Pots & Co’s new handcrafted desserts will be available in a double chocolate ganache and a golden blonde chocolate ganache flavour. The double chocolate ganache is made with 80% mapalé and 61% maranta chocolate, using fino de aroma cocoa. The limited-edition golden blonde chocolate ganache is made with cream, caramel, sea salt, toasted almonds and fino de aroma cocoa. Fraser Thomson, Michelin-trained chef and joint-CEO for Pots & Co, said: “Our new pots have been handcrafted with the finest ingredients to deliver a taste masterclass, ensuring no customer is left unsatisfied”. “The guilt-free portion size of the golden blonde chocolate ganache makes for the ultimate after-dinner sweetener, and our double chocolate ganache will deliver a flavour sensation for those looking to treat their tastebuds to a real chocolate hit,” he added. The golden blonde chocolate ganache is now available in Waitrose stores for an RRP of £3.40. The double chocolate ganache will be available in Sainsbury’s stores from 30 November.

Campari Group has acquired a minority stake in global spirits incubator Catalyst Sprits, for an undisclosed sum. Based in London, UK, Catalyst Spirits aims to create and nurture "digitally-native" premium brands, bringing them to market rapidly and supporting their retail, ecommerce and distribution activities. The company's portfolio includes Oceanus Hibernicus, a blend of Irish whiskey and Scotch malt whisky, as well as other ongoing developments. Catalyst Spirits is also a shareholder of the banana-flavoured Kentucky bourbon brand, Howler Head, which Campari purchased a 15% stake in (for $15 million) back in August 2022. Howler Head is available in the UK and Canada, with further global expansion planned for 2023.

Carlsberg has posted organic revenue growth of 11.6% for its third quarter, after it was boosted by strong demand in Asia, where volumes were up 9.9% on a like-for-like basis. The brewer says that its international premium brands saw mixed volume development, partly due to lower volumes in Ukraine. While Carlsberg's alcohol-free brews witnessed a 5% decline in Q3, excluding Ukraine they grew 6%. Asia, Central & Eastern Europe and Western Europe were among the markets that delivered the strongest organic revenue growth for Carlsberg in the quarter – 19.3%, 14.7% and 5.7%, respectively. Meanwhile, reported revenue – which includes the impact of acquisitions and currency – grew by 13.9% to DKK 20.2 billion (approx. $2.7 billion). On a reported basis, the company’s beer volumes grew by 2.7% in Q3, and non-beer volumes by 5.6%. Carlsberg CEO Cees ’t Hart said: “We’re satisfied with our performance in Q3 with strong volume growth in Asia and many European markets, which along with a strong price/mix development, led to revenue growth of 11.6%. Our earnings upgrade and the increase in the next quarterly share buy-back are proof points of the resilience of our brands and the strength and agility of our business.” “Looking ahead, the business environment remains challenging, with an uncertain macro situation, very high inflation and weakening consumer sentiment. We will address these challenges and the need for price increases by leveraging our strong commercial programmes, well-embedded performance management systems, tools and capabilities, while not losing sight of our long-term Sail’27 priorities and ambitions.”

Rising energy costs are affecting all brewers right now. But what if we told you that it’s possible to unlock significant energy and cost savings by making just one simple change to your beer stabilisation process? Welcome to DSM’s Brewers Clarex. Today, this established solution for chill haze prevention is used by eight out of the top ten global brewers. So, if you would like to cut your energy usage by up to 7% and increase capacity by up to 20%…read on. A unique brewing enzyme Brewers Clarex is an enzyme-based (ie. natural) solution that you simply add in a small liquid dose at the start of the fermentation process – with no special equipment or major CAPEX required. It then immediately starts breaking down the proteins that attach to polyphenols in hops that cause chill haze, attaining excellent colloidal stability in just four days – which enables you to increase brewing capacity by up to 20%. Crucially, we help you achieve this at higher temperatures with no effect on beer quality. In fact, Life Cycle Analyses have demonstrated 6-7% energy savings when stabilising at 4°C with Brewers Clarex, compared to cold conditioning at 0°C. That equates to a saving of €70,000 per million hectolitres of beer brewed. Putting our energy into great-tasting beer Importantly, because Brewers Clarex is enzyme-based, there is no compromise on the taste and foam quality of your beer – as proven in independent trials. We want to help you create delicious and sustainable beers that your consumers will love, at a lower cost and using less energy. So, if you’re open to innovation, why not get in touch? Our brewmasters will be happy to arrange a trial to demonstrate exactly how you can enjoy it all. Find out more. #beer #brewing #DSM

