Bakery

Flatbread furore: India’s latest food tax saga puts country’s flaw-ridden GST system in the spotlight

15-Jul-2020 By Pearly Neo

India’s newest food tax saga stemming from Southern flatbreads being taxed higher than Northern ones has placed renewed focus on the country’s controversial GST system, provoking claims of ‘cultural racism’ from campaigners.

Healthy opportunity: Turkey seeks to eliminate trans-fats in line with WHO goals

15-Jul-2020 By Guan Yu Lim

Turkey is seeking to eliminate trans-fat in its food supply with a new regulation stipulating that it can account for no more than 2g per 100g of fat.

No idling through COVID-19: Australia’s Health Star Ratings revision on track with salt and sugar reduction key

14-Jul-2020 By Pearly Neo

Australia’s implementation of the revised Health Star Ratings (HSR) system is on track with a focus on sugar and sodium reduction via a new nutrient calculator, as well as plans for 70% of industry uptake, the Australian Department of Health has confirmed.

Public paradox: Singapore’s food self-sufficiency hopes threatened by attitudes towards GM and novel tech

08-Jul-2020 By Pearly Neo

Singapore harbours major ambitions in becoming more food self-sufficient with novel food technology as one of its key strategies, but a recent study has found that public attitudes towards such tech could seriously hinder the government’s plans.

China Food Tech Hub adds Nestle, Ajinomoto and Barilla’s Blu1877 to 15-member food innovation consortium

06-Jul-2020 By Guan Yu Lim

The China Food Tech Hub, which aims to forge close ties between MNCs and start-ups, is adding three new members to its consortium this year, including big names such as Nestle, Ajinomoto and Barilla’s Blu1877.

China’s COVID-19 food focus: Prevention strategy shifts focus to tightened import regulations

06-Jul-2020 By Pearly Neo

China’s COVID-19 focus has taken a clear food-related shift with a decided focus on stepping up food import regulations, despite this putting it at odds with foreign food firms and governments arguing against the probability of food-related virus spread.

Science Shorts: Light for food preservation, Ajinomoto's new nutrient scoring, Calbee's automation advances and more in our round-up

03-Jul-2020 By Pearly Neo

Light for food preservation, Ajinomoto's new nutrient scoring, Calbee's automation advances and more feature in this edition of Science Shorts.

From convenience to conscious: Covid-19 pandemic leads to shift in snacking priorities - experts

02-Jul-2020 By Guan Yu Lim

Snacking has evolved from being a convenient and comforting experience before Covid-19 to a more food conscious and healthy activity during the pandemic, two market experts claim.

Bunge Loders Croklaan to open Creative Studio in Turkey

01-Jul-2020 By Gill Hyslop

The sustainable plant-based edible oils and fats specialist will inaugurate its first Creative Studio in Istanbul in Q3, a dedicated workspace designed to accelerate customer innovation in the growing Middle East/North African markets, while adhering...

Saudi Arabia winners: Almarai, Safola Group and Abdullah Al Othaim Markets ranked among Forbes top 100 companies in Middle East

01-Jul-2020 By Guan Yu Lim

Three Saudi Arabian food and beverages companies, Almarai, Safola Group and Abdullah Al Othaim Markets, have been ranked among the 100 most powerful companies in the Middle East according to Forbes ranking.

UAE’s COVID-19 food trends: Less waste, more self-sufficiency and an orange sales boom

01-Jul-2020 By Guan Yu Lim

Food waste dropped, interest in self-sufficiency soared and orange consumption rocketed in the UAE during the COVID-19 crisis, according to the UAE Minister of State for Food Security.

Light disruption: Singapore uni spin-off develops tech to disinfect and preserve food and surfaces

01-Jul-2020 By Guan Yu Lim

A new light technology touted as a chemical-free ‘disruptor’ to the food preservation and disinfection has been created by a spin-off from the National University of Singapore (NUS).

Branding beyond products: Why F&B firms need to build better name recognition to drive sustainable growth

01-Jul-2020 By Pearly Neo

Food and beverage companies should place more focus on building branding and reputational value as a core business strategy in order to accelerate growth and sustain it in a post-COVID-19 era, according to expert advice.

Massive misunderstanding? Nestle China responds to plant-based investment concerns

30-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

Nestle China has responded to criticism from the plant-based industry about its recent CNY730m (CHF100m/US$98.9m) investment and plant-based facility, amid concerns over the lack of detail and sustainability focus.

