Food Manufacturing News
Asda, Iceland, Morrisons and Waitrose will donate money from new plastic bag levy to help fund new dementia research centre
In a rare instance of retailers working together, four of the UK’s major supermarkets have collaborated in a new charity initiative relating to the new “5p charge” on plastic bags
Asda, Iceland, Morrisons and Waitrose have pledged funds from the new levy to support the construction of a new dementia research centre at UCL university in London.
In addition to committing funds from their own stores, the four chief executives are today writing to their counterparts at all other UK food retailers, urging them to lend their support either this year or over the next five years.
With a total investment of £350 million, the proposed research centre currently has a funding shortfall of £100m, and the cash generated by carrier-bag sales in food retailers across Britain has the potential to bridge much of that gap.
The new centre aims to help the G8 Group challenge to find a cure for dementia by 2025.
Former business’ operations director, David Bateman, steps up to the new role, while Robert Wells becomes CEO
David Bateman has been appointed as managing director at banana giant SH Pratt.
Bateman, who has been with the business for two years, was operations director prior to this appointment. He will lead the day-to-day running of the business, as well as a number of strategic initiatives currently being developed.
Robert Wells, majority shareholder of SH Pratt, will move to the role of CEO, in order to provide further strategic vision
and direction.
In addition, Simon Trewin, commercial director, has been appointed as a full board member of SH Pratt, in order to reinforce the development of the company’s commercial direction.
A spokesperson for SH Pratt said: “As the business grows and develops, we will create additional companies within the SH Pratt Group family; and implement a new brand identity, currently in discussion. This will be implemented in due course.
“Pratt’s Bananas logistics division has seen rapid and successful growth in recent times. To take this part of the business to
the next level, it has been set up as a separate company ‘Kinship Logistics’, under the umbrella of the SH Pratt parent company.
“Kinship, whose name represents the family nature of our business, has been given a brand new fresh and vibrant identity, to help reflect the diverse range of goods we carry. It will also help our vehicles to stand out and be easily recognised. The new identity is currently being rolled-out.”
Tony Hunter, previously head of SH Pratt’s logistics, has been appointed as director of logistics for the new Kinship Logistics company.
Forty workers at Quality Produce International participated in the cancer fundraising Ride for the Roses bicycle race in the Netherlands
Over €45,000 has been raised by employees of Dutch firm Quality Produce International (QPI) for charity.
Forty workers at the company participated in the cancer fundraising event Ride for the Roses bicycle in the Netherlands on 6 September.
This year’s edition was in and around Aalsmeer, and all forty employees completed the 100km race by bicycle without any problems.
Part of the overall total the business raised also came through selling fruit and vegetable boxes, an initiative developed together with local food-service supplier Flexivers.
The rest of the amount was donated by participants, friends and family, but most of all by customers and suppliers.
Marcel Paul, of QPI, said: “The whole team is very proud that we could donate such a fabulous amount at the finish. Hereby we woud like to thank all that helped us for raising this fantastic sum of money for cancer research in Holland, and we hope we can count on all of your support again next year.”
Almost £92m in extra sales could be generated if the meat industry pursued new product development opportunities proposed by AHDB Beef & Lamb, according to the sector group.
Dick van Leeuwen, AHDB Beef & Lamb business development manager, highlighted the benefits of creative cuts to delegates at its ‘A World of Innovation’ conference at the Tower of London earlier this month.
The biggest gain could be achieved by seam butchering lamb legs and selling them as topside mini-joints, thick flank mini-joints, silverside mini-joints and shanks instead of bone-in leg joints, he argued. That could result in an extra £63.2m in annual retail sales, he estimated.
Seam butchering beef shoulder and selling it as boneless Victoria Roasts as opposed to bone-in shoulder joints could also add over £5m to the annual retail sales value of the shoulder, he said.
In addition, he urged retailers and processors to explore tri-tip steaks, which had already seen real growth in popularity across Europe and America.
He urged butchers: “Continue to work on the quality and consistency of cuts and better butchery. There’s potential value in some cuts, which we overlook.”
Separately, conference attendees heard about trials on microwaveable bags for cooking raw meat by UK firm Excelsior Technologies, which it is testing with US partners.
“As it cooks, it expands and the air heats up and cooks the product,” explained Steve Wald, executive director for innovation at the Beef Innovations Group.
Wald said technology was evolving to the point where microwave cooking could produce much better- quality meat dishes than it used to.
He hoped commercial use of the bags could begin in the US from early 2016.
Morrisons is initially running a trial at ten stores across the country, with full roll-out expected by February 2016
Morrisons is to take down sweets from its main-bank checkouts and replace them with fruit.
The move, which will be in full effect by February 2016, comes after the retailer sought the view of its customers.
Nuts and bottled water will also be offered in place of sweets, alongside fruit. Morrisons already offers alternatives to sweets at one in five of its supermarket checkouts.
To make sure the confectionery is replaced with items that customers want to buy, Morrisons is initially running a trial at ten stores across the country, where checkouts will be stocked with the new snacks, as well as magazines and bags for life. Action will be taken dependent on the results of the trial.
David Potts, CEO at Morrisons, said: “We have been listening to parents and guardians who have told us that sweets on checkouts can sometimes lead to pestering from their children. This change will make the trip through the checkout easier and less stressful.”
