Weekly Roundup: Food safety standards enhanced by WHO, Darling Ingredients plans to acquire Valley Proteins for US$1.1 BN

07 Jan 2022 --- This week in industry news, the World Health Organization (WHO) launched a Food Safety Community of Practice (COP) for food safety professionals, meat alternative brand Quorn launches a campaign to encourage consumers to go meatless, Marks & Spencer sets up a challenge for customers to try a low carbon diet and Darling Ingredients is set to acquire Valley Proteins.

In brief: Business moves
WHO unveils a new Food Safety Community of Practice (COP), a peer-to-peer online forum for professionals working on food safety issues. The COP’s goal is to expand learning potential, share diverse experiences and knowledge, encourage an understanding of new perspectives and stimulate individual and collective learning.  

Nisun International Enterprise Development Group has signed a cooperative supply chain agreement with Henan Huangchuan Biandijin Agri-Food to provide procurement services for grain and oil products such as rice, millet, mung bean, sesame and flour to Biandijin, a grain processing enterprise which caters to grocery chains in the Henan province and domestic enterprises such as Sanquan Food and Synear Food.

In brief: Sustainability effortsNisun International Enterprise Development Group will procure services for grain and oil products such as rice. 
UK meat alternatives brand Quorn has launched a new television campaign encouraging consumers to swap out meat for its vegetarian products; garlic, herb and creamy korma nuggets, sweet chili and jerk mini filets and southern fried wings.

Marks & Spencer (M&S) has launched its Sparking Change National Challenge encouraging consumers to try a lower carbon diet, save money and contribute to a healthier environment. As part of the two-month challenge, customers will have access to recipes, practical tips and a Sparks Live cook-along event hosted by M&S chef, Chris Baber.

Kentucky Fried Chicken and Beyond Meat have partnered to create the plant-based Beyond Fried Chicken. KFC restaurants across the US will offer Beyond Fried Chicken for a limited time starting January 10. The plant-based Beyond Fried Chicken was developed by Beyond Meat exclusively for KFC. 

Danone North America and Cold Stone Creamery have developed a plant-based frozen dessert, “Silk Chocolate” almond milk frozen dessert. The dessert is dairy-free, vegan and non-GMO. “Don't Cry Over Spilled Silk”, a creamy combination of “Silk Chocolate”, banana, peanut butter and roasted almonds have also been added to the menu.

In brief: Acquisitions
Darling Ingredients has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Valley Proteins to the value of US$1.1 billion. Valley Proteins operates 18 major rendering and used cooking oil facilities throughout the southern, southeast and mid-Atlantic regions of the US. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions including the expiration of the Hart-Scott-Rodino waiting period.

Prodalim Group will acquire Rauner Fruchtsäfte-Konzentrate e.K. from its CEO, Jürgen Schwenk. Based in Neuhausen, Germany, Rauner Fruchtsäfte-Konzentrate e.K. produces red fruit juices and concentrates. The company has operated for over 45 years.

In brief: Appointments & retirements
FoodDrinkEurope has appointed Dirk Jacobs as its new director general. He takes over from Mella Frewen, who stepped down after 15 years. Jacobs will guide the organization in its mission to deliver more sustainable food systems. Dutch national Jacobs has been with FoodDrinkEurope since 2010. He has served as deputy director general for the past eight years and headed the department for consumer information, nutrition and health topics. 

In brief: Other highlights
Wageningen Bioveterinary Research (WBVR) has confirmed another outbreak of bird flu in the Netherlands. H5 avian influenza was found in broilers at a poultry farm in Blija. To prevent the virus from spreading, the Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) culled 177,000 animals at the site. A further 45,000 animals from a neighboring poultry farm, within a 100 meters of the main infection site, have been culled.

By Inga de Jong

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