Organic in Taiwan: More than half of imports under threat due to EU policy dispute

29-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

Taiwan’s organic equivalence agreements policy means it risks losing over half of its organic imports, particularly those from its biggest trade partner EU, but despite this has shown no signs of shifting its stance.

Policy Picks: Regulation stories from Philippines, Malaysia, China and more feature in our round-up

26-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

Regulation stories from Philippines, Malaysia, China and more feature in this edition of Policy Picks

Bigger not always best: Agile and innovative smaller brands making waves in Australia

25-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

Big brands can no longer rely on their heavyweight clout for food business success in Australia, with consumers and retailers increasingly attracted to smaller ‘underdog’ start-ups, which they perceive to be more innovative

Essential Eight: Top self-protection tips for Australian F&B firms moving to e-commerce after Lion attacks

24-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

Australian food and beverage companies making the shift to or adding e-commerce platforms to their businesses must carefully manage any new risk profiles – or run the risk of cyber attacks similar to those recently experienced by the country’s largest...

Edible oil in India: Industry calls for import ban and local production boom post-COVID-19

23-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

India’s edible oil industry has managed to survive the COVID-19 crisis by processing more crude oil to fulfil local demand, and now wants to strengthen its position by banning all refined palm oil imports into the country.

‘Weak commitments’: Malaysian big food firms’ food wanting on nutrition commitments – obesity expert

23-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

Many big food and beverage companies in Malaysia have made commitments to improve product and population nutrition, but researchers have found these to be ‘weak’, ‘non-specific’ and lacking in comprehensiveness.

Three major China food safety risks: Officials highlight contamination, drug residue and excessive additives as key concerns

22-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

China has revealed microbial contamination, excessive food additives and excessive drug residues to be the major food safety challenges that the country is facing, based on data from the government-administered 2019 National Food Safety Inspections.

Grocery sales to drive 5-6% Middle East food industry growth as dining out slumps post COVID-19

17-Jun-2020 By Guan Yu Lim

The GCC food and beverage market is expected to increase between 5 to 6% this year, largely driven by retail sales amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Tax attack? Philippines considers higher sugar levy and new ‘junk food’ tax to offset COVID-19 impacts

15-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

The Philippines is considering implementing higher sugar taxes as well as new taxes on ‘junk food’ high in sodium and trans fat to offset the costs incurred by the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak this year.

Bouncing back: Nestle Malaysia confident in post-COVID-19 recovery amid e-commerce push

10-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

Nestle Malaysia has expressed strong confidence in post-its COVID-19 recovery, with the firm accelerating its e-commerce drive at products with an ‘at-home’ focus.

Digital transformation: Alibaba predicts boom in China retail digitisation and healthy foods due to COVID-19

08-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

China online commerce giant Alibaba has predicted that the retail sector in China will see a boom in digitisation as well as a rise in healthy food options moving forth as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak.

Vocal for local: Food industry backs India’s cluster-based approach for production boost

03-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

The local food industry in India has welcomed the government’s plans to reorganise the local food production sector using a cluster-based approach, believing that this will help to reduce food waste and drive long-term growth.

COVID-19 and food safety: Food adulteration and wastage continues unthwarted in Pakistan despite supply concerns

02-Jun-2020 By Pearly Neo

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, food and beverage adulteration has continued unhindered in Pakistan with authorities having had to seize and discard thousands of units of dairy, fruits, spices and other items despite continuing food supply fears...

Import and trade priorities: South Korea temporarily relaxes food rules due to COVID-19

26-May-2020 By Pearly Neo

South Korea has moved to temporarily relax regulatory measures for food imports in view of the global COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, particularly concentrating on documentation and labelling requirements to prevent delays in custom clearance.

Local vs imported: Indonesia’s omnibus law ignites domestic dispute over food production priorities

26-May-2020 By Pearly Neo

Disputes over Indonesia’s controversial omnibus law have taken a food-related turn, with various stakeholders now clashing over whether this will cause imported foods to be favoured over local supply, as well as the potentially negative impacts this will...

Brand New: Coca-Cola, Mondelez, Nestle and other big brand names feature in our round-up

22-May-2020 By Pearly Neo

Coca-Cola, Mondelez, Nestle and other big brand names feature in this edition of Brand New.

Packaging, technology and water: Three key areas of focus for Thai food firms to survive COVID-19

19-May-2020 By Pearly Neo

Food and beverage companies have been advised to concentrate on packaging, technology and water use to help maintain production during and thrive after the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, in the wake of a near 5% drop in exports.

