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ANIMAL WELFARE
Disney Says No To Shark Fins In HK
Disney will not serve shark-fin soup at its new theme park in Hong Kong, which opens next month. The US entertainment giant had planned to offer the dish at events such as wedding banquets in keeping with Chinese customs. But Disney was caught in cultural cross-fire between East and West. Environmentalists said shark numbers had dropped because of mass harvesting of fins for the soup. They said it was cruel to hack off the gelatinous cartilage and throw sharks into the sea to die. Disney tried to find environmentally sustainable supplies of shark fins but failed.
The controversy was all the more ironic as its recent Finding Nemo cartoon featured a shark that was trying to give up eating fish.
INGREDIENTS
Soya Beans May Sabotage Sperm
Woman should not eat lots of soy if they’re trying to have a baby, a fertility scientist says. Research by Professor Lynn Fraser of King’s College London suggests even small doses of genistein—found in soya beans and legumes—can ‘burn out’ human sperm when inside a woman’s body. ‘With soya in the diet and exposure to other compounds coming from plastics etc, we need to investigate their possible effects on the fertility of human sperm as quickly as possible,’ Prof Fraser said.
Industry Updates
GELITA IS NEW NAME FOR DGF STOESS
The German gelatine-maker DGF Stoess has renamed itself after its most popular product. The firm is now called Gelita. The name change completes a revamp of its corporate identity that started in 2002. The company has been making Gelita for 70 years.
HUP SENG LOOKS FOR ACQUISITIONS
The Malaysian biscuit firm Hup Seng Industries wants to buy food-related businesses with local and international potential, according to the Star. The newspaper quoted the chairman, Keh Chu Koh as saying the company would look at beverage and non-biscuit firms.
URSCHEL TEST LAB DOUBLES IN SIZE
Food-cutting equipment maker Urschel Laboratories is doubling the size of its Product Test Cutting Facility at its headquarters in Indiana in the US. Urschel says the 1,500 square metre extension will help meet the increasing demand from customers to try its products.
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Kemin Helps World Food Programme
The nutritional ingredients firm Kemin has volunteered to help the United Nations improve the safety of food distributed by the World Food Programme (WFP) in crisis-hit areas. Kemin will help train WFP staff in the field on managing stocks, transportation of food and shelf-life issues. ‘The training will include some of the specifics of how foods change after preparation and how even raw agricultural commodities change over storage,’ Chris Nelson, chief executive of Kemin Health, told Asia Food Journal. ‘It will also include various ways to manage these foods to provide maximum freshness to those receiving WFP aid,’ Mr Nelson said. Kemin will also develop programmes to check the aid agency’s food for safety against spoilage, bacteria contamination and loss of vital nutrients.
INVESTMENT
Islamic Blow For Nestlé
Nestlé has lost its place in a list of the biggest firms in the world that are suitable for Muslims to buy shares in.
The food giant was dropped last month from the Dow Jones Islamic Market Titans 100 index for financial reasons.
The index helps Muslim investors to avoid companies that don’t do business in accordance with shariah principles—such as charging interest. Firms are excluded if they are in alcohol, tobacco, pork-related products, financial services or entertainment. A board of Muslim clerics advise Dow Jones on what is acceptable. The compilers recently tightened the index’s rules on giving and receiving credit and it’s thought this is why Nestlé was dropped. It may be embarrassing for Nestlé, which has a good reputation for producing halal food.
RESTRUCTURING
Amoy In Asia Is For Sale
Groupe Danone says its Amoy sauce business in Asia is for sale. The firm last month agreed to sell its UK and US sauce operations to the US firm, H J Heinz in a deal worth US$850 million. Heinz acquired a licence to sell Amoy brands but not the trademark. Danone says it is concentrating on market segments in which it’s a market leader.
CAREER MOVE
Purac Promotes Zuidhoff
Purac Asia-Pacific has appointed Haiko Zuidhoff as managing director, based in Singapore. Mr Zuidhoff has been Purac’s regional sales manager in Bangkok and Singapore for the past seven years.
