*South African wine producer, Arniston Bay, is launching a one-litre fully recyclable Tetra Pak, which will further extend its range of environmentally friendly wine packaging. * The company has already launched a 1.5-litre pouch with 80% less of a carbon footprint than a glass bottle equivalent. It also plans to launch a 25cl version of the pouch. Available in Chenin Blanc Chardonnay, Pinotage Rose and Cabernet Merlot varieties, the Arniston Bay Tetra Pak will be available for UK retailers from October with an RRP of £6.49 for one litre. A lightweight alternative to glass bottles, the Arniston Bay Tetra Pak has a lower carbon footprint than wine in glass bottles, with a higher number of cartons transported in one shipping. In addition, the pack is 100% recyclable, making this an ideal choice for the environmentally conscious consumer. Brand and Business Development Manager for 'the company of wine people', Barney Davis, said: “The Tetra Pak is an important addition to the Arniston Bay portfolio. A year on from the launch of our carbon-friendly pouch, we're aware that the wine consumer is on the look-out for more innovative forms of packaging that tick all the boxes in terms of convenience, ease of use and environmental benefits. "Our Tetra Pak is not only a convenient addition to our wine range, it's also recyclable and is lighter to transport around the globe, helping us, as an international wine company, to lower our overall carbon footprint.” Arniston Bay is one of the best international selling brands in the UK. Sales of the Arniston Bay range – available in a wide variety of packaging formats – are currently up by 21.9% year on year.

**The Deutscher Olympischer Sportbund (DOSB, German Olympic Sports Confederation) has officially recommended Bionade, a popular German organic soft drink. **The endorsement means that Bionade will be featuring the DOSB logo on the labels of its soft drink to show the Confederation's support. According to DOSB, the organic beverage is particularly useful for those engaged in sports activities. Bionade is created by the fermentation of water and malt, is alcohol-free and contains high levels of calcium and magnesium. These are valuable minerals and nutrients important to health-conscious consumers, and in particular for sportspeople who require assistance with speedy recoveries. DOSB General Manager Michael Vesper commented on the new partnership, saying he was pleased to have found such a compelling partner who was so committed to the philosophy of sport. Angelika Kuhnert, Marketing Chief of Bionade, said: "We are pleased and proud of the fact that the DOSB has confidence in our product." Bionade has also been sponsoring and promoting Germany's school youth Olympics initiative, as part of its corporate social responsibility scheme.

Seriously Strong, a Lactalis McLelland brand, is investing more than £1m to support its award-winning Seriously Strong Cheddar. This is the biggest investment in a standalone TV advertising campaign from a Cheddar brand this year. The national campaign launches on 20 October and is designed to raise consumer demand, encourage trial and build brand loyalty. Viewers will be able to enjoy the campaign on breaks between primetime programmes such as Coronation Street, Heartbeat and Jamie’s Ministry of Food. Renée Milkop-Kerr, Marketing Manager for Seriously Strong, believes the campaign puts the brand in the prime position to significantly increase its share of the Cheddar market. “Seriously Strong is a recognised, high-quality product that really delivers in terms of unrivalled taste and heritage. With the current economic situation, consumers are looking for great value products without compromising on quality. We're confident this campaign with drive consumers into the dairy aisles to trial our products, and we're in no doubt that our cheese will deliver on all these promises. “This is a real investment for the brand. It's the first time in four years that Seriously Strong has benefited from a nationwide TV advertising campaign. Our aim is to communicate the significant taste difference you receive with Seriously and to further strengthen and grow our position in the market place.”