‘No worries’? Food safety fears in India as COVID-19 lockdowns lead to a shortage of lab staff

18-May-2020 By Pearly Neo

India’s food safety regulatory body Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has insisted that the public need not be concerned about food safety in the country despite a lack of laboratory staff to do food safety testing due to COVID-19 lockdowns...

Healthier salt: PhytoCo launches low-sodium, microplastic-free plant-based salt in Korea

13-May-2020 By Pearly Neo

Korea-based plant-based product firm Phyto Corporation (PhytoCo) has officially launched its world-first plant-based salt in the country, PhytoSalt, which the firm claims is low-sodium and microplastic-free.

From West to East: New Zealand F&B investment guide highlights Asia as its biggest opportunity

13-May-2020 By Pearly Neo

New Zealand has emphasised Asia as its key target market in terms of food and beverage in a new industry guide released by the government, which hopes to attract increased investment into the sector.

Enormous eGrocery investments: Consumer demands for convenience, quality and variety drives funding surge in China

12-May-2020 By Guan Yu Lim

Investments in China’s eGrocery start-up sector continues to soar with funding reaching USD2.1 billion in 2019, a 25% increase from 2018, new data reveals.

COVID-19 in Malaysia: Food industry recovery thwarted as half of states refuse to leave lockdown

12-May-2020 By Pearly Neo

The F&B industry in Malaysia has called for food businesses in all states nationwide to ‘concurrently resume’ as per the government’s recent loosening of COVID-19 related lockdown restrictions, but has hit a snag with seven of the nation’s 14 states...

Safety First: COVID-19 disinfection dangers, gluten contamination in India, microbial contamination in ANZ and more in our round-up

08-May-2020 By Pearly Neo

COVID-19 disinfection dangers, gluten contamination in India, microbial contamination in ANZ and more feature in this edition of Safety First.

E-commerce in Saudi Arabia: Food sales surge amid COVID-19 pandemic

06-May-2020 By Guan Yu Lim

Consumers in Saudi Arabia have drastically ramped-up their online purchases of food products in the the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, new data reveals.

Broccoli coffee and pills: CSIRO and Hort Innovation create ingredient from edible vegetable waste

05-May-2020 By Guan Yu Lim

Waste broccoli is being transformed into a powder that can be used in high value food and supplements products – with the first commercial plans set to be released in the coming months.

Spring specials: Mondelez China launches world-first pink OREOs to tie in with cherry blossom season

04-May-2020 By Pearly Neo

Mondelez China has launched two limited-edition OREO flavours to tie in with the spring season: Sakura Matcha and Peach Oolong, going all-out with both colourful packaging and collaborative marketing to attract young consumers.

‘New and lasting habits’: Singapore’s online shopping surge will persist after COVID-19

29-Apr-2020 By Pearly Neo

Many Singaporean consumers have shifted their purchasing behavior from offline to online shopping as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and experts predict that this shift will be a long-lasting one with effects long past the outbreak.

COVID-19 in South Korea: Online food product sales see over 90% growth

28-Apr-2020 By Pearly Neo

South Korea has seen an increase of over 90% in online food product transactions during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, but continues to face trade-related challenges even as the country has moved to relax some social-distancing regulations.

Faster, cheaper halal certification: WhatsHalal targets food firms in Malaysia and Indonesia

27-Apr-2020 By Pearly Neo

Singaporean start-up WhatsHalal has developed an enterprise solution platform aimed at helping companies to ease application processes for halal certification, with a primary focus on food companies.

Tighter control: South Korea steps up regulatory requirements for imports from foreign food facilities

27-Apr-2020 By Pearly Neo

South Korea has made Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) certification mandatory for all foreign food facilities exporting into the country, in an effort to tighten its control over imported food safety hazards.

International alignment: FSSAI updates imported food code system for over 1,500 items

23-Apr-2020 By Pearly Neo

The Food Safety and Standards Authority India (FSSAI) has revamped the national food code system for all imported foods into the nation in an attempt to achieve more uniformity with the internationally used HS Code system.

COVID-19 payback: Pakistan flour industry calls for tax exemptions in light of ‘hard work’ during pandemic

22-Apr-2020 By Pearly Neo

The flour industry in Pakistan has requested the government to exempt or at least subsidise all flour mills from taxes that would normally have to be paid in light of the sector’s significant contributions to food stability throughout the COVID-19 pandemic...

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