*Held each year in a different location as part of a packaging trade fair, the WorldStar Packaging Awards is sponsored by the Swedish-based World Packaging Organisation (WPO). * The WPO provides a jury with 22 representatives from the WPO as well as one representative from the International Packaging Press Organisation. Bericap was entitled to participate in this year's WorldStar tender as had received two awards from the French Packaging Institute last year. At the start of 2007 Bericap introduced its SuperShorty closure system suitable to the short neck PCO 1881 which the company claims helps protect the environment by reducing the usage of non-renewable resources. SuperShorty closure system also aims to save costs without compromising safety and security. It was this winning combination that convinced the jury of the WPO to award the Bericap closure system SuperShorty. A change from PCO 1810 to PCO 1881 reduces the weight of the entire package and in case of a CSD package the neck weight is reduced from 5.05g to 3.82g. The total weight saving adds up to more than 2g for neck and closure. The design of the SuperShorty Crown and the SuperShorty CSD ensures safe venting on 2.5 litre bottles filled with up to 4.5 Vol% CO2. Even unscrewing the closure with excessive speed showed no blow-off problem. All SuperShorty variants are equipped with the well proven DoubleSeal system for safe sealing even under hot climate conditions. Furthermore the SuperShorty product range has been extended with SuperShorty Eco as a low weight alternative to SuperShorty CSD for carbonated water and carbonated drinks. SuperShorty Still for still drinks and variants for aseptic and for hot fill application complete the product program. In addition SuperShorty has been perfected to ensure proper rinsing after wet and dry decontamination in aseptic filling lines.

*EU Consumer Commissioner, Meglena Kuneva, the US Chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, Nancy Nord, and the Chinese vice-Minister of AQSIQ, Wei Chuanzhong, met today in Brussels for the first high-level trilateral summit on product safety. * The high level meeting is intended to send a strong political signal of the determination of all sides to keep product safety at the top of the international political agenda, recognising that open markets can only be built on strong and secure management of global product supply chains. The tripartite meeting will step up EU-China-US cooperation. First, a revised Memorandum of Understanding strengthening bilateral cooperation between the EU and China to enforce product safety standards and strengthen cooperation and exchange of information on food safety will be signed by Commissioner Kuneva, Commissioner Vassiliou and Vice-Minister Wei prior to the high level meeting. Then, trilateral priority areas for action will be agreed and set out in the joint press statement, including on product traceability, cooperation by all three parties on safety standards, expertise exchange and joint enforcement actions. Finally, discussions will focus on action to strengthen information exchange between the partners on alerts and recalls - in particular using new US product safety legislation which will allow more open information exchange on product recalls and dangerous products. Today's activities are part of a broader Product Safety Week, which is being hosted by the Commission from 17-21 November. Commissioner Kuneva said: “Trust is the currency of the global economy. There is no room for complacency, and every week there are alerts which remind us that we must never allow safety issues to slip from the very top of the political agenda. "This high level product safety summit sends a very clear signal about the determination of leaders in Europe, China and the US to put the safety of citizens first and to keep up the political momentum to insist that standards are high and fully enforced at every step along the global supply chain. "We are strongly in favour of open and competitive markets, with all the benefits in terms of price and choice they bring for millions of consumers, but never at the expense of safety."

Egypt, Brazil and Lithuania were admitted membership of the International Dairy Federation at the IDF 95th General Assembly in Mexico City. The admission of Egypt comes at a time when the Egyptian dairy sector is going through progressive structuring with new operators arriving on the market. In the meantime, there is a shared concern by local authorities and the industry to supply the national market with safe and quality milk. Increasing competition among more operators is now boosting dairy consumption and innovation. “I am pleased that Egypt and IDF are going to start a collaboration in the region of North Africa, and particularly in the dynamic Egyptian market, where the dairy sector is growing in importance, providing to consumers access to healthy and nutritious dairy products,” said Christian Robert, IDF Director General. “IDF promotes high quality control methods so that dairy products meet all regulatory standards before they are released to the local market. I am convinced that the assistance that IDF provides through its network of leading scientific experts will be a key factor in the development of the Egyptian dairy sector.” Brazil’s membership increases the IDF’s presence in Latin Americaalongside Mexico. “One of the main challenges for the Brazilian dairysector is the respect of international quality standards in order to beable to be competitive,” said Robert. “Benchmarking against other operators of the sector can contribute tofurther improvements and to the successful development of Brazilianpositions. The IDF network will provide Brazil with a new internationalexposure, which will stimulate progress for the Brazilian dairy sectorin today’s very competitive environment. There will be moreopportunities for Brazil, which will definitely have a role to play onthe global scene.” Lithuanian National committee member Saulius Savickis said: “Dairyproducts and exports of dairy products have become an importantactivity for our national economy. For this reason, we follow closelythe development of international standards to ensure that the nationalregulations are aligned with them. We are very much looking forward tojoining IDF to benefit from IDF experience and expertise in this field. “Analyticalmethods are of utmost importance to our country and our experts willcontinue to be actively involved in the IDF Analytical Weeks. We arealso very much interested in gathering advice on practicalimplementation of international standards and regulations.”

