The company started small with a limited equipment range but quickly grew with innovations from both Quadro and YTRON as well as Dudley’s undoubted sales technique.

The company has been active in supporting ISPE, as a founding member of the UK Affiliate.  We have also supported the PPMA since 1993. since we started and we continue with representation at the major industry exhibitions and conferences.

In recent years the portfolio of equipment has been extended to including VMI Mixing Systems, Laboctontrole Sampling devices and Fitzpatrick milling and roller compaction systems.

With three generations of the Bradley family now part of the company we are excited to be celebrating this milestone and looking forward to a fantastic future continuing to provide process solutions to the wide range of industries we serve.

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On the Rotech stand will be a selection of UK designed and built feeding systems, for applying variable information to packaging off-line. These feeders are manufactured to handle a variety of flat-form substrates with ease. When paired with a printer and/or labeller, they reliably print and/or label at high speeds, offering a cost-effective solution for coding away from the main production line.

PPMA Show is the UK’s leading production line event, showcasing the latest in processing and packaging machinery, including robotics and industrial vision. Covering everything from food, beverages and pharmaceuticals to household chemicals and toiletries, FMCG, and contract packers.

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On accepting the award on behalf of FrieslandCampina Professional, Carolien Roseboom, the company’s global marketing lead, said, “What makes us so proud is that this award acknowledges the endless possibilities that our foam booster gives manufacturers to create sensory novelties and new structures, as well as to solve the pain points of unstable, thin, collecting foam. I can imagine that is going to motivate us to continue developing in this area.”

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The largest global dairy accelerator, this year’s Open Innovation theme attracted applications from five countries, all with a goal of securing a spot as one of this year’s participants in the three-month programme that provides access to non-dilutive funding, mentors, investors and buyers, and the CMAB’s specialised network of resources. The cohort represents themes of global flavours, functional benefits, and sustainability from upcycling byproducts of dairy production to packaging from renewable sources – all made with at least 50% real dairy.

The eight members of the 2023 Real California Milk Excelerator cohort and their products are:

1. Arbo’s Queso Dip (Memphis, Tenn.) – Gluten-free, keto-friendly queso-style cheese dips for retail.
2. The Empanada Shop (Redondo Beach, Calif.) – Empanadas combining golden, flaky crust, creamy, melted cheese and a fusion of Latin American tradition and California flavors for retail and foodservice.
3. New Alchemy Distilling (El Doradao Hills, Calif.) – A distillery making Spilt clarified milk punch cocktails in a can made with natural ingredients, zero stabilizers and upcycled whey from cheesemaking.
4. Amazing Ice Creams (Stockton, Calif.) – Cookie Wild cookie wafer ice cream bar novelties enrobed in chocolate to stay crunchy.
5. Noorysha Yo-Gut (Los Angeles, Calif.) – Specialty probiotic dairy product designed to support gut health.
6. Petit Pot (Emeryville, Calif.) – French-style dairy desserts in paper-based cups made with >80% stainable/renewable fiber.
7. Shakewell (Garden Grove, Calif.) – Fresh high protein drink made with five ingredients, including upcycled whey.
8. WonderCow Nutrition (Valencia, Calif.) – All-natural bovine colostrum powder supplement that promotes immunity, muscle recovery and gut health.

“The Open Innovation theme is exciting because of the variety of applications we received, and the myriad of ways start-ups and established brands are innovating with real milk and dairy ingredients,” said John Talbot, CEO of the CMAB. “We continue to see themes of global flavours and ingredients, a focus on sustainable sourcing and packaging, and products that go deep on the functional benefits inherent in dairy to address specific consumer needs from protein to gut health. Each member of the cohort brings something new and exciting to the marketplace and we’re looking forward to supporting their journey and ultimately seeing these products in the market with the Real California Milk seal.”

These eight participants have access to a group stipend and a robust network of resources to refine and scale their product and business. They will also participate in the CMAB/VentureFuel Mentorship Program, consisting of elite counsel from successful founders, investors, leading corporate executives, and experts across design, marketing, sales, manufacturing, distribution, farming, and processing industries. Past mentors have included venture capitalists, successful entrepreneurs, and executives from organisations such as Unilever, UNFI and Mondelez.

The cohort will present their companies and products at a live pitch event on 16 November, where four of the eight participants will each receive USD$30,000 to grow and expand their product in California and gain access to an Investor/Buyer Virtual Roadshow. One participating company will unlock an additional $100,000 grand prize by establishing their presence in California and exhibiting the most promising growth within 12 months of the final competition. Total prize and programme value is $500,000 (€460,000).

Over the past four years, the Real California Milk Excelerator has worked with more than 45 start-ups across numerous categories including food, beverage, direct-to-consumer platforms, textiles and personal care. Representing nearly 40% of states across the US, programme alumni have gone from idea to distribution with organizations such as UNFI and KeHE; and many can now be found on the shelves of retailers like Walmart, Safeway, Kroger, Amazon, and Whole Foods.