Bryonie Hollaert,Morrisons’ company nutritionist, said: “We are doing what we can to help customers choose healthier foods. As well as taking chocolate away from checkouts, we are also removing sugar and salt from other food and drink products. Last year alone we removed nearly one billion calories and over 38million teaspoons of sugar from our soft drinks.”
Produce World has produced and launched a new Chinese sweet sprouting cauliflower into select Waitrose stores
New sweet sprouting cauliflower has been launched into limited numbers of Waitrose stores through vegetable supplier Produce World.
The brassica, which is native to China, can be eaten raw or cooked, and is sweeter than a traditional cauliflower. It has long stems and small, white heads, described as “less intimidating” to younger consumers.
“Sweet Sprouting Cauliflower has been popular in China for a long time and it has a number of characteristics which we believe will appeal to British consumers of all ages,” said Waitrose buyer Gemma Hodgson.
“We know that people are under time pressure, and preparation and cooking times are getting shorter. This product can be eaten raw in salads, used in stir-fries, steamed, roasted or barbequed and it’s ready in a matter of minutes. We also think that the sweet taste and crunchy texture will appeal to children and adults alike.”
Frank Robinson, Produce World sales and marketing director, said: “This is a healthy and very exciting innovation, and will be a new way to enjoy cauliflower for a younger generation. It is not as intimidating as traditional cauliflower in terms of size. It is available in manageable one meal portion sizes, targeting premium meal occasions.”
The news comes as Produce World launched purple carrots into Waitrose last week, in partnership with fellow vegetable supplier Huntapac.
Pork Farms Group has been rebranded with there new name being, Addo Food Group
Meaning ‘to inspire’ in Latin, Addo will be the group’s new identity as it looks to grow following the acquisition of the chilled savoury pastry business of Kerry Foods in 2014.
The Kerry acquisition means the group has added the Poole Bakery in Dorset and Spalding Bakery in Lincolnshire.
Chris Peters, group managing director of Addo Food Group, said: “Addo is the new name for the former Pork Farms Group and means ‘to inspire’, representing how we think and the relationship we have with our people and our customers. At Addo we have a true passion for food and this is evident in the quality, taste and range of our products.
“With the recent addition of new sites and brands following our acquisition of Kerry’s chilled savoury pastry business, we wanted a new group name to represent our identity as a forward-thinking and innovative food company, and to allow us to demonstrate our new breadth of products and brands.
“With roots that stretch back more than 160 years, Addo has established a long-trusted tradition of providing delicious, high-quality food, produced to the highest standards, using the best-quality ingredients. And as a forward-thinking company, we are always looking to the future and using consumer insight, exciting new techniques, and pioneering research and development to change the boundaries of our category.
Addo sells 256 million products every year under both its own brands and the brands of its major retail partners and has sales revenues of £270m and a market share of 34%.
The new brand is being launched through new signage across the Addo estate and will also see its Queens Drive business unit (home of Pork Farms Pies) in Nottingham renamed as Tottle Bakery and its Shaftesbury site rebranded to Dorset Foods.
UK-headquartered fruit supplier is set to take new brand Amorita further afield with opening of Dubai operations
Allfresch, UK-based fruit supplier, is expanding into the Middle East markets with the opening of a new Dubai office.
The new facility will be headed up by Nick Evangelopoulos, former general manager of Yalda Trading. He previously spent seven years working for Chiquita as operations manager for the Middle East.
Allfresch is currently focusing on the development and expansion of its new brand, Amorita, which launched at the start of this year. It is featured on green bananas from Ecuador and Mexico, and limes from Mexico. The Shropshire-headquartered company’s primary markets remain the UK and Europe, but the opening of the Dubai office is part of its growth further afield.
Allfresch subsidiaries include Exotifruit, Frubanco, Fruesh, Allfresch Logistics and Summerseeds.
Ireland’s leading cooked meats company, Greene Farm Foods, has teamed up with Macfarlane Labels to launch new packaging for its products
The Reseal-it system offers an easy open and re-closable design that will be launched across the full range of cooked meats, including its sliced chicken, turkey and beef products, as well as its new ‘torn chicken’ range
The resealable design means the meat products are kept fresh without the need of tinfoil and clingfilm to be used.
By keeping the meat sealed tight, it ensures the product remains fresh. Additionally, it extends the life of the food and helps tackle Britain’s problem with food waste.
“We are thrilled that our Reseal-it labelling system is a success for Greene Farm Foods,” said Angela Campbell from Macfarlane Labels. “The company identified a customer demand for their cooked meat products to have an easy-to-open pack with a reseal solution and early customer feedback has been encouraging. We look forward to working closely with Greene Farm Foods in the future on similar products.”
Macfarlane Labels assists leading brands across Europe, Canada and the US on products ranging from cheese to cookies.
Family-owned Greene Farm Foods roasts its meat at a state-of-the-art site in Ballygarvey, Northern Ireland using all-natural ingredients.
Owner of Greene Farm Foods, Kenneth Greene, commented: “We are delighted with the new Reseal-it label system on our range of cooked meat.
“Initial feedback has been positive and we understand it is helping consumers to manage their weekly purchases of cooked meats better. We are very pleased with the early results and we are now looking at the possibility of extending the use of Reseal-it to our other products.”
The Greene Farm range is available across Ireland and in some UK retailers