The recently completed World Food Summit in Rome has failed to set targets, deadlines and monitoring systems needed if the global challenges of feeding the world's growing population are to be overcome.

The management buy-out of Penford's Tamworth Wheat Starch Plant by Grain Products Australia is expected to be finalised by the end of November 2009.

Alto Manufacturing is purchasing Huhtamaki's rigid plastic consumer goods business in Australia.

TIFN has announced a technology that enables processors to reduce the salt content of foods by 25% without loss of taste nor the need for sodium substitutes or taste additives.

Professor Martin Cole has been appointed as Chief of CSIRO’s Division of Food and Nutritional Sciences (FNS). He will take up the position in January 2010.

A new functional ingredient may be on the horizon as the Cooperative Research Centre for Sugar Industry Innovation through Biotechnology (CRC SIIB) has identified natural glycaemic index (GI) modifiers that have the potential to lower blood sugar levels and help manage type 2 diabetes.

The supermarkets don’t just want to sell groceries. They also want to sell the groceries as their own. A recent analysis from the Nielsen Company shows a large increase in the number of private labels in the grocery sector.

The Australian Packaging Awards are the premier awards event recognising the best of Australia’s product packaging, highlighting the outstanding achievements of the industry and opening doors all over the world.

The Australian Institute of Packaging (AIP) sponsors the gold 2009 Southern Cross Judges Rationale Award which was won by Vincent Chan.

The launch of the new-look GI Symbol makes selecting healthy foods and beverages even easier for consumers.

The Coca-Cola Company has announced global plans to include energy information (calories, kilocalories, kilojoules) per serving on the front of nearly all product packages in a move to increase consumers’ awareness about the energy content of its beverages.

Simplot Australia will license the frozen meals brand Lean Cuisine and Maggi frozen brand, acquire the Papa Giuseppi frozen pizza brand and the manufacturing facility at Pakenham, near Melbourne. The combined licence and acquisition arrangement with Nestlé Australia will strengthen Simplot's ready meals offerings.

Heilala Vanilla  is growing and harvesting Madagascar Bourbon variety vanilla in New Zealand.

Barons Brewing has announced a partnership with Independent Liquor Group (ILG) to build a $30m+, state-of-the-art, domestic brewing facility, with the capacity to produce 250,000 hectolitres of beer per year at ILG’s Sydney warehouse in Erskine Park.

FoodTech Connect is a two-day conference focusing on growth in the Australian food industry. The first day was packed with interest.