Weekly Roundup: Azelis acquires Smoky Light, KitKat introduces recyclable paper packaging

13 Jan 2023 --- This week in industry news, ICL signed a partnership agreement with General Mills and IFF was recognized for achieving sustainability leadership. Hometown Food Company reinforced its commitment to the better-for-you food category with its latest acquisition, and Azelis acquired Smoky Light. Meanwhile, Irish food and drink exports reached a record high of €16.7 billion despite a challenging year.

In brief: Acquisitions
Azelis has acquired Smoky Light, an established distributor in the Benelux smoke ingredients market. The acquisition reinforces Azelis’ position in the Benelux market and expands its footprint in the smoke ingredient market in EMEA. Smoky Light’s portfolio of products strategically complements the group’s lateral value chain for the food and nutrition market, further expanding its expertise and product offering to customers.

Hometown Food Company, home to a portfolio of US baking brands, has completed the acquisition of Birch Benders from Sovos Brands, a public company listed on the NASDAQ exchange. The terms of Barry Callebaut opened its Asia Pacific Business Excellence Center in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.the transaction have not been disclosed. Birch Benders offers an expansive portfolio of keto, paleo and organic options sold at US grocery retailers and through e-commerce channels.

In brief: Business moves
Barry Callebaut opened its Asia Pacific Business Excellence Center in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. The center will support the company’s financial and accounting services, information management and technology, customer service, and other corporate and shared service functions. 

ICL, a global specialty minerals company, will become the strategic specialty phosphate solutions supplier to General Mills. The long-term agreement will begin in June and will initially be focused on supply in North America, with the potential for international expansion.

Gadot Biochemical Industries is expanding its value proposition for 2023 to respond to the increased interest in targeted nutraceuticals, food, beverages, and sports nutrition health products. The company has a portfolio of minerals with expertise in applications, including food, beverages, nutraceuticals, sports nutrition, baby food, pharmaceuticals, and animal nutrition. Ingredients include magnesium citrate, gluconate, phosphate and bisglycinate, zinc citrate, gluconate and phosphate, calcium citrate and phosphate, potassium citrate and sodium citrate.

In brief: Packaging
KitKat is introducing recyclable paper packaging as a pilot test for the brand. The recyclable paper packaging will be available for a limited time for its four-finger bar in Australia, across Western Australia, South Australia and Northern Territory. Nestlé will produce more than a quarter of a million KitKat bars wrapped in paper in an exclusive partnership with Coles, a local retailer. The pack has a QR code that people can scan to give feedback on the new paper packaging. 

Waitrose will move small wine formats to aluminum cans as part of the UK retailer’s aim to reduce its carbon footprint.

In brief: Recognition
IFF has qualified for the third consecutive year as a constituent of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices , a family of benchmarks widely regarded as one of the world’s leading tools for investors to integrate sustainability considerations into their portfolios to increase long-term shareholder value. KitKat is introducing recyclable paper packaging as a pilot test for the brand.

In brief: Plant-based highlights
Redefine Meat has announced the Dutch commercial launch of its latest New-Meat innovations: Redefine Pulled Beef and Pulled Pork and Redefine Bratwurst. The announcement follows the company’s first-ever commercial launch of New-Meat Premium Cuts endorsed by hundreds of European restaurants, including Michelin-starred.

Schouten Europe has unveiled a plant-based fish filet in line with the rising interest in plant-based fish alternatives. Schouten’s plant-based fish filet weighs 120 grams and is created based on wheat and rice.

Colombian B4B chocolate manufacturer, Luker Chocolate, has launched its Choco Oat M!lk 43% No Added Sugar couverture. The new low sugar plant-based chocolate couverture is the newest creation in Luker’s signature Balance line, offering a vegan-friendly and gluten-free option for brands looking to experiment with better-for-you alternatives. Choco Oat M!lk 43% uses a blend of erythritol and stevia as low-calorie sweetener alternatives to refined sugar. Using other high quality ingredients, the couverture maintains Luker’s signature oat milk chocolate cereal and nutty flavor, with a smooth and creamy texture.  

A new app Smart-5-a-Day has been developed to help people reach the recommended target of eating five portions of fruits and vegetables daily. This product tells users whether they are eating the right portion sizes and foods to meet the recommendations in the UK. Previous studies from Bournemouth University found that while most adults in the UK are aware of the five-a-day message, their understanding of how to get to it is low. 

In brief: Miscellaneous 
A new action plan to protect plants from pests and diseases has been published by Defra in partnership with the Forestry Commission and the Scottish and Welsh Governments. The Plant Biosecurity Strategy for Great Britain sets out a five-year vision for plant health, consisting of an action plan to secure national biosecurity, protect native species and drive economic growth. It positions the UK as a global leader in plant biosecurity, which will safeguard food security and help mitigate the effects of climate change. 

Ireland’s food, drink and horticulture exports increased by 22% last year to reach a new record high of €16.7 billion (US$17.9 billion). This increase in food and drink exports, up €3 billion (US$3.2 billion) since 2021 and almost 30% on pre-pandemic levels, can be attributed to both increasing unit prices due to inflation and rising input and operational costs and an increase in the volume of goods exported. The volume of exports for sectors such as Irish beef and dairy increased in 2022, while prepared consumer foods (PCF) and drinks achieved new milestones in the value of their respective exports. Value-added meat and seafood exports, captured under PCF, reached over €1 billion (US$1.07 billion) in 2022.

By Elizabeth Green