Details about the 2023 cohort, mentors and the final pitch event are available at realcamilkexcelerator.com.

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As with so many other shows and conferences in recent times, the focus was on the future, with plant-based and sustainability recurrent themes throughout the day. Convenience has been the biggest driver of food innovation in the last 50 years, and alternative proteins are going to be the biggest driver for the next 50, we were told, which is why for Kerry, the spotlight has to be very much in this area. Its focus is to create and supply ingredients that improve the taste and texture of plant-based products, as it wants people to choose them for the taste, rather than because of environmental consciousness or health benefits. At the end of the day, food is more than a functional experience – it is emotional and people are never going to choose foods long term if they don’t bring some kind of joy.

In the ‘Discovery Lab’ – an adaptive space with whiteboards on the walls and a modular format that apparently allows it to be converted to mimic cafés, bars and kiosks depending on the client’s requirements – we were given tasters of the experimentations with ice cream. It merely teased us with dairy here as we were quickly informed that they were all plant-based and using pea protein to mimic the creamy and aerated texture of dairy ice cream.

Similar technologies were used in the three-course tasting menu we were treated to at lunchtime, created by in-house Michelin star chefs. The starter of a plant-based tortellini once again demonstrated an ability to replicate the taste and mouthfeel of dairy-based products, and the subsequent two courses showcased more of the ingredients including texturisers and natural flavourings.

Image: Kathryn Brand

The other topic of the day was food waste, or more specifically, plans to reduce it. With apparently 1,500 times the weight of Golden Gate Bridge of food wasted a year, Kerry is working improve the microbial, textural, and flavour shelf life of products, in line with the UN’s sustainable development goal to halve global food waste by 2030. Expect to see projects in this area from Kerry in the next couple of years as well.

• Kathryn Brand, editorial assistant, Bell Publishing
  Keep in touch via email: kathryn@bellpublishing.com
  Twitter: @dairyindustries or LinkedIn: Dairy Industries International magazine.

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Gerina Eberl-Hancock became the leader of the sales and marketing team of the Hochdorf Group as of 1 May. She completed her Master of Business Administration in California (US) and worked in senior management positions in marketing and business development at Nestlé SA in Switzerland, Germany, the US and North Africa from 1997 to 2020; most recently as managing director for Food & Beverages at Nestlé Maghreb.

Lukas Hartmann joined the Hochdorf Group in 2017 as head of Baby Care Development. In 2021, the Baby Care and Food Solutions segments were merged into the Innovation, Research & Development department. Hartmann completed a Master of Science in Food Science at the ETH in Zurich and a Master of Business Administration at the University of St. Gallen. From 2009 to 2013 he worked as a project manager in research and development at Nestlé in the Product Technology Center in the Infant Cereal Nutrition division. From 2013, as a process engineer at Nestlé Suisse in Konolfingen, he was responsible for the development, implementation and commissioning of part of an investment project for the manufacture of infant formula.

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“Awarding the Milk-scientific Innovation Price 2021 Dr Sarah Egert from the dairy industry association is to honour her excellent scientific achievements. The winner has the potential to deliver important impetus and new insights in the important and complex area of nutritional sciences for the milk industry in the future,” says Hans Holtorf, deputy chairman of the Dairy Industry Association.

The €10,000 MIV prize is awarded annually to personalities, who are essentially involved in milk-specific research and science. This can be anything from natural sciences to law and economics.

Egert has been conducting the professorship for nutritional physiology at the Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität in Bonn since the middle of this year. The focus of the research is the cardiometabolic effects of fatty acids and nutritional patterns, the bioavailability and efficacy of secondary plant substances and postprandial metabolism.

The methodological focus is on the implementation of controlled human nutritional studies. Questions of diet are of important importance in milk research. It is the role of milk and its components for a balanced diet that is the focus and gives evidence-based foundations for the public discourse.

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The global award was launched in February 2021, with the aim of recognising, celebrating and publicising the positive innovations, improvements and actions being made on dairy farms on a global scale.

The judging panel was particularly impressed with Fen Farm’s ingenuity and thorough research into each of its sustainability projects. The Farm’s sustainability journey started in 2011, with the installation of solar panels. In Summer 2019, it laid 1500 metres of water pipes into a bed of sand beneath a new shed, which heats water for use in the cheese and butter production buildings, as well as the parlour, office building, houses and other buildings on the farm. January 2020 saw the installation of heat exchanges on compressors throughout the farm, harnessing heat and using it to cool milk and heat the preheat tank.

The straw burner, installed in October 2020, heats water for parlour cleaning and the cheese and production buildings, and since the entering the competition, further solar panels have been installed, plus the addition of battery power storage, so no solar-generated electricity is wasted.

As part of the award, Fen Farm will receive the generous prize of $10,000, which it has said it will be spending on additional sustainable improvements to the business.

