November 2021

Manila Bulletin

Not many people are fans of Brassica vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage. Even mainstream media portrays how children and adults alike cringe at the thought of having to eat these vegetables. But what makes them dislike Brassicas? Researchers in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry found the answer in shared oral microbiomes between parents and children.

Food IngredientsFIrst

Lactalis Ingredients’ milk whey powders are rising in consumer popularity due to price competitiveness with skimmed milk powders and increased interest in sports nutrition, according to company experts, who tell FoodIngredientsFirst they “do not see plant-based dairy alternatives as a threat to traditional products.

Straits Times

New standards for storing and transporting chilled and frozen food were launched on Oct 1, said the Singapore Standards Council (SSC). The standards are aimed at strengthening Singapore’s cold chain ecosystem by improving the management of chilled and frozen food, which includes pre-packaged food, meat, vegetables and eggs.

Probiotic products that have strong scientific backing for health claims, innovative delivery formats and added functionalities via vitamins or botanicals have a strong basis to anticipate successful commercialisation in the post-pandemic era, according to our final Probiota Asia 2021 expert panel.

Texture-modified, antioxidant-rich, plant-based snacks are a useful nutrition support to benefit healthy ageing via the elevation of antioxidant ability and alteration of gut microbiota, according to new research.

Sweegen has introduced a series of new sweet concepts free of sugar and containing added wellness functionalities, addressing the prevalent consumer demand for these reformulation strategies.

Layn Natural Ingredients is expanding its functional tea extracts line to meet growing consumer demand for healthy clean label ingredients. The company finds this arena promising as it says the global tea extracts industry is expected to reach US$4.3 billion by 2027.

BakeryAndSnacks

With a ban on the use of controversial colouring agent titanium dioxide (E171) looking likely in the European Union in 2022, the ingredient supplier Ingredion Corporation warns that manufacturers might face extra costs when converting to clean label strategies, though these are offset by a willingness among consumers to pay for them.

Food IngredientsFIrst

Dazzling bright white chocolate destined to be a big hit on Instagram is the new brainchild of Cargill, drawing inspiration from the adage that “you eat with your eyes”. The new “whiter than white” chocolate line has been created to help transform sweet treats into real eye-catchers with added visual intensity.

Food IngredientsFIrst

Public Chinese government records reviewed by the Good Food Institute (GFI) APAC indicate that significant funds are being allocated to help the nascent alternative protein sector optimize and scale up – as was previously done for the nation’s development of solar panels, lithium-ion batteries and electric vehicles.

FoodNavigator-Asia

Global food MNC Thai Union has revealed that it is eyeing several major business opportunities to be found in the hemp and CBD sector, from alternative proteins to supplements.

BeverageDaily

Singapore healthy snack company Boxgreen is launching a beverage brand called Imperfect Drinks to upcucle food waste and provide work experience for ex-offenders.

The Malay Mail

Two premises — a soy sauce factory and a bakery — have been ordered to close for two weeks, due to dirty conditions and non-compliance with food safety and quality standards, in the ‘Ops Bersih’ conducted by the Penang Health Department.

BusinessWorld

COCA-COLA Philippines plans to ramp up the use of recycled plastic in its products and exit the sachet industry by next year, according to an executive.“We will be accelerating the use of more recycled plastic in our bottles – also known as rPET bottles – for some of our brands by 2022,” Coca-Cola Philippines President Antonio “Tony” V. Del Rosario, Jr. recently told BusinessWorld through a public relations firm via e-mail.

Nhan Dan

Vinamilk, Vietnam’s largest dairy maker, posted a quarterly record-high revenue of over VND16.2 trillion (US$706.57 million) in the third quarter of 2021, up 4.1 percent year-on-year.

Manila Bulletin

Century Pacific Food, Inc., one of the leading food and beverage companies in the Philippines, is expanding its Dairy portfolio by entering the chocolate malt segment.In a statement, the firm said its new product is a choco malt milk drink for kids that is full of vitamins and minerals that boost strength, mental alertness, and energy.

BusinessWorld

“The joint venture of Del Monte Philippines, Inc. (DMPI) and Vietnam Dairy Products JSC (Vinamilk) launched a new range of dairy products on Tuesday, marking their entry into the Philippine dairy market. In a virtual briefing on Tuesday, Del Monte-Vinamilk Commercial Head Eileen Asuncion introduced the new product selection under the joint venture, which consists of Del Monte-Vinamilk Fresh Milk, IQ Smart Flavored Milk, YoGurt Drink, and Tea Bliss Milk Tea.
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NST Online

Nestle (Malaysia) Bhd’s first 100 per cent home-grown coffee Nescafe Classic Kopi Kedah has returned with this year’s harvest. As part of the Nescafe Grown Respectfully Programme, Nescafe Classic Kopi Kedah is a product of the sustainable coffee farming initiative aiming at revitalising the local coffee sector and uplifting the livelihoods of local farmers.

The Jakarta Post

The consumer goods giant has attributed a significant decline in sales and profit to a challenging third quarter as virus containment measures took a toll on consumer demand.

Bangkok Post

More than 20 Taiwanese food and dessert chains are exploring business opportunities in Thailand this year. Brands that are seeking to open franchises in Thailand include Fried Chicken Master, Frozen Heart, Monga Taiwanese style fried chicken, Morn Coo Coo, Yu Fu Yuan restaurant, I.H Art, Thefeen burger, Tea Top, MR Sun, Presotea and HWC Roasters.

BusinessWorld

Souteast Asian cloud restaurant company CloudEats raised $5 million from a Series A round led by Singapore-based investment management firm Vulpes Investment Management, and the Malaysia-based venture capital firm Gobi Partners’ Gobi-Core Philippine Fund. CloudEats, which was launched in the Philippines in June 2019, plans to use the funds to scale its smart kitchen technology and open cloud kitchens in more markets in the region, the latest of which will be Vietnam in November.

South China Morning Post

What caused a bout of panic buying in China in November?It started with a notice from China’s Ministry of Commerce on November 1, 2021, telling local authorities to stabilise food supply and prices, including for vegetables, meat and cooking oil in pr.