22 Apr Making alcohol-free beverages better: could CBD help?
For many, alcohol-free beer or spirits is a redundant concept - they just don't taste or feel right. Does CBD have the potential to remedy this issue for consumers?
22 Apr Making vodka out of thin air
A New York-based technology, Air Co, company is reducing carbon in a different way — by capturing carbon dioxide from the air and transforming it into useful products.
20 Apr SA lockdown prohibition: alcohol update
Taverns and shebeens have dropped threatened court action for now. Here is an extract from a brilliant article in Daily Maverick, on "Prohibition lockdown goes rogue".... [The rank collective stupidity of the ANC and some of its advisors beggars belief as SA heads to economic suicide. Ed]
15 Apr ‘Mutant’ enzyme can break down plastic bottles in hours
Researchers working for French industrial development company, Carbios, have created a bacterial enzyme process that can break down plastic bottles for recycling in only a couple of hours, according to The Guardian.
14 Apr Avoid bottled water myths and ‘fake news’
In this time of COVID-19 lockdown and uncertainty, don't let bottled water myths add to anxiety, advises the South African National Bottled Water Association (SANBWA).
12 Apr Coronavirus: great industry support pack from Entecom
Leading food safety consultancy, Entecom, has compiled a COVID-19 support pack to help you with the development of a mitigation plan for your company.
07 Apr Some good news: SA Wine’s 2020 vintage looking “exceptional”
Winemakers in South Africa are gearing up for an “exceptional” 2020 vintage, despite the challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic.
06 Apr Distell to trim its portfolio of core wine brands
Leading SA drinks group Distell plans to consolidate its “core wine brands” and sell some of its “ultra-premium assets”.
03 Apr Unlocking the difference between hot and cold-brew coffee
Cold-brew coffee may be a hot trend, but not a lot is known about how this process alters the drink's chemical characteristics. US scientists have been researching their variances...
03 Apr Global gin award for SA beverage entrepreneur
There's no keeping talented entrepreneurs down! The team who created Frankie’s Olde Style Soda are now gin makers extraordinaire - and recently won a global award after but a short time in the game.
02 Apr Lockdown drinking: draconian SA vs rest of world?
Some countries have banned alcohol, others say liquor shops are essential services, and one top official even suggested a tipple after another long day trapped at home can be a necessary restorative. [Billions of others likely agree too! Ed]
02 Apr Kerry’s South African flavour chart 2020
As a global leader in taste and nutrition, Kerry Ingredients looks to discover and translate taste trends, and this year has released the 2020 Kerry Taste Charts for South Africa, including local beverage flavour trends. [A fabulous resource! Ed]
02 Apr Newsletter – 6 March 2020
Hi, and welcome to this week's newsletter!
A few stories really grabbed my attention for this week... the first being Burger King's daring and risky US ad strategy promoting its now clean-label Whoppers. Check it out for yourself - contrarian with amazing photography and, of course, we can rely on Nando's to add a cheeky riposte!
Second, the news that Nestlé has sucessfully found a way to mitigate human cat allergies - via a ton of R&D and culminating in a new cat food. Really remarkable!
Third, I came across some fascinating research into the microbiome of Mongolians, a tribe who turn the lactose-intolerace theory on its head, and how this may add to the tome of work being done to get a fuller understanding of the trillions of friends/foes in our guts.
Enjoy this week's read!
02 Apr Newsletter – 25 March 2020
Hi, and welcome to this week's newsletter!
How quickly our world has changed; how, unbelievably, a horror movie plot has become our new (ab)normal!
There are heaps of interesting reads on the one-and-only topic that matters at the moment, ones that I hope will provide some worthy insights and advice while you work from home, or otherwise.
Indeed, one can't but be enormously grateful that the food industry will carry on - keeping doing what it does best, to the best of its ability in trying circumstances. To all food-bev workers out there, across the very long supply chain, we salute and thank you all. And on the brighter side, yours is one industry that is in boom mode right now!
I'll be keeping you regularly posted on interesting news, trends and developments - I've worked from home for years!
If you have comments, insights, advice, warnings, good news stories, job offers, useful products etc that you'd like to share with your compatriots, please post them on the FOODStuff SA Facebook page, or send them to me for possible publication in my newsletters.
Wishing you well: be safe, kind and considerate to you, and others!
31 Mar Lockdown will have the SA wine industry reeling
Lockdown regulations are likely to maim the local wine industry and will have a severe impact beyond the next few weeks, says wine producers body, Vinpro.
24 Mar SA alcohol industry steps forward to alleviate the hand sanitiser shortage
The alcohol industry has mobilised to save South Africa from the persistent shortage of hand sanitiser, reports CapeTalk radio.
23 Mar Liquor producers step up to make hand sanitiser
The demand for hand sanitiser has spiked in recent weeks amid the COVID-19 pandemic, making the germ-killing product hard to come by both in stores and online. With their ample supplies of alcohol, distilleries have stepped up to close the gaps.
11 Mar Why young people are drinking less – and what older drinkers can learn from them
Young people are drinking less than ever before. Some reading this will be able to recall the 1990s – the decade of peak alcohol, when drinking was a key part of life for young people.
10 Mar Budweiser innovates with new nitro-infused lager
The US division of Anheuser-Busch InBev has unveiled its first "nitro-infused" lager under the Budweiser brand name.
03 Mar No soft beverage category is safe from alcohol
Big alcohol brands are following, not leading. And where they are headed is alternative drink categories, many of them “hard” versions of non-alcoholic beverages.