Cuno Foodservice is rebranding its product line under a new 3M Water Filtration name in a bid to emphasise its focus on water filtration and positioning as a member of the 3M family. The name change will culminate in an official unveiling of the company’s new look, which is expected to take shape from 1 January 2008. 3M acquired filtration technology company Cuno in 2005 and has since worked with the aim of addressing global water supply quality issues and developing practical and affordable filtration systems for commercial use. Cuno water group Vice President, Tim Carney, commented: “We are thrilled to have 3M recognise our pioneering contributions to the water filtration industry and put their brand name and trust behind our product. Now Cuno can benefit from 3M’s huge investment in technology and innovation.” The revamp is also expected to assist the company to better support its multinational customers, enhance its product offering and make its range more readily available across a global marketplace. “3M Water Filtration will continue to build on Cuno’s success and innovation, with new advances that uphold customer expectations,” said Cuno Director of National Sales, Rick Knasel. The newest addition to the 3M fold, Cuno designs, manufactures and markets a comprehensive line of filtration products for the separation, clarification and purification of fluids and gases in various sectors, such as drinking water, healthcare and industrial. 3M serves customers in more than 200 countries around the world in markets including consumer, safety, healthcare, industrial and transport.

UK-based Kleena Coola has improved its website in a bid to make ordering water cooler sanitisation products online easier. Featuring over 60 items, including the recently added John Guest and POU installation and repair lines, the site illustrates each product, enabling the customer to know exactly what they’re ordering onscreen. The easy to navigate site orders information into areas such as ‘product list’, ‘new lines’ and ‘technical info’, as well as a ‘great profits’ section for the add-on sales products that are stocked, including absorbent mats, daily hygiene wipes and sprays, and visitor and auditor packs.

Tate & Lyle Ventures and Scottish Enterprises Scottish Venture Fund have acquired BioFilm Limited through a newly formed company, BioFilm Holdings Limited. BioFilm Limited, a subsidiary of Devro plc, is the only fully integrated manufacturer in Western Europe of dissolvable/edible films that carry active ingredients, designed for use in the nutraceutical and medical markets. BioFilm Limited ('BioFilm') is being acquired for a nominal initial consideration plus a sum in respect of working capital. The agreement provides for a further potential payment to Devro plc in the event of a subsequent sale of the business. BioFilm Holdings Limited plans to invest £3 million in the business to allow the company to supply the rapidly growing medical devices, lifestyle and pharmaceutical markets. BioFilm will be headed up by Trevor Morgan, formerly Devro plcs Business Development Director. Use of dissolvable/edible films as medical devices (such as anti-snoring strips) and as a delivery mechanism for a range of active ingredients (including breath fresheners, nutraceuticals, cosmeceuticals and now drugs) is increasing rapidly. This is due to ease of use, cost benefits and, in some cases, improved absorption through the buccal membrane (inside cheek). The North American edible film market is well established and the European market is beginning to emerge; some analysts estimate that the total market for edible films could reach $500 million this year and $2 billion by 2012. BioFilms expertise allows it to use a wide range of film formers to meet the end customers requirements; films can be made from a range of products including gelatine, pectin, cellulose, pullulan and collagen. North American success David Atkinson, Managing Partner, Tate & Lyle Ventures said, "The edible film market is fast-growing, particularly in North America, and enjoys an excellent fit with our Funds focus on biomaterials. We see potential in the medical/ drug delivery market where dissolvable films allow fast delivery of active ingredients. BioFilm also provides a unique opportunity for us to enter the European market, which is currently small but we believe is likely to follow North American trends." Jonathan Lloyd-Hirst, Investment Manager, Scottish Venture Fund said, "The Scottish Venture Fund was set up as a market making mechanism to attract new investors to Scotland. We are therefore delighted to be investing for the second time alongside Tate & Lyle Ventures in a Scottish company, BioFilm. With our investment and backed by a strong management team, BioFilm has the potential to become a global pioneer in its field." Trevor Morgan, Chief Executive Officer, BioFilm said, "We are delighted that we have been able to attract such high calibre investors, who bring with them the resources and experience to develop BioFilm into a world class producer of highly differentiated dissolvable film products for a wide range of markets." Tate & Lyle Ventures and Scottish Enterprise were part of a consortium which invested in second round funding in Scottish marine biotechnology company, Aquapharm Biodiscovery Ltd in July 2007.

