grant will ensure students at Bread & Roses Integrated Arts High School have access to books, technology software and hardware to support the school's curriculum.

The high school had been beset with a severe shortage of materials, supplies, desks, and chairs, and a record of persistently low-achievements, until it was assumed by ADC in 2010.

Source: Coca-Cola Company

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Nespresso has committed to five more years of investment in its sustainability programme in Colombia.

Nestlé’s premium portioned coffee brand will invest $10m a year for the next five years in the ‘Nespresso AAA Sustainable Quality Programme’ in Colombia, adding to $30m already invested.

About three quarters of the money spent each year will be used to offer incentives to farmers to adopt the AAA programme’s sustainable quality practices.

The rest will be allocated to providing technical assistance and training to help farmers improve coffee quality, sustainability and productivity.

In Colombia, Nespresso works in partnership with the Colombian Coffee Growers’ Federation (FNC) to source sustainable, high quality coffee for consumers.

Nespresso buys coffee directly from more than 37,000 Colombian farmers through its AAA programme in collaboration with the FNC and its partners.

In 2011 Nespresso sourced about one quarter of its total coffee supply from Colombia.

The company has tripled the volume of coffee it sources through the programme in Colombia over the past six years. Farmers from five main regional districts of Colombia - Cauca, Nariño, Caldas, Antioquia and Huila - participate in the Nespresso AAA Sustainable Quality Programme.

They represent 80% of all farmers taking part in the programme worldwide. Nespresso has worked closely with its Colombian partners to produce a number of innovative ‘Grand Cru’ coffee varieties.

Nespresso launched its ‘AAA Sustainable Quality Programme’ in collaboration with international non-government organisation the Rainforest Alliance in 2003. Nespresso hopes to source 80% of its overall coffee supply through the AAA programme, with Rainforest Alliance certification, by 2013.

Source: Nestlé

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Tetra Pak and Greencroft Bottling Company, part of the Lanchester Wine Group, have entered a partnership which means that - for the first time ever - wine can be packed in cartons in the UK.

This development, revealed at the London (UK) International Wine Fair, brings significant benefits - including commercial, logistical and environmental benefits - to wine brands, importers and retailers, according to the company.

Mark Satchwell, MD at Greencroft Bottling Company, said: “The Tetra Pak carton is a really credible alternative to the glass bottle. The materials are much lower cost and the final product is extremely space-efficient, meaning more products can be merchandised on-shelf, maximising return per square foot of selling space.

"Cartons also provide strong on-shelf appeal which helps to present clear brand and tier-differentiation. While branding on bottles is usually limited to two labels, Tetra Pak cartons offer a 100% printing surface area, meaning multiple branding opportunities for customers.”

Tetra Pak cartons are low-carbon and made primarily from a natural, renewable resource – wood in the form of paperboard - and over 1.5 billion of its cartons in the UK and Ireland are made using FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified board. Cartons are therefore a sustainable packaging choice for the wine industry.

Source: Tetra Pak

Related video

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The shareholders of Kraft Foods have voted to change the name of the company to Mondelez International.

The proposal was approved by more than 90% of the shareholders who cast a vote. The new name will become effective at the time of the planned spin-off of the company's North American grocery business.

Kraft Foods is dividing to create two public companies: a high-growth global snacks business (Mondelez International) and a high-margin North American grocery business (Kraft Foods Group).

Irene Rosenfeld, chairman and CEO, said: "Mondelez has an appealing international sound that perfectly evokes the idea of a 'delicious world.' That's the essence of our global snacks company."

The company has also reserved the symbol MDLZ for the company's common stock, which will trade under this new symbol after the spin-off.

The stock symbol for the North American grocery company (Kraft Foods Group) will be KRFT. Until the new companies launch, however, the name and stock trading symbol for Kraft Foods will not change.

Source: Kraft Foods

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In this FoodBev.com podcast, Shaun Weston hosts a roundtable discussion with Claire Phoenix, Geoff Platt and Claire Rowan from Vitafoods Europe 2012 in Geneva.

