Food Processing

19/07/2024

Sugar Foods Corporation, which produces crunchy toppings, croutons, beverage ingredients, pizza toppings and more retail, grocery foodservice and restaurant brands, has promoted Andrea Brule to the role of president and CEO, from her current position as president of Sugar Foods.

Twenty-year veteran of the company becomes only the fourth CEO in Sugar Foods’ 80-year history.

18/07/2024

Mount Pleasant, Texas-based Mid America Pet Food has announced that Jeff Caswell will be its new CEO, and interim CEO Mark Schiller will transition to the company’s board of directors. Mid America manufactures VICTOR Super Premium Pet Food, Nature's Logic 100% Natural Pet Food, Eagle Mountain Pet Food and Wayne Feeds.

Jeff Caswell, who led Sabrosura Foods the past three years and has extensive CPG experience, will take the reins of the East Texas pet food processor.

17/07/2024

Food and beverage processors are constantly on the lookout for a competitive edge that will help their products stand out amongst the crowd. Often, those companies look to new varieties, flavors and functionalities for their products, swapping out ingredients or introducing new formulations devised by their product development teams.

However, as Todd Baker, vice president of innovation and tech services for Horizon Systems, explains, it cannot be taken for granted that the introduction of new ingredients into any facility will allow for “business as usual.” Processors need to prepare accordingly to avoid delays and disappointment when processing facilities get the new formulations.

Listen to the new episode of Food For Thought with the link below or on your favorite Podcast streaming service!

https://www.foodprocessing.com/industry-perspective/podcast/55126396/introducing-any-new-ingredient-requires-proper-evaluation-of-handling-properties

17/07/2024

Kraft Heinz has named Todd Kaplan, a former PepsiCo marketing exec, as its new chief marketing officer of North America. Kaplan will help lead marketing across the company’s $22 billion North American food and beverage portfolio.

Todd Kaplan will bring extensive experience and success with the global beverage giant to more than 50 Kraft Heinz brands in North America.

16/07/2024

Custom poultry processor Jarrett Foods announced its newly renovated and expanded processing facility at its headquarters has begun operations.

Georgia facility was renovated and expanded to help company deliver wide variety of further-processed chicken products.

12/07/2024

The family of a Massachusetts teenager who died after eating a Paqui One Chip Challenge product in September 2023 has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Hershey, Walgreens and others.

Harris Wolobah, 14, of Worcester, Mass., died in September 2023 shortly after eating the extremely spicy chip.

11/07/2024

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) sent a scathing warning letter to Quaker Oats parent company PepsiCo Inc. this week, blasting the company’s lax food safety and sanitation response after a massive recall of numerous varieties of Quaker granola bars and cereals produced out of its now-shuttered Danville, Illinois, processing facility, where Salmonella may have been present in the processing environment for the past four years.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration, PepsiCo

Based on its investigation and the plant’s food safety records, FDA says the same strain of pathogenic Salmonella may have been present in the processing environment since at ...

11/07/2024

How important is employee wellness to your company? Maybe you have support from above to take care of your team members’ physical health, or maybe their mental and emotional needs. What about their digital wellness?

In the newest episode, Bethany Baker, Wellness Director for Natalie's Orchid Island Juice Company, joins the Food For Thought podcast to talk about how the beverage company has put an even greater emphasis on all-around wellness in the last year, committing to initiatives that help employees relieve the tension and stress both in and out of work, in order to be more efficient and improve their work-life balance and personal care.

Listen with the link below or on your favorite podcast streaming service!



https://www.foodprocessing.com/podcasts/podcast/55125256/how-natalies-orchid-island-juice-co-has-committed-to-employee-wellness?cmsUserBearerToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJqdGkiOiIwNDg2MmE5OC0zZWFkLTU2YjQtODQ5My0zNDFkNmU0NTkxNWMiLCJleHAiOjE3MjA5NzA2MTEsImlhdCI6MTcyMDcxMTQxMSwiYXVkIjoiNjY0MjdlNmFjYjFiYmQ0OTY2NmYwY2UxIn0.g20TGBzMozChXg-X83HVcv5K5rnwjyFRhHEDIX8Rg44&cmsUserBearerTokenExpiration=1720970611000&cmsUserRefreshToken=$2b$05$2WI0lg3ACZ4cphlkpCw6R.aC4VtmBhSiWFIDNI8CHENgHe8Qi5W66

10/07/2024

Chobani is putting those aseptic milk carton fillers to a humanitarian use, making shelf-stable dairy milk for people around the world impacted by disasters, as well as the most vulnerable in Chobani's hometowns -- in central New York and southern Idaho.

