The UK's number two supermarket Asda will spend £17 million
(€24.3m) on reducing the prices of its healthy food range in a
major initiative to promote consumer health.
Health-related quality of life, or functioning, begins to decline
as soon as a child is above average weight, say researchers, but
the effects may not be obvious to parents.
Health remains one of the top 10 consumer 'mega-trends' dictating
the success of new product launches this year, say market analysts
Datamonitor, which claims that almost three-quarters of Europeans
are now more concerned...
More than 50 countries around the world are still iodine-deficient,
according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), which is calling
for strengthened salt iodisation programmes.
The emphasis on health and nutrition in the face of the rising tide
of obesity has caused foods produced for children to come to a
standstill this year, according to Productscan, reports Philippa
Nuttall.
The rapid decline in the use of HRT, along with a general lack of
nationalised screening programmes and an ageing population, may
lead to a significant increase in the prevalence of osteoporosis,
according to a new report.
Functional foods are often designed to help counter age-related
disease but many food companies are failing to reach the consumers
most concerned by these diseases, writes Dominique Patton.
Healthy foods targeted at children may be coming up against a
critical barrier to sales - most parents fail to recognise obesity
and overweight problems in their children, according to a study out
tomorrow.
Approximately one third of consumers are now aware of the glycaemic
index but most do not understand the concept sufficiently to be
able to interpret on-pack labelling, finds a new survey.
Highly obese women are 12 times more likely to have diabetes or
knee replacement surgery, and five times more likely to have high
blood pressure than women who are at a normal weight, shows a new
study that reveals the extent of risk...
Drinks companies are increasingly pushing bottled waters at the
body-conscious consumer, taking advantage of water's established
health position and shifting attitudes towards healthier
lifestyles.
The European Commission will this week host a major conference on
the challenges for diabetes research, in a bid to raise political,
academic and industrial awareness of the disease.
Food makers are encouraged to target the light meal market as new
figures show that by 2008 consumers will be eating more than one a
day of these full meal replacers, driven by convenience and health
concerns.
Future growth in the OTC sector will come from new
condition-specific products targeting older consumers, including
vitamins and supplements like probiotics, forecasts market research
firm Euromonitor.
A change in attitudes to dairy products is helping to turn around
sales in Australia, according to a survey by the country's dairy
industry association.
The international community has congratulated sub-Saharan Africa on
its progress in reducing vitamin deficiency but says almost no
action has been taken to fight iron deficiency.
Teenagers frequently opt for healthier drinks if given a choice,
claims the UK's food watchdog, after testing the response to
vending machines that offer fruit juices and milk in British
schools.
Europeans are still not sufficiently aware of the risks of
unhealthy eating, according to a new consumer survey presented at
an industry conference last week.
More than half the people tested in a UK-wide pharmacy initiative
were found to be at risk of high blood pressure, which can lead to
heart disease. This underlines the WHO's call last week for
consumers to take preventative steps...
Dietary supplements have suddenly become a hot topic in the UK,
where consumers spend £300m on them every year- the Science Museum,
London will open up the debate on September 30, when it invites
experts and amateurs to air their...
The UN-backed health body today calls for consumers to use
prevention as a tool in the battle against heart disease, a move
that underlines opportunities for food and beverage makers
formulating products for heart health.
Clarity and convenience are what the dieting British public wants
from food companies if a new survey by Mintel is anything to go by,
which highlighted "confusion" as the greatest barrier to market
growth for low-carb products.
Health experts said at a news briefing last week in London that a
quarter of Britons may suffer from a winter deficiency of vitamin D
and that supplementation and further fortification of foods may be
the answer.
The European Commission is funding a project to find out how food
labelling and advertising policies could be used to stem the rapid
rise of obesity in many member states.
Functional bakery products trail behind beverages and dairy in
terms of the global functional food market but in one European
market - Germany - functional bread is showing good growth,
according to market analysts Euromonitor.
Almost all innovation in the UK's food industry is being driven by
the three key themes, according to a new report, with those meeting
criteria for all three likely to score the biggest hit in the
marketplace.
The outbreak of SARS in China caused rapid growth in vitamin sales
and despite a slowing of demand this year, it may have a lasting
impact on the industry.
Changing economic conditions in eastern Europe are boosting sales
and demand for vitamins and dietary supplements, offering major
opportunity for foreign entrants to the market and suppliers of
novel ingredients.
The land that gave birth to a small bottle of probiotic drink over
50 years ago has never looked back as far as functional foods are
concerned. A new report claims that the Japanese functional food
market is racing ahead of its western...
France may have a reputation as a nation able to retain its shape
despite consuming copious amounts of foie gras and cheese, but a
recent report suggests even the French are turning to diet products
and supplements in an attempt to...
Yoghurts and spreads still account for the majority of the UK's
functional foods market, shows new research, and this is reflected
in advertising spend.
Married women are much more likely to be on a diet than their
single counterparts, shows a new study, contradicting current
economic theories on dieting. It also confirms the massive increase
in the number of men on a diet.
Marketers of health foods will be encouraged by a new report that
shows Britain's tastebuds are increasingly favourable to fruit, now
the number one snack.
The French are among the most frequent breakfasters in Europe,
according to a recent study - but traditional tastes are changing
rapidly with cereals beginning to take considerable market share
from the less trendy crackers and biscuits....
An expanded EU raises new questions for food makers targeting the
prevention of diet-related disease, according to an epidemiologist
speaking at last week's 'Thinking about tomorrow' conference in
Ireland.
Dairy firm Fonterra and vitamin maker BASF are funding research to
create high-tech vending machines that can customise foods to an
individual's dietary requirements.
Japan's elderly population is getting even older, reveals a new
government report that shows the number of people living over the
age of 100 has doubled in the last five years.
Three British food industry bodies have joined forces to promote a
new diet which they hope will prove just as popular as the low-carb
Atkins fad currently sweeping the nation - and which will, they
hope, get consumers eating carbohydrate-rich...
An energy drink developed by chemicals firm DSM is set to gain
further exposure prior to a commercial launch with use by the Dutch
national football team during Euro 2004.
Diet changes alone will not combat the increasing rate of obesity
among children, according to a UK researcher, who instead puts the
blame on lack of exercise.
The seventh Vitafoods tradeshow upheld its reputation as Europe's
major trading arena in health ingredients but also brought into
focus the future impact of a wave of European regulation on the
functional foods and supplements...
Plant extract suppliers are developing new technologies to
sterilise herbs to help customers avoid increasing scrutiny of
solvent use and meet higher demands for product quality.
Israeli nutraceutical firm Enzymotec has developed a prototype
nutrition bar containing its nutritional oil, designed to target
the growing diabetics market.
A new ingredient, said to contain more than 60 trace minerals, is
being billed as the next joint health supplement and is set for
launch on the European marketplace next month.
France's population of over-50s are getting wealthier and becoming
more inclined to spend lavishly on themselves, shows a new report.
This makes them an attractive market for consumer packaged goods
manufacturers, including those...
Sister site NutraIngredients.com has received a finalist's award in
the best publication category of the UK's business food and drink
journalist awards.
Lowering the glycemic impact of food products could be one of
thebiggest steps the industry can take to improve public health,
according to speakers at a recent seminar in the UK.
Coca producers in Peru are creating a new application for the plant
in energy drinks and health foods, steering their industry away
from the drugs trade, according to a report.
