Danone has initiated legal proceedings against Fonterra over its precautionary recall of whey protein concentrate in August 2013. The French company has also terminated its existing supply contract with Fonterra. [ + ]

Pro Mach has acquired André Zalkin, a leading global capping machinery manufacturer, for an undisclosed sum. Zalkin management and employees will continue to work in the company's French facilities. [ + ]

Nominations are open for the 2014 Telstra Business Awards. The awards recognise Australia's most successful small and medium businesses. [ + ]

Junk food really can turn your brain to mush. In a study published in the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity, UNSW researchers showed that rats fed a high-fat, high-sugar diet exhibited impaired memory after just one week. [ + ]

Mukul Shukla has been appointed as general manager for the Middle East for packaging solutions specialist tna. Shukla will oversee tna's Middle Eastern operations, including sales, customer service and support from Libya to Sri Lanka. [ + ]

Launches of quinoa-containing products rose nearly 50% in the 12 months to September 2013, Innova Market Insights has reported, and have risen more than fivefold over a five-year period. [ + ]

Kagome Australia's $21 million expansion of its Echuca operations will receive support from the Victorian Government. The expansion will replace 7000 tonnes of imported tomato paste with locally grown product. [ + ]

In 2007, metal closures held 51% of the market; in 2013, metal closures held 48% of the market, with plastic closures holding 49%, a new report from Canadean shows. [ + ]

A 'traffic light' labelling system used in a US hospital cafeteria has resulted in positive changes up to two years after it was first implemented. [ + ]

The comment period for the FDA's determination that artificial trans fats in processed foods are not generally recognised as safe (GRAS) has been extended by 60 days to 8 March 2014. [ + ]

University of Adelaide PhD student Dr Tonghzhi Wu has found that the gut's response to artificially sweetened drinks is neutral - it is no different to drinking a glass of water. [ + ]

The largest US food processors could be obliged to take action to prevent large-scale food adulteration under the new food defence rule proposed by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). [ + ]

Children whose mothers eat more peanuts or tree nuts (P/TN) during pregnancy are less likely to develop P/TN allergies themselves, researchers have found. [ + ]

PureCircle's Rebaudioside M (Reb M) has been classified as GRAS (Generally Recognised as Safe) by the FDA. The FDA has issued a No Objection letter for the use of Reb M as a general sweetener for foods and beverages in the United States. [ + ]

Using low-calorie sugars as a structuring agent, researchers from The City College of New York have reported the successful transformation of vegetable oils to a semi-solid form, offering a potential alternative to trans fats. [ + ]