beef
Waitrose sets up own frozen meat facility
UK supermarket chain Waitrose has announced that it is to build its own facility to produce a range of frozen meat products. The new unit is planned to be operational within the next three months and will be based at Dovecote Park’s facility in Yorkshire. Dovecote Park has been exclusively supplying Waitrose with fresh beef […]
FSA orders tests on UK beef products
Food retailers are to carry out tests on all processed beef products after some Findus lasagnes were found to contain 100% horsemeat. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) ordered the UK tests, saying it was ‘highly likely’ criminal activity was to blame for the contamination. It said there was no evidence of a health risk, but […]
Legal threat over horsemeat burger scandal
The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) is reportedly considering whether legal action should be taken against companies at the centre of the scandal over horsemeat found in beef burgers. The FSA has said it will consult with relevant local authorities before making a decision about possible further action. It also said it would try to […]
Tasty scheme to attract new industry talent
The National Skills Academy for Food & Drink has named the first firms to step forward to support a groundbreaking new recruitment initiative designed to help food and drink manufacturing firms attract more local employees, and get more young people into the industry. Meat producer McIntosh Donald, Scottish beef processing company AK Stoddart and chilled […]
Food company’s Polish preparations for future growth
OSI Food Solutions Poland has unveiled a new £20 million (€25m) production facility. The new building, in Ostroda, Poland, will house a state-of-the-art beef processing plant, replacing an older existing facility in the area. It will also help safeguard the roles of its 93 employees, says the firm. “It makes perfect sense to keep the […]
Food and drink exports soar by 11 per cent
Food and non-alcoholic drink exports rose to over £12 billion (€14bn) last year, according to new figures. The previous year’s results (2010) proved a landmark for the industry when figures broke through the £10 billion (€12bn) barrier, but the 2011 results show performance is up by 11.4 per cent on 2010. Export growth has been […]
Green light for new labelling rules
MEPs have voted in favour of new rules on food labelling in a bid, they say, to help consumers make better informed, healthier choices. Labels will now have to spell out a food’s energy content as well as fat, saturated fat, carbohydrate, sugar, protein and salt levels, in a way that makes them easy for […]
Alpaca snack hits US
A new snack made from alpaca meat has been declared ‘innovation of the week’ by Datamonitor’s Product Launch Analytics. The manufacturer of La Pacos Alpaca Jerky, which has just hit supermarket shelves in the US, claim that the product is healthier than traditional beef jerky as alpaca meat is leaner. “Alpaca meat is an unusual […]
Collapse of cloned meat and milk talks
Milk and meat from the offspring of cloned animals could soon hit supermarket shelves after attempt to impose controls through EU regulation failed. Campaigners for new controls were defeated after talks between the 27 EU states and the European Parliament failed to agree a law to manage the industry. The failure to toughen legislation means […]
Fat or fiction?
Around six out of 10 people believe lean cuts of red meat contain more than 20% fat, even though the true level is less than half that amount, according to new research. Two-thirds of more than 2,000 people questioned also think chicken has less fat than steak, despite this not always being the case. Meatmatters, […]
Sainsbury’s in packaging rap
Sainsbury’s is being taken to court for using excessive wrapping in a move that could open the door to a wave of similar charges being brought throughout the UK. The store is the first supermarket to face official action over wasteful packaging, with the charge relating to its Taste the Difference Slow Matured Ultimate Beef. […]
Northern Foods sells Dalepak
Northern Foods has sold its Dalepak grills and burgers division in order to concentrate on other brands such as Fox’s biscuits and Goodfella’s pizza. Irish Food Processors is paying £6.4m (€7.7m) for Dalepak, which is based in Northallerton, North Yorkshire. Dalepak products include Chinese Style Ribsteaks, Vegetable Fajita Fingers and Ross Beef Tender Grillsteaks. Northern […]
Cloned beef enters UK food chain
Following reports that products from the offspring of cloned cows have entered the UK food chain, the Food Standards Agency has moved to reassure worried consumers by saying there is no evidence that consuming products from healthy clones, or their offspring, poses a food safety risk. However, as they are considered novel foods, they need […]
BRC doesn’t mince words
A study claiming that the fat content labels used on minced beef can be inaccurate, has been condemned as misleading by the British Retail Consortium (BRC). The study by the Local Government Group revealed that beef mince labelled as ‘lean’ or ‘extra lean’ could contain more fat than standard mince. However, the BRC says that […]