Tate & Lyle has unveiled CLARIA, a new range of functional clean-label starches that are claimed to perform as well as their modified counterparts, enabling firms to deliver cleaner labels on a broader range of products without compromising taste,...
The cost to consumers of requiring labeling of genetically modified food is $2.30 per person annually, or less than a penny a day, says new analysis commissioned by Consumers Union, the policy arm of Consumer Reports.
What will we be eating in 2050? Insect bars, 3D printed food, lab meat and personalized nutrition bars? No one knows for sure. But with a growing population and a changing climate, food systems - and diets - will have to adapt to survive, say 11 thought-leaders...
The notion that defining ‘natural’ is just too hard - either for the FDA or for the food industry - and that we therefore shouldn’t even bother to attempt it, is defeatist and “disingenuous”, says the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).
In part one of our coverage of FoodNavigator-USA’s natural & clean label panel debate we looked at whether the FDA - or industry stakeholders - should define ‘natural’. In part two, we look at all-natural lawsuits, and whether consumers understand...
Diamond Foods is "competing with products addressing the trends in convenient protein, natural, organic, gluten-free, and non-GMO", CEO Brian Driscoll told analysts Thursday. And while its nuts and chips tap into some of these trends, he said,...
What’s more sustainable? Using acres of land, water and energy to grow plants that produce minuscule quantities of natural flavors, sweeteners or phytonutrients; or making them via a fermentation process using baker’s yeast that’s been engineered to produce...
Opponents of genetic modification say there is a new, potentially more powerful technology to contend with: synthetic biology. Purveyors of natural products who are concerned about this technique have coined the term for the way in which scientists have...
90 scientists have written to President Obama urging him to press the FDA into making a decision, one way or another, on whether AquaBounty Technologies should be allowed to introduce the first genetically engineered (GE) animal to the human food supply.
While new class action lawsuits over ‘all-natural’ claims on food labels are still filed in the ‘food court’ in California on a weekly basis, some recent orders from judges handling these cases present a glimmer of hope for beleaguered food & beverage...
Food trade associations are seeking a preliminary injunction to prevent the state of Vermont from implementing its GMO labeling law (Act 120) until a lawsuit they have filed that challenges the law has “run its course”.
Just months after Kashi agreed to settle a California class action lawsuit accusing it of deceptively advertising its wares as ‘all-natural’, a judge has allowed most claims in a similar class action brought in Florida to proceed.
When it comes to reporting the position of some of the world’s biggest food companies on genetically engineered foods, Friends of the Earth, it seems, has been engaging in some pretty creative PR ‘engineering’ of its own.
A proposition seeking to label genetically modified foods will be on the November ballot in Colorado after supporters of the Right to Know Colorado initiative submitted nearly 125,000 valid signatures to the Colorado Secretary of State.
How clean is your label, and who decides - plaintiff's attorneys or Whole Foods Market? Are ‘all-natural’ claims still resonating with consumers or are other on-pack cues more important? And do shoppers understand the difference between natural and...
Pure Via labels will be amended, but 'natural' claim will stay
10 months after Cargill agreed to settle a class action lawsuit alleging it was misleading shoppers by marketing consumer products under the Truvia brand as ‘natural’, the firms behind rival stevia brand Pure Via have agreed to settle a similar lawsuit.
AquaBounty Technologies - which is hoping to become the first company to introduce a genetically engineered (GE) animal to the human food supply - posted net losses of $3.5m in the six months to June 30, up from a loss of $2.1m in the first half of 2013.
Recent advances that allow the precise editing of genomes have raised the possibility that fruit and other crops might be genetically improved without the need to introduce foreign genes, according to researchers.
A new trade organization has formed with the mission to define what 'natural' means. The nascent Organic and Natural Health Alliance (ONHA) plans to go about defining that attribute in a way that is unique in the natural products business in...
Vermont AG: 'Natural' labels do not belong on foods made with GMOs
Vermont’s new GMO labeling law (Act 120) does not violate the First Amendment because the disclosures it mandates are “purely factual” and the law “does not require manufacturers to state a particular viewpoint, such as whether GE foods are good or bad”,...
Retailers are going to reduce the space given to legacy brands
Leading CPG companies are like huge ships that cannot change course quickly enough to address evolving consumer trends, claims the boss of Boulder Brands (which owns the Udi’s Gluten-Free, Earth Balance and EVOL brands). But unless they make some bold...
The Organic Consumer’s Association (OCA), is calling on the organic dairy industry to cut ties with the IDFA (International Dairy Foods Association) because it is one of several trade associations suing Vermont over its GMO labeling mandate.
Shareholders at Safeway have rejected a proposal from the Green Century Equity Fund calling for mandatory GMO labeling on its store brands, which company bosses claim would cost $15m+ to implement, while providing zero consumer benefits.
