No label, no problem: South Korea looks to mandate label-free packaging for drinking water over next two years
Trend: Sustainability
The South Korean government announced plans to mandate label-free packaging for drinking water bottles, replacing this with a digital QR code system over two years.
South Korea has committed to a range of sustainability goals, including the slashing of plastic waste production by 50% and the doubling of recycling rates in the country from 34% to 70%, both by 2030.
The past few years have seen the Ministry of Environment (MoE) roll out a range of regulatory policies to this end, including the banning of hard-to-recycle plastics such as coloured PET from the recycling system as well as approving recycled PET plastic as material for new food packaging.
The ministry calling for public comment on another initiative earlier this year to mandate the use of label-free packaging for drinking water bottles, to be implemented after a two-year transition period.
“In order to reduce the amount of label waste in the country from drinking water bottles and improve the efficiency of recycling systems locally, we will introduce a new label-free QR code system for all such bottles,” MoE said via a formal statement.
Huge tax hikes: Vietnam proposes phased 100% alcohol tax rise, 10% for sugar-sweetened drinks
Trend: Sugar reduction
The Vietnamese government drafted regulations earlier this year proposing a phased increase on excise taxes for alcoholic beverages to 100% by 2030 as well as 10% for sugar-sweetened beverages, in attempts to curb overconsumption as well as boosting national income.
Vietnam is well-known for having very affordable alcoholic beverage prices, with beers in particular costing well below US$1 at most supermarkets and eateries.
The local government believes that such affordable prices have contributed to high consumption amongst consumers, and that it is now necessary to increase taxation on these drinks to ensure public health is not compromised.
“Higher taxation is necessary in order to reduce the consumption of alcohol in Vietnam,” the local Ministry of Finance said via a formal statement outlining the draft regulations.
“The plan is to gradually increase taxes to 100%, 70% and 100% eventually by 2030 – all of these are in line with World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendations to increase retail prices for alcohol by 10%.”
Cultivated meat concerns: Cost, health impact and religious factors raised by Singaporeans
Trend: Alternative proteins
The general public and experts in Singapore raised several concerns over the consumption of cultivated meat, while also acknowledging it can play a crucial role in the City State’s food security efforts.
These views were detailed in a study that aimed to investigate how both the public and experts perceive the risks and benefits of cultured meat on individual and societal levels.
Researchers undertook four distinct online focus group discussions (FGDs) conducted between February and April 2022. Three FGDs involved participants from the general public, while the fourth included cultured meat experts. Each session, lasting approximately two hours, comprised nine to eleven participants.
Given Singapore’s heavy reliance on imported food and its active promotion of novel food technology industries, including cultured meat, the market for such innovative foods is expanding, attracting more companies to the field.
Global sensation: Viral ‘Dubai chocolate fever’ underscores impact of social media, exclusivity and regional flavours
Trend: Viral trending product - Dubai Chocolate
The meteoric rise of FIX Dessert Chocolatier’s chunky chocolate bars can be attributed to the growing influence of social media on purchasing decisions, exclusivity, and unique regional flavours, an analyst said earlier this year.
Founded by Sarah Hamouda, the brand was launched in 2021 but only became viral this year — thanks to food influencer Maria Vehera, who filmed herself eating the chocolate bar and posted the video on TikTok, which garnered over 70 million views as of time of writing.
Since then, people from all over the world shared their own reactions or tried to replicate the recipe at home, with the “Dubai chocolate fever” spreading beyond the UAE to the US, Europe, and Asian countries like South Korea and Singapore.
According to senior research analyst Monique Naval from Euromonitor International, this is the first time in recent years that a product from the Middle East has gained such global attention.
“While the Middle East has other unique chocolate offerings, such as chocolate-covered dates and camel chocolate, these have mostly been bought as souvenirs and their popularity have been rising organically over the years. In contrast, FIX’s instant growth has been supported by social media and its limited production indicates exclusivity.
“The increasing number of chocolatiers on social media has been driving consumer interest. With FIX’s variety of filled chocolates going viral online, it showcases the growing influence of digital platforms in shaping modern confectionery trends,” Naval told FoodNavigator-Asia.
‘No clarity’: India plant-based milk brands veer away from conventional dairy terms
Trend: Alternative proteins
Plant-based dairy brands in India are continuing to steer away from using conventional dairy terms on their product labels until regulators issue greater clarity on what is permitted.
Back in 2020 and 2021, the Food Safety and Standards Authority India (FSSAI) announced a ban on the use of conventional dairy terms such as ‘milk’ and ‘cheese’ for plant-based products. It also directed plant-based manufacturers to modify the product labels of all such products and e-commerce platforms to delist these as well.
This order was successfully stayed by the Delhi High Court later in 2021 after five companies took action. Despite this, industry uncertainty remains today.
“The ban is essentially still a motion in hearing at the court level at this time,” Rohit Jain, Co-Founder and CEO of Drums Food International which was one of the five companies that contributed to the initial ban being stayed, told FoodNavigator-Asia.
Pushing past pricing: Nestle targets premium and healthy ageing innovations to boost performance
Trend: Healthier innovations
Global food and beverage giant Nestle had its eye on expanding its premium and healthy ageing product portfolios in search of a return to ‘normalised’ growth.
Nestle announced its FY2023 full year financial results, reporting a -1.5% year-on-year decrease in sales to CHF93bn (US$) but an increase of 17.3% in underlying trade operating profits to CHF16.1bn (US$).