AWS Eco Plastics has announced a major contract with Artenius PET Packaging Europe (APPE), a subsidiary of La Seda De Barcelona, one of Europe's leading PET packaging companies. AWS is to provide APPE with a minimum of 13,000 tons annually of recycled plastic pellets for the production of bottles for carbonated beverages. This is a major step in APPE's drive to increase the recycled content of PET bottles. This is the first major offtake contract signed to support the £14m capital investment programme being carried out at AWS Eco Plastics' bottle processing plant in Lincolnshire. On completion (end of this year), the plant will be the largest of its kind in the world, with processing capacity set to increase from 25,000 tpa to 100,000 tpa. Environmental considerations While capex has been concentrated on the process, the company has also been mindful to minimise the use of natural resources. For example, there has been substantial spend on a closed-loop water processing system capable of recycling up to 15 cubic metres an hour of water back to a fresh state to be reused in the process, which is the first of its kind to be used in a plastic bottle processing plant. Chief Executive Jonathan Short, commenting on the APPE contract, said: "We're delighted to win this contract, which is the culmination of months of negotiation with APPE. "It's clear APPE has chosen to work with AWS, as we have clearly demonstrated the supply of material available to us and that the capex programme undertaken will result in product to a standard required by APPE. Like ourselves, APPE have set their stall out to be market leader in their field and we look forward to working together to achieve these goals." Both companies are currently discussing the next stage of contract to increase available tonnage.

*PepsiCo has announced its intention to revamp "every aspect of the brand proposition for our key brands", according to CEO Indra Nooyi. * The first step of the plan is to change the graphics and logo on cans of Pepsi, Mountain Dew and Sierra Mist drinks, said Pepsi spokeswoman Nicole Bradley. Pepsi plans to follow with a new marketing campaign as well. "It's clear this business is not performing where we would like it to be," added Ms Nooyi. " in large part because the economic slowdown continues to pressure the North American liquid refreshment beverage category. It is our belief that, especially in this economic downturn, we should be investing in the category to get consumers to stay with, and some to return to, the packaged liquid refreshment beverage category and to our brands." *

The interim results of Whitbread Plc, the restaurant and hotel group, included the announcement of plans to continue the expansion of Costa, a UK coffee chain. While the group has 1,121 outlets in the UK and overseas, a recent survey has identified more than 400 UK locations where Costa is not yet represented. Stores are opening in hospitals, cinemas, garden centres, supermarkets and council leisure facilities. By the end of the year, Costa plans to have the largest coffee shop presence on UK motorway service areas, with about 50 stores. Overall, Costa is set to open approximately 200 stores in the UK this financial year. Overseas, 72 stores were opened in the first half. These included 11 new, joint venture stores and 61 new, international franchise stores, bringing the total number of overseas stores to 346 in 22 countries. * Costa results* Total revenues for Costa are up by 25.6% at £123.2m (€158m) on last year and total profit up 10.6% at £7.3m (€9.3m). Costa reported like for like sales growth for the first half of 3.7%. Although June and July had strong comparatives, sales in August increased by 4.5% year on year. Costa has seen substantial cost increases in raw materials such as coffee, milk and wheat. However, in anticipation of this, management took action at the start of the year, taking steps to improve operational efficiencies, and a small price increase was introduced in January 2008. Costa's international business posted a first-half loss of £1.2m (€1.5m), similar to last year. *Green coffee * Costa has announced its intention to convert its entire coffee supply to sustainably grown coffee beans sourced from Rainforest Alliance Certified farms. With immediate effect, at least 30% of the beans of Costa's Mocha Italia blend will come from certified sources, equal to about 1,200 tons of green coffee over the course of a year.