• Host: Shaun Weston
• Producer: Shaun Weston

• 00:00:20 – The tasting bar at Finished Products Expo.
• 00:02:40 – The marketing of colostrum.
• 00:04:20 – Complying with claims.
• 00:06:00 – Pharma in food & beverage.
• 00:07:18 – The delivery system for functional ingredients.

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More podcasts ...

• 22 May 2012: Report from Vitafoods Europe 2012, day one
• 10 May 2012: Chris Lee prepares for Vitafoods Europe 2012
• 16 Apr 2012: The creation of Sumo weight management drink
• 16 Apr 2012: The world’s smallest x-ray in food manufacture
• 12 Apr 2012: Wild Indag on new pumps and stand-up pouch technology
• 12 Apr 2012: Handtmann wins Anuga FoodTec Award for ConProLink
• 11 Apr 2012: Mathieu Nouhin on how the merger of CFS and GEA is working
• 11 Apr 2012: Susan Turner on Britvic’s expansion in the US
• 11 Apr 2012: Britvic’s developments in lightweight packaging
• 11 Apr 2012: John Dundon on the future of the water cooler industry
• 5 Apr 2012: The Blendhub 40ft factory for on-the-go manufacturers
• 3 Apr 2012: More efficient lactose-free milk production from GEA TDS
• 2 Apr 2012: Staying competitive in the ultrasonic cutting industry
• 29 Mar 2012: Report from Anuga FoodTec 2012, part two
• 27 Mar 2012: Report from Anuga FoodTec 2012, part one
• 23 Mar 2012: Staying ahead of supply chain with a flexible EDI strategy
• 17 Mar 2012: How Oasis is using Philips’ InstantTrust UV technology
• 15 Mar 2012: Peter Madden on the future of retail
• 14 Mar 2012: Franco Savoni talks about Elkay’s products for 2012
• 8 Mar 2012: Interview with Rainforest Alliance’s Stuart Singleton-White
• 5 Mar 2012: Lesley Sheldon on Beardow & Adams' BAMFutura 51 adhesive
• 5 Mar 2012: Macfarlane’s Clive Jackson on the success of Reseal-it
• 3 Mar 2012: Tim Croxson on glass technology and innovation
• 2 Mar 2012: Stuart Foster on the state of plastic recycling in the UK
• 2 Mar 2012: Label Apeel’s scratch & sniff chocolate lime labels
• 2 Mar 2012: Prestige Spirits’ Gary Steen on premium glass for beverages
• 1 Mar 2012: Surfers Against Sewage turn up the heat at packaging event

Ralcorp Holdings has completed the acquisition of Petri Baking Products, a producer of private-brand wire-cut cookies.

Ralcorp anticipates the transaction will deliver $0.05 of GAAP accretion and $0.08 of cash accretion to adjusted diluted earnings per share in the first year of ownership, excluding one-time costs. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Petri Baking Products manufactures and distributes a complete line of cookies. Through their manufacturing process, the company produces both soft style and crunchy wire-cut cookies for customers in a variety of retail channels.

Kevin Hunt, CEO and president of Ralcorp, said: "We are pleased to complete this transaction, which complements Ralcorp's cookie product offerings. We welcome the Petri Baking Products management team and employees to the Ralcorp family."

Petri Baking Products is based in Silver Creek, New York (US) and employs over 240 people. The business will operate as part of Ralcorp's Snacks, Sauces & Spreads division.

Source: Ralcorp Holdings

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It was a treat for the taste buds to visit this year’s Caffè Culture show at London’s Olympia.

Billed as the ‘UK's premier cafe bar event’, I was expecting a corporate affair of big-name retail brands and cafe chains. In fact, I found a host of home-grown, artisan companies busy innovating away in the cafe sector.

There's obviously a real demand for healthy, organic and functional products in this area. From spiced hot ginger drinks from Belgian company Ginger Love and fruit coffee to 2012’s major breakthrough drink – coconut water – it was great to see innovation in flavours, branding and bespoke products.

