Unilever has agreed to acquire the Health Food Drinks portfolio (GSK HFD) of GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) in India, Bangladesh and 20 other predominantly Asian markets for €3.3 billion in a combination of cash and shares. In 2018, the GSK HFD portfolio delivered total turnover of about €550 million, primarily through the Horlicks and Boost brands. Almost…

Britvic, the UK-based soft drinks group, has reported a 5.1% increase in revenue to £1.504 billion for the 52 weeks ended 30 September 2018 and a 2.7% rise on an organic basis, compared with last year. Adjusted EBIT increased 5.4% on a reported basis to £206.0 million, whilst organic adjusted EBIT increased 4.0% and organic…

Greene King, the UK brewer and pub group, has reported a 1.9% increase in revenue to £1.051 billion and a 0.2% rise in profit before tax, exceptional and non-underlying items to £128.2 million for the 24 weeks to 14 October 2018, compared to the corresponding period in the previous year. Revenue growth was fuelled by…

Unilever has announced that CEO Paul Polman has decided to retire from the company. Alan Jope (pictured above), currently President, Beauty & Personal Care, has been appointed to the position, effective 1 January 2019, with Paul Polman supporting the transition process during the first half of the year before leaving the company in early July…

Scottish distiller Edrington has agreed to sell is Cutty Sark Scotch whisky brand to La Martiniquaise-Bardinet, the second largest spirits group in France, for an undisclosed price. Cutty Sark Scotch whisky was launched in 1923 and is one of the most recognisable Scotch whiskies in the world, with a long and distinguished heritage celebrating the…

William Jackson Food Group, a UK-based a sixth-generation family business, has acquired premium ingredients brand Belazu for an undisclosed sum. Belazu is the UK’s top-selling balsamic vinegar and premium olive oil brand. In addition to selling into Waitrose, Sainsbury, Tesco and Ocado, the international brand operates across premium food service channels with high-quality authentic Mediterranean…

Cargill has acquired Campollo, one of Colombia’s leading producers of chicken and protein products, for an undisclosed price. The acquisition marks the expansion of Cargill’s global protein business in Colombia after acquiring Pollos Bucanero in June 2017. Campollo has more than 20 years of experience in the market and its products are a top choice…

Nestlé Health Science has inaugurated its new Nestlé Product Technology Center at Bridgewater, New Jersey in the USA. The event marks the completion of a three-year, US$70 million investment to establish a global research and development hub that will advance the company’s offerings in further elevating the power of nutrition to make a positive difference…

Roquette, a global leader in plant-based ingredients for food, nutrition and health markets, has reconfirmed Barentz as the preferred distribution partner for the Roquette food product range in Europe. This new partnership with Barentz is driven by Roquette’s strategic plan to implement the best high-performance distribution network to support its position as a world leading…

PepsiCo has announced it will trial interpretative colour-coded labelling for both beverages and foods in many EU markets, using the 100g/ml-based approach already voluntarily implemented in the UK and Ireland. The company was one of the first to introduce “traffic light” labelling in the UK and Ireland where the scheme has been in operation since…

Ricarda Demarmels is to be the new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the Emmi Group, the Swiss and international dairy business. She will be replacing Jörg Riboni.

Chr. Hansen has launched a vibrant, minimally processed red vegetable juice with unique colouring benefits. Red is a key shade in many food products – from cakes to confectionery to milkshakes. But naturally sourced red solutions can be rife with technical constraints for food and beverage manufacturers and it can be challenging to create a…

Loma Systems®, a leading manufacturer of high performance metal detectors, checkweighers and X-ray inspection equipment for the global food industry, has further strengthened its X5 X-ray Series for the detection of foreign bodies, with the addition of its X5 Bulkflow model.  The X5 Bulkflow is an advanced X-ray inspection system for bulk loose, unpackaged,…

Compact design, short delivery times, quick set-up and commissioning – this is what the new lightline machine series from Gerhard Schubert stands for. For customers who want to efficiently automate standard packaging tasks with reduced format and packaging variants, and who value high-quality design and construction, the company now offers three attractively priced preconfigured machine…

Over 300 leading suppliers are already signed up for Packaging Innovations 2019, which returns to Birmingham’s NEC on 27 & 28 February 2019. Now in its 14th year, the UK’s largest annual event for the entire packaging supply chain boasts its largest ever exhibitor base, with more innovation and exclusive product launches than ever…

A new service from the world’s largest glass packaging container manufacturer Owens-Illinois (OI) has been named the most ‘Promising Launch’ by The Oscar De L’Emballage (Oscars of Packaging) Awards. O-I : EXPRESSIONS (www.discoverexpressions.com) allows brands to turn their glass packaging into a canvas through digital printing. Unveiled in early September 2018, the new service responds to…

Ever since Mondi scooped up Turkish flexible packaging manufacturer Kalenobel via a July 2016 acquisition, it has eyed the ice cream sector as a cool growth opportunity. Now known as Mondi Kalenobel, the Istanbul-based business, with its pair of production facilities in the northern Turkish city of Kirklareli, continues to establish itself as a packaging…

Over 200 experts from across the food contact industry will come together in Vienna, Austria from 3–6 December 2018 to attend Smithers Pira’s P&P (Plastics & Paper in Contact with Foodstuffs) - http://www.foodcontact.com/plastics-paper.

P&P will provide an in-depth and timely overview of the latest EU legislation as well as a small focus on global regulations. Described…

Celebrating its 21st year, The International Food & Drink Event (IFE) – the UK’s leading and largest food & drink event – is returning to ExCeL London 17–20 March 2019. A must-attend event, IFE 2019 will provide buyers with the chance to discover emerging trends; meet with thousands of international, future-focused producers and brands; and hear inspiring and…

Flowcrete UK has won the Large Industrial Project of the Year and Large Commercial Project of the Year categories at the FeRFA 2018 Best Practise Awards. The Resin Flooring Association (FeRFA) represents major businesses and organisations involved in resin flooring, screeding and surface preparation. Its annual awards event celebrates the best of the resin flooring industry’s achievements from…

Tray sealing specialist Proseal has expanded its business in the US with the opening of a new production facility. The growth of Proseal America reflects the hard work and dedication of the Proseal America team, in particular in identifying and meeting the growing demand in the US for fresh convenience foods.