In the firm’s financial results press conference which FoodNavigator-Asia attended, Nestle CFO Francois-Xavier Roger highlighted that overall organic growth for the company has been estimated at a 7.2% growth year-on-year – but that this was made up of 7.5% pricing growth and -0.3% of what the company calls Real Internal Growth (RIG), which is a measurement of growth generated by volume and mix/innovation.
Acknowledging this as an unsustainable means to long-term growth, Nestle CEO Mark Schneider told the floor that the firm was committed to move back to RIG-led growth in 2024, laying out several strategies towards this.
“The food sector softness that has been seen over past two years globally has come from a food price increase spike that is the highest we have seen in some 50 years since 1973 to 1974, coming in at a 14.7% spike which is the highest since the 16.3% we saw back then,” Schneider told us.
Plant-based drinks face multiple barriers as suitable dairy alternatives: NUS-led study
Trend: Alternative proteins
Plant-based beverages may be considered suitable alternatives to their dairy counterparts but must overcome challenges related to flavour, consumer health, stability and nutrient dissolution, said researchers in Singapore, the UK and China.
In recent years, plant-based drinks have emerged as a diverse and popular choice, offering a range of nutritional benefits and catering to lactose-intolerant individuals, as well as vegans and vegetarians.
Nutrition-wise, plant-based drinks are said be a rich source of essential nutrients, including proteins, dietary fibre, fats, vitamins and minerals — beyond the calcium and protein associated with dairy milk.
These alternatives are typically derived from plant sources such as nuts, grains, legumes and seeds; examples include almond, soy, oat, rice and coconut drinks. Each variety usually has a unique flavour, texture, and nutritional composition, providing consumers with a broad array of choices to suit individual preferences and dietary needs.
However, considerations such as amino acid profiles, digestibility and the presence of anti-nutritional factors should be taken into account.
Not-so-sweet baby: Philippines congress could ban added sugar in foods for young children
Trend: Sugar reduction
Members of the Philippines government called for regulations that would officially ban manufacturers from using added sugar as an ingredient in foods for young children aged three and below.
Sweetness and sugar features strongly in many Filipino foods and can be exemplified by one of the country’s most popular desserts halo-halo, which is an amalgamation of various sweetened ingredients including pudding, ice cream, multiple sweetened beans and tubers, sweetened purple yam paste, jellies, cheese and more over crushed ice – and then commonly topped off with coconut milk, evaporated milk, syrups or sometimes even table sugar.
This culminated in the rapid rise of obesity and overweight individuals in the Philippines over the past two decades, according to the national science agency Department of Science and Technology (DOST)
As of 2022 some 27 million Filipinos were either overweight or obese, with the percentage of this having nearly doubled from 20.2% in 1998 to 36.6% in 2019. Even more alarmingly, similar findings were observed in the younger generation where adolescent obesity and overweight rates also nearly doubled from 4.9% in 2003 to 11.6% in 2018.
“Recent data has found that young Filipinos are at a greater risk of obesity, due to the consumption of food that is energy-dense and nutrient-poor, exacerbated by growing urbanisation and increased incomes,” Senator Imee R. Marcos highlighted to the Senate earlier this year when tabling the bill calling for a ban on using added sugar in food products for young children.
“The proposed bill seeks to ensure good nutrition, optimal child growth and development, and better health outcomes for children.
‘Plugging the gaps’: Market consolidation in cultivated protein sector vital to overcome ‘disillusionment’
Trend: Alternative proteins
Singapore cultivated seafood firm Umami Bioworks has highlighted its belief that strategic mergers are crucial to overcome doubts about the sector and achieve buy-in from major brands which can help the category scale-up.
Umami Bioworks hit the news earlier this year for its merger with Shiok Meats, especially with both firms well-known for being cultivated seafood industry leaders and pioneers in their own right.
“The M&A really came about when we saw that the market was unfortunately turning sour and sentiment was down during this trough of disillusionment period,” Umami Bioworks CEO Mihir Pershad told FoodNavigator-Asia in an episode of our Food and Beverage Trailblazers podcast.
“We know the market will come back once past this trough and that we will see recovery on the backside, but how good that recovery is and how long it will take is still to be seen so we needed to think about how to position the company to be in the best possible state to be the obvious choice for seafood industry incumbents to partner with both during this window and post-recovery.
‘Clear direction’ needed: Thailand drafts new alt-protein policies that ban certain animal-related terms for plant-based products
Trend: Alternative proteins
The Thai government has published draft regulations on governance over the alternative proteins industry starting with the plant-based sector, and has suggested banning certain animal-related terms but allowing others.
This announcement was made by the Thailand Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Food Division earlier this year, which also established a special project research team to analyse types of standards and criteria that the regulations need to cover for the greatest efficiency.
“At present, alternative protein products are seeing popularity amongst consumers and there are many such items on the market, but the control and supervision of the safety aspect of these in Thailand still has no clear direction,” the Thai FDA stated via a formal statement.
“We are embarking on a study of the current production and imports of alternative protein products in the country, and studying the related regulations [to apply this knowledge] in the development of regulations and standards in Thailand.
“This will start with analysis of the plant-based protein sector in Thailand [before moving to] other alternative proteins such as insect-based, cultivated meat or fermentation.”