**Bottled water company Canadian Springs is to start charging a $0.25 deposit on 16oz (50cl) bottles in January 2009. **While the deposit will be standard for commercial and residential customers that buy from Canadian Springs, the company said it will also work with retailers that want to participate in the programme. Canadian Springs is hoping its success with a deposit programme for its refillable, 4.7 gallon (18 litre) bottles will carry over to its smaller products. The company boasts a 99% return rate on its larger bottles, on which it charges a $10 deposit. "We are trying to lead the bottled water industry to be truly responsible and push the Ontario government to take action," said Canadian Springs President Richard Stephens. “This deposit programme is a model for environmentally responsible packaging management that will result in the return of almost all Canadian Springs 50cl bottles. "Mankind clearly has the intelligence to create the products that are damaging our environment. Let us hope that we also have the wisdom to use those products in a more environmentally sensible manner." Deposit programmes are just one of the schemes being used to deal with the billions of plastic bottles being produced every year. While most efforts have focused on expanding residential recycling capabilities or encouraging reduced use of plastic bottles, Canadian Springs is taking a different step along the line of extended producer responsibility. The company is trying to get the customers it works directly with to give back the bottles instead of directing them to dispose of them through a general recycling programme. There has been considerable debate within the industry as to how best to manage the waste issue, but it's clear that the most effective option is a deposit return system. One only has to look at the overwhelming success of the deposit return system used in the beer industry to see the merits of such a programme for single-serve bottles. "Quite frankly, I've grown very tired of hearing of global corporate 'green washing' recycling projects that have diversified beverage companies position themselves as responding to the water bottles that litter our public spaces, our parks, our beaches, even our sidewalks," Stephens said. "The bottled water providers need to create a reasonable financial incentive to encourage consumers to dispose of their bottles properly and sensibly. In jurisdictions that have introduced such a system, the litter problem has been virtually eliminated." Government inaction Stephens expressed his frustration with the provincial government's general inaction on this matter. "We have been working with the Ontario government for almost two years to encourage appropriate legislation to deal with the problems being created by the single-use 15 litre water cooler bottles that have recently been introduced to the market place." These bottles are so large that municipalities have called for their outright ban as they cannot be processed through their recycling facilities. Despite numerous requests from various municipalities and with the support of most industry players, the Ontario Government has failed to act. The Quebec government has been much more responsive on this matter, having passed legislation in 2007 to ban these types of bottles. This inaction is particularly puzzling and frustrating in light of the fact the previous Minister of the Environment, Laurel Broten, had issued a demand letter asking the industry to voluntarily discontinue the sale of the non returnable, non reusable 15 litre bottles or else face a strong response from government. Despite assurances from the current Minister's office, the MOE has failed to take any initiative on this matter. "This is a case where industry can voluntarily decide to do the right thing and we hope that the MOE will choose to follow the lead of Canadian Springs on this environmental initiative," said Stephens. Canadian Springs believes the $0.25 per bottle deposit is set at the right price point ensuring the deposit is valuable but not prohibitive. "The fully refunded deposit hasn't been an issue for our 18 litre bottle customers, as it ensures the bottles' return and hence, environmental protection. We think the 25 cent deposit will be accepted by single-serve bottle customers. This is the responsible thing for us to implement and we expect a positive response from today's environmentally conscious customers. "This programme will allow us to almost fully ensure the return and recycling of our water bottles to keep them out of the landfill or from littering our environment. We have an agreement with Smart Plastic Recycling who will be managing our returned bottles as a valuable resource to be used in the manufacture of other plastic products." *Laurentian 1882 * This past summer, the company has also launched another major environmentally oriented initiative with the introduction of its Laurentian 1882 brand of natural spring water. The water is packaged in 75cl glass bottles which are both returnable and refillable. The water is produced in still and sparkling formats. The name refers to Canada's oldest bottled water brand, Laurentian, which has been produced and sold in Quebec since 1882. Members of the McCall family who are fifth generation descendants of the founder are still shareholders of Aquaterra Corporation, the parent company of Canadian Springs. The Laurentian 1882 products which are sourced and bottled in Quebec are being marketed to compete with the premium priced imported waters such as Evian, Perrier and San Pellegrino. "It makes absolutely no environmental sense to purchase water imported from Europe that's packaged in single-use, non returnable bottles when a great-tasting, high-quality, locally produced alternative is available in a returnable, refillable bottle. The carbon footprint on imported waters is ridiculous," said Stephens. Laurentian 1882 will soon be available to commercial and residential customers in Quebec and is available at finer restaurants. About Canadian Springs Canadian Springs is the nation's leading direct delivery provider of fresh natural spring water. For over 100 years, Canadian Springs and its affiliates have been refreshing homes and offices across the country. Canadian Springs is leading the industry with state of the art facilities, superior quality standards and refreshing new products to meet business and home customers' hydration needs. With almost 800 employees across Canada, 42 distribution centres and seven state-of-the-art bottling facilities, it's committed to providing its customers with the best in service and quality. Canadian Springs invests in company wide actions to protect the environment, from ensuring its packaging is managed responsibly to industry leading forestry and source water protection programmes around its natural springs. Canadian Springs is an operating division of the Aquaterra Corporation which was was formed in mid 2006 when France's Groupe Danone sold itsDanone Waters of Canada business to the Toronto based investment firmBirch Hill Equity Partners.

