Beyond The Headlines: dsm-firmenich supports beverage scale up, UK food inflation falls

22 Mar 2024 --- This week in industry news, dsm-firmenich unveiled a production facility in New Jersey, US, to bolster beverage scale-up. Biotalys and Novonesis joined forces to commercialize a biofungicide for crop protection, while Tate & Lyle was recognized for its climate change efforts. Meanwhile, food inflation in the UK is declining.

Business highlights
dsm-firmenich unveiled a pilot plant in New Jersey, US, to help customers quickly scale up their beverage production. It will support applications such as juices, ready-to-drink coffee and tea, sports drinks, carbonated soft drinks, sparkling water, energy drinks, as well as dairy & plant-based products like milks, creamers and protein shakes. The facility is part of dsm-firmenich’s Taste, Texture & Health business unit and aims to accelerate global diet transformation by providing F&B brands with the capabilities to create sustainable and healthier eating and drinking experiences for consumers.

Umiami launched a plant-based meat and fish factory in Alsace, France with a total investment of £32.5 million (US$41.2 million) to bolster the company’s production and international growth. The facility has an annual production capacity of 7,500 metric tons and is poised to boost Umiami’s plans to become a leader in plant-based chicken filets across Europe and North America.

Belgium-based agtech company Biotalys and biosolutions provider Novonesis partnered to manufacture and commercialize Evoca NG, slated to be Biotalys’ inaugural margin-generating biofungicide. Biotalys also grants Novonesis the rights to distribute and sell the product in select crops outside the US in exchange for royalty payments.

The UK government has stopped the 16% tariff on prune juice and prune juice concentrate until at least June 2026 (Image credit: California Prune Board).Dutch artisanal candy producer Holland Foodz acquired Vero Sweet Presents, recently declared bankrupt by the court in Zeeland-West-Brabant, Netherlands. When the company ran into problems with pre-financing its products, it filed for bankruptcy in mid-February. Holland Foodz will take over all of Vero’s permanent employees, while the company will move from Waalwijk to Oosterhout, where production is located.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) announced that consumer price inflation figures (CPI) in the UK indicated headline inflation falling to 3.4% and food inflation falling 1.9 % points to 5.0%. According to Kris Hamer, director of insight of the BRC, food was one of the key reasons why inflation fell last month. CPI figures for alcoholic beverages slipped from 12.4% in January to 11.9% last month.

The UK government suspended the UK import tariff on prune juice and prune juice concentrate following a California Prune Board application through the Nut & Dried Fruit Trade Association on behalf of its UK trade members. Expected to come into effect from next month, the suspension will stop the 16% tariff on prune juice and prune juice concentrate until at least June 2026. The prune juice tariff suspension follows last year’s removal of the 8% tariff on the import of US prunes, which will remain effective until the end of this year.

Sustainability highlights
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) called for major investments in adaptation and resilience in the wake of the climate crisis progressively affecting food security and agriculture in its recent UN State of the Global Climate Report. The report depicts how surface temperatures and greenhouse gas levels were once again broken in 2023. It also highlights the extreme weather events that progressively affect food security and agriculture, with wider socio-economic implications.

UK ingredient formulator Tate & Lyle received an A grade in the Supplier Engagement Rating (SER) from the non-profit organization CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project). It made it to the CDP’s 2023 SER Leaderboard as well. CDP’s Supplier Engagement Rating (SER) measures how effectively companies engage with their suppliers on climate change and assesses their performance regarding governance, targets, Scope 3 emissions, and value chain engagement.

At AHDB's culinary event, 21 chefs from Singapore showcased innovations in pork, lamb and dairy dishes (Image credit: AHDB).German sugar producer Nordzucker launched a “thick juice” campaign to enter the next round of its sugar production. During the company’s previous beet campaign, which ran from September to February, some leftover beet that could not be processed into granulated sugar was stored as thick juice - an intermediate product on the way to granulated sugar, which led to the second round of sugar production. The process will use vapor compression method for the “first time” in this thick juice campaign, saving energy and overall CO2 release.

Givaudan and global food tech community FoodHack joined forces to organize the FoodTech World Cup for agri food tech start-ups working on sustainable proteins, personalized nutrition, food safety and traceability, AI and digital tools, food circularity, novel food concepts and new ingredients. The initiative aims to drive innovations to find new ways to feed growing populations sustainably. The competition kicked off on March 19, with demo days hosted online. The finale will take place at the HackSummit in Lausanne, Switzerland, from June 13 to 14.

Research and innovation
A study by Purdue University’s Center for Food Demand Analysis and Sustainability in the US reported that 64% of consumers have predicted that food prices will rise over the next 12 months, with expected inflation at 3.7%. Nearly 1,200 consumers were surveyed for 26 months. The researchers also found that inflation expectations differ by political affiliation, with 71% of Republicans and 54% of Democrats expecting higher food prices.

UK’s Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) organized a meat and dairy chef’s demonstration event where twenty-one chefs from Singapore’s top restaurants showcased pork, lamb and dairy dishes, including tastings of five British cheeses. 

By Insha Naureen