As well as energy drinks, including the hemp-based Cannabis Energy drink, London company Alibi was there with its pretox vitamin and mineral drink. (The pomegranate version was very refreshing.)

Perhaps the chocolate ‘doner kebab’ was a little on the strange side, but The Grown Up Chocolate Company certainly made up for it with its range of chocolates for the more discerning consumer, including a delicious salted peanut edition.

There was also a strong emphasis on green packaging, with companies such as Keepcup with its funky, reusable cups in sizes to suit all types of coffee, and Enviropack with a full range of reusable and recyclable products, which consumers are now demanding more of.

Tea was a standout sector for me, with some great-looking brands and innovations. One company, Jeeves & Jericho, has designed a range of blended and flavoured teas around a graffiti-style logo, which will really appeal to the younger consumer. According to managing director Dominic Boyett, the brand is unsurprisingly proving very popular in my (and urban artist Banksy’s) hometown of Bristol.

Other exciting brands included Sri Tea, the Tea Shed with its silk pyramid tea bags, Tea Pigs, Edinburgh-based Eteaket and Teascent with a great range of Oolong teas from China.

Visitor and exhibitor numbers were reportedly up on 2011. I will certainly be boosting the figures next year, heading back to see which new innovations are making a breakthrough in the sector.

See photos from the event here

Hannah Oakman is editor of Cooler Innovation magazine. Subscribe here.

10 years ago, Starbucks Coffee Company opened its first two stores in Madrid.

Howard Schultz, Starbucks chairman, president and CEO and EMEA president Michelle Gass joined hundreds of employees to celebrate a decade of growth with 75 stores throughout Madrid, Barcelona, Sevilla and Valencia.

2012 also marks notable Starbucks anniversaries in eight additional countries across three continents.

From Madrid, Schultz said, “Back in 2002, we placed a bet on Spain with local business partner Grupo Vips.

"With the support and passion of our partners and customers, we’ve grown to become a recognised and relevant brand and a part of the daily routine of thousands of Spaniards across the country.

"With this week’s celebrations, we also recognise other Starbucks 10- and 25-year anniversaries around the world, which provide an opportunity to thank the more than 60 million customers who visit our stores weekly and the 200,000 partners who support and share the Starbucks Experience with these customers every day.”

Schultz and Gass are commemorating these achievements and recognising partners, customers and shareholders at celebrations this week in Barcelona and Madrid.

Source: Starbucks Coffee Company

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3M Food Safety has revealed that its 3M Petrifilm Aqua Coliform Count Plate has received NF Validation from France-based Association Francaise de Normalisation (AFNOR) for its ability to detect and enumerate colonies of Escherichia coli and coliform bacteria in bottled water samples.

3M Food Safety has revealed that its 3M Petrifilm Aqua Coliform Count Plate has received NF Validation for its ability to detect and enumerate colonies of Escherichia coli and coliform bacteria in bottled water samples.

Validated against ISO 9308-1, the AFNOR certification confirmed that the microbiological analysis of 3M's indicator technology performs as well or better than conventional and more time-consuming reference methods, the company said.

This compliance follows prior validation of the 3M Petrifilm Aqua Coliform Count Plate as a Performance Tested Method (PTM) in the US under the guidelines of the Maryland-based (US) AOAC Research Institute.

The 3M Petrifilm Aqua Plate technology was introduced globally in March 2011, offering bottled water processors a microbial testing tool that delivers simplicity, consistent performance, minimal storage and enhanced productivity, compared to reference methods that use bulkier media pads, disposable filter funnels and agar petri dishes.

Marie-Pierre Copin, 3M Food Safety regulatory affairs specialist in France, said:"AFNOR's validation provides an important vote of confidence - one we know customers around the entire world trust and respect.

"Safe water is obviously a global concern, and water bottlers everywhere need reliable methods of assurance against harmful organisms like coliform and E. coli."

