Food And Drink news
China strikes back with anti-dumping probe on EU wine
It was widely expected that China would strike back. And the Asian dragon did as it launched anti-dumping probe on EU wine which is simply a counterattack as the world’s second economy cannot resign itself to the European Union’s step to impose tariffs on Chinese solar panels.
Fast food chains have appetite for UK’s Little Chef
After a long and checkered history, Little Chef, the Britain’s 55-year-old restaurant chain, is back in the hunt for new owners. Home-grown fast-food and coffee-shop retail chains, including Costa Coffee, McDonald’s Corp. and KFC, are in the race to own the prime real estate – Little Chef.
Coca-Cola’s new labels to fight obesity
In a new expression of social responsibility, the giant lifestyle product maker, Coco-Cola Co., has announced a host of measures to tackle allegations propagating obesity to consumers. It will focus on higher-visibility of the calorie counts of its drinks by displaying it more prominently.
DIAGEO CEO Paul Walsh makes room for his successor – Menezes
Out of the blue, Paul Walsh, successful chief executive officer at Diageo Plc, informed that he would retire after successful and fruitful 13 years managing the drinks giant. As it was made public, he would be succeeded by Diageo COO Ivan Menezes.
Coca-Cola now offers Live Positively Green Choices
Coca-Cola‘s pro-active green practices and adoption of sustainable and ecological positive processes are again in the limelight. Calling their campaign ‘Live Positively,’ the company has integrated this with its core business plan. The policy will address environmental, workplace as well as community and product needs. Heading Coca-Cola’s ‘greening’ brigade is affable CEO Muhtar Kent, a personable businessman who wears sustainability on his sleeve.
Urban Bees. Bee aware of their importance
The potential disappearance of bees is rather shocking as we depend on them! Our survival depends on the survival of bees, and it is not an exaggeration! Fewer bees also threaten the existence of many industries.
Yum affected by bird flu
While bird flu is spreading wider and wider in China, it has also affected US-based Yum Brands Inc.’s results as its same store sales in the world’s second economy slumped approximately 20 percent in the first quarter ended March 23. However, still the fast-food giant appears to have got off problems lightly as it underlined that the first quarter profit dropped less than initially expected.
Diageo 3Q performance boosted by US market
Even giants such as Diageo Plc are vulnerable to hard economic conditions in crisis-hit Europe. The newest findings of the London-based drinks company showed, however, that weak demand in the EU was partially offset by strong results recorded in the US market.
JAB acquires D.E. Master Blenders as it aims to build coffee empire
While some empires are sinking into oblivion, some are just rising. After all, Joh. A. Benckiser GmbH would acquire D.E. Master Blenders NV, well-known European coffee company, for as much as €7.5 billion as the German company is laboriously building its coffee empire. Indeed, the acquisition of D.E. Master Blenders NV is aimed at building distinct importance of the German company in the coffee market.
Packer to turn Sri Lanka into casino hub
James Packer, who is ranked in the top 200 richest people in the world, has ambitious plans of expanding his gambling empire. These days he is vitally interested in expanding in Sri Lanka as the small India Ocean island is considered a perfect place for a casino hub.
Pepsi to Sponsor IPL to Beat Coca-Cola and Win India’s Market
And here we go again. The rivalry between Coca-Cola and PepsiCo seems to be endless and India is a new battlefield of the two soft-drink giants as PepsiCo Inc. will sponsor the Indian Premier League which is due to start on the 3rd of April. The move is aimed at winning a bigger market share in the fast growing India and the sponsorship of the cricket tournament is expected to help in that as the game is almost a religion in the South Asian country. PepsiCo Inc. reposes hope in the title sponsorship for five years staring in 2013.
Domino’s Pizza Delivers Satisfying Profits in 2012
Domino’s Pizza, the UK biggest pizza deliver company, recorded higher-than-expected pretax profits as new outlets and robust online growth boosted sales. However, growth remained slow early in 2013 due to a heavy snowfall and bad weather conditions.
Nestle Engulfed by Horsemeat Scandal
Nestle SA decided to remove two beef pasta meals from sale in Spain and Italy after traces of horse DNA were found and then confirmed by reports. The company removed its beef products as they were found to be contaminated and unfit for consumption.
Carlsberg Misses Profit Estimates
Carlsberg witnessed a decline in its quarterly profits as sales slumped in the Russian and Northern European markets. Similarly, shares of the company shrank following lower-than-expected fourth quarter earnings and high beer making expenses.
Legendary Heinz purchased for $23bn
The confidence is back as several mergers have been announced. And what is more, the acquisition of Heinz was announced. Warren Buffett and Jorge Paulo Lemann decided to go into the ketchup business by acquiring H.J. Heinz Co. for over $23 billion. The acquisition of Heinz is believed to be the biggest takeover in the history of the food industry.
Starbucks Reported Strong Quarter Profits
Starbucks Corp. reported a 13 percent jump in profits in its first fiscal quarter which was driven by high-end sales in the US and China, where other cafes have suffered losses lately. The results matched the expectations of the Wall Street, which predicted similar high rise profits.
Thai billionaire Charoen closer to F&N takeover as OUE backs down
After all, it seems that the long battle for Fraser & Neave Ltd. is over. Apparently, a group led by Overseas Union Enterprise Ltd. decided to withdraw from the race as it did not increase its bid to match Thai billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi’s offer of $11.2 billion for the Singapore-listed property and beverage company. Thailand’s third richest man needs only to gain the shareholders’ and regulatory approvals for his bid of S$9.55 per share for Fraser & Neave Ltd.
China’s businesses to sponsor Manchester United
Manchester United Plc inked two sponsorship deals with China’s businesses, namely, China Construction Bank Corp. and Wahaha Group Co. As it has been underlined, both sponsorship deals are “territory specific” as 19-time English soccer champion Manchester United wants to benefit from its status in Asia.
“McDreamy” Patrick Dempsey to buy Seattle-based Tully’s Coffee
AActor Patrick Dempsey’s Global Baristas LLC informed that its bid for Seattle-based Tully’s Coffee was accepted. Also Starbucks Corp. and Baristas Coffee Co. took part in a bankruptcy auction. The “McDreamy” Patrick Dempsey’s company is to pay approximately $9.15 million for a small coffee chain.