Rules governing the size and shape of fruit and vegetables will be a thing of the past now that the EU Member States have voted on the Commission of new proposals to repeal specific marketing standards for 26 types of fruit and vegetables. "This marks a new dawn for the curvy cucumber and the knobbly carrot," said Mariann Fischer Boel, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development. "It's a concrete example of our drive to cut unnecessary red tape. We simply don't need to regulate this sort of thing at EU level. It's far better to leave it to market operators. And in these days of high food prices and general economic difficulties, consumers should be able to choose from the widest range of products possible. It makes no sense to throw perfectly good products away just because they're the 'wrong' shape." During last year's negotiations on the reform of the Common Market Organisation for fruit and vegetables, the Commission committed itself to reducing unnecessary bureaucracy by removing a number of marketing standards for fruit and vegetables. The latest vote means that these standards will be repealed for 26 products: apricots, artichokes, asparagus, aubergines, avocados, beans, Brussels sprouts, carrots, cauliflowers, cherries, courgettes, cucumbers, cultivated mushrooms, garlic, hazelnuts in shell, headed cabbage, leeks, melons, onions, peas, plums, ribbed celery, spinach, walnuts in shell, water melons, and witloof/chicory. The proposals will maintain specific marketing standards for 10 products which account for 75% of the value of EU trade: apples, citrus fruit, kiwi fruit, lettuces, peaches and nectarines, pears, strawberries, sweet peppers, table grapes and tomatoes. However, Member States could also exempt these from the standards if they were sold in the shops with an appropriate label. In practical terms, this means that an apple that doesn't meet the standard could still be sold in the shop, as long as it were labelled ‘product intended for processing’ (or equivalent wording). The Commission will now formally adopt the changes, which will be implemented from 1 July 2009.

Merisant UK Ltd, which sells low-calorie sweeteners imported to the UK from its manufacturing bases throughout Europe, was found guilty of failing to register with the Environment Agency as a producer of packaging, and to meet its requirements to recover and recycle packaging waste for the six year period 2001 to 2006. Under the regulations, all companies are responsible for the packaging they import as well as the transit packaging around the products sold on to retailers and wholesales. The nature of the Merisant business meant that it handled a range of different packaging formats such as glass, jars, plastic containers, shrink wrap, cardboard and wooden pallets. The court has fined Merisant UK a total of £54,000 for failing to comply with the regulations. In addition, the court awarded a further £5,154 to the Environment Agency in compensation for unpaid registration fees as well as costs of £3,094 bringing the total of the penalty to £62,248. All businesses with an annual turnover in excess of £2m that handle more than 50 tons of packaging each year in the UK must be registered with the Environment Agency or recognised compliance scheme. Each year, obligated businesses must also provide evidence of payment for the recovery and recycling of a specified proportion of packaging waste. “The money raised from compliance with this legislation goes directly to the recycling industry and the failure by Merisant to ensure it met its responsibilities means that there was less investment in the recycling industry than there should have been,” said Karen Roberts, environment officer. The Producer Responsibility (Packaging Waste) Regulations were originally implemented in 1997 as a result of the EU Packaging Directive.