Cooler cover-ups As you wrap up in your winter coat, hat, scarf and gloves to do battle with the icy weather or don your glad rags to step out in style, spare a thought for your unclothed water cooler this festive season. Perhaps it was the plight of the naked cooler or the designer accessory that is the tea cosy which inspired this range of striking jackets for bottled coolers. Available in a whole host of decorative designs, including traditional, whimsical and festive themes, <1> will ensure that your machine will sport the latest in cooler clobber all year round. Or for those coolers more concerned with functionality than good looks, the noticeboard cover might prove more appealing. Ideal for advertising an upcoming event and displaying anonymous messages, incriminating photographs or even your latest copy of cooler innovation, the Cooler Bottle Billboard - complete with clear vinyl pocket - offers endless possibilities for the cooler that has everything. Vending voyeurs You might recall the innovative skirt that magically transforms a person into a vending machine, which was featured in the last issue. Well, hereís further proof that vending machines have undisputed street cred because, as well as resembling one, you can now also watch one all day long. Simply go to <<2>">www.jihan.sblo.jp]<2> and prepare to delve deeply into the world of drinks dispensing. cooler innovation can report that, when it put on its beverage binoculars to visit the Japanese website, highlights included well, there weren't any really. But who knows what would have happened had we continued our soft drink stalking for a whole 24 hours. Addictive personality types, you have been warned. <1>: http://www.coolercoverups.com <2>: http://www.jihan.sblo.jp

Zerica has emphasised the benefits of its water and drinks cooler with carbonator, which has been specifically designed with public venues such as bars and restaurants in mind. Operating at external temperatures of up to 43°C, the Italian-made G Plus can be mounted either over or under the counter, and features a stainless steel ice chamber, extractable refrigeration coil and carbonator, with the aim of easy maintenance and optimum hygiene. Provided as standard, a recycling system keeps the liquid chilled between the G Plus and the main drinks supply point, enabling them to be placed far apart, while taps can be mounted on either the width or length of the stainless steel main body, which has rounded, protected corners for safe operation. The unit is suitable for various beverage types, including water, fruit juice, milk, wine and beer.

Health company Odwalla, owned by The Coca-Cola Company since 2001, has launched into the energy sector with a Tropical fruit juice blend combining pineapple, mango, guava and passion fruit plus extracts of yerba mate, green tea and guarana seed for concentration and vitality. The drink contains 1mg of ginseng plus vitamins B1 and B2 to increase energy metabolism and vitamin E to boost the immune system. "Odwalla Serious Energy is a different energy drink, with a blend of nature’s fruit juices," commented Nona Austin-King, Odwalla brand manager. "Odwalla Serious Energy is specially formulated to refuel and renew. It’s perfect for people who seek some get up and go, any time of the day." Especially formulated with nutrition and taste to refuel and renew, it is packed in 45cl (15.2fl oz) recyclable plastic bottles.

Surimi, more commonly found in the West as imitation crab meat, is made from pulverised fish meat that has a flexible texture when cooked. Flavours are generally savoury, but recently at Anuga, Belgian company Vichiunai launched Sweet Surimi Bites in a chocolate flavour, under its Vici Sweets Del Mare brand. The unusual surimi product is said to provide a healthy alternative to sweets as it contains less than 20% of the fat and half the calories of real chocolate. It also does not contain any flavour enhancers and is offered in a 200g pack.

