Labelling transformations: Thailand stresses science and safety for new nutritional labels and health claims rules
Thailand implemented new nutritional labelling policies for the food industry earlier this year, with the authorities also issuing more stringent ‘science-based’ guidelines for on-pack health claims.
Thailand gazetted a slew of regulatory decrees in January 2024 governing how food and beverages must display nutritional labels on product packaging.
“[The regulations as outlined in] this notification shall come into force after 180 days from its publication in the Government Gazette – so enforcement will start on [July 2 2024],” local Minister of Public Health Cholnan Srikaew said via a formal statement.
“All food and beverage products will then need to carry nutrition labelling in compliance with the format and provisions of displaying of nutrition information [as per the] Ministry of Public Health guidelines.
“Food products [manufactured] with labels compliant to previous regulations can still be sold, but the time limit given is not more than three years from the date of these regulations come into force - After this period, the nutrition labelling of all products must be displayed according to these new guidelines.”
Plant-based drinks face multiple barriers as suitable dairy alternatives: NUS-led study
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.
The global surge in demand for plant-based alternatives to traditional dairy milk has reached unprecedented levels, driven by ethical concerns, environmental sustainability and health consciousness.
In recent years, plant-based drinks 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.
The plant-based drink industry has been facing a critical bottleneck in consumer acceptance due to bitter and astringent flavours. Researchers have been exploring non-heat treatment technologies and novel processing methods to extend shelf life and improve the overall sensory experience of plant-based drinks.
At the same time, the industry also needs to tackle challenges like environmental sustainability, supply chain resilience, nutritional adequacy, allergen labelling precision and adherence to evolving regulatory frameworks.
Production and partnership priorities: Aussie cultivated meat firm Magic Valley details 2024 plans as regulatory approval nears
Australian cultivated meat firm Magic Valley detailed its production and partnership objectives for 2024 as it continues to seek approval to get products in front of consumers in 2025.
The company has been in discussions with various established wholesale and food producers in Australia who have displayed notable interest in cultivated meat.
Beyond domestic collaborations, Magic Valley has fostered ties with overseas partners, specifically Biocell in the US and explored other partnerships throughout Asia to contribute to various aspects of the cultivated meat processes.
“As a company, we recognise the impracticality of doing everything on our own. The intricacies of cell biology, bioprocess engineering, and cultivated meat production at scale require diverse expertise. Hence, we are looking at partnerships in those areas to propel us forward.” CEO Paul Bevan told FoodNavigator Asia.
3D food printing vital for creating plant-based alternatives, with buckwheat being ‘most promising’ ingredient – review
Emerging technologies such as 3D food printing (3DFP) have been unlocking opportunities to develop nutrient-rich and personalised plant-based substitutes for traditional meat, said researchers.
To encourage populations to shift towards plant-based alternatives many practical challenges have emerged that call for innovative approaches.
The convergence of 3D printing technology with the food industry has been said to hold significant promise. Through 3DFP, plant-based substitutes that do not rely on livestock can be created.
A group of researchers from Kazakhstan conducted a review to explore the utilisation of common plant-based protein sources, such as soybean, pea, lentil and buckwheat, for 3DFP.
“3DFP involves producing meat and dairy substitutes using plant-based ingredients that are 3D-printed into a desired shape and texture. One of the most significant applications is the production of cell-based meat.
“In places such as Central Asia where meat consumption is firmly ingrained in culture, 3DFP can play a critical role in manufacturing plant-based alternatives that mimic the flavour and feel of traditional meat, helping the transition to more sustainable eating patterns,” the authors wrote.
What is convenience? Universal definition need to better guide food and nutrition policy – new research
The lack of a universal definition of what constitutes convenience foods has continued to pose a risk of hampering food and nutrition policy and health interventions, researchers have argued.
This is according to a review of 243 studies on the topic of convenience foods.
They found that 77% (n = 189) of the studies did not provide a clear definition for the concept of ‘convenience’ and its interpretation. Among those that did define it, substantial variations existed, and no single definition encompassed all dimensions of convenience in relation to the food environment and associated consumer behaviours.
Furthermore, researchers observed that a majority (n = 92, 38%) of the reviewed studies looked at convenience as a key factor influencing food choices or consumption, particularly within specific population groups or contexts.
The researchers claim that the understanding of convenience varies widely within the realms of nutrition and food environment research.
Convenience has often been depicted as a positive attribute associated with time and effort-saving food practices. Simultaneously, it has also been used to characterise a category of foods, including fast-foods or ultra-processed foods (UPFs), that have adverse effects on health and nutrition outcomes.
This divergence in conceptualisation has introduced ambiguity in health policy and practice, they added, raising the question of whether convenience should be promoted or discouraged to enhance public health nutrition.
Cracking the code: Kikkoman develops data-backed flavour pairing system to localise products for Indian market
Kikkoman has been using research and data to identify Indian ingredients that are best paired with its soy sauce, in an effort to accelerate product development and further penetrate the local market.
The firm has devised a system called KIP (Kikkoman Ingredients x Seasoning Pairing), which “scientifically evaluates” the taste compatibility of its signature soy sauce with Indian ingredients and seasonings.
“India is known for its unique food culture, including vegetarianism and extensive use of spices and herbs. It also has the largest population in the world. Understanding Indian cuisine is important for global food companies and has been one of Kikkoman’s goals since entering the market two years ago.
“Flavour pairing is a method for identifying the compatibility of foods based on their aroma and taste characteristics. We conducted a study to find out how Indian ingredients and seasonings work together by making some modifications to the traditional flavour-pairing method. This system has enabled us to scientifically prove combinations that are preferred in India,” Harry Hakuei Kosato, Director of Kikkoman India, told FoodNavigator-Asia.