Commenting on winning the award, Jonny Crickmore, farmer and owner of Fen Farm, explained, “We are absolutely honoured to have won, even more so with it being a global award. We really didn’t expect our idea of taking heat from cow muck would result in an award, but we’re delighted to be able to share our story with others, which will hopefully inspire others to be more sustainable.

“Over the last ten years, our business has grown considerably, and it felt right to consider more closely how much energy we are using, both from a business and efficiency point of view, and also for my conscience, so to be recognised for that is a great feeling,” he continues.

“We’re going to put the prize money back into the business, on a sustainable improvement that we otherwise wouldn’t have been able to afford, likely an electric vehicle for use on the farm to replace the current older diesel vehicle,” he continues.

Alison Cox, agricultural global application specialist at Diversey explains, “We have been extremely impressed with the quality and range of entries made since the launch of the award; dairy farmers across the globe are making extraordinary progress in the innovative ways in which they are adapting to improve animal welfare and sustainability on their farms.

She continues, “Entries varied from simple practical improvements, such as the recycling of 200l litre drums into calf- drinkers, using second hand astro-turf on cow tracks, internal animal husbandry protocols, regenerative farming practices, and more complex investments in improved technology such as electric vehicles, anaerobic digesters and renewable energy. Most could be easily adopted by other dairy farm businesses, and we hope the examples will serve as inspiration to others.”

Other highly commended entries deserving special mention according to Diversey are as follows:

• Copys Green Farm, Norfolk, UK
• Belvedere Farm, Italy
• Droёvlei Dairy, South Africa
• Bridgwater and Taunton College, UK

Applications for the award were made online throughout the year, with entries closing at the end of August. Judging took place throughout September with the judging panel consisting of Alison Cox, agricultural global application specialist at Diversey, Daniel Daggett, executive director of sustainability at Diversey, and Matt Sheehan, principal consultant at Promar International.

To further illustrate the progress of the innovation and advancements, and promote the industry around the globe, Diversey and Promar will publish a report highlighting the impact on climate and welfare if the processes carried out by the finalists were applied by the international dairy farming community.

For more information, visit: www.wearedairy.com

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It’s not a bad idea. Get the kids while they’re gaming, and you’ll have a lifetime customer who associates your product with the happy times they had shouting and giggling on their consoles with other children. I often throw dairy products at the child while he is involved in whatever pursuit is going on, on the tv. Handier ones would be welcome. Things like yogurts and some cheeses can get sticky when in play.

Meanwhile, companies such as Nestlé continue to invest in research and development accelerator programmes, to find the next big thing, whether it is in dairy, or non-dairy, products. The dairy giant has opened up a new site in Lausanne, Switzerland recently.

These schemes are very popular. Food Works Ireland is a cooperation between three government agencies in the country to find more new products using Irish ingredients, and is now looking for ten new participants for the next tranche. Over 100 companies that have already completed the programme since it began in 2012. “The programme aims to support and assist rising stars to achieve their ambitions in domestic and international markets, all the time working toward enhancing the global positioning of Ireland’s food and drink sector,” says Tara McCarthy, CEO of Bord Bia, one of the agencies involved.

Indeed, I see cooperation increasing between these programmes worldwide, especially as most of the big accelerators like the ability to scale up to export. It’s enough to get a dairy person all pog. But then again, as my son reminds me, that’s cringe when your mother says things like that. Totally mank.

(Pog – play of the game, cool, used to convey enthusiasm or excitement. Cringe – when someone acts so embarrassing or awkward, it makes you feel embarrassed/awkward. Mank – horrible.)

Visit: usdairy.com/research-resources/new-product-competition, FoodWorksIreland.ie, rdaccelerator.nestle.com

• Suzanne Christiansen, editor, Dairy Industries International.
  Keep in touch via email: suzanne@bellpublishing.com
  Twitter: @dairyindustries or LinkedIn: Dairy Industries International magazine.

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The food and drink entrepreneurship programme runs annually over 10 months from March to December. It includes workshops with national and international industry experts across various disciplines such as strategy, finance, product development, marketing and other areas. Start-ups also receive customised support from business advisors, facilitated peer-to-peer learning and networking opportunities across the industry, at home and abroad.

Tara McCarthy, the CEO of Bord Bia describes the ideal candidates for the next programme as being ambitious and innovative, with the ability to scale and the potential to export. “Food Works has been feeding ambition and innovation among Ireland’s food and drink entrepreneurs for almost 10 years, with proven success in supporting Irish start-ups to succeed. The programme aims to support and assist rising stars to achieve their ambitions in domestic and international markets, all the time working toward enhancing the global positioning of Ireland’s food and drink sector.

“Irish food products are enjoying a growing reputation internationally coupled with strong demand. Last year, despite significant disruption to normal market operation, Irish food, drink, and horticulture exports were valued at over €13bn,” she adds.

