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Archive for the ‘Technology’ Category

Tasty Tidbits

Monday, April 2nd, 2012

  • Israeli researchers claim a new paper[1] coated with antimicrobial colloidal silver nanoparticles may help combat or even eliminate pathogens such as E. coli in food packaging.
  • OK, food geeks, who already knew that the worldwide wheat crop for 2011 was estimated to be 670MM tons, up from an estimated 647MM tons in 2010-11?[2]
  • Chick-fil-A has become the focus of gay rights protests and blog assaults after an operator in Pennsylvania supplied food to a local group (Pennsylvania Family Institute) working to defeat gay marriage initiatives. CEO Dan Truett has been forced to defend his company and its ardently Christian business ethos, saying it would not take sides in political issues.
  • U.S. women purchase 3.4 prepared food items in a typical shopping trip, down from 3.7 in 2008.[3] Over four fifths of them (86%) are preparing meals at home (note, it doesn’t say “cooking”), with 77% juicing the flavor by adding spices to old favorites. Finally, they’ll pay up to 27% more for an organic product.

[1] Source: “Coating of Paper by Microbiocidal Silver Nanoparticles,” by Ronen Gottesman, Sourabh Shukla, Nina Perkas, Leonid A. Solovyov, Yeshayahu Nitzan, and Aharon Gedanken. Published in Langmuir.

[2] Source: the London-based International Grains Council.

[3] Source: “2010 Food Factor” survey by Better Homes and Gardens.

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Marketing, Technology & Tasty Tidbits!

Monday, April 4th, 2011
  • Non-food’s bad news isn’t holding back discount food retailers like Aldi. The limited-assortment grocer has opened 11 of 27 stores planned for the North Texas market in support of an aggressive expansion plan for the US. Aldi’s point of differentiation is low prices, fewer SKUs than traditional grocers, and they accept no coupons, checks, nor credit cards.
  • No surprise: Canadian retailers are following the example of their American counterparts by shedding branded products to open up shelves for private label offerings. The reasons are the same: better gross margins, and the hope of offering exclusive products.
  • According to a new survey, British consumers are spending on average £63 ($104) on prepared foods annually, up 14% since this time last year[1] with women buying 10% more than men. The leading consumers are the Scots (£74.39).
  • Retail technology spending is expected grow to $21bn by 2014 from $14.8bn in 2009.[2]
  • A California judge has refused to issue a temporary injunction against planting Roundup Ready GM sugar beets seeds from Monsanto in a suit brought by the Center for Food Safety and others.[3] A decision on whether to permanently enjoin the GM plantings will come this Summer. More 95% of all U.S. sugar beets come from the seeds, which are largely immune to the herbicide Roundup, thereby allowing its use in controlling weeds.
  • SUPERVALU has unloaded the Payson Store Fixtures unit it acquired in 2006 to DGS Retail. Payson makes store marketing and decorative fixtures for retailers.
  • New Mexico now allows concealed weapons in restaurants, but forbid those carrying them from consuming alcohol.
  • E&J Gallo claims it was duped by Red Bicyclette, the French company charged with selling the wine giant phony Pinot Noir (which American consumers couldn’t detect). Now it is being sued by a California man for fraud and false advertising.
  • And in the “you’ve GOT to be kidding” category, pickle juice is a popular chaser at New York City bars.
  • Inner city residents have fewer food shopping choices, so the Baltimore Health Dept. is pushing a program where those without cars or a neighborhood supermarket can order groceries online through their library.
[1] Source: mySupermarket.co.uk.

[2] Source: ABI Research’s “Next Generation Point of Sale Systems and Retail Technology.”

[3] The suit was filed in 2008 by the Center for Food Safety, Organic Seed Alliance, Sierra Club and High Mowing Organic Seeds against then U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Edward T. Schafer and Administrator of the U.S.D.A.’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Cindy Smith. Its purpose was to block all production and use of genetically engineered sugar beet seeds and sugar beets grown from the seeds.


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Technology News

Tuesday, March 22nd, 2011
  • A new sterilization processing using microwave energy that both extends shelf life and retains nutrients, taste and texture has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) .[1] Approved for processing mashed potatoes, the technology could significantly lengthen shelf life for food, and has applications to the military, space travel, and of course, commercial food manufacture. The process is restricted to low-acid foods, and works when food is immersed in hot water while simultaneously being heated with microwaves at a frequency of 915 MHz (a frequency with more penetrating power than the 2450 MHz in home microwave ovens). Pathogens and microorganisms which cause spoilage are killed within 5-8 minutes. Kraft Foods, Hormel, Ocean Beauty Seafoods, Rexam Containers, and Graphic Packaging are all investing in the process. The process grew out of research into finding a chemical marker for identifying a food’s “cold spot” to ensure it had been heated to the requisite 250°F – 270°F for sterilization.
  • While fluorescent lighting degrades the taste of milk, it apparently boosts levels of vitamins C, K, E and folate in spinach, along with the antioxidants carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin. The improvement was 80-100% over a period of nine days when the spinach was stored in the clear plastic selling containers typically found in supermarkets.[2]

[1] The new technology was developed by Washington State University professor Juming Tang.

[2] Source: USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS).

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