Packaging for Chinese consumers needs to meet the needs of busier, smaller households, Canadean says. The one child policy has seen the average Chinese household shrink to 2.8 people, while the family structure has changed to a new '4-2-1 composition': four grandparents, two parents and one child. [ + ]

To combat food fraud, we need to identify which factors play a role in vulnerability of organisations and the food chain, according to Saskia van Ruth, the newly appointed Professor of Food Authenticity and Integrity at Wageningen University. [ + ]

Amcor Flexibles has won the Marketing & Design and Consumer Convenience categories in the Alufoil Trophy 2014. [ + ]

A new study into the make-up of GM foods could allay consumers' fears about the products, researchers say. Cornell University researchers found that the metabolic profile of GM tomatoes was the same as their non-GM counterparts. [ + ]

A single glass of champagne is generally thought to contain 15 million bubbles on average. But a French chemist has challenged this figure, suggesting that the mathematical formula used to arrive at this estimate has oversimplified the matter. [ + ]

Romaco Group has announced plans to sell its stake in FrymaKoruma to an umbrella corporation within the Deutsche Beteiligungs AG (DBAG) group. [ + ]

Australia's FTA with Japan will have positive implications for the Australian horticulture industry, with a range of fruit and vegetable commodities flagged for tariff elimination, AUSVEG says.  [ + ]

USDA researchers have developed a way to pasteurise raw eggs in-shell using radiofrequency heating. The method takes 20 minutes and does not affect the eggs' taste, texture or colour. [ + ]

Connell Brothers Company (CBC) has been announced as Kalsec's channel partner for Australia. CBC will commence the role on 1 May 2014. [ + ]

Australia's recently announced free trade agreement with Japan will mean significant gains for processed food exports, the AFGC says. [ + ]

Margins in Q2 are likely to be affected by avian influenza outbreaks in China, the weakening Asian economy and feed prices, which are up 10 to 15% on earlier expectations, according to Rabobank's Poultry Quarterly Q1. [ + ]

Baked foods could soon be healthier, thanks to research from the United States Department of Agriculture, which has developed an ingredient that could partially replace butter, margarine and shortening in baked goods. [ + ]

Employees at Fonterra's new UHT processing plant in Waitoa have started work, with 80 of the 100 new employees already on deck. The remaining 20 will start work between now and August when all five of the site's milk processing lines will be operational. [ + ]

Fuchs has announced plans to build a manufacturing plant in Beresfield, near Newcastle, to increase its Australian manufacturing capacity. The company will move its existing operations in Wickham to the greenfield site in Beresfield. [ + ]

The ARC Biotechnology and Food Processing Training Centre will be launched with a roundtable conference attended by food industry partners. The centre will train Australia’s next generation of food technology and manufacturing experts. [ + ]