The three state agencies, Bord Bia, Enterprise Ireland and Teagasc, work jointly to deliver the Food Works programme. Bord Bia provides strategic insight and support, assisting participating companies in their understanding of consumers, competitors, trends, opportunities and both domestic and international markets. Enterprise Ireland is responsible for the development and growth of Irish enterprises in global markets. Its Food Division focuses on supporting high potential food and drink companies on developing their export sales. Meanwhile, Teagasc provides integrated research, technical advice, and training services. Its state-of-the-art food centres in Dublin and Cork provide participants with access to facilities, equipment, and specialist expertise.

The closing date for applications for the 2022 programme is 3 December 2021. Full details and an application form are available at FoodWorksIreland.ie

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The internal and external teams have full access to Nestlé’s infrastructure and science, technology and business expertise. Using early trends, differentiating technologies and scientific discoveries as sources of inspiration, the teams develop innovative product solutions in a six-month immersive ‘idea to shop’ programmeme.

They can consult with Nestlé’s R&D experts from around the world such as food technologists, nutritionists, regulatory and food safety experts, designers and packaging experts. Each team also receives hands-on support from dedicated innovation coaches and mentoring from Nestlé’s senior management.

“We give internal and external entrepreneurs full access to all the expertise and infrastructure they need to translate their idea into a product – from analytical labs, experimental kitchens, to prototyping and production facilities – and we help them test their innovations in real-market conditions,” says Tom Wagner, head of the Nestlé R&D Accelerator programme.

Nestlé’s global R&D Accelerator network consists of 12 sites in 8 different countries. Each Accelerator is located at a Nestlé R&D site and focuses on a specific product category or region. For example, Nestlé has Accelerators at its R&D centres for dairy, nutrition, coffee, confectionery or food products. Regional Accelerators in China, India, US, ASEAN and Sub-Saharan Africa work with local start-ups and students to develop innovations relevant to their regions.

The newly inaugurated site that is embedded at Nestlé’s research facilities in Lausanne accelerates the translation of fundamental science into cross-category innovations. It is the industry’s largest Accelerator, covering a 4000 square metre surface with a variety of co-working stations, prototyping kitchens and mini-production facilities. It can host up to ten teams simultaneously. Located at the heart of the Swiss Food & Nutrition Valley, teams have access to a sophisticated innovation ecosystem in the area of food and nutrition.

“At our R&D Accelerators we combine the creativity and entrepreneurship of students, start-ups and intrapreneurs with Nestlé’s extensive scientific and technological expertise. The initiative creates learning opportunities for both internal and external talents, builds competencies and fosters an entrepreneurial culture across our sites. It is great to see the passion and excitement of the teams as they go from an idea to a test launch in just a few months, overcoming many different challenges along the way,” says Stefan Palzer, Nestlé chief technology officer.

Since 2019, 165 participants have participated in the R&D Accelerator programme and almost 80 products have been tested in 18 countries. Recent launches include the pea-based milk alternative Wunda, as well as a number of science-based nutritional concepts.

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The Farming Innovation Pioneers Awards are delivered through Harper Adams’ School of Sustainable Food and Farming (SSFF) and sponsored by Trinity AgTech’s Pioneers programme. They will be made to farmers who work with cross-industry stakeholders to spearhead transformational sustainability projects – those which drive the industry forward environmentally, socially or commercially, or a combination of all three.

The Awards have been launched in conjunction with the new School at Harper Adams University, of which Trinity Agtech is an inaugural delivery partner. The university’s deputy vice-chancellor professor Michael Lee will be among the judges of the award, along with the SSFF steering group.

Dr Hosein Khajeh-Hosseiny, executive chairman of Trinity AgTech, says the aim is to identify, support and elevate innovators and entrepreneurial thinkers who can drive change, particularly around sustainable production through collaboration with other industry stakeholders.

“This is a time of phenomenal opportunity for agriculture, yet currently the industry harnesses just 20% of its inherent innovative talent,” says Dr Khajeh-Hosseiny, who has spent the past 23 years helping companies manage transformational change.

“We want to provide a platform for mass innovation, empowering farms of all shapes and sizes, to give farmers and their business partners the freedom to explore their potential, free from noise, bias and misinformation that currently stifles creative talent.

“Innovation is a collaboration of many people – the computer, for example, wasn’t invented by one person. So, it’s time to unleash the genius of the many,” he says. “We want to reward those who successfully embrace the innovative potential of the food and farming ecosystem.”

Professor Lee says the judges for the Farming Innovation Pioneers Awards will look for collaborative projects that are in the early stages of development or are at the conceptual ideas stage with a clear plan.

“We’re looking for the pioneers who inspire co-creation, collaboration across skillsets; for ventures that recognise interdependencies and the mutual need for experimentation; and for innovation that cascades and drives industry-wide progress towards a more sustainable agriculture,” he says.

“The awards will not only recognise the inherent talent we have within the UK farming industry, they will inspire our students to find creative ways towards a more sustainable future. This marries new thinking and new technologies with a deep-seated understanding of what works.”