Disney Says No To Shark Fins In HK
Disney will not serve shark-fin soup at its new theme park in Hong Kong, which opens next month. The US entertainment giant had planned to offer the dish at events such as wedding banquets in keeping with Chinese customs. But Disney was caught in cultural cross-fire between East and West. Environmentalists said shark numbers had dropped because of mass harvesting of fins for the soup. They said it was cruel to hack off the gelatinous cartilage and throw sharks into the sea to die. Disney tried to find environmentally sustainable supplies of shark fins but failed.
The controversy was all the more ironic as its recent Finding Nemo cartoon featured a shark that was trying to give up eating fish.
INGREDIENTS
Soya Beans May Sabotage Sperm
Woman should not eat lots of soy if they’re trying to have a baby, a fertility scientist says. Research by Professor Lynn Fraser of King’s College London suggests even small doses of genistein—found in soya beans and legumes—can ‘burn out’ human sperm when inside a woman’s body. ‘With soya in the diet and exposure to other compounds coming from plastics etc, we need to investigate their possible effects on the fertility of human sperm as quickly as possible,’ Prof Fraser said.
Industry Updates
GELITA IS NEW NAME FOR DGF STOESS
The German gelatine-maker DGF Stoess has renamed itself after its most popular product. The firm is now called Gelita. The name change completes a revamp of its corporate identity that started in 2002. The company has been making Gelita for 70 years.
HUP SENG LOOKS FOR ACQUISITIONS
The Malaysian biscuit firm Hup Seng Industries wants to buy food-related businesses with local and international potential, according to the Star. The newspaper quoted the chairman, Keh Chu Koh as saying the company would look at beverage and non-biscuit firms.
URSCHEL TEST LAB DOUBLES IN SIZE
Food-cutting equipment maker Urschel Laboratories is doubling the size of its Product Test Cutting Facility at its headquarters in Indiana in the US. Urschel says the 1,500 square metre extension will help meet the increasing demand from customers to try its products.
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Kemin Helps World Food Programme
The nutritional ingredients firm Kemin has volunteered to help the United Nations improve the safety of food distributed by the World Food Programme (WFP) in crisis-hit areas. Kemin will help train WFP staff in the field on managing stocks, transportation of food and shelf-life issues. ‘The training will include some of the specifics of how foods change after preparation and how even raw agricultural commodities change over storage,’ Chris Nelson, chief executive of Kemin Health, told Asia Food Journal. ‘It will also include various ways to manage these foods to provide maximum freshness to those receiving WFP aid,’ Mr Nelson said. Kemin will also develop programmes to check the aid agency’s food for safety against spoilage, bacteria contamination and loss of vital nutrients.
INVESTMENT
Islamic Blow For Nestlé
Nestlé has lost its place in a list of the biggest firms in the world that are suitable for Muslims to buy shares in.
The food giant was dropped last month from the Dow Jones Islamic Market Titans 100 index for financial reasons.
The index helps Muslim investors to avoid companies that don’t do business in accordance with shariah principles—such as charging interest. Firms are excluded if they are in alcohol, tobacco, pork-related products, financial services or entertainment. A board of Muslim clerics advise Dow Jones on what is acceptable. The compilers recently tightened the index’s rules on giving and receiving credit and it’s thought this is why Nestlé was dropped. It may be embarrassing for Nestlé, which has a good reputation for producing halal food.
RESTRUCTURING
Amoy In Asia Is For Sale
Groupe Danone says its Amoy sauce business in Asia is for sale. The firm last month agreed to sell its UK and US sauce operations to the US firm, H J Heinz in a deal worth US$850 million. Heinz acquired a licence to sell Amoy brands but not the trademark. Danone says it is concentrating on market segments in which it’s a market leader.
CAREER MOVE
Purac Promotes ZuidhoffPurac Asia-Pacific has appointed Haiko Zuidhoff as managing director, based in Singapore. Mr Zuidhoff has been Purac’s regional sales manager in Bangkok and Singapore for the past seven years.
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