If you’ve ever thought that Cadbury Schweppes was a cumbersome title, how about Dr Pepper Snapple Group? Better get used to it, because that is what the present Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages (CSAB) unit will be called, when it is spun off from Cadbury’s vast confectionery empire in 2008. Cadbury once hoped to sell CSAB outright to private equity groups, but the collapse of world debt markets meant that equity groups could no longer raise the necessary cash for a buyout - CSAB was valued by analysts at up to $16 billion. So instead Americas Beverages will be ‘demerged’ from the core confectionery business, with Cadbury stockholders receiving shares in the new enterprise, which will be floated on the New York Stock Exchange by the end of June. These latest details were revealed in December, when Cadbury Schweppes issued a trading update in advance of its year end results. The news from the group’s confectionery operations was good, with sales set to rise more than 6%. But the news from CSAB was mixed. Although beverage sales were expected to grow 4-5% over 2007, the unit’s profitability will be hit by a £30 million ($61 million) loss from the botched launch of the sports drink Accelerade. Chief Financial Officer Ken Hanna admitted the company ‘got it wrong’ with Accelerade, which will be placed in fewer retail outlets in future. While Dr Pepper and Snapple are key brands in CSAB’s portfolio (hence the tongue twisting name for the drinks business spin off), the unit makes a wide range of beverages including juice and water. CSAB’s market share is a relatively modest 17%, but it is America’s third biggest beverage group after Coca-Cola and PepsiCo.

The worldwide energy drinks market grew 17% last year to 3,431 million litres, according to the latest report from global food and beverage consultancy Zenith International. Although per capita consumption is still highest in Thailand, home of the energy drinks concept, the US now has the highest overall volume sales, driven by five top brands: Red Bull, Monster, Rockstar, Full Throttle from Coca-Cola and SoBe No Fear from PepsiCo. US consumers drank 990 million litres of energy drinks in 2006, 47% more than in 2005 and 200 million litres more than their Thai counterparts. “If the level of activity and product development in the US continues, it could represent 45% of worldwide volume in five years,” commented Zenith Research Director Gary Roethenbaugh. “We also expect to see double digit growth in East Europe and the Middle East, with Latin America, Australasia and West Europe making good gains too.” The increasing popularity of energy drinks, coupled with a widening choice of products, could raise Americans’ average consumption from the current 3 litres per person to 8 litres by 2011. However, this would still be less than Thailand, where consumption has remained about 11.5 litres per person for some years. Other nations in contention for a place among the top five energy drink consumers include Austria, Ireland, New Zealand, Slovenia and Kuwait. “Although US growth has been dominated by male-oriented energy drinks, manufacturers there are successfully tapping into a wider trend towards healthier products, and consumers are enjoying a new wave of all-natural energy drinks with multiple health benefits,” added Roethenbaugh. “Manufacturers are also extending their brands to appeal to a wider range of consumers.” Zenith expects each global region to generate growth over the coming years, with total volume increasing almost 15% annually to top 5,700 million litres in 2011. North American is likely to account for almost half this growth. Zenith’s report, Global Energy Drinks 2007, notes that the world’s energy drinks markets are at greatly varying stages of development. Asia Pacific, for example, reveals a very diverse picture that includes the mature markets of Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Taiwan alongside the emerging markets of China and India. For the purposes of the study, Zenith’s definition of energy drinks excluded glucose-based products and sports drinks.

Using crystallisation technology to optimise the particle size of QDE 510, Ajinomoto has succeeded in creating an ingredient that is free flowing and dust free, which also offers fast dissolution. According to Ajinomoto, the dissolution time can be cut by as much as 30% using QDE 510 compared with the company’s standard aspartame powder; and dissolution times can be cut by 60% compared with aspartame from other suppliers. In addition, the company has recently conducted tests into consumer preferences for two diet colas: one sweetened with aspartame and the other with sucralose. Overall, the research found that participants preferred the cola with aspartame by a ratio of 61:39.