In addition, the KIP system would allow Kikkoman to develop new products specifically tailored for the market based on data, and not guesswork or intuition.
Not so straightforward: Singapore food industry voices concerns over cost, efficacy of extending Nutri-Grade system to sodium and fats
The Singapore food industry has voiced several concerns over government plans to extend the Nutri-Grade traffic light nutritional labelling system to sodium and fats.
Singapore’s Nutri-Grade system has been in place for sugar content in packaged and freshly prepared beverages since 2023, and in August this year the local Ministry of Health (MOH) announced that it would be extending to ‘key contributors’ of sodium and saturated fats.
“The Nutri-Grade measures have led to reductions in the median sugar level of beverages in the market and total sugar intake among Singapore residents,” MOH had said via a formal statement.
“Overall, the median sugar level of prepacked Nutri-Grade beverages has reduced from 7.1% in 2017 to 4.6% as of September 2023 [and similarly] as of September 2023, 69% of beverages purchased were graded ‘A’ or ‘B’, up from 37% in 2017.
“Looking at the positive impact of Nutri-Grade labelling and advertising prohibitions in lowering Singaporeans' sugar intake, we will be extending the two measures to key contributors of sodium and saturated fat in the retail setting: prepacked salt, sauces and seasonings; instant noodles; and cooking oil.”
Umami boost: Kirin’s electric spoon aims to reduce excessive salt intake among Japanese population
Kirin released a spoon this year that uses electricity to intensify the umami taste of food to address the issue of excessive salt intake among the Japanese population.
Launched under the firm’s Health Science domain, the Electric Salt Spoon uses a “unique current waveform” that enhances the perceived salty flavour when eating low-sodium foods.
The technology was developed through joint research with Dr Homei Miyashita from the Department of Frontier Media Science in Meiji University’s School of Interdisciplinary Mathematical Sciences.
According to data from the National Health and Nutrition Survey 2019 published by Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW), the daily salt intake of Japanese adults is 10.9g for men and 9.3g for women, which is significantly higher than WHO’s recommended intake of 5g.
“Excessive salt intake can lead to the onset and increased severity of lifestyle-related diseases such as hypertension and chronic kidney disease, and has become a major public health issue.
“In order to achieve the target amounts (less than 8g and less than 7g per day for adult men and women respectively) set by the MHLW, it is necessary to reduce current salt intake in the Japanese diet by more than 20%. However, many people find low-sodium diets to be bland, and this has been a hurdle to maintaining such diets,” Sumiko Oi from Kirin’s Corporate Communications Department told FoodNavigator-Asia.
Tracing rice fortification: India orders firms to adopt traceability application to prevent adulteration
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) ordered all manufacturing firms of fortified rice to integrate a new national traceability application into their operations in order to prevent adulteration of the final product.
FSSAI ordered all relevant local rice producers to integrate the Fortified Rice Traceability (FoRTrace) Application into their operations, having made this a core part of the national Food Safety and Compliance System (FoSCoS).
“All manufacturers of the [fortified] Premix of Food Rice Kernels (FRK) and FRK itself must upload lab test reports of every batch of their production on FoSCoS along with the declaration of the source of iron and the blending ratio,” FSSAI Regulatory Compliance Division Director Rakesh Kumar said via a formal statement.
“We recognise that there are inherent complexities in rice fortification involving multiple stakeholders and issues related to transparency, quality control and traceability [so have] seamlessly integrated the FoRTrace application with the FoSCoS.
“This application aims to unite the diverse stakeholders engaged in rice fortification onto a single platform and foster transparency in record-keeping regarding production, raw materials and sales to enable end-to-end traceability within the value chain.”
A world without cocoa? Lab-grown chocolate and other technologies may provide alternative, but not replacement – expert panel
Trending solutions to the cocoa price crisis such as lab-grown or cocoa-free chocolate technologies could provide a niche alternative to the lack of cocoa bean supply, but would be unlikely to replace the role of authentic cocoa in the food system, according to an expert panel.
The panel convened at at the Cocoa Association Asia (CAA) International Cocoa Conference 2024.
It was comprised of Barry Callebaut AMEA Regional Marketing Director Racheal Toh, Junglegold Bali Founder and CEO Tobias Garritt, ofi APAC Cocoa Regional Marketing Head Renee Tay, PROVA APAC Regional Director Julien Le Ky Huong and Innova Market Insights Customer Success Manager APAC Felicia Kristianti.
The session was moderated by FoodNavigator-Asia Editor-in-Chief Gary Scattergood, and focused on the potential scenario of a World Without Cocoa, driven by the fact that cocoa supply has fallen significantly over the past year leading to sky-high prices and this trend is predicted to continue well into at least 2025.
With the cocoa industry abuzz with discussion surrounding potential solutions to a potential lack of this commodity, a major topic of discussion in this session was the potential of technologies such as lab-grown chocolate or chocolate made using fava beans or sunflower seeds coming in to fill the gap.
“Lab-grown cocoa is a solution that could solve some of the current challenges given that this method would definitely be free from deforestation, and as it is 25% of Asian consumers have already expressed a positive perception of cell-based ingredients,” Kristianti said.
“There are also novel technologies that are being developed to drive the cocoa industry forward, for instance Voyage Foods and Cargill have a technology replicating chocolate and nut spreads without cocoa, peanuts and hazelnuts, and NuKoKo is fermenting fava beans with the same process used on cocoa beans to make cocoa-free chocolate.”
