Page 62 - Food&Drink Nov-Dec 2020

YEAR IN REVIEW
Worrells Solvency and Forensic Accountants were appointed administrators, which was subsequently passed to Deloitte. Deloitte told the ABC ODFA owed National Australia Bank $8 million and unsecured creditors between $3.5-$5 million.
In August, The Remarkable Milk Company bought all its assets including the land, processing facility and all brands and trademarks.
CEDAR MEATS ABATTOIR COVID-19 OUTBREAK
A COVID-19 cluster linked to Cedar Meats Abattoir in Melbourne reached up to
111 cases in May.
The Victorian Department of
Health and Human Services (DHHS) said the first case in the cluster was diagnosed on
having COVID-19 after they were hospitalised for an unrelated matter on 27 April. DHHS tried to arrange onsite testing for the 350 staff, but it was more efficient for staff to access nearby testing facilities, he said.
BARRY CALLEBAUT ACQUIRES GKC FOODS One of the world’s largest chocolate and cocoa product manufacturers Barry Callebaut Group acquired Australian B2B chocolate manufacturer GKC Foods.
GKC is based in Melbourne, privately owned and had been in operation since the 1980s. It produces chocolate, organic and vegan chocolate, coatings and fillings to consumer brands, dedicated chocolate shops, gourmet delis, speciality food
been filled with hand sanitiser due to incorrect labelling.
The SS Casino Gins sold
between 5 and 7 June at the Great Ocean Road Brewhouse were not correctly sealed and did not have a shrink label seal on pack.
The distillery confirmed it had recovered all incorrectly labelled bottles from the product safety recall issued on Monday 8 June. A spokesperson told F&DB: “We are very sorry this occurred. Rest assured we will be following up our procedures to ensure this does not occur again.”
THOMAS FOODS SELLS SPUDS, BUYS MORE MEAT Australia’s largest family-owned red meat processors, Thomas Foods International (TFI) acquired a 50 per cent stake in meat processing company Frew International.
Under the arrangement, which took effect on 1 July, both companies will continue to operate independently with Robert Frew remaining as managing director of Frew International and Darren Thomas joining Frew’s board as executive chair to help guide global growth and future strategy.
Meanwhile, TFI also agreed to sell its fresh potato business to Mitolo Family Farms, which was given the green light by the ACCC in August. It said the agreement was an opportunity to focus its attention and resources on core operations more closely aligned to the group’s future growth strategy.
GENERAL MILLS, B&J READY MEALS DEAL General Mills sold two of its ready meals brands and
licensed a third to ready meal specialists Beak & Johnston. Ready Chef and Pasta Master will be sold, and Latina’s chilled ready meals category will be licensed to Beak.
General Mills ANZ VP and MD Peter Everett told F&DB the decision was driven by the company wanting to drive stronger growth for the Latina master brand.
“We will continue to own the Latina brand and operate the Latina Fresh Pasta & Sauce business. This is a critical growth priority for us. As such, General Mills will continue our ongoing marketing for the Latina Masterbrand & Innovation as the leading brand in the Pasta & Sauce category,” he said.
Existing Beak & Johnston brands are Pitango, Beak & Sons, Simmone Logue Fine Food and Strength Meals Co.
It has a partnership with Woolworths for the brand B&J City Kitchen – Beak owns 77 per cent and Woolworths 23 per cent. It supplies retailers nationally.
SPC, DÖHLER JV BRINGS GLOBAL GOALS TO LIFE
A joint venture between SPC and ingredients specialist Döhler will form the core of its global expansion, SPC chair Hussein Rifai says. Gourmet Ingredients will see new products developed in Australia and then sold through Döhler’s sales and distribution channels.
Rifai told F&DB: “Our partnership with Döhler is a natural fit and will form the core of our global ingredients business. It means we’re entering with strength into the ingredients category. Once we are operational then we will be expanding into that ingredients space internationally,” said Rifai.
“ Victorian distiller Apollo Bay Distillery recalled nine of its gin products, after discovering they had been fi led with hand sanitiser due to incorrect labelling.”
2 April, but said the worker had not been at Cedar Meats for four weeks so the abattoir was not considered an exposure site. The second and third cases linked to the workplace were diagnosed on 24-25 April, and were the first indication of a possible cluster, it said.
In a 4 May statement, Cedar Meats general manager Tony Kairouz said the company became aware of an employee
outlets, and key national retailers in Australia and New Zealand.
Barry Callebaut said the acquisition was a strategic move to build a direct presence and manufacturing capacity in the Australian market.
APOLLO BAY DISTILLERY RECALLS GIN SANITISER Victorian distiller Apollo Bay Distillery recalled nine of its gin products, discovering they had
62 | Food&Drink business | November-December 2020 | www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au