Zumos Pascual and Refresco Iberia have signed a letter of intent to closely cooperate in juice and fruit drinks manufacturing and packaging in the Spanish market. It concerns the Zumos Pascual production plant in Palma del Río, Córdoba. For both parties, this intended agreement brings advantages and new opportunities. Refresco is European market leader in private label fruit juices and soft drinks manufacturing and the sought collaboration would fit within its 'buy and build' strategy, enabling the company to build on and reinforce its market position in Spain. The cooperation gives Zumos Pascual an opportunity to optimise capacity. Refresco would add additional packaging activities to the location providing employment stability in the local community and reinforce its market position in Spain. Refresco will take on the majority of manufacturing activities, allowing Zumos Pascual to focus on the production of Not From Concentrateh fruit juice and the marketing of its own brand. "Both Refresco and Grupo Leche Pascual share a clear focus on distinguishing quality, in terms of products, people and performance. I’m sure that an alliance between the two companies would have a positive impact on our employees, suppliers, and customers. "Moreover, it will allow us to move forward in the creation and consolidation of the industrial sector in the region, guaranteeing employment stability,” said Teo Barredo, Managing Director of Zumos Pascual in Palma del Río. "I'm confident that an agreement will be highly beneficial for both parties. Our companies are complementary: whereas Zumos Pascual has a strong brand focus, Refresco is not concerned with brand management at all and focuses solely on the quality of manufacturing and packaging. "This gives Zumos Pascual the comfort they can count on a reliable industrial partner. The co-operation with Zumos Pascual is needed to offer capacity to the existing growth of Refresco Iberia and it will enable us to offer an extended product-portfolio under the same quality standards that have always characterized our company," said Dominique Luna, Managing Director of Refresco Iberia. * Terms of the intended agreement* Zumos Pascual’s plant in Palma del Río has a production capacity of over 100 million liters of fresh pressed orange juice (NFC). The factory employs over 100 people. If the agreement between both companies is finally reached, Refresco will lease part of this factory – excluding the fresh fruit juices pressing area and activities – and will close a co-manufacturing contract to produce and pack Zumos Pascual juices and fruit drinks at the location at Palma del Río. Also, Refresco will add additional manufacturing activities to the plant to supply other customers in the region. Finally the companies will agree that Refresco buys the yearly surplus of NFC produced by Zumos Pascual in Palma del Río. Both parties expect the proposed agreement to be settled in the coming months.

Targeting the event and stadium beverage dispensing market, where the challenge is to maximise yield in a short timeframe, Scotsman’s truly innovative Trufill concept can serve 10 pints of beer in 10 seconds with less manpower than traditional methods, and no spillage. The system incredibly fills cups from the bottom. Yes, I'm not joking. You have to see it to believe it! The soft drinks beverage dispenser adds ice from the top, but fills from the bottom. Pure theatre. Pure innovation. "The challenge at events and in stadiums has always been to pour faster to sell more," said Scotsman Beverage Systems’ Simon Miller. "This has always been expensive in terms of labour and refrigeration. This self-filling process enables a single operator to deliver 10 drinks in 10 seconds. We estimate labour saving of between 75-80%.” True innovation# FoodBev Media's Bill Bruce said: “While the beer dispenser may be destined for high-consumption events and stadium outlets, and is jaw-droppingly attention grabbing while at the same time practical, the ‘magic’ of the soft drinks unit could transform a brand or deliver a truly unique theatrical aspect to energy drinks in the on-trade. “Self serve, self fill – this takes the old-fashioned world of dispense into the vending arena with a mix of Star Trek meets Harry Potter. I tour most of the major trade shows and it's rare to see true innovation. Bottoms up, Scotsman! You’ve made my Brau. We can’t wait to follow this story as it unfolds."

We do know that you can create hype in a millisecond, such as the latest amusing advertisement, or pass on scandal as quick as a success story via YouTube. So be careful what you say. Peter Kruse of Nextpractice GmbH, speaking at the recent CIES Supply Chain Conference, filled us in on such data and asked the question: Is the internet making us stupid? Apparently, yes in the short term, but not in the long run because the discourse of this large group has the potential to problem solve. “People and computers result in collective intelligence,” said Kruse. “When we're no longer able to take the pain of too big a complexity, that’s where intuition comes in, both individual and collective.” Networking is key. We've all invested in the internet and there are 18 million of us involved in semantic solutions. We're discoursing on a bigger scale than ever before and so can solve our global resource problems together. We choose to belong to internet communities that share a common target and the same value systems. No doubt that’s why we've already received a number of entries for our 2009 Beverage Innovation Awards being presented at Drinktec in 2009. The credit crunch may have hit the global markets, but the stock of innovation is thankfully riding high, and in today’s marketplace, group approval and awards logos have a substantial effect on consumer purchase. As Pierre Mille of Unilever said at the same conference: “Fascination is not product bound, but communication bound. Because they are fascinated by a possibility, entrepreneurs will take that personal risk.” And communication is the key, whether it's ingredients or packaging benefits, a strategy for success or a totally new concept in beverages. Beverage Innovation In issue 61 of Beverage Innovation, we show more product innovation than ever before, news on how global entities are dealing with the current economic crisis, who's riding high and who's buckling under the strain. “Creativity and innovation is key to success,” as Immanuel Hermreck of Bertelsmann said. “Creativity in management is inspiring people and valuing creativity in others. In business, you need more dialogue than an entertainer. Choosing the right people is your best investment of time. Pay for skills, pay for performance – creative talent in the right place is an engine driver." And to finish, according to Der Spiegel: “There are now 100 million downloads a day taking place with all the push-pull resonance that creates.” Few of us have the time or inclination to surf the net 24 hours a day. That’s why we bring you the best news on your sector. Easy to read, easy to refer to and visually stimulating. Read by more decision makers than any other magazine in this sector: digestible intelligence in an instant, backed by daily updates for those 24-hour surfers on FoodBev.com, of course.

