All Comments

31-May-2010 - Are organic foods healthier? The sad truth is that nearly 100,000 studies later, we just don't know. Meanwhile, this lack of certainty presents major business opportunities for the organic food industry.

Realistic prices needed for European food stability and to safeguard society

24-May-2010 - Please: A big round of applause for Jozsef Kapuvári. Who? You might well ask. Kapuvári is the author of an EU report that highlights the importance of realistic food prices – not just to underpin the food supply chain but to maintain the fabric of European society.

IOM report: One step forward, two steps back

17-May-2010 - The call for better biomarkers to substantiate health claims is a bold and timely move, but we need to move away from trying to judge foods as pharmaceuticals.

Biodegradable alternative or a levy - gum makers should chew on that

10-May-2010 - It’s a sticky issue that just won’t go away. There are sugar-free, tooth whitening and nicotine added versions but none from leading makers, as yet, that are dissolvable in rain.

Why food is a vital issue in the UK general election

04-May-2010 - Voting is a basic human right. Eating is a basic human need. British voters who eat should mull future meal plans carefully before putting an X in any box on Thursday.

Foods with artificial trans fats should be considered adulterated

26-Apr-2010 - There is a pile of evidence linking artificial trans fats with heart disease, so why is it still in our food? It’s time to get real and recognize that artificial trans fat is an adulterant with no place in the global food supply.

Groundhog Day for European health claims?

19-Apr-2010 - “Many in industry are pinning their hopes on EFSA showing them the light at the meeting, including the likes of Danone, which withdrew three probiotic immunity/digestive health article 13.5 claims in April, citing clarification it is expecting on Big Monday as the reason.”

Time for Europe to send bisphenol A into the sunset

12-Apr-2010 - Bisphenol A (BPA) is living on borrowed time. And not just in the United States but now in Europe too where mounting consumer hostility and scientific concern over its safety have combined to push the chemical towards the point of no return.

Slimmer cans could lead to bigger waistlines

06-Apr-2010 - Soft drink makers could end up swallowing a £10m bill for no good reason by embracing the Food Standards Agency (FSA) recommendations for new slim-line 250ml drinks.

Making the food industry fair for SMEs

30-Mar-2010 - No race should have rules that favour the strongest competitors. But unless the capabilities and interests of SMEs are taken into consideration before the starting gun is fired for new food regulations, they will struggle to keep up and may have to drop out altogether.

Supply chain transparency only answer to hostile campaigns

22-Mar-2010 - Food companies must ensure their supply chains are transparent and socially responsible in order to prevent backlashes from consumer activists and non-governmental groups on Facebook or Twitter, which could have costly brand repercussions.

The HVP recall: Damage control déjà vu

15-Mar-2010 - Not again! It emerged last week that Basic Food Flavors, the company behind the ongoing HVP recall, knew its products were tainted with salmonella but carried on shipping them anyway. Déjà vu anyone?

EFSA’s antioxidant rejections could be blessing in disguise

08-Mar-2010 - Timber! The latest axe blow from EFSA has fallen, and this time it has taken one of the biggest trees in the nutrition forest: Antioxidants. But let’s not mourn the loss of the tree; let’s look forward to the new opportunities a clear view of the sky can give.

What's the colour of money? Bonuses should be green

01-Mar-2010 - Never before has the dangling of golden carrots in the boardroom been so closely scrutinised. DSM and others’ decisions to ensure those carrots have green shoots of sustainability attached to them is a wise and forward thinking move.

Banning energy drinks is a doomed shot in the dark

22-Feb-2010 - Energy shot drinks have come under fire from German authorities which are employing an old-school prohibition logic that history has repeatedly dunce-hatted.

Do drink makers have stomach for anti-obesity fight?

15-Feb-2010 - Bravo! The beverage industry has responded enthusiastically to Mrs. Obama’s campaign to tackle childhood obesity - but there’d better be more than froth behind that sparkling rhetoric.

US military may enlist Omega-3s to boost performance but why wait?

08-Feb-2010 - “An army marches on its stomach.” This advice, from French military adventurer Napoleon, seems to have impressed the US military which is considering fortifying troops’ rations with omega-3 fatty acids. What is it waiting for?

No bitter battle over salt science

01-Feb-2010 - Excess salt can cause hypertension, heart disease, death. That’s the scientific consensus behind public health campaigns to reduce consumption of sodium chloride in the diet. But not everyone reads the science as conclusive, and when it comes to minerals that are essential to human life, the voice of caution must not be drowned out.

Cheesed off – jingoism takes the spoils in the Cadbury battle

25-Jan-2010 - Reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated, quipped Mark Twain. Predictions of the demise of Cadbury following the approval of Kraft’s offer are premature and are flawed by knee-jerk anti-Americanism.

Why Haiti must stay on the CSR agenda

18-Jan-2010 - 50,000 and counting. We'll probably never know exactly how many perished in the 7.0 earthquake that brought Haiti, quite literally, crashing down last Tuesday, 12th January 2010, just before 5pm. But for those who survived and who make it through the hard days, weeks and months ahead, getting enough to eat will be a long term challenge.

Cold snap could last longer for food sector

11-Jan-2010 - “More snow on the way.” So say the weathermen, and Europe is stocking up and hunkering down for a long, cold winter. But while the fluffy flakes will halt, at least come Spring, for the food sector the chill could be felt throughout 2010.