Topic “In the News News” — Exporter Magazine

Public health will lose again as Food Standards Australia New Zealand Authority (FSANZ) is set to approve GE crops designed to survive spraying with a new range of toxic herbicides, according to GE FREE NZ. A Pakistani import-export company specialising in fruits such as grapes, mangoes, apples and mandarins has entered into an agreement to sell world class Royal Gala apples produced in New Zealand in Pakistan, according to Dawn.com. Consumers may consider organic cookies, yogurt and potato chips to be tastier, healthier and lower in calories because they carry an organic label, according to FoodNavigator-USA.com. While a search of Mintel’s Global New Products Database (GNPD) could only identify five US products featuring the fruit concentrate, several of the nation’s biggest food manufacturers have requested samples, with many looking to combine it with stevia in a bid to capitalise on its all natural credentials, Paul Paslaski, vice president sales & marketing USA, at monk fruit processor BioVittoria, told FoodNavigator-USA.com. Auckland-based Living Cell Technologies Limited, a company developing cell implant therapy to treat diabetes, says it has entered into an agreement to raise A$3 million through a placement of shares to Otsuka Pharmaceutical Factory, Inc from Japan. Rising fuel prices, tumbling freight rates, piracy and now radiation fears will make this year one of the most difficult in decades for the maritime industry, forcing some shipping companies out of business, according to a Reuters report carried by mb.com.ph.