www.foodtechnology.co.nz 7
NEWS
SNIPS
The Commerce
Commission
has released a
new video giving
guidance to
traders on false,
misleading or
unsubstantiated
claims and how
to avoid making
them
AgResearch has
developed worldleading
sensors to
better understand
how nitrogen is
being excreted
by cows and how
best to tackle the
environmental
impact
Netball New
Zealand and
Muffin Break
New Zealand
have announced
a strategic
partnership to
help deliver
netball’s new
Year 7 & 8 Player
development
programme, with
Foodco general
manager Jon
Hassall saying
the goal is to help
young people to
develop a life-long
love of the sport
The mediumscale
adverse
event
classification
for the drought
in parts of the
country has
been extended
to the whole
of Southland
plus Otago’s
Queenstown
Lakes, Central
Otago and Clutha
districts, the
Government has
announced.
Synlait Milk has signed a new five-year
supply agreement for increased volumes
of packaged infant formula with its cornerstone
shareholder Bright Dairy. The
Rakaia-based company says the deal
offers both companies certainty around
production volumes for China-owned
Bright Dairy’s flagship infant nutrition brand
Pure Canterbury, which is sold both online
and via traditional channels. It will also help
underpin Synlait’s application to register
Pure Canterbury with the China Food and
Drug Administration as part of stricter
rules aimed at lifting China’s food safety
standards. Synlait managing director John
Penno says the new agreement underpins
the longstanding partnership between
the companies towards the future. “The
shareholder dynamic is something we
share with a number of our customers and
it fosters a close relationship that focuses
on the medium to long-term success for
everyone involved.” Bright Dairy is Synlait’s
largest shareholder with a 39.4% stake.
Other infant nutrition customers with a
strategic shareholding include the a2 Milk
Company and US-based Munchkin Inc.
GROUND
BREAKING
SUPPORT
Three young Māori-based food-related
companies will benefit from the launch
of groundbreaking business accelerator
programme Kōkiri in Hamilton.
Callaghan Innovation and Te Wānanga
o Aotearoa have teamed up with Creative
HQ, Robett Hollis, Crowe Horwath
and Ernst & Young Tahi to create the
programme, which will assist 10 promising
young start-ups from across the
country. Hikurangi Enterprises of Ruatoria
- which is researching bioactive
extracts from plants, shellfish and fungi
to develop new medical and health
products - will be the first to take a New
Zealand-grown medical cannabis product
to clinical trials; ApiTrak is the first
product from Origins Software, and is
a cloud-based platform that provides
complete visibility of the honey supply
chain from land to end consumer;
and The Realness (Auckland) is a new
way to find owner-operated eateries
without having to rely on review sites,
advertising platforms, personal option
sites, magazines or mainstream media
– creating a level playing field for owner
operators within the food industry
and beyond. The companies will undertake
a four-month programme based
at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa’s Mangakōtukutuku
campus, and will receive
education, funding, mentoring, networking
opportunities and engagement
with leading business figures during
the course of the programme, which
runs until June. Government innovation
agency Callaghan’s Elena Higgison
says Kōkiri provides a unique twist for
budding Maori entrepreneurs. “Lots of
people have great ideas, but commercialising
those ideas and getting them
to market is the difficult part. Kōkiri is
unique because it incorporates Māori
values and principles into a business accelerator
programme,” she says. “Here
success is defined more broadly than
merely attracting investment or growing
a business to a point where it can be
sold for a profit. Success can also involve
nurturing a sustainable business
that brings income into a community or
employs local people. We think that’s
fantastic.” The companies will travel to
Hamilton once a month for intensive
on-site sessions.
“Fully edible robots would help to study
how wild animals collectively behave,”
they say. “The robots could also take
a role of animal’s prey to observe their
hunting behaviours, or to train protected
animals to do predation. Once medical
components are mixed into the edible
composition, the robots could help preservation
of wild animals or heal inside
of the human body.”
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