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formulating snack bars with micro-sized flakes of lentils may boost the folate content of the finished product by 10 per cent, says a new study from canada. compared to an oat-based snack bar, the lentil-based bar also had higher levels of fibre, protein and iron, according to findings published in food research international. the humble lentil has been somewhat overlooked by many food manufacturers.

a bacteria-killing protein that would be applied to raw meat during processing to “significantly reduce” the presence of e.coli is under development, said one company behind the project. us-based ecolab inc announced it has joined forces with avidbiotics corps to commericalise its proprietary protein-based antibacterial technology, which can be targeted against specific bacterial pathogens.

excess salt can cause hypertension, heart disease, death. that’s the scientific consensus behind public health campaigns to reduce consumption of sodium chloride in the diet. but not everyone reads the science as conclusive, and when it comes to minerals that are essential to human life, the voice of caution must not be drowned out. concern over the impact of too much salt weighs heavy on governments, pushing them towards costly public health campaigns.

australians have not been trading down to the same extent as europeans, says a new report from leatherhead on the effects of recession on food choices. in europe, consumers keeping a close eye on grocery bills have tended to switch to cheaper own label brands. innovation in own brand goods have meant the switch out may not mean a compromise over quality. in australia, however, own label is not as well developed – although the market researcher says it “has been a growing feature of the market”.

feeding america® is accepting applications for members of the new conagra foods child hunger corps that was established as part of a $10 million grant from the conagra foods foundation. the deadline for applications is feb 26. the grant also supports other new feeding america child hunger initiatives, including the summer feeding program and the conagra foods fund to fight child hunger. conagra foods child hunger corps members will be charged with providing on-the-ground support for community-based efforts to help end child hunger while working in food banks affiliated with feeding america.

mccormick & co., inc. announced record results for the fiscal fourth quarter and year ended nov. 30, 2009. acquisitions, cost savings and effective management of working capital contributed significantly to this performance. earnings per share for the fourth quarter reached $0.87; an earnings per share of $2.27 was reported in fiscal year 2009. on a comparable basis, excluding restructuring charges and unusual items, earnings per share rose 10 percent.

a new study from researchers at the university medical centre groningen revealed many parents have a distorted view of their children’s weight. in fact, 75 percent of parents believed their obese 4- or 5-year-olds were within normal weight ranges. the findings, published in the february issue of acta paediatrica, revealed mothers and fathers of overweight and obese children were significantly heavier than the parents of normal weight children.

daniele international, inc., a mapleville, r.i., firm is expanding its jan. 23 recall of 1,240,000 pounds of ready-to-eat (rte) varieties of italian sausage products that may be contaminated with salmonella by another 17,235 pounds of sausage products. the recall was expanded as a result of a confirmed finding of salmonella in an unopened salami product reported by the illinois department of public health.

researchers at the cereal crops research unit are exploring the biological function of avenanthramides (avns) in oats and how increased avn levels could lead to higher antioxidant levels in the foods we eat. avns is a metabolite with potent antioxidant properties found exclusively in oats. previous studies found an increased production of avns in oat leaves when the plant is attacked by a fungus, leading researchers to believe it plays an antimicrobial role.

biovittoria, producer and processor of monk fruit (luo han guo), received fda-approved gras (generally recognized as safe) status for its branded monk fruit concentrate fruit-sweetness™ as a sweetener and flavor enhancer. fruit-sweetness is an all-natural zero-calorie fruit concentrate. “monk fruit has been a traditional food in south east asia for hundreds of years, but the existing technology for cultivating and processing the fruit could not provide the volume, product consistency and taste quality needed in a natural sweetener for the food and beverage industry.