To qualify, applications must be:

• Innovative – signal a new approach to practices, structures or culture across the food and farming industry;
• Collaborative – at least two other individuals beyond the farm must be collaborating with the farmer;
• Sustainable – productive but with a reduced environmental footprint, supporting biodiversity, rural societies and upholding leading animal welfare;
• Scalable – capable of emulation and replication by many other farmers;
• Evidenced – able to show how multiple stakeholders, including the farmer, are working together to be innovative to benefit the whole ecosystem.

The awards are open for written applications until 1 May 2022 and a panel of expert judges will review and select winners by 1 June 2022. All applications will be judged on the level of Innovation; Collaboration; Sustainability and Scalability.

Dr Khajeh-Hosseiny highlights Sandy, the new digital assistant from Trinity AgTech, as a good example of industry collaboration, bringing together software and digital expertise with scientists and farmers to create a unique tool. Sandy allows farmers to accurately and independently assess their farm’s sustainability. It will help them plan their path to greater profitability, provide robust provenance for their produce and capitalise on the natural assets they care for.

“The world of agriculture will become remarkably different to what it is today, and Sandy can play a pivotal role in that transformation,” says Dr Khajeh-Hosseiny.

“There is an incredible amount of innovation coming along, with over 2000 start-ups moving into agtech – they will be fuelling farmers’ abilities to be pioneers.

“But this requires a trusted ecosystem approach – true innovation is a collaboration of many, free to think, experiment and speculate, enjoying clear, simple authoritative information. This is what Sandy provides.”

Examples of innovations the judges expect to see include farmers working together with banks and retailers to set up new types of a more sustainable farm enterprise; development of new low disturbance machinery through farmer/manufacturer collaboration; the co creation of low methane diets in the livestock sector.

For more information, and to register for a webinar that provides a demonstration of Sandy, go to trinityagtech.com.

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The 2021 Real California Milk Excelerator taps into the thriving functional foods market – a market that has grown significantly over the past year and is projected to reach over $275 billion globally by 20251. With consumers prioritising personal health and wellness in response to the pandemic, the competition identified early-stage, high-growth companies that have developed cow’s milk-based products that play a critical role in personal performance areas like focus, energy, exercise, and strength, and/or recovery benefits such as rejuvenation, relaxation, gut health, and sleep.

“This competition is designed to inspire new ideas integrating the natural benefits of real milk and dairy products as functional ingredients, delivering a flavour and nutritional profile that’s hard to beat. This year’s entries demonstrate the versatility of these ingredients and how they can be used in endless formulations,” said John Talbot, CEO of the CMAB. “Just as our definition of health has evolved, our desire for functional benefits from our food and beverage choices has evolved with it. Our twelve finalists certainly capture this evolution, with every manner of benefit, from maximum athletic performance, to gut-health, and even sleep support – all in relevant formats that will appeal to today’s consumers.”

VentureFuel Inc, the leading corporate innovation consultancy, is partnering with CMAB for a third consecutive year to direct the program, identifying and recruiting applicants from their global network of investors, founders, and academics. “Each year we see such disruptive and unique products, built specifically around consumers’ evolving needs and wants,” said Fred Schonenberg, founder of VentureFuel, Inc. “This year’s applicants were particularly inspiring as each sought to create better-for-you products that can improve and sustain the many ways we define health. We saw applications from Australia to Austin, from local dairy farmers to PhDs to celebrity chefs, all tapping into the natural nutritional value of real dairy. Now we move to accelerating these businesses to drive commercial growth through mentorship, strategic resources and introductions to buyers and investors.”

Each semi-finalist’s product is made with cow’s milk dairy as the first ingredient and making up at least 50% of the formula. The startups have committed to producing the product in California, with milk from California dairy farms, should they win the competition. Each semi-finalist accepted into the cohort will receive $10,000 worth of support to develop their product further while receiving a suite of resources including lab or kitchen time, graphic design, consumer insights, and elite mentorship from global marketing, packaging, and distribution experts. The first-place winner will receive up to $150,000 worth of additional support and the second-place winner, $100,000 worth of additional support to accelerate the commercialization of their product to market. The total value of competition prizing is over $650,000.

