interpack 2023: hall concept with clear sectoral focusses
Next year, the already fully booked interpack trade show will again offer the packaging and related process industry the biggest international overview of the market.
Visitors will find processes and machines for producing and packaging confectionery and baked goods especially in halls 1, 3 and 4. Anyone who wants to produce or package confectionery, can ask consultants from companies like Aasted, Bühler, Sollich/Chocotech, Theegarten-Pactec or Winkler and Dünnebier, and many others. The bakery sector will meet with exhibitors like Hebenstreit, Rheon Automatic Machinery, Colussi Ermes, Tonelli, TT Italy or Reading Bakery System.
As in many other sectors, concerning the packaging of confectionery, baked goods, snacks and cereals, much has changed over the recent years. One important issue are sustainable solutions. Mechanical engineering companies, for example, are adapting their portfolio to include packaging made from mono material or novel materials. Digital technology is another focus – as it is for the entire industry.
In the run-up to the event, exhibiting companies can present their businesses individually and introduce their contact persons as well as their product innovations in the interpack exhibitor and product database. The database is already available and is constantly being updated with new information and products.
ProSweets Cologne 2023 – Special Edition with extended exhibition space
The ProSweets Cologne 2023 – Special Edition is taking place next year from 23 to 25 April 2023 parallel to the International Sweets and Biscuits Fair ISM at the Cologne fair grounds. According to the organizer, Koelnmesse, the concept is going down extremely well with the supply industry for sweets and snacks.
In addition to the current and future-oriented specialized topics, supply-chain related themes of the new era, changes to the export-oriented geostrategy as well as energy and resource shortages will also be integrated into the programme. The initial highlights of the event and congress programme have already been set. Thus, for example, Euromonitor, the partner of both trade fairs for many years, will discuss the effects of inflation on the sweets and snacks market in Europe under the title “Inflation Surge and its Impact on Snacks”. The industry sponsor of ProSweets Cologne, DLG, will also discuss solutions for the global procurement of raw materials and energy efficiency in the production of sweets together with the ISM on the joint Expert Stage.
To-date, exhibitors from over ten countries have registered from all product sections. Among others, the following have confirmed their participation: Baker Perkins, Capol, Coppenrath Feingebäck, Dolciaria Gadeschi, Fuji Packaging, GNT Group, Hacos, Handtmann, Live-Tech, Maschinenfabrik Seydelmann, Prefamac Chocolate Machines and Stearinerie Dubois Fils.
For the Special Edition, the supplier fair for sweets and snacks is exclusively offering exhibiting companies complete booth packages in three different executions. These packages can be booked up until 15 December 2022.
ChickP whips up flexitarian interest with chickpea ice cream
Israeli start-up ChickP has developed a chickpea protein isolate designed for plant-based ice cream.
Chickpea is a green rainfed crop that does not require large amounts of irrigation or fertilization. ChickP’s protein production requires less land, water and energy, cumulatively resulting in less greenhouse gas emissions. The company is actively pursuing a zero waste goal by utilizing the entire chickpea seed, protein, starch, fibers, etc.
According to the company, the main challenge was to address consumers who are not strict vegans but rather flexitarians. These consumers look to reduce their animal-based food consumption but will not compromise on the full taste experience when it comes to plant-based foods. The pure protein produced from chickpeas has all the benefits without the downsides: high functionality, high nutrition value and sensory experience – neutral taste and smell. Thanks to that, ChickP was able to overcome this challenge and provide a tasty, rich and creamy textured ice cream, which at the same time is non-allergenic, non-GMO and eco-friendly, using its protein isolate as the main ingredient. Using the ChickP protein shall allow plant-based manufacturers to give up most stabilizers and additives.
New Regional Sales Director EMEA for Tomra Processed Food
Tomra Food has appointed Christian Tougaard to Regional Sales Director EMEA for Tomra Processed Food, part of Tomra Food.
Christian Tougaard has extensive business-to-business sales experience, working with processing solutions to the global food and environment industries. Before joining Tomra, he spent twelve years at Alfa Laval, managing business organization development in various roles during a period when the business grew significantly.
Christian Tougaard will work closely with Tomra Processed Food’s team, partners and customers across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He reports directly to Karel Strubbe, VP, and Head of Global Sales, Tomra Processed Food, who was promoted this January from his previous role as Tomra Processed Food’s Regional Sales Director EMEA.
Barry Callebaut announces groundbreaking of new chocolate factory in Neemrana, India
The Barry Callebaut Group announced the groundbreaking of its third manufacturing facility in India. The new chocolate and compound factory will be located in the Ghiloth industrial area, in the city of Neemrana, about 120 km southwest of Delhi.