Both showed a decrease in the reddening of the participants’ skin, because of their ability to quench Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), indicating protection from UV induced damage. However, the group that ingested synthetic lycopene showed only 25% reduction in redness, where as the groups ingesting Lyc-O-Mato and a Lyc-O-Mato drink showed superior protection with 39% and 50% reduction respectively. In a second study, carried out at the Institute of Experimental Dermatology, University of Witten/Herdecke, two antioxidant supplement combinations containing different carotenoid mixes, tocopherol and selenium, were tested for their impact on skin structure and health. Although both antioxidant supplement combinations showed an increase in skin density, thickness, skin softness and reduced scaling, the oral supplement containing lutein and lycopene showed slightly better results, indicating the importance of combining antioxidants inimproving skin health and beauty.

As another year in the water cooler industry draws to a close, cooler innovation reflects on the year that was and looks ahead to 2008. Will the environment remain top of the agenda? Which geographical and sector markets will be fastest growing? Will new product launches continue to focus on improved and easier methods of sanitisation? And, most importantly, will next summer bring us the hot, dry weather that Western Europe in 2007 didn't. The questions on everyone's lips might be difficult to answer with absolute certainty, but what you can be sure of at this time of year is the prevalence of the retrospective end of year review. Three water cooler companies tell Deputy Editor Medina Bailey how the past 12 months shaped up and speculate about what 2008 has in store. Questions 1. How would you sum up 2007? 2. What trends or issues have characterised the cooler industry over the past year? 3. What was your best selling product or highlight? 4. Is there anything you would have done differently over the past 12 months? 5. What is next for your company in 2008? 6. Which issues do you think will be high on next yearís agenda for the cooler industry? 7. What would your one wish for 2008 be? Answers Ebac Chairman John Elliot MBE: "We have seen business startups who have entered the market in the last year achieve phenomenal success, even though the market had been described as static. It has become more competitive, but it has also been an exciting year." "We have noticed a shift towards POU coolers. Distributors are looking at ways of growing their business and accessing parts of the market they are not already reaching and end customers are looking for a more cost efficient, environmentally friendly and convenient cooler. We have also seen a greater number of smaller customers come to us and tell us they hadnít realised that Ebac was accessible to them as they were purchasing lower volumes, now they know differently! We have worked with many smaller companies and been able to give them very competitive prices and our flexible payment terms are designed specifically for smaller firms." "Without a doubt the FMax has been our best selling product. Our customers have described the FMax as the most complete water cooler ever and we definitely agree. It has many advantages in the bottled cooler market due to its high burst rate, energy efficient hot tank and patented cassette WaterTrail. After its launch earlier this year, the FMax has quickly established itself as a core product within our range and customers such as asNestlé Waters Direct, Dar Natury in Poland, Henniez of Switzerland and Rainbow in Greece all offer the model to their clients. The FMax represents 30% of our new business which has been an incredible achievement for a product which was launched less than a year ago." "I think we could have helped to change the perception that Ebac coolers are expensive and aimed at larger companies, when in fact the smaller company can reap all the same rewards and benefit from competitive pricing. If we could have changed the weather and made people thirstier we would have done that too." "We will be launching a new product which is set to revolutionise the POU market. We canít say too much about it yet but it is something that has never been seen before and will take simplicity, hygiene and sanitisation to the next level. An official launch will take place in the spring." "Definitely the opportunities of the emerging markets - Eastern and continental Europe and Japan. And not forgetting breaking into the home cooler market." "We work very closely with business startups in this industry and I would wish that they all have a very successful 2008." International Packaging Innovations (IPI) Vice President of Sales and Marketing Alex Reby: "For IPI , 2007 was a year of introduction. Purelock, our product that combines the 3 gallon bag of water with the cooler top converter, was introduced to the market in the US in late August and the results have been solid. Our first partner was able to secure over 100 new bottled water and cooler rental accounts in three months by offering the Purelock. While 100 may not be huge, the market this company services is small and those accounts increased total customer base by about 5% in those 90 days. In October, we travelled to Poland for the EBWA show with hopes of meeting bottlers and distributors in the European marketplace that would like to partner with us to offer a unique product