Not intended as a retail product, the nourishing milk is aimed at natural disasters around the globe, the Red Cross and local food banks.

10/07/2024

Tyson Foods has agreed to sell its Vienna, Georgia, poultry complex to House of Raeford Farms. This is the latest move by Tyson to continue to optimize its operations network across its business units.

The sale is part of Tyson’s continued efforts to optimize its processing network across its business units.

09/07/2024

Chicago’s Ferrara Candy Co. will close the Jelly Belly plant in North Chicago in October, possibly laying off 66 employees. Ferrara and its Italian parent Ferrero bought the fabled, family-owned Jelly Belly Candy Company last November for an undisclosed sum.

The October closing may idle 66 employees, although Ferrara has five Chicago-area plants.

08/07/2024

A dairy farm worker in northeast Colorado is the fourth confirmed case of avian influenza (bird flu) in humans in the U.S. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment publicized the finding July 3, although he apparently contracted the disease in late June.

He had mild bird flu symptoms and has already recovered; three of the four human victims were in different states.

08/07/2024

Charlotte, North Carolina-based snack manufacturer Truly Good Foods has promoted Eric Leonard to the company’s new chief strategy officer role.

CFO Eric Leonard will move into newly created role, through which he will steer the company toward its growth and innovation initiatives.

03/07/2024

Protein snack processor Stryve Foods Inc.’s board of directors has elected former Frito-Lay executive Kevin Vivian to be its new chairman of the board, effective immediately.

Kevin Vivian will be expected to guide the protein snacks processor toward profitability in its latest phase of growth.

03/07/2024

After warning for months it was about to do so, the FDA officially revoked the regulation authorizing the use of brominated vegetable oil (BVO) in food.

BVO, an additive to keep citrus flavor from separating, will be banned next year after studies conducted with the National Institutes of Health found the potential for adverse...

02/07/2024

The American pharmaceutical/biotech firm, Moderna, has been awarded $176 million by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the FDA’s parent, to accelerate the development of mRNA-based avian influenza vaccines for humans.

As bird flu continues to spread to other farm animals and even humans, the pharmaceutical giant has been developing a vaccine for a year; this Health and Human Services contract...

02/07/2024

Smithfield Foods has announced it will shut down its ham boning facility in Altoona, Iowa, moving production to other locations in an attempt to improve its operational efficiency. The closure will impact 314 employees, to whom the pork processor will provide transition assistance.

Ham boning operation will move to other facilities in Smithfield’s network, in an effort to increase operational efficiency.

01/07/2024

Cultivated meat developer UPSIDE Foods held a cultivated chicken tasting party last week in Miami, just before today’s (July 1) ban on cultivated meats in Florida.

The company held a free chicken tasting for 100 people at a Miami restaurant before the statewide ban took effect on July 1.

01/07/2024

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc., already the country’s biggest egg processor, last week bought the assets of another egg producer/processor, ISE America Inc., headquartered in Galena, Maryland. The price was $110 million.

The $110 million deal gives Cal-Maine its first assets in the northeast/upper Atlantic.

28/06/2024

SAMBAZON, a manufacturer of açaí-based juices, smoothies and other products, has elevated its co-manufacturing agreement with Generous Brands, formerly known as Bolthouse Farms, to where certain Sambazon products will be manufactured, distributed and sold by Generous Brands.

Manufacturer of açaí-based juices, smoothies and other products looks to benefit from Generous Brands’ capabilities and distribution network.

27/06/2024

Sargento has announced the retirement of two executives and subsequent appointment of a new chief operating officer.

Third-generation family owner Mike McEvoy will retire from his executive vice president of Operations role, Kristi Jankowski will retire from her position as executive vice president of Innovation, and Michael Pellegrino has been appointed to the COO role.