Upon completion of the new chocolate factory, India will become Barry Callebaut’s largest chocolate producing market in Region Asia Pacific. With this announcement, Barry Callebaut’s total investment in India over the last 5 years is projected to exceed CHF 50 m. This investment reaffirms the company’s commitment to the country in the last 15 years. Since the opening of the first Chocolate Academy™ Center in Mumbai in 2007, Barry Callebaut has continuously invested in the Indian chocolate and cocoa market. Today, the company operates two factories in Baramati, producing high-quality chocolate and compound.
“As a global leader in the chocolate industry, India is a key market for Barry Callebaut in Region Asia Pacific. Our ambition in India is to become the market leader for high-quality chocolate and cocoa products,” said Jo Thys, President of Barry Callebaut in Asia Pacific. “The creation of our third factory in India clearly displays Barry Callebaut’s confidence in this growth market and enables us to get even closer to our customers.”
The new greenfield facility in Neemrana will cover a total of 20,000 suare metres and is scheduled to be operational in 2024. The new chocolate factory will include state-of-the-art assembly lines capable of manufacturing chocolate and compound in different delivery formats. The new facility will also house a warehouse and a research & development laboratory.
Hydrosol intends to reduce cost-driving raw materials in stabilizing systems
Guylian to use Fairtrade mark cocoa in US chocolate products
Premium Belgian chocolate brand Guylian has confirmed it will partner with Fairtrade America, which the company says marks a step towards more ethical trade for the company.
The partnership has been welcomed by Fairtrade America as a sign that Guylian is ready to help participating West African cocoa farmers achieve a fair living wage. Fairtrade America points out that the global cocoa and chocolate industry is worth USD 48.29 bn and is expected to grow. In contrast, cocoa farmers in Ghana and Ivory Coast – the world’s two leading cocoa producers – earn less than USD 1 per day, well below the UN extreme poverty line.
To make matters worse, the value of the local currency has fallen due to inflation, while production costs (e. g. for fertilizer) have risen dramatically. Nothing has changed in the already low prices paid to farmers.
The Guylian development is a positive step in the right direction and will result in cocoa farmers in the company’s supply chain receiving the Fairtrade minimum price. In addition, the agreement is expected to generate an additional USD 500,000 in Fairtrade premiums.
ICL and Protera Biosciences develop plant-based solutions using AI
ICL, a leading global specialty minerals company, announced ICL Food Specialties has joined forces with Protera Biosciences, an AI-driven foodtech start-up and designer of novel proteins, which are used to develop sustainable, highly functional protein-based ingredients for food manufacturers.
Through this partnership, ICL and Protera will develop and commercialize sustainable protein-based ingredients using precision fermentation. These clean-label ingredients shall address current market demands and offer a replacement for chemical additives or less appealing ingredients. They shall also improve the sensory properties in plant-based food applications, while positively impacting the world’s food security challenges.
Protera is creating impact through Madi, a deep-learning platform, which can predict and match the structure and functionality of vegetable proteins. It designs proteins from a database of more than 1.5 billion edible protein sequences and applies precise fermentation parameters for producing them. The results address consumer demand for a short list of simple ingredients on food labels.
The new platform also enables the discovery of untapped plant-based proteins with high performance. These new ingredients can replace texturizers, stabilizers, preservatives and more, all based on plant proteins. The streamlining of plant protein development and production makes replacement of animal proteins much easier, thereby helping to further reduce pollutants such as methane and carbon dioxide.
Tate & Lyle broadens sugar reduction business
UK-based Tate & Lyle is expanding its portfolio of reduced sugar alternatives, entering the erythritol business with its Erytesse Erythritol launch.
“Consumers are increasingly switching to sugar-reduced products, so manufacturers are looking for more sweetening solutions that will help them reformulate and still deliver the taste and texture consumers will love,” says Abigail Storms, Global Head of Sweeteners. “Erytesse Erythritol has a clean taste and bulking properties that make it perfect for helping manufacturers meet this demand, and as such it strengthens our existing sweetening toolbox, as well as our overall portfolio.”
The company shares that Erythritol has a diverse range of applications, including bakery and confectionery. The product can be used alone or combined with other sweeteners like stevia and monk fruit or high-potency sweeteners like sucralose.
Fooditive: World first “bee-free” honey moves a step closer
Dutch plant-based ingredients pioneer Fooditive will begin large-scale production trials of the world’s first 100 % “bee-free” honey in the New Year.
Leveraging the same patented biotech process already used to create Fooditive’s innovative vegan casein, which was launched last year, honey DNA is copied into a proprietary strain of yeast. When fed with nutrients and precision-fermented to replicate the metabolic processes that occur in the honeybee stomach, this yields a product with the same characteristics and functionality of bee-produced honey – from taste, colour and viscosity to its health benefits.
The production trials will recreate the lab-proven concept in 1,000-litre fermenters, with samples to be made available for potential customers to try and test out in their own applications.
