Page 6 - Food&Drink Business Magazine June 2019

NEWS
IFBA pledge to eliminate trans-fat ‘food villain’
Dairy industry: bigger, more complex challenges ahead
FORMER Victorian premier John Brumby has been appointed independent chair of the Australian Dairy Plan – an initiative by Dairy Australia, Australian Dairy Farmers, Australian Dairy Products Federation and Gardiner
Dairy Foundation.
On 10 May, it released its
report on the current state of the dairy industry.
Brumby called it a honest assessment of challenges” that will be addressed during ADP consultations.
“Market volatility, challenging conditions on farm and a breakdown in trust between farmers and processors have taken a toll on where the industry stood a decade ago. It is vital that all sides now pull together to agree a roadmap of priorities and actions, in order to reset the direction and confidence of the industry.
“In my view, the challenges we face today are bigger and more complex than the industry has faced before. If we are to write the next chapter of dairy’s story, we not only need to be honest about the issues we face, but also open to taking difficult decisions and supporting radical change
if required.
ADP is currently holding more
than 20 nationwide consultation workshops and calls for everyone in the sector to “get involved”. ✷ ✷
TWELVE food and beverage ‘powerhouses’ from the International Food and Beverage Alliance (IFBA) have industrially-processed trans fat in their sights.
Following the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) initiative to eradicate the ingredient, the group pledged to phase it out from global food supply by 2023.
The Coca-Cola Company, McDonald’s, Nestlé and Unilever, were some of the signatories.
Launched last year, WHO’s elimination plan offers a step-by-step guide on eliminating industrially- produced trans-fatty acids to the global food supply. Trans fat causes more than 500,000 deaths from heart disease every year, it says.
But GlobalData consumer insights analyst Katrina Diamonon told Food & Drink Business the pledge may be a
‘slippery slope’ for brands to navigate if WHO
continues to crack down on renowned
‘food villains’.
“Major food and
beverage
manufacturers
want to be seen
as proactively
working to address dietary-related
health issues. Aligning themselves with the recommendations of health authorities such as WHO is important from a strategic and branding perspective.
Diamonon said making these pledges has “significant implications for product formulations and, critically, subsequent product taste, texture and consumer acceptance.”
While the pledge is self- regulated, in the age of social media fuelled scrutiny and accountability, “there will still be consequences for these manufacturers if the pledge is not adhered to,” she says.
“The pledge is an important step in realising WHO’s goals, but must be combined with regulatory intervention to control or eliminate the
production of trans fat.”
Ongoing research into
health impacts, continued
education and awareness programs to alert consumers of the effects
of trans fat consumption and how they can be replaced with healthier fats and oils is needed, Diamonon says.
According to WHO, industrially-produced trans- fats cause more than 500,000 deaths from coronary heart disease globally every year, and its elimination from the food supply represents a simple and effective way to save lives. ✷
ASX-LISTED Yowie Group Ltd (YOW) has advised shareholders to “take no action” following the 20 May intended off-market all scrip takeover offer by Aurora Dividend Income Trust (ADIT).
ADIT offered 9 cents per share, a 16.8 per cent premium on the company’s most recent closing price of 7.7 cents.
Aurora managing director John Patton told Food & Drink Business, “The Yowie business, under the stewardship of the current Board, has continued to dwindle and does not appear to have a clear strategy to turn around its performance.”
In March Keybridge Capital Ltd made a similar bid, also rejected by Yowie. Keybridge had connections to ADIT in that it acquired its funds management business – Aurora Funds Ltd – for $4.3 million in 2015. At the time Keybridge was Aurora’s largest shareholder. Keybridge sold its funds management business in 2016. Patton told F&DB that Keybridge no longer has any ownership interest in Aurora.
Aurora’s ASX announcement says it held “significant concerns” on the “financial performance, leadership and corporate governance” of Yowie for “some time”.
“The latest quarterly report released by YOW on 30 April 2019, for the quarter ended 31 March 2019, clearly demonstrated that YOW management are no closer to turning around the business, with deteriorating sales performance and a net cash outflow of US$1.787 million,” Aurora says.
The directors of Aurora believe that decisive action is required to address the issues within the YOW business. ✷
Yowie rejects takeover bids
6 | Food&Drink business | June 2019 | www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au