Mike McEvoy and Kristi Jankowski will retire, while Michael Pellegrino will become the company’s new chief operating officer.

27/06/2024

In a new episode of Food Processing’s Food For Thought Podcast, Zane Adams of FedUp Foods discusses his excitement over the growing acceptance of private-label products, as well as consumers' increased interest in health-and-wellness food and beverage products.

Listen with the link below or on your favorite podcast streaming service.



https://www.foodprocessing.com/podcasts/podcast/55091272/consumer-health-trends-private-label-acceptance-drive-fedup-foods-growth?cmsUserBearerToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJqdGkiOiJhMmM5ODc5MS01NDdjLTVlNTEtYmE0NS1kOTg1YzcyMDVmMzYiLCJleHAiOjE3MTk3NjIwNjQsImlhdCI6MTcxOTUwMjg2NCwiYXVkIjoiNjY0MjdlNmFjYjFiYmQ0OTY2NmYwY2UxIn0.q-eNwFa3vpzZBlipiqsUInfo8FwAINyFPbQE3KU8u_E&cmsUserBearerTokenExpiration=1719762064000&cmsUserRefreshToken=$2b$05$L0/PGCAHKpuHcIU8guPCrO19BqOYy4rbKYb1I86bmAbZSYrJeymNm

26/06/2024

FDA sent Bimbo Bakeries USA Inc. a warning letter, noting that certain Sara Lee and Brownberry products stated that they contained such allergens as sesame seeds, walnuts, almonds or hazelnuts, even though none of those ingredients were actually found in the product formulations.

Agency demonstrates it will not tolerate inclusion of allergens on labels on products that do not contain them as a way to work around shoring up GMPs and cross-contamination ...

26/06/2024

Starting next week, Finland will become the first country to offer vaccinations against avian influenza — bird flu — as officials worry about increasing infections of the disease, including its spread to other farm animals and even humans.

The northern European country will vaccinate 10,000 farm workers; part of 40 million doses bought by the European Union.

25/06/2024

Local Bounti Corp., an indoor agriculture company that provides packaged lettuce, greens and other products to retail locations in the U.S., has promoted CFO Kathleen Valiasek to president and CFO.

Current CFO Kathleen Valiasek, who has been with the indoor agriculture company for more than three years, will take on additional leadership responsibilities moving forward.

25/06/2024

Packaged lettuce grower and processor Little Leaf Farms will further expand its McAdoo, Pennsylvania, complex by opening a new greenhouse there this fall. Little Leaf just last June announced the initial greenhouse at the McAdoo site, and now it will add another 10-acre facility there. The company stated that the expansion will make the campus the largest controlled-atmosphere agriculture (CEA) leafy greens campus in North America.

Adding its third greenhouse in the state will make the McAdoo controlled-atmosphere agriculture (CEA) facility the largest of its type in North America.

24/06/2024

The City of Baltimore last week filed a landmark lawsuit against PepsiCo and its Frito-Lay division, The Coca-Cola Company and several plastic manufacturing companies for their “significant roles in creating a plastic pollution crisis” in the city.

The suit apparently focuses on single-use plastics; it mirrors a November 2023 lawsuit by New York state.

24/06/2024

Lassonde Industries Inc. has agreed to acquire The Zidian Group, operators of Boardman, Ohio-based Summer Garden Food Manufacturing, a processor of barbecue and pasta sauces, as well as dipping sauces, marinades, dressings and other shelf-stable products.

Lassonde will pay $235 million for the Boardman, Ohio, processor of sauces, marinades, dressings and shelf-stable products.

21/06/2024

A study in the European Heart Journal found the non-nutritive sweetener xylitol was associated with a higher risk of heart disease.

An American and European study of 3,306 people who consumed the non-nutritive sweetener found correlation with thrombosis and cardiovascular risk.

21/06/2024

Private-equity firm Stellex Capital Management has acquired J. Skinner Baking, which produces artisan danishes, muffins, cinnamon rolls, brownies and bars. In addition, Doug Davidson, a bakery operator with multiple decades of experience, has been named president and COO for the company.

Additionally, Doug Davidson is named president and COO for the Omaha, Neb.-based baked goods producer.