More than 400 manufacturing staff at Bairnsdale-based Patties Foods will be able to develop their work skills through a new suite of online training modules.

At the Australian Institute of Packaging - National Technical Forum last month, the latest packaging trends were discussed. Here is a summary.

Breweries can successfully utilise the biogas from their wastewater treatment plant as an energy source in their operations, saving money as well as minimising waste, according to environmental solutions company Talbot & Talbot.

Murray Goulburn Cooperative (MGC), the largest dairy cooperative in Australia, has implemented Icon Global Link’s (ISES) tool to manage its food safety plans across all its sites.

MasoSine pump technology from the Watson-Marlow Pumps Group has solved a number of pump-related problems for UK pie manufacturer Pukka Pies. Aiming to lower decibel levels, reduce cycle times and cut energy consumption, Pukka Pies replaced pneumatically operated air pumps with MasoSine SPS 2.5 pumps to transfer meat fillings at its headquarters in Syston, Leicestershire, from where it produces over 60 million pies every year.

Fixed weight and fixed size packing is steadily becoming more and more popular - and the packing method is on the agenda at many producers. The benefits of fixed weight and/or size packing are primarily found in case ready and food service.

Robern Menz has announced a major upgrade investment to its production facility at Glynde, Adelaide. An amount of $1.1 million will be spent over the next 10 months overhauling the business’s refrigeration plant and warehousing infrastructure. This will have a major environmental benefit once implemented with the company’s carbon footprint significantly reducing.

Pallets, boxes, containers and crates transport Primo and Hans products around Australia, which, until recently, have been provided by several suppliers. Primo, Australia’s largest producer of ham, bacon and smallgoods, has recently made the switch to CHEP as its sole supplier in order to create a more efficient streamlined process for its distribution and delivery, and reduce costs and administration time.

A leading provider of specialty powders for the medical industry needed to respond to changing client requirements and wanted to implement lean manufacturing practices. Matcon was called on to bridge the gap between theory and practical powder processing.

Scientists are working on bitter blockers to take the bitterness out of drug compliance and nutrition.

Benco Pack SpA of Italy has been chosen by Agral, a Belgium butter manufacturing company, to supply an aseptic form-fill-seal machine for its range of 8 to 10 g rectangle cup mini-portion butter products.

Baco has launched four new flavours of its Apple Tree fruit juice in an O-I glass bottle featuring an applied ceramic label (ACL) informing consumers the bottle typically uses 30% recycled content, reducing carbon emissions by around 15% and creating energy savings of almost 10%.

An innovative lids company has produced eye-catching, bespoke lids for the Greek yoghurt natural foods range, Cyclops. Chadwicks has translated an unusual blue-eye design into an appealing lid for Serra Natural Foods’ Organic Premium Low Fat Cyclops yoghurt.

A new study has found that ordinary household bleach is the most practical way to decontaminate food preparation surfaces that have been tainted with ricin.

‘More aroma, less salt’ - this straightforward formula is the result of a French study in which European Sensory Network researchers examined a simple new method by which the salt levels in food products could be reduced without it negatively effecting the consumer’s taste perception.