to their customers. We believe that it offers convenience to the consumer, is more environmentally friendly than 3 and 5 gallon bottles, and can help improve margins for bottlers." "Sanitisation, the environment and the reliability of the cooler and its parts." "Purelock. Our highlights have been contracting with two US bottlers this year, with two more American and one international one in the pipeline. The EBWA show introduced us to numerous bottlers in Europe and we look forward to partnering with them to launch the product overseas. We also won the cooler innovation award for "Best New Cooler Product" in 2007. That was definitely a highlight!" "The product was launched as a test programme in the US with the aim of determining customer reactions to the new package and find out how easy it would be to incorporate Purelock into existing routes from a logistical standpoint. Consumers reported that they would like to see the bags tinted or feature labelling. If we could do it all over again, we would have completed the package before introduction. The good news is that 82% of new consumers preferred Purelock and the converter to their existing bottles, and thatís with no aesthetics or labelling, so we anticipate that that number will rise." "We are opening operations with bottling partners in several US states and internationally, as well as seeking European partners and believe that the benefits of carrying Purelock will truly enhance the businesses." "Environmental impact and reliability are likely to be continuing trends." "From a business prospective, to sign agreements with 10 to 12 new partners to produce and distribute Purelock in their areas." Vivreau Managing Director Stephen Charles: "2007 has been a fantastic year for Vivreau. Our research and development team have pulled out all the stops to enable us to launch two new ranges of systems, VR3000 and V20. The VR3000 has opened up the vending market, enabling distributors and vending companies to offer Vivreau to their clients. The response we have received from the trial units and test marketing has been beyond our expectations and we are feeling extremely positive about the future of this product. "Effectively completing the jigsaw with the V20, we can now offer a complete range of innovative still, sparkling and hot water systems for the whole spectrum of environments, meeting the expectations and demands of clients in any public and private industry sector. We have once again had an exceptional year with our direct sales business and are proud to say that we now supply to approximately 60% of the top 100 UK companies." "Environmental issues have been a key factor. World economy issues will always dictate the budgets of our clients, so cost factors continued to be an issue, although Vivreau clients usually accept that it is worth spending a little more for a high quality product and superior after sales service." "If I were to pick one product, it would most certainly be our Table Water Bottling system. Although it will never be our highest volume seller, as customers tend not to install more than one or two systems in a building, it is the perfect product in the current climate where companies are looking at their carbon footprints and other green initiatives."What has been so refreshing for us is that when we designed the whole concept of the system 17 years ago, our product was dismissed by the industry and the media as just a cheap imitation of mineral water. Finally the media, business and the general public have come to realise that we are not just a 'bunch of green eco warriors'. The demand for our bottling system has escalated and although there are a couple of other alternative systems on the market, none of them are able to match the quality, reliability and efficiency of ours."We are not complacent, however, and through investing in research and development, efficient budgeting and a well structured marketing plan, we aim to maintain our market leading position in the industry." "Even with the benefit of hindsight, I do not think we would have done things particularly differently. Vivreau has always been about the more cautious approach ensuring that everything we do enables us to provide a high quality product and service." "Now the technical development team have done their bit with the VR3000 and V20, it is now down to the sales team to realise the huge potential of these products and I am confident that they will achieve our goals. "We have also appointed a distributor for the Irish market and are looking forward to replicating the success we have in the UK right across Ireland. We will be exhibiting at Hospitality Ireland in Dublin in February where we will be officially launching Vivreau Ireland." "The trend for more environmentally products is increasing on a daily basis and I think our industry, as with most industries, will be under more and more pressure to take these issues more seriously, not only from the government but also from the private sector. Our corporate clients are demanding greater accountability and suppliers will have to be seen to be demonstrating their green credentials for their own companies, in addition to just offering clients more environmentally friendly solutions. Rest assured that, as in the past, we will be at the forefront of future developments in this area." "A more tolerant world would be a refreshing start and a better return from my Paddy Power account would always be nice!"