Ministers responsible for the regulation of food in Australia and New Zealand met in Canberra recently to consider the progress of issues such as a revised health claims standard and front-of-pack labelling. [ + ]

The Statewide Independent Wholesalers (SIW) Distribution Centre was opened in Launceston on 31 May, with guest of honour Lara Giddings, Premier of Tasmania, in attendance. [ + ]

While the wine market in China continues to grow, Australian wine suppliers still need to be mindful of a number of gaps in the market, says a recent Rabobank report. [ + ]

GS1 New Zealand is urging companies in the food and grocery sector to register for ProductRecall^nz, an online service for rapid recall or withdrawal of products in consumer supply chains. [ + ]

The Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry - Biosecurity (DAFF Biosecurity) has released a media statement on the alleged implication of Australian beef in US ground beef products that recently tested positive to E. coli 0157:H7. [ + ]

The 2012 Australian Institute of Packaging/IGD in-store shelf friendly packaging (SFP) training helped 70 packaging technologists, engineers and designers understand the complexities and difficulties that poor SFP design causes for store fillers and staff. [ + ]

Entries are now open for the 2012 NZ Food Awards. Organisers are encouraging all ‘food innovators’ to enter, from boutique producers through to large-scale manufacturers. The awards - held in association with Massey University - recognise creativity in product development, enterprise, food safety and packaging. [ + ]

Polyethylene terephthalate, better known as PET, saw a growth of around 7% last decade, according to chemicals intelligence provider GBI Research. The demand for the flexible packaging chemical is a result of its diverse application in a range of new products in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) and food sectors, the research company said. [ + ]

Demand for food safety products in the US is forecast to increase 7.3% annually to $4.5 billion in 2016. Solid gains will be the result of increased public awareness following recent highly publicised multistate outbreaks of foodborne illnesses; the need to comply with provisions of the landmark Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA); and industry initiatives that will provide a strong impetus for companies to improve their food safety practices. [ + ]

New Zealand’s Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) is calling for submissions on the standard on fortifying bread with folic acid in New Zealand. The MPI has released a discussion paper outlining four options for the future of the standard, from mandatory fortification of most breads from September this year through to providing for voluntary fortification indefinitely. [ + ]

A collaboration between glass packaging manufacturers O-I Australia and winemakers Taylors Wines has taken out the Best Wine Bottle Award at the 2012 Australian Wine Industry Design Competition. The 2010 Taylors Winemaker’s Project Grenache Shiraz Mataro (GSM) was declared the nation’s best bottle and label design at the awards. [ + ]

A South Australian olive oil company has paid $13,200 for two infringement notices for attempting to pass off low-quality olive oil as ‘extra virgin’. [ + ]

Australian winemakers have extra reason to pop a few corks following the 2012 International Wine Challenge (IWC) where Australian wines received a record 69 gold awards. [ + ]

Algae technology company Heliae has commenced work on a commercial demonstration facility in Arizona that it says will “showcase the scalability and economics of its proprietary algae technology platform”. The company plans to build several more facilities throughout the world. [ + ]

New South Wales could soon become the seventh state or territory to have a container deposit scheme (CDS) if a Greens Bill is passed. [ + ]