Latest news in the food and nutraceutical industry

14 Oct 2014

Enzymes are little helpers that make the food world go around. Chemically speaking, of course, they are complex biological catalysts that promote various kinds of biochemical reactions, mostly by lowering the activation energies of specific substrates....

13 Oct 2014

In recent years, the relationship between diet and disease has been increasingly publicised in the hope of changing consumer lifestyle habits – and it seems to be working; with consumers paying more attention to their dietary habits and opting for bene...

13 Oct 2014

Over the years Food & Drink International has reported on the industry, the functional ingredients sector has perhaps undergone the greatest change. It used to be the case that consumers would often have to make the choice between taste and functio...

29 Sep 2014

One of the key challenges when considering any natural proposition is that it is difficult to actually define ‘natural’ and how it actually differs from other aspects such as ‘clean label’. The clean label proposition is generally considered to be seek...

23 Sep 2014

The South American beetle has been used as food colorant for centuries, giving bright red colouring to soup, ketchup, sauces, jams and canned fruits. You may have seen recent controversies with coffee outlets starbucking their Frappuccinos with crushed...

8 Sep 2014

The flavours sector represents one of the largest within the global food additives market and the use of flavouring compounds is widespread as manufacturers continue to search for appealing new taste experiences. Sweet flavours, particularly those that...

4 Sep 2014

The ‘Southampton 6 report’ from McCann et al (2007) highlighted potential issues relating to hyperactivity in children and suggested correlation to the use of six artificial colours: sunset yellow (E 110), quinoline yellow (E 104), carmoisine (E 122), ...

1 Sep 2014

If we look at history, the aesthetic aspects of food were not a major consideration until relatively recently, and began to change fundamentally with the onset of the Industrial Revolution. (Today, for example, a Spanish paella rice dish would be unacc...

5 Nov 2013

Our taste buds are programmed to favour and reject certain tastes almost instinctively. Sweet tastes are well-accepted, as traditionally they indicate a natural and safe source of energy – whereas bitter tastes tend to warn against toxic foods, a...

22 Oct 2013

“All natural” is a megatrend in the ingredient industry these days. Many new innovations are taking place throughout the whole ingredient value chain – from farming and manufacturing through to the product formulators and the FMCG marketers. The trend ...

24 Sep 2013

There once was a tussle between clean label and functionality, but no more. Today’s consumer expects the whole package – a natural product with functional properties which is also low in sugar and/or fat. And, if at all possible, it should also b...

17 Sep 2013

Consumers are more wary about what they eat than ever before. It is clear, though, that the media coverage of the ‘evils’ of artificial additives has passed its peak. The mushrooming consumer demand for overtly ‘natural’ products seen in the last decad...