**Coca-Cola Great Britain has acquired Waters & Robson, the owner of the Abbey Well water brand, according to Marketing Week. It will join premium water brand Malvern in the Coke portfolio.** Abbey Well will be bottled and distributed by Coca-Cola Enterprises, which will take over its base in Morpeth, Northumberland on completion of the deal. It will also see its staff move to CCE. Sanjay Guha, President of Coca-Cola Great Britain, said: "We have been looking for the right bottled water opportunity to expand the range of drinks we offer consumers for some time, and in Abbey Well we have acquired a natural, sustainable and high-quality British sourced water." Cocal-Cola GB's last acquisition was the purchase of the Schweppes drinks brands in 1999, though its parent company – The Coca Cola Company – acquired vitamin water brand Glaceau in June last year for a record $4.1bn.

*Xymbiot Interactive Packaging, a division of ThinkAtomic, has introduced to the beverage packaging world a patent pending plastic bottle designed to fly up to 100 feet when empty. * Xymbiot is launching several versions of the flying bottle concept in addition to incubating several other amazing packaging concepts. Xymbiot is currently looking for a beverage partner to launch the first beverage in a flying bottle. Because of the bottle's high visibility, dual functionality and intrinsic value, projections for success in the market place with this new interactive packaging concept are promising, according to the company. "It will redefine the youth beverage market as we know it," said Ralph Yarro, CEO Xymbiot. The new bottles were on display at this year's InterBev show in Las Vegas.

The overall consumer purchase volume of dairy products in China plummeted by 54% during the worst week of the recent melamine in milk scandal when compared to the same week in 2007, according to recent findings by TNS Worldpanel, which specialises in global consumer purchasing information. However, despite the initial dramatic response to the news of the melamine contamination, when measured over a period of four weeks up to 3 October, dairy purchases were down only 18% compared to 2007. Consumers have actively been seeking safer milk and have shifted their purchases from standard to premium products; and from local to international brands, particularly when buying infant milk products. For international brands, this has led to market share gains, according to TNS Worldpanel, even though prices were increased by an average of 26% and 33% for infant milk. The largest impact was felt in smaller cities, as many of the local brands that previously had a strong presence had to withdraw their products from the shelves, giving way to international brands. Dumex, a widely distributed international infant milk brand with factories in China, saw its market share in lower tier cities increase from 9.8% to 20.1%. Another winner was the local manufacturer, Ausnutria (Aoyou), whose market share shot up from 2.6% in 2007 to 6.8% in the same four-week period in 2008, indicating consumer appreciation for Aoyou sourcing its raw materials from Australia, which it emphasises in its marketing.

**Energizer Brands entrepreneurs Alberto Ingber and Roberto Shahriar have launched all natural energy drink Attitude – a lightly carbonated malt beverage made with organic ingredients. **Attitude natural energy drink is being launched through UK nightclubs and bars and is to be distributed in Benelux, Japan and Russia during 2009. Aiming to tick every box, Energizer Brands opted for Rexam's lightweight Fusion alubottle as being climate-friendly. The company is also ethically linked with the Make A Wish Foundation in the US. Boasting 20 times more antioxidants than black or green tea, it has a base of Swiss spring water and contains lemongrass, guarana and ginger root as well as a hefty 1.5mg of yerba maté and 500mg of natural L-carnitine as Lonza's L-Carnipure. Sweetened with Wild's natural Fruit Up, it's said to provide a lasting energy lift, with the yerba maté known in Brazil as a slimming agent.