Vermont has serious concerns over cost of defending GMO labeling law, claim CFS/VPIRG
The Vermont Public Interest Research Group (VPIRG) and anti-GMO activist group the Center for Food Safety (CFS) have formally asked for permission to help the state of Vermont defend its new GMO labeling law in the wake of a legal challenge from food...
When consumers think about GMOs, they tend to contrast them with “some hypothetical alternative food that is pristine”, when in most cases, going ‘non-GMO’ just means returning to a food production system that is less efficient - and worse for the environment...
So Delicious Dairy Free brand grew at a 30% CAGR over past five years
While gluten-free gets all the glory, dairy-free products such as almond and coconut milk are growing at an equally explosive rate, says So Delicious Dairy Free, which has notched up a compound annual growth rate of 30%+ over the past five years, and...
During the IFT 2014 show in New Orleans, FoodNavigator-USA caught up with RIBUS Inc. CEO Steve Peirce for an update on its all-natural and organic rice-based ingredients and the sustainability of rice in a world that faces staggering levels of food waste.
The growth of the Non-GMO Project verification scheme has been nothing short of explosive over the past 18 months. But does the firm serving as its technical administrator have the resources to cope, and are competing certification schemes adopting the...
PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi says she didn’t want a short-term ‘cut, slash and burn’ policy that would have seen the company make enormous earnings from 2006 despite the upset her long-term nutritional foods focus caused some investors.
When shopping for food, two-thirds of US consumers look for “locally grown” on labels, while 59% check to see if the products they’re buying are natural, according to a survey from Consumer Reports National Research Center.
It's hot, it's sweaty, and it's the place to be if you're interested in what's next in the weird and wonderful world of food ingredients. Check out our first gallery of highlights from the 2014 IFT annual meeting & expo in...
You'd think that pro-science,'molecular gastronomists' such as Chef Homaru Cantu would be all in favor of genetically engineered foods, especially if they can add nutrition, or reduce the environmental impact of food production, right?...
With all the attention GMOs have received in recent months—good and bad—confusion in the marketplace has inevitably followed, as consumers scramble to make sense of the pro- and anti-camps’ arguments and product manufactures scramble to keep track of...
Is the farm-to-table movement all it’s cracked up to be? Is a healthy dialogue about GMOs even possible? Can we fix growing income disparities in the developed world? A group representing many points on the agribusiness value chain weighed in.
From drinkable grains to Non-GMO verified, Sterling-Rice Group has identified 10 natural and organic food trends that are starting to influence the mainstream grocery market. Are you up to speed?
The Organic Trade Association says that third-party certification under the USDA National Organic Program is sufficient for non-GMO label claims, calling organic production is the optimal solution to US agriculture, according to a statement from its board...
A bill that would have required firms to label genetically engineered foods in California has failed to secure sufficient votes in the state senate to pass into law.
Health and other consumer benefits may help make transgenic or genetically engineered (GE) food more acceptable to consumers, but the food industry needs to be more transparent to win back trust, says the immediate past president of IFT.
The founders of Canadian bakery products manufacturer One Degree Organic Foods think the current packaged food landscape has distanced consumers far too much from Mother Nature. They’re looking to narrow the gap between food producers and the end consumer...
Pointing out problems and flaws in organic farming and certification is constructive in that they need to be addressed. But using the imperfections of the organic production system to defend why GMOs are a preferred way to produce food - as Mischa Popoff...
Guest article: Mischa Popoff, author, Is it Organic?
I worked for five years as a USDA-contract organic inspector after growing up on an organic grain farm in Saskatchewan. I had the pleasure of inspecting over 500 organic farms and processors, but I began questioning this career path when I realized the...
If biotech’s big guns want to seize the initiative in the GMO debate, they should ditch their defensive strategy (telling consumers why they don’t need GMO labels) and go on the offensive, launching a positive campaign about the merits of GM crops, according...
The majority of the leading US supplement companies are working on using non-GMO ingredients in their formulations, said Cal Bewicke, CEO of Ethical Naturals Inc (ENI), as the company launches non-GMO vitamin C.
Microwave popcorn was a childhood favorite snack of Kristy Lewis; though her nostalgia turned to disillusionment when as an adult she learned that the chemical-, hydrogenated oil-laden formula hadn’t evolved alongside her growing awareness.
As anti-GMO activists celebrated their first major victory in Vermont this week with the passage of GMO labeling bill H112, the GMA said it would mount a legal challenge within weeks. But while big food companies may well win the courtroom battle ahead,...
For a growing global population facing dwindling resources, non-GMO plant-based proteins are the future, says 29-year-old non-GMO and organic soybean and corn supplier World Food Processing (WFP).
Genetic modification (GM) of wheat genes to ‘silence’ protein fractions toxic to those with celiac disease holds promise for cereal development, researchers say.
An Abbott Laboratories shareholder proposal to label genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) in its Similac infant formula range received about 5% of the vote, and has been rejected by the company.