US coffee technology brand, Terra Kaffe, has announced the launch of a "super-automatic" coffee machine, TK-02. According to Terra Kaffe, TK-02 uses "whole-bean coffee, new proprietary precision brewing technology and smart connectivity to craft ultra-customised drinks". The coffee machine is able to brew both drip coffee and espresso. TK-02 features a barista-grade smart scale; hybrid brew unit to seamlessly switch between espresso-based drinks and drip coffee; automatic grind adjustment for intelligent automatic adjustment to different espresso and drip coffee profiles, as well as bean types; and a larger group head, which allows for brewing of up to 16g of ground coffee per drink. The TK-02 is available for $1,400 on the brand's website.

In an update on its announcement from November last year, Royal Unibrew has said that it will no longer be acquiring Scandinavian mineral water producer Aqua d’Or from Danone. According to the statement released this week, the parties have determined that they will not be able to fulfil the closing conditions and have therefore agreed that the deal will not materialise. The Danish Competition and Consumer Authority said that it had expressed competition concerns about the acquisition. Jonas Guldborg Hansen, head of investor relations and communications at Royal Unibrew, said: "The parties have withdrawn the notification of the transaction to the Danish Competition and Consumer Authority".

AB InBev has posted organic revenue growth of 12.1% for its third quarter, after it saw growing demand for its drinks in Mexico and South Africa. The Belgium-based brewer recorded a rise in EBITDA of 6.5% on a like-for-like basis to $5.31 billion, having sold 3.7% more beer and other drinks during the July to September period. Combined, the company’s global brands – Corona, Budweiser and Stella Artois – grew their revenue by 12.7% outside of their home markets. AB InBev recorded 8.9% growth for Budweiser “despite the impact of Covid-19 restrictions in China”. In both Mexico and South Africa, revenue “grew by mid-twenties,” while volumes were up by more than 10%. AB InBev CEO, Michel Doukeris, said in a statement: “We continue to see strong consumer demand for our portfolio and a resilient beer category as we navigate the dynamic operating environment”. “As a result of our performance and continued momentum, we are raising the bottom-end of our FY22 EBITDA outlook."

AgroSpheres, a company developing the next generation of environmentally-friendly crop protection products, has raised £22 million in a Series B funding round led by Lewis & Clark AgriFood and Ospraie Ag Science. Other participants also included Bidra Innovation Ventures and its existing investor, Cavallo Ventures. The company will use the funds to accelerate product commercialisation, expand manufacturing capacity and "seed broader applications of the AgroSpheres AgriCell platform technology". AgriCell and AgriShell are patented technologies that enable the development of biological pesticides that have a multi-year shelf life and high efficacy in the field. Payam Pourtaheri, founder and CEO of AgroSpheres, said: "In this unprecedented bear market, food security, environmental footprint, and supply chain resilience are of paramount importance. We are thankful for the support from our partners at Lewis & Clark, OAS, Bidra and Cavallo, as we take significant strides towards our vision of a future built by nature's technologies and bring our biobased technologies to partners globally." Ameer Shakeel, founder and CTO of AgroSpheres, added: "The manufacturing expansion will allow us to deliver on the increasing demand for shelf-stable RNA and supply high-quality RNA at the lowest market price to partners in industry, in academia and at the farm gate".

Jones Soda, a craft soda company has added two new seasonal flavours to its portfolio. Featuring in the release is the Turkey and Gravy Soda and Sugar Cookie Soda to replicate the classic holiday meals and treats. Both soda flavours will be available at select US grocery retailers in single bottles (SRP $1.69-$1.89) and 4-packs (SRP $6.49-$6.99). Previous flavours released into the portfolio include Birthday Cake, Pineapple Cream and Crushed Melon.