Sally Keeble complained to the Portman Group about ShotPak drinks, which are imported from the US and sold in 50ml plastic pouches. The pre-mixed vodka drinks are produced in four flavours: Apple Sour, Lemon Drop, Purple Hooter and Kamikaze. There are also full-strength vodka, rum, tequila and whisky versions, which are primarily marketed as STR8UP but which feature ShotPak branding. The Independent Complaints Panel, which judges complaints under the Portman Group Code of Practice on the Naming, Packaging and Promotion of Alcoholic Drinks, decided that ShotPak sachets could be mistaken for soft drinks. The drinks also breach the Code for encouraging rapid drinking after the Panel decided that their packaging overall incited consumers to drink them in one go. Additionally, the Panel decided that the flavour names ‘Purple Hooter’ and ‘Lemon Drop’ would have particular appeal to under-18s and that ‘Kamikaze’ is associated with self-destruction which could incite excessive drinking. Following the Panel’s decisions, the Portman Group will be issuing a retailer alert bulletin instructing retailers to stop selling ShotPak and STR8UP. David Poley, Portman Group chief executive, said: “These drinks may be acceptable in the States but their marketing falls well short of the standards that UK producers have set themselves. “Some of their names will be particularly popular in the playground. ‘Kamikaze’ is a blatant breach of our Code for its association with bravado and danger. These drinks do not spell out their alcoholic content and the images of fruit add to the confusion over what is in them. They cannot be easily re-sealed and their soft packaging makes it hard to stand them up. That’s why the Panel decided that this packaging is encouraging consumers to drink rapidly. Sally Keeble’s complaint will prevent these imported drinks from getting a foothold in the market.” ShotPaks are produced by Florida-based Beverage Pouch Group and imported into the UK by Chilling Rocks Beverages Ltd. The Portman Group’s Code of Practice The Portman Group Code of Practice on the Naming, Packaging and Promotion of Alcoholic Drinks applies to pre-packaged alcoholic drinks and the promotional activities of drinks producers. The Code covers a drink’s name and packaging, press releases, websites, sponsorship, sampling, branded merchandise, advertorials and all other promotional material. It does not apply to alcohol advertising which is regulated by the Advertising Standards Authority. The Code prohibits the marketing of alcoholic drinks to under-18s; the alcohol content of a drink must be made absolutely clear; its alcoholic strength should not be dominant; it must not encourage rapid or down-in-one drinking; there must be no association with illegal drugs, bravado, aggression or anti-social behaviour and any suggestion that the drink will lead to sexual success or increased popularity is also banned. All complaints are heard by the Independent Complaints Panel which is chaired by Sir Richard Tilt, former Director General of the Prison Service.

