Food Logistics serves the entire food supply chain industry with targeted content for manufacturers, retailers, and distributors.
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SUPPLY SCAN 10 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 • FOOD LOGISTICS www.foodlogistics.com D A I L Y U P D A T E S A T W W W . F O O D L O G I S T I C S . C O M N E W S F R O M A C R O S S T H E F O O D S U P P LY C H A I N USDA Seeks $4.9 Bil- lion For Food Protection, FSMA Implementation The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is requesting a budget of $4.9 billion to protect and promote public health as part of the President's fiscal 2016 bud- get – a 9 percent increase over the enacted budget for 2015. The over- all request includes $147.7 million in budget authority for initiatives tied to several key areas, including the implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) and the management of medical products issues. Inspectors Warn Against USDA's High-Speed Hog Inspection Program The Government Account- ability Project (GAP) released evi- dence it has gathered from federal meat inspector whistleblowers who currently work at pork processing plants participating in a high-speed inspection pilot program. These whistleblowers voiced concerns regarding the program and warned about the potential public health implications if this plan is instituted on a national level. GAP is making publicly available affidavits from four U.S. Depart- ment of Agriculture (USDA) inspectors that illustrate serious concerns with the agency pilot program that increases the speed of processing lines and reduces the number of trained USDA inspec- tion personnel in the hog plants. Mondelez International Builds $90 Million Biscuit Plant In Bahrain Mondelez International laid the cornerstone for construction of its new $90 million biscuit plant in Bahrain as the world's leading mak- er of chocolate, biscuits, gum and candy seeks to tap rising demand in the Middle East and Africa for company brands such as Oreo, Ritz and TUC biscuits. The company announced the project in October 2014. Full com- mercial production is scheduled to start early next year. "Demand for our biscuits in the Middle East and Africa has been growing at double-digit rates and investing in a state-of-the-art facility in Bahrain will enable us to capitalize on this," said Daniel Myers, Mon- delez International executive vice president, integrated supply chain. "This new investment is part of our journey to reinvent our supply chain around the world to meet growth demands, while also reducing costs and improving productivity." Mondelez International's supply- chain reinvention plan is expected to deliver $3 billion in gross pro- ductivity savings, $1.5 billion in net savings and $1 billion in incre- mental cash from 2014 to 2016. These savings will be a primary driver of significant improvements in the company's base operating- income margin in the near term. Locally Produced Food Sales Reach $12 Billion; Will Nearly Double In The Next Four Years Like organic products before them, locally-produced foods are stepping out of the shadow of their once "quirky niche" designation to claim a much more prominent— and permanent—place in the U.S. food and beverage retail landscape. Market research publisher Pack- age Facts estimates that local foods generated $12 billion in sales in 2014, accounting for 2 percent of total U.S. retail sales of foods and beverages. Looking ahead, Packaged Facts anticipates that over the next five years, local foods will grow faster than the annual pace of total food and beverage sales to approach $20 billion in 2019. The findings were published in the recently released report, "Shop- ping for Local Foods in the U.S." Global Food Traceabil- ity Market To Post Fast Growth To 2019 The global food traceability market will grow 9.88 percent annually according to the newly- released report, Global Food Trace- ability Report 2015-2019, from Research and Markets. The emer- gence of an analytics system is one of the major trends in this market. Food traceability systems are used to keep a record of the flow of products meant for human con- sumption and product attributes throughout the production process or logistics network. Since food production and its distribution is a complex process, companies consider food traceability system as the best tool to solve food-related challenges. Food traceability helps com- panies make fresh food products available to their consumers, there- by helping in reducing food-borne diseases. In many countries, such as the U.S. and the U.K., consumers are ready to pay more for products having a food traceability and point-of-origin certificate. Tech- nologies such as infrared, RFID, biometrics and sensors have made food traceability convenient for companies in the food industry. UN: Deadly Disease Threatens Global Banana Production The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has warned that without global efforts to respond to a fungal dis- ease affecting banana production, the $36 billion global industry, which provides a source of income or food to some 400 million people around the world, is under threat, according to The Jamaica Observer. The agency and its partners said $47 million is needed to tackle the new and deadly Tropical Race 4 (TR4) strain of Fusarium wilt dis- ease, part of which would be used to provide swift, on-the-ground assistance to countries facing new outbreaks. "Fusarium wilt disease has been a major challenge in the history of banana production," said FAO's head of plant protection, Clayton Campanhola. "After the devastation TR4 recently caused to bananas in parts of Asia, we have to fear its spread in Africa and the Middle East and also to Latin America (in the Caribbean), and consider it as a threat to produc- tion globally," he added. J. M. Smucker Co. To Acquire Big Heart Pet Brands The J. M. Smucker Co. has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Big Heart Pet Brands in a cash and stock transaction val- ued at approximately $5.8 billion, which includes approximately $2.6 billion of net debt. Big Heart Pet Brands is the largest stand-alone producer, dis- tributor and marketer of premium- quality, branded pet food and pet snacks in the U.S. The company estimates Big Heart Pet Brands' net sales will be approximately $2.3 billion and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization will be approxi- Yellow and wilted leaves are typical symptoms of Fusarium wilt. The yellowing typically progresses from the older to the younger leaves. Bahrain's minister of industry and commerce, Dr. Hassan Fakhro (left) shakes hands with Vishal Tikku, Mon- delez International's area vice presi- dent for the Middle East.