UK-based bar-strength RTD cocktail brand, MOTH (mix of total happiness), has launched three new cocktails; a french 75, a piña colada and an aperitivo spritz. John Vine, spirits buyer at Waitrose, commented: “The growth of high-quality ready-to-drink cocktails has been huge and I am sure that MOTH’s newly released cocktails will add further to the success of the brand and continue to delight Waitrose consumers.” The brand has partnered with spirit companies such as Tarquins Cornish Gin and Duppy Share Rum to produce the high-ABV drinks. The three new drinks all have an ABV of 10% and complement MOTH’s existing range, including a margarita, negroni, espresso martini, old fashioned and mojito, all of which range between 14.9-20% ABV. MOTH co-founder, Rob Wallis, said: “We’re so proud to be working with our award-winning spirit partners to bring consumers three new classic cocktails to enjoy anytime, anywhere.” The drinks are available in select Waitrose and Tesco stores across the UK for an RRP of £3.99 per can.

Kraft Heinz has reported a 2.9% increase in third-quarter net sales and reaffirmed its full-year outlook for organic sales growth. The owner of Heinz ketchup and baked beans said that the “strong results” were fuelled by the company’s three pillars of growth, including foodservice and emerging markets. Kraft Heinz's Q3 net sales rose to $6.51 billion. Analysts on average had expected $6.27 billion, according to Refinitiv IBES data, cited by Reuters. On an organic basis, sales rose by 11.6%. Net income decreased 40.8% to $435 million, primarily driven by higher non-cash impairment losses versus the year-ago period. Price increased 15.4 percentage points versus Q3 2021 to mitigate rising input costs, and “higher pricing and efficiency gains…more than offset higher supply chain costs,” according to Kraft Heinz. Miguel Patricio, Kraft Heinz CEO, commented on the results: “As we continue to successfully navigate a volatile environment, the consumer remains our top priority. We're dedicated to providing solutions for consumers by leveraging the power of our brands to deliver on value at a time when consumers need it most.” He continued: “I'm very proud of what we have been able to deliver thus far, but our work continues. We remain focused on advancing our long-term strategy and believe we are well-positioned to drive profitable growth and generate attractive returns for our stockholders.” Kraft Heinz reaffirmed its expectation of “high-single-digit” organic net sales growth for the full year. Meanwhile, the company has raised the lower end estimate for 2022 adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) from at least $5.8 billion to $5.9 billion. Due to the potential impact of supply chain challenges faced by the industry, the company anticipates coming in at the lower end of the new adjusted EBITDA range.

Valio has completed what it claims is the “biggest energy-efficiency investment” in its history at its Lapinlahti factory in the North Savo region of Finland. The introduction of a new flue-gas condenser recovers heat from the factory’s chimney, as well as putting it through a cleaning process. Valio claimed that its factory’s energy consumption will decrease by more than 10% and its greenhouse gasses “by about 10,000 CO2 tonnes per year”. The Lapinlahti factory requires heat energy for two of its production processes – drying milk powders and cooking cheese. With the new process in place, Valio stated that the factory’s heat energy consumption could decrease by as much as 25,000 MWh per year. Peter Fabritius, energy manager at Valio, said: “We produce the heat energy needed by our factory primarily using biofuel in a heat plant located on-site. Hot flue gas is generated in conjunction with heat production. Previously, the heat energy contained in the approximate 150°C flue-gas went to waste, but now the flue-gas condenser captures the thermal energy.” Fabritius added: “Water sprayed into the flue gas absorbs the thermal energy of the flue gas. This combined with the heat pump technology results in 80°C hot water, which we utilise in production and in facility heating. We store the rest of the hot water in the new heat accumulator system.” The investment includes a flue-gas condenser, heat pump system, heat accumulator and an extension to the factory’s heat distribution network. Adven Oy – a provider of energy and water services, and a partner of Valio – is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the system.