**Mains-fed water cooler manufacturer, Tana Water (UK) Ltd, recently launched a new carbonated water model at the Total Workplace Management Show, Olympia, London. **The T5 Fizz features an energy saving mode and delivers up to 30 cups of freshly filtered sparkling water per hour. Tana Water machines take water directly from the mains and use an activated carbon filter to remove chlorine, limescale and rust, and an 11 Watt ultraviolet (UV) bulb to protect the water after dechlorination. The ultraviolet lamp within the cold water tank kills all germs and the T5 Fizz will automatically stop working if the UV bulb fails. To conserve energy overnight and at weekends, the Tana Water T5 Fizz includes a preset 'sleep' mode. This feature has been shown to reduce energy consumption by 40%. Explaining the launch of the T5 Fizz, Tana Water UK MD Nick Heane said: “Tana Water has established its reputation for providing hot and cold POU machines in the healthcare and manufacturing sectors. Now a growing number of conference facilities managers have recognised the labour and cost savings from filtering mains water on site. Our customers want to offer guests the choice of freshly filtered hot, chilled or sparkling water with the convenience of sourcing all of their machines and service from the same manufacturer.” Tana Water has been providing mains-fed water machines to private and public sector organisations in the UK for 10 years, and is the only Water Regulations Advisory Scheme (WRAS) approved manufacturer in the UK that sells and maintains its own machines. All Tana Water machines are sold with a mandatory service contract to ensure regular and safe maintenance of the carbon and UV filters. All installation, maintenance and sanitising is carried out by WRAS-approved Tana Water engineers.

Fonterra is setting up a multi-million dollar project to help pregnant Chinese women and mothers in response to the poisonous milk crisis. Sanlu, a Chinese dairy company 43% owned by Fonterra, is one of more than 20 firms caught up in the scandal, in which the industrial chemical melamine was added to watered-down milk to boost protein levels. Fonterra's CEO Andrew Ferrier said: "We're obviously shocked by the degree of tragedy and we think that this is one way we can make a gesture that will help over the long-term in infants and maternal mother health." Fonterra will donate $5m to the China Soong Ching Ling Foundation over five years for a cooperative charity project to provide medical care and advice to pregnant women and the mothers of infants in rural communities. * *

A new initiative to connect the food trade and farmers across the Yorkshire and Humber regions in the UK has been launched in response to the current turmoil affecting the world's food industry. Farexchange has been created to understand the current and future needs of food manufacturers and consumers. Aimed at directors or executives of food and farming businesses, the scheme aims to develop sustainable value chains, linking manufacturers back to the region's farmers and growers to secure future supply. An initial three-year contract to deliver the 'not for profit' scheme has been won by the Farexchange Partnership, operationally led by the English Food and Farming Partnerships (EFFP) Ltd. Created specifically for collaboration projects, EFFP has the necessary skills to act as an interface between farmers, processors and food companies. This exciting venture was launched at a unique one-day event held in York and will be followed by a programme of conferences, seminars and individual business support meetings to offer practical advice and business experience on working with Yorkshire agriculture. The northern link Due to its diverse and productive agricultural sector, Yorkshire is probably one of the largest food producing regions within the UK. To ensure future growth, projects like Farexchange are vital to fill gaps in the infrastructure so that new businesses, joint ventures and partnerships may be formed. The project is the culmination of two years' work by Yorkshire Forward, whose commitment to delivering enhanced economic activity to benefit the region led to the establishment of this worthwhile scheme. It's believed to be the first of its kind in the UK and will be delivered in conjunction with the National Farmers Union, Country Land Association, Yorkshire & Humber Regional Food Group, EBLEX, BPEX, Yorkshire Agricultural Society, Bishop Burton College and Askham Bryan College. Yorkshire Forward's Food and Drink Sector Manager John Sorsby said: "The Farexchange scheme is an integral element of Yorkshire Forward's multimillion pound investment in supporting the Food and Drink industry in the region, and has a clear focus on innovation and supply chain development. It also delivers innovation by connecting the high quality produce the region has to offer with supply chain opportunities, linked to authenticity and trust, which have high importance as we continue to ride the economic turbulence."

*Food and beverage processors in the EU have until January 2010 to comply with new labelling requirements, according to DD Williamson. * Any food placed on the market before this deadline will be allowed to stay on the shelf until the sell-by date has been reached. The synthetic colourings are: Allura Red AC (E129 = Red 40), Tartrazine (E102 = Yellow 5), Sunset Yellow FCF or Orange Yellow S (E110 = Yellow 6), Quinoline Yellow (E104), Carmoisine or Azorubine (E122), and Ponceau 4R or Cochineal Red A (E124).