Being more innovative than most has paid off for three Australian organic companies, whose creative approach to business sees them looking forward to a prosperous 2009 despite the economic turmoil. The recent opening of Z Mills in SE Queensland was a giant step for organic flour milling. Protection from light, reducing the temperature to 4◦Celsius or lower and using nitrogen to exclude oxygen from the milling process means that the enzyme reactions that cause rancidity in flour are virtually eradicated. In... ...Read more »

Major Australian based food and beverage manufacturers have, for the first time, publicly made available company action plans which spell out in black and white how and when they will market a range of their products. Australian Food and Grocery Council CEO Kate Carnell said that the commitment is in-line with the Council’s recently announced Responsible Children’s Marketing Initiative. “Companies participating in this initiative have publicly committed to advertise to children... ...Read more »

The recent darling of the supermarket shelves, organic food, is set to slip down the pecking order, as cash-strapped Brits hunt down cheaper alternatives, according to consumer intelligence firm Mintel. Latest research from Mintel finds that the organic food and drink market is now worth £1.6 billion in the UK. But, as a result of the current economic climate, as many as half (48%) of all organic shoppers will reduce or even give up buying organic food in the next year alone. After 5 years impressive... ...Read more »

Swiss-based Nestlé, the world’s largest food manufacturer, is to cut the sugar content of some of their most popular childrens’ foods. The announcement will officially be made later today with the release of their “Global Marketing to Children Principles” in Switzerland. Among the products to be reformulated is the renowned Milo brand, with the company reporting they will stamp out advertising to children of products which do not meet a set nutritional profile. All products... ...Read more »

Australian consumers are continuing to embrace organic produce, with three out of every five now buying organic products. A Newspoll survey of 1000 Australian shoppers, commissioned by the Organic Federation of Australia (OFA), discovered that 61 per cent of Australians buy organic - up from 43 per cent in 2003 (according to a University of Central Queensland study). The rapid rise is not surprising given the growth of the industry over the past four years. The Australian Organic Market Report,... ...Read more »

The health and wellness boom has been inextricably linked to the beauty industry this year, as food and drink consumers happily enjoyed as part of a healthy diet (e.g. superfruits and green tea) started to regularly appear in beauty products. Next year, we can expect to see food and beauty become even more intertwined, according to market intelligence firm Mintel. Mintel expects ‘good-for-you’ food ingredients, such as probiotics, to increasingly show up in our cosmetics and skincare... ...Read more »

Nestlé, the world’s largest food group, has announced growth of 3.4% beating forecasts and causing the Swiss-based company to enhance their full-year expectations. The growth came as they strengthened their position as a health & wellness company, gained greater traction in key developing markets and saw premium brands increase their market share. Their food and beverages division, which includes the Milo, Nescafé, Kit-Kat and Lean Cuisine brands, was credited as the driving force behind... ...Read more »

Following the global agreement with Tetra Pak announced recently, Unistraw granted Danisco the worldwide exclusivity for the sales and marketing of its internationally-patented straw concept for use with HOWARU premium probiotics. This award-winning concept from Unistraw will allow consumers to sip a probiotic daily dose with any of their favourite beverage. Unistraw, an Australian company, first came to prominence with the release of the ‘Sipahh’ - a straw that adds flavour to milk. Inventor... ...Read more »

Fibre, green tea extract and soy protein are among the ingredients food and beverage manufacturers are turning towards to help lighten the growing pressures of the global obesity epidemic, according to Euromonitor International’s new report “Weight Management Ingredients in Foods and Beverages“. As consumers increasingly turn to healthier lifestyle choices and governments push to address and create a solution for rising obesity rates, manufacturers are looking towards ingredients... ...Read more »

The results of TNS Worldpanel’s annual Biggest Brands survey for Marketing magazine show significant growth for brands who offer innovation in the areas of healthy eating and/or ‘affordable’ premium products. Cadbury came out on top of this year’s biggest brands list with sales of up to £590 million. Heinz, Kellogg’s, Walkers Crisps and Warburtons rounded out the top five biggest brands in Britain. Brands such as Walkers (+11%), McVitie’s (+16%), Danone (+11)... ...Read more »