Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce has today released a report showing growth in the New Zealand food and beverage sector is being driven by the Asia-Pacific region and other emerging economies.
The report, an Investor’s Guide to the New Zealand Food & Beverage Industry 2013, says that Asia is now New Zealand’s largest export country destination, [...]

Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce has welcomed a new report that provides wide-ranging insights into the food and beverage industry.
“The Food and Beverage Information Project’s Industry Snapshot is the definitive outline of the state of the industry in New Zealand,” Mr Joyce says.
“Food and beverage is a great Kiwi success story and there are huge [...]

Food Safety Minister Kate Wilkinson says opponents of the Government’s draft Food Bill are scaremongering about its impacts.
“Much of what they claim is untrue and causing many people unnecessary concern,” Ms Wilkinson says.
“The Bill is designed to simplify 30-year-old food safety regulations and ultimately aims to reduce our high level of food-borne illness and [...]

Japanese brewer Asahi Group has acquired New Zealand’s Charlie’s Group Ltd., reaching the 90% level of acceptances for the juice and soft-drink Company, the latest in a spree of acquisitions, said Scoop New Zealand.
Asahi’s New Zealand unit declared it had 90.6% of Charlie’s, allowing it to compulsorily the rest under takeover law. Directors Stefan Lepionka [...]

Asahi announced Monday that it has received valid acceptances representing 53.21% of Charlie’s shares. These include acceptances received from a number of key shareholders, including Collins Asset Management Limited, Tim Cook, Ted van Arkel and the trustees of the family trusts of Stefan Lepionka (the Chief Executive Officer of Charlie’s), Simon Neal and Marc Ellis.
The [...]

US based Wilbur-Ellis Company announced Tuesday that it has purchased the assets of New Zealand and Australian Pet Food Ingredients (NZAPFI).  The mechanically deboning facilities located in New Zealand will now be part of Wilbur-Ellis’ Feed Division.
Wilbur-Ellis has a strong position in the feed ingredient market in the U.S. with decades of experience featuring a [...]

Silver Fern Farms announced plans Wednesday to build a new high-tech beef processing plant on its Te Aroha site, subject to final board and other approvals including union agreement. At the same time, the company is considering the purchase of Wallace Corporation’s meat processing plant at Waitoa.
Wallace Corporation will retain its rendering, tanning, farming and [...]

The Talley’s Group’s takeover offer for Affco Holding has yet received the strongest indication of backing from Affco Holding’s independent directors. In a sign of support for the offer from the South Island food producer, Affco Holding’s independent directors sanctioned the takeover offer, after the Talley’s Group declared its offer unconditional Tuesday.
Affco Holding told its [...]

Reynolds Group Holdings Ltd (RGHL) reported it had acquired the Reynolds Food and Flexible Packaging group of companies. The acquisition will see Reynolds Group Holdings Ltd takeover the Reynolds Food and Flexible Packaging group from Reynolds Packaging (NZ) Ltd.
The Reynolds Packaging (NZ) Ltd is a New Zealand firm owned by Graeme Hart, owner of the [...]

New Zealand’s nodal agency for foreign investments into the country, the Overseas Investment Office, Thursday reported that it had given permission for the go ahead of the sale of Cedenco Foods to Japanese firm; CDC Foods Ltd. Cedenco Foods Ltd is one of New Zealand’s foremost and largest processors of fruit and vegetables.
The firm was [...]