The 12 semi-finalists for the 2021 RCM Excelerator are:

• Alexandre Family Farms – Fourth generation California dairy farmers with functional brand extensions for liquid milk, powder and yogurt focused on properties for anti-anxiety and gut health.
• Boba Guys – Trendy tea brand Boba Guys, with 15 brick and mortar locations in California, is developing a bottled milk tea latte with key nutrients, vitamins, and caffeine to optimise performance and recovery.
• GoodSport Nutrition – A first-of-its-kind, all-natural sports drink made from the goodness of real milk that delivers superior hydration with three times the electrolytes and less sugar than traditional sports drinks.
• Kefir Lab – Kefir Lab takes kefir and makes it more effective with organic milk cultured with 24 live and active potent protein strains for a bottled kefir that boosts immunity, metabolism, and brain health.
• Nightfood – Uniquely formulated by sleep experts and nutritionists, Nightfood ice cream delivers great taste for those nighttime cravings and a sleep-friend nutritional profile to help promote quality sleep.
• Positive Chemistry – A dissolving pouch that melts in the bath, releasing a bubbly, fizzing mixture of real milk and recovery salts to promote recovery for skin, muscles and the soul. A hidden exfoliating sponge with a message of positivity is designed to float to the top of the bath.
• Rizo Lopez Foods – Award-winning and family-owned, Rizo Lopez utilises Old World recipes and traditional techniques for their Ready2Go Whey products derived from a specially processed whey protein concentrate for a creamy, delicious, and gut-healthy drink.
• ReThink Ice Cream – Low sugar, stomach and diabetic-friendly ice cream that is infused with fiber and sourced from lactose-free A2 dairy, ReThink Ice Cream is a decadent source of natural nutrition.
• Sweetkiwi – Founded by a McKinsey 2021 Black Executive Leader and certified cultured dairy professional, Sweetkiwi makes whipped Greek yogurt that is low in calories and high in nutrition. Sweetkiwi pints are under 320 calories and formulated with fiber, protein, and probiotics for better gut health with fewer calories.
• The Indian Milk & Honey Co – Sugar-free probiotic Lassi with Ayurvedic immunity supporting herbs and spices, that also support mental clarity, in one environmentally-friendly carton.
• Top O’ the Morn Farms – A California-owned dairy farm with an expansive line of fresh products, Top O’ the Morn’s Cow-Pow chocolate milk is a clean-label pre- or post-workout beverage fortified with whey protein isolate and natural caffeine.
• Wunder Snacks – A 2020 RCM Snackcelerator finalist, Wunder returns with a new protein keto cheesecake snack bar with 10g of clean protein to indulgently refuel.

Semi-finalists will participate in a series of mentoring and support events leading up to the virtual pitch event semi-finals in November where four companies will be selected for a final virtual event to select the Excelerator winner.

In addition to the semi-finalists, two companies have been selected to participate in the new Real California Milk Incubator Boot Camp programme, which was built to assist ideas and promising prototypes that are too early for the Excelerator. These companies will receive mentoring and support from VentureFuel, CMAB and the California Dairy Innovation Center (CDIC).

• Darvida – Darvida’s concept is a bottled, drinkable milk beverage made with 100% fresh colostrum, with high concentrations of vitamins and minerals to improve gut health.
• Perfect by Nature – Perfect by Nature is using the revolutionary process of High-Pressure Processing, which leaves the original proteins and enzymes in farm-fresh milk intact, to bring the nutritious and delicious qualities of real fresh milk to the masses.

California, known for innovation, has a reputation for quality dairy products. As the number one producer of milk in the nation, California also leads the nation in sustainable dairy farming practices. More than 1200 family dairy farms produce the California milk found in fluid milk, cheese, butter, yogurt, ice cream and other dairy products identified by the Real California Milk seal.

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The ‘We Are Dairy’ Initiative, which offers the overall winner a generous prize of $10,000, is inviting dairy farm owners, managers, employees or dairy farming groups to promote the industry by showcasing the incredible advancements being made on dairy farms and the positive impact they have on farm businesses, communities or the supply chain, on a daily basis.

Alison Cox, Agricultural Global Application specialist at Diversey explains: “It’s time for the industry to stand up and demonstrate the extraordinary progress we have made in the dairy sector, and the innovative ways in which farms have adapted to improve animal welfare and sustainability.

“We are looking for dairy applicants who are excelling through improvements to the efficiency, quality or sustainability of their business.

“We’re looking for innovation, in a simple and practical form, that can be easily transferred to other dairy farm businesses and therefore deliver significant sustainable advancements. It can be anything from savings on fuel and transport or utilities to a new housing design that has seen improvement in animal health.

Matt Sheehan, principal consultant at Promar International, adds: “For the dairy industry, we are living through a time of brilliant change and we want to celebrate the positives. Here at Promar International, we see a rural economy that’s brimming with opportunity and want to celebrate this with the ‘We are Dairy’ initiative. I want to encourage the industry to get behind this initiative and promote our progress to not only the farming community but also a wider audience including consumers.”

Applications can be made by visiting www.wearedairy.com from early February to the end of August 2021. Judging will take place in September and five finalists will be selected. The overall winner will be announced in October and will receive a $10,000 prize.

The judging team comprises of Alison Cox, Agricultural Global Application specialist at Diversey, Daniel Daggett, executive director of Sustainability at Diversey, and Matt Sheehan, principal consultant at Promar International.

To further illustrate the progress of the innovation and advancements, and promote the industry around the globe, Diversey and Promar will publish a report highlighting the impact on climate and welfare if the processes carried out by the finalists were applied by the international dairy farming community.

