March’s top news stories

Nestlé Canada to expand London Ice Cream factory in Ontario

Nestlé Canada announced plans to spend C$51.5m ($39.6m) to increase the production capacity of its London ice-cream factory located at Wilton Grove Road, Ontario.

By increasing production capacity at the site, the company intends to meet the growing demand for its ice-cream brands such as Hӓagen-Dazs, Parlour and Drumstick.

Through the new investment, the company will also focus on the development of new ice-cream products and introduce them to the market.

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FSA and FSS launched review into UK meat processing plants

The UK’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Food Standards Scotland (FSS) announced a nationwide review of all sites where meat products are processed and stored.

As part of the new initiative, the FSA and the FSS will be reviewing the hygiene controls and also carry out surprise inspections and audit regimes.

The FSA recommended the installation of closed-circuit television (CCTV) across all the meat cutting plants and also emphasised on intelligence gathering across the industry through audit data sharing pilot programmes.

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Unilever opened advanced manufacturing centre in UK

Unilever officially opened its advanced manufacturing centre in Port Sunlight, Merseyside, UK.

The new facility features a pilot plant that will enable the company’s scientists and engineers to test new ideas on a factory scale.

In addition, the advanced manufacturing centre is expected to further enhance Unilever’s research and development presence across the UK and worldwide.

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Danish Crown to scale down activities at Ringsted facility

Global meat processing company Danish Crown announced plans to scale down activities by closing the night shift at its abattoir in Ringsted due to a lower than expected supply of pigs.

The decision to close the night shift will begin from 1 June and is expected to affect nearly 140 jobs at the facility.

Around 70 employees will be allowed to work as holiday reliefs up until September.

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Tate & Lyle finished expansion of Singapore food application centre

Global speciality food ingredients and solutions provider Tate & Lyle completed the expansion of its laboratory in Singapore.

With the completion of this expansion, the food ingredients provider intends to transform its Singapore laboratory into a hub for food and beverage formulation in the Asia-Pacific region.

The decision to expand the Singapore facility was taken by the company to meet the growing demand for ingredients and solutions, which helps to reduce sugar, fat and calories, as well as improve consumer products.

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Ajinomoto merged Turkish subsidiaries for business expansion

Japanese food company Ajinomoto announced plans to combine its Turkish subsidiaries Ajinomoto Istanbul Food Sales, Kükre and Örgen by July this year.

By merging its three businesses, Ajinomoto intends to establish itself as a comprehensive food manufacturer in Turkey in order to further expand the footprint of its international consumer foods business in the Middle East.

Upon completion of the merger, the new business entity will be named Ajinomoto Istanbul Food Industry and Trade.

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DuPont Nutrition & Health to build deep-freeze warehouse in Germany

DuPont Nutrition and Health is pioneering its new deep-freeze warehouse in Niebüll, Germany.

Constructed as a joint project between DuPont Epernon, France and DuPont Niebüll, Germany, the new facility will help the company to secure additional capacity in cultures manufacturing.

The new facility is expected to support DuPont in maintaining the stability of its yoghurt, fresh fermented and cheese products, and delivering it to its customers worldwide.

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Campbell completed Snyder’s-Lance acquisition for $6.1bn

The Campbell Soup Company (Campbell’s) completed the purchase of Snyder’s-Lance for $50 per share, which takes the enterprise value to around $6.1bn.

Campbell’s is combining the Pepperidge Farm and Snyder’s-Lance portfolios to create a unified snacking entity in the US called Campbell Snacks.

The new business will be led by US Biscuits and Snacks former president Carlos Abrams-Rivera. He will report to Luca Mignini, president of the Global Biscuits and Snacks subsidiary.

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Cargill Protein to centralise regional warehousing in Texas

Cargill Protein announced plans to centralise its regional warehousing operations in the Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) metroplex in Texas, US, to help improve its capacity and supply chain efficiency.

The changes will also allow the company to serve more customers in the retail, foodservice and food ingredients segment.

The DFW warehouse distribution centre will be managed by a contractor and is expected to commence its operations later this year.

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T&G Global signed agreement to sell processed foods business to Cedenco

T&G Global (T&G) signed an agreement to divest its major assets in its subsidiary ENZAFoods New Zealand, which trades as T&G Foods, to Cedenco Foods New Zealand, for an undisclosed amount.

Under the agreement, Cedenco will take control of T&G Foods processing business, its employees and assets in Hastings and the fruit ingredient assets based in Nelson, along with the existing inventory. Cedenco will also take on the assignment of the long-term property lease in Hastings.

T&G’s pipfruit division has also signed a long-term supply agreement with Cedenco for apple processing.