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Cancun cock-up
Waiter, a plate of weeds, please!
Fish for brain-food
Coke adds orange to Kuat in Brazil
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Trade
Cancun cock-up
Nobody claiming to represent an
interest at last week’s World Trade Organisation meeting on trade
matters can escape blame for their failure.
The developed countries, led by
Europe, may have offered to cut the subsidies they pay their farmers, but
the quid pro quo, unfettered access to developing countries’
markets, was simply too high. Developing countries, who wanted to find
markets in developed countries, found the doors still locked. Big
business, led by Monsanto and Nestlé, although not directly represented,
found little to cheer in the stalemate. The non-government movement, which
seemed to celebrate the talks’ collapse, gets another chance to condemn
capitalism without offering practical alternatives.
The consensus as the talks broke up
seemed to be that the scales will tip further towards the developed
countries. The US’s new laws governing food imports, enacted in the wake
of the 9/11 tragedy, will make life even more difficult for non-US
producers. And the US’s attitude to multilateral negotiations in forums
such as the WTO, the UN is likely to harden.
Since game theory taught that tit
for tat is the best strategy in negotiations between equal powers,
polarisation of positions between the US, the EU, and the developing
nations is more than likely. Bilateral deals will almost certainly favour
the powerful.
Until there’s a change in the
White House, expect a wintry period in international trade. But innovation
has a way of leaking through these barriers, whether through formal and
legal channels, or through copyright theft, espionage or worse. As Victor
Hugo said, “There is one thing stronger than all the armies of the
world, and that is an idea whose time has come.”
Diet
Waiter, a plate of weeds, please!
Weeds and other wild plants could
be on your menu soon if research coordinated by the University of
London’s School of Pharmacy shows promise.
The school is running an EU project
to explore the health-giving properties of wild vegetables in Southern
Europe. The move follows the success of the so-called Mediterranean diet
in improving health outcomes.
The school’s Dr Andrea Pieroni
said "We are looking at wild and weedy food plants that are
traditionally consumed in isolated villages in southern Europe. The aim is
to understand better the local uses of the plants and to search for new
nutraceuticals with commercial potential."
The research combines
ethnobotanical study with modern molecular biology and pharmacology. It
involves identification of the food plants, documentation of the gathering
and cooking processes, and investigation of pharmacological properties.
To date, over 100 species used as
food have been identified in Gallicianò and Castelmezzano in southern
Italy. A British pharmaceutical conference on innovations for patients
heard that some are high in anti-oxidants. This suggests usefulness in
preventing heart disease.
Dr Pieroni said "The results
to date from our in vitro antioxidant tests are very encouraging.
Our research partners are now starting in vivo studies with some of
the plant extracts."
Fish for brain-food
The old wives’ tale that eating
fish is good for your intelligence and mental health may have more than a
germ of truth.
Research on Mauritian children over
a number of years suggests there is a link between brain damage or
deficits and antisocial behaviour. California-based researcher Adrian
Raine suggests that a diet high in omega 3 oils from an early age, plus
lots of attention and stimulation can prevent some of the damage.
This is good news for researchers
at AZTI, the Basque research institute, which aims to promote fish as a
health source following its own research. With 15 million euros in EU
funding, the six-year Seafood plus project aims to reduce health problems
and increase the well-being of European consumers by increasing fish
consumption. Several groups will study fish epidemiology, behaviour of
population groups, validated traceability systems, aquaculture,
development of new fishing products according to actual demand, and
processing of fish to improve their sensory qualities.
AZTI has also won a 10m euro grant
for its Goodfood and Map Milling projects. These will develop new micro
and nanotechnology analytic methods applied to pesticides, pathogens and
freshness of fish.
New
products
Coke adds orange to Kuat in Brazil
Coca Cola Brazil is taking a leaf
out of it US parent’s book: don’t re-invent the wheel, just give the
customers what they want.
This worked for Coke’s Vanilla
drink; it saw fountain customers adding a dash of vanilla to orders and
soon brought out a product that saved them the effort. Now Coke’s Brazil
office is following suit, this time adding orange to its Kuat guaraná-flavoured
beverage.
Guaraná is a sweet, highly
caffeinated drink made from the extract of a red berry that grows in
Venezuela and northern Brazil. Known for their distinctive taste and
invigorating properties, guaraná-flavoured beverages have 27% of Brazil's
total soft drink business. Many consumers add a slice of orange or a dash
of fresh juice to the liquid.
Kuat with Orange hit stores in São
Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Curitiba last month in 350ml cans and 600ml PET
bottles. Coca-Cola Brazil is currently planting more acres of guaraná to
meet rising demand. Kuat with Orange is the third in the Kuat family; Kuat
Light was introduced in 1999. Kuat is currently Brazil's No 2 guaraná
brand.
More news from Coke is that its
Japan office has launched Coke in a reclosable screw-top aluminium bottle,
ostensibly to fit the mobile and mobile phone-centric lifestyle of its
target audience.
“We discovered that 30% of teens
consume a beverage while speaking on their mobile phones,” said Coke
Japan. “We felt that traditional ring-pull cans didn't fit with this
trend of mobility, as once opened, they cannot be resealed. The solution?
Our new screw-top bottle can.”
Sales
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Brunel Healthcare, a UK-based maker
and contract packer of over the counter licensed medicines and vitamin and
mineral supplements, has installed a new tablet and capsule counting
machine to meet growing demand, especially for its gelatin-fee capsule
products.
The high speed rotary unit is
integrated with a highly secure Bosspak packaging line in a Class 100,000
clean room. It uses an optical sensor matrix capable of detecting damaged
product at the same time.
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Smirnoff
freshens look