Source: 3M Food Safety

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The Coca-Cola Company has opened a new, state-of-the-art Coca-Cola bottling plant in Hargeisa City, Somaliland.

The modern beverage production plant is the first industrial production plant of its kind in Somaliland.

Nathan Kalumbu, president of Central, East and West Africa for The Coca-Cola Company, described the significance of the investment by the global brand during the inauguration ceremony: “We are delighted about this new opportunity to refresh our consumers with high quality beverage choices.

"This investment will create an estimated 135 direct jobs and 2,500 indirect jobs, and will contribute to a healthy distribution and retail sector in Somaliland. Our commitment to the continent of Africa remains enduring and unshakable.”

The US$15m investment by The Coca-Cola Company and its partner, Somaliland Beverage Industries, is part of the Coca-Cola System’s commitment to invest US$12bn in the continent by 2020, starting in 2010.

The chairman of Somaliland Beverage Industries, Ahmed Osman Guelleh, said: “Bringing the production of Coca-Cola brands to Somaliland not only brings the much needed entrepreneurial and employment opportunities, but builds local capability through access to global best practice and manufacturing standards, including ISO and environmental and safety standards.”

The Coca-Cola bottling plant investment in Somaliland is based on a 100% franchising agreement.

Source: Somaliland Beverage Industries

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After day one at Vitafoods, it's obvious the level of innovation in the ingredients industry doesn't diminish. Here are a few of my day one headlines.

I stole my heading from DSM, a company that had plenty to interest dairy. Doug Brown, DSM global marketing manager, believes ‘relax your mind’ could well be the fastest growing platform in the next five years.

The company has also launched Tolerase L, an acid lactase that converts lactose into glucose and galactose, giving lactose intolerance sufferers an alternative to lactose-free. The press release states that, 'the science behind acid lactase is supported by a positive opinion from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)'. There are many companies out there that would love a positive opinion from EFSA!

DSM’s Total Dairy Solutions was a finalist in the recent Dairy Innovation Awards. Total Dairy Solutions was a new strategy to help customers access the resources they need quickly and efficiently – a complete vertical integration of all DSM’s capabilities to reduce complexity in the new product development process, helping the customer get to market faster. As one judge commented: “A reminder as to where a great deal of dairy innovation actually starts.”

Leading whey protein supplier Carbery was showcasing its nutritional expertise in healthy ageing. Sarcopenia – the natural process of muscle wastage due to age – is a growing concern for people aged over 50. Carbery highlighted the important link between protein consumption and the promotion and maintenance of muscle mass.

Just when you think you know all there is to know about cranberries, Ocean Spray reveals an important new study that offers a breakthrough insight into the bioavailability and metabolism of cranberry bioactives. I’ll explain more in the next issue of Dairy Innovation.

Revolution

LycoRed’s VP global marketing and sales Ilan Ron said there has been a revolution in natural colours. Natural colours have moved from ‘nice to have’ to 'must have’, and it's consumers who are driving this development. “There is a global wave of consumer awareness," he said.

With many people not getting enough iron in their diets, it was a good time for Kelatron to showcase its Iron Bisglycinate – a new highly bioavailable iron chelate that maintains a high iron potency and doesn't cross-react with other ingredients, thus overcoming many of the problems posed by other compounds used in fortification.

It was a good first day, but I'm still looking for that magic ingredient to relieve sore feet.

Geoff Platt is editor of Dairy Innovation magazine. He’s also active on LinkedIn.

DNA Brands, makers of DNA Energy Drink and DNA Meat Snacks, has confirmed that its wholly owned subsidiary, Grass Roots Beverage, has signed an exclusive master distribution agreement with New Leaf Brands, a US ready-to-drink ice tea and lemonade producer.

Ralph Sabella, vice president of operations for Grass Roots Beverage, said: “We are extremely pleased to be able add New Leaf Brands to our growing portfolio of distributed products. It is our goal to offer top shelf beverage producers a statewide Florida distribution alternative."

Source: New Leaf Brands