For more information, visit: www.wearedairy.com.

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The CDIC will feed dairy innovation efforts for the state with collaborations between California dairy producers, processors, and universities.

“The ‘centre’ is not a physical building or organisation, but rather a co-operative effort to leverage the tremendous brain trust of our California colleges and universities as well as the California dairy industry as a whole to support our mutual goals,” John Talbot, CEO of the CMAB says.

The CMAB is currently recruiting for a director to run the new centre. The role will also include coordinating research projects, and being a point of contact for researchers, educators, and business development representatives, as well as for processors interested in innovation efforts. This post will serve as an advocate for the dairy community by promoting innovation, product development, and workforce support; in addition to implementing competitive advantages for the dairy industry, according to CMAB.

California is the US’s top milk-producing state and is the second-largest producer of cheese and yogurt in the country.

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While the challenges presented by the market researcher’s ‘The Plant Based Revolution’ trend are clear, the dairy industry is responding with innovations focusing on other 2020 top trends, including ‘The Right Bite’, ‘Macronutrient Makeover’, ‘Tapping into Texture’ and ‘Hello Hybrids’, further developing its emphasis on health as well as pleasure.

‘The Right Bite’ describes the desire of busy consumers to maintain healthy lifestyles, both physically and mentally, raising the demand for nutritious foods that are easy to prepare, convenient and portable. Indulgent treats also play a role in relaxation and enjoyment.

‘Macronutrient Makeover’ highlights attention being paid to changing perceptions of macronutrient content and balance.

Typically one macronutrient at a time is the focus of consumer concern, for instance low fat and low calorie, with low-/no-sugar currently leading in terms of being the most influential factor in purchasing decisions, according to a 2019 Innova Consumer Survey (UK, US, Spain, France, Brazil, Germany, Mexico and China). As a result, the dairy industry is continually searching for natural sugar reducing solutions, which is why the use of cultures and enzymes has become an area of particular interest and popularity.

Innova’s ‘Tapping into Texture’ trend focuses on consumers’ increasing recognition of the influence of texture on dairy, allowing a heightened sensory experience and often a greater feeling of indulgence. According to Innova’s research, an average 45% of US and UK consumers are influenced by texture when buying food and drinks, with 68% sharing the opinion that textures contribute to a more interesting food and beverage experience.

Terms such as ‘thick and creamy’, ‘smooth’, ‘crispy’ and ‘crunchy’ are increasingly evident in marketing and advertising materials for milk drinks, yogurt and cheese products. Milk and other milk drinks are more often conveyed with added indulgence through texture and mouthfeel claims that were not previously in widespread use within this subcategory.

Innova’s ‘Hello Hybrids’ trend recognizes the growing interest in products combining two different features. Increasingly adventurous consumers tend to be highly receptive to hybrid concepts, with interest in blending ingredients, combining food types and mixing flavor profiles. According to Innova’s research, seven in ten US and one in two UK consumers like products that mix flavors, such as sweet and salted.

Hybrid concepts in dairy are taking a variety of forms, including category fusions such as ice cream flavored yogurts, mixed taste profiles such as drinks with sweet and savory flavor blends and blended ingredients such as dairy and non-dairy milk combinations, featuring options such as oat and almond.

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DSM of the Netherlands has purchased a Danish supplier of human milk oligosaccharides, Glycom. The advancement in infant formulas is so profound that the formulas of today are a far cry from what passed for formula even a decade ago. The interesting thing is that these advancements in early life applications, as the formula market is often called, can be applied in other areas. Elder nutrition, specialist formulas for children and adults with gastrointestinal issues – the mind boggles. In a way, the feeding of the very young is a keystone to using the ingredients in dairy for other applications. We all benefit, as the technology advances to make better early nutrition. DSM, with its global reach, can get the HMOs Glycom produces to new markets and outlets.

I think that’s the upside of living in today’s world. The advances are coming thick and fast and giving hope to human ailments that have long dogged us. However, the advent of items such as coronavirus means that the fight is continuing, and we as humans will probably always need to keep an eye out. As Peter Meehan, Peter Meehan, senior commodity analyst at INTL FCStone, reminds us:

“The impact of COVID-19 (coronavirus) has weighed heavily on global dairy markets in recent weeks as uncertainty as to its impact on Chinese demand for dairy commodities and supply-chain logistics looms large over markets. A significant proportion of the potential price negativity caused by COVID-19 has been offset for the moment by the on-going dryness concerns over New Zealand’s North Island which has led to a sharp fall-off in its pasture growth rates. Now that we have moved well beyond New Zealand’s peak milk-producing months and collections tail-off as per their seasonal trend, there’s a sense that the impact of COVID-19 will begin to win that recent tug-of-war, putting further pressure on dairy prices in the coming weeks. We understand Chinese port capacity is has been severely curtailed by reduced staffing which has led to a backlog of vessels waiting to unload. Internal logistics are also heavily impacted by staffing issues while the transportation of medical supplies is being prioritised as efforts continue to stop the spread of the virus. A decline in the numbers of people dining in restaurants, fast-food outlets etc. has also led to a fall in demand for dairy ingredients typically used as such outlets. This in turn is further impacting on dairy commodity consumption.”

Stay healthy, everyone.

Photo credit: Courtesy of EPI

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The headquarters includes a new application centre, which is six times larger than Tate & Lyle’s previous centre in Sao Paulo and is amongst the company’s largest globally.

The new application centre will help industry manufacturers develop products that meet increasing consumer preferences for healthier, tastier food and beverages. It includes a pilot plant and state-of-the-art experimental kitchen, which enables customers to design and test different recipe formulations across a range of categories including dairy, beverage and bakery. Other services include sensory analysis and shelf-life testing of products, as well as a room for focus groups with consumers.

As part of Tate & Lyle’s global innovation and application network, the new centre will also benefit from Tate & Lyle’s recent investment in a new recipe development platform. This platform provides one global database for recipe and ingredient knowledge, connecting Tate & Lyle’s technical teams across the world and leading to a more agile response to customers with effective solutions.

Oswaldo Nardinelli, senior vice president and general manager, food & beverage solutions, Latin America, Tate & Lyle, said: “There is an increasing consumer demand in Latin America for more food and beverage options that can support healthier diets and lifestyles, and manufacturers are increasingly looking for new ways to reduce calories, fat and sugar, and enrich products.

“While the need and demand for healthier options is clear, we know that consumers will not compromise on taste and it’s this challenge – making healthy food tastier, and tasty food healthier – that our food scientists and application experts are helping food businesses overcome.

“Our new application centre brings together Tate & Lyle’s cutting-edge science, market leading ingredients and product development capabilities, offering manufacturers across the region a convenient and high quality ‘one-stop-shop’ for formulation.”

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Developed in-house by Chadwicks, the decorative lids have been produced for a new premium yogurt range from Alston Dairy.

Ken Dunlop, sales manager at Chadwicks said: “Typically, sealing pre-cut lids to glass presents many technical difficulties, however when Alston Dairy approached us about developing a new type of material capable of sealing to glass jars we rose to the challenge. Alston also required a ‘crimped over’ lid to emphasise the premium nature of the range.

“Working in partnership with our sister company Royal Vaassen in the Netherlands, we developed a material that provides an optimum sealing solution for glass, and teamed up with Seal-it-Systems to create the desired ‘crimping’ effect. We now have another great addition to our lids portfolio, which has provided Alston Dairy with a high quality lid that delivers enhanced shelf appeal for its premium product range.”

Emma Coupe, development director from Alston Dairy said: “Chadwicks continues to impress our new product development team and we are delighted with the finished product.”

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Fifteen shortlisted businesses pitched to win a slot on the 2019 cohort, with Agropur selecting four dairy-related start-ups from Canada, the US and the UK to join the programme. The selected businesses will spend 12 weeks in Inno Accel, challenging convention and generating new solutions to maximise their chances of North American success.

Inno Accel will help Jersey-based Sleep Well develop products and market-appropriate solutions with a fully customised coaching programme. The Sleep Well team will be supported by two mentors – a successful entrepreneur and a member of Agropur senior management – and at least 20 coaches with different areas of expertise, from marketing and sales to R&D and strategy. The coaches will provide guidance and help Sleep Well develop in an environment that simulates real-life conditions in the business world and the agri-food industry.

“Agropur is North America’s biggest dairy co-operative and this is a huge opportunity for our brand and our product”, said Sleep Well founder Sam Watts. “Canada’s dairy industry is renowned for its creativity and innovation and to be selected from so many strong contenders for a place on the programme is an immense achievement for the business and the team.

“North America has always been high on our target list and this has the potential to accelerate our growth in one of the world’s biggest consumer markets. Above all, we are going to benefit from three months of intensive product and business development coaching and the expertise of a highly professional and experienced company, creating undreamed of opportunities.”

Caroline Miron, Agropur’s director for innovation, architecture and strategy said: “We want to team up with the best in order to come up with new ideas and create the dairy products of the future. From a pool of start-ups from around the world, we have therefore selected businesses that are innovative and ambitious to join Inno Accel.

“Thanks to our solid acceleration programme developed in collaboration with OSMO foundation, we can provide a springboard for start-ups that have a sound business model, products with a competitive advantage and strong growth potential and we believe Sleep Well has the potential to be part of the next wave of innovative dairy products.”

The popularity of Sleep Well – a natural milk drink that helps all ages over 12 months to relax and get a better night’s sleep – has increased rapidly since its launch two years ago. Available online at sleepwellmilk.com, Amazon.co.uk and selected online food retailers, Sleep Well is also sold in more than 200 independent stores across the UK and Channel Islands, including 110 Sainsbury’s stores.

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