Craft Beer Sales Rise; Dietary Habits of Chimpanzees

Craft beer sales increase
Some consumers want something different when it comes to alcoholic beverages, and this desire is helping to drive sales of craft beers, which feature a diverse variety of flavors and styles.  

In 2012, the craft beer market experienced a 15% increase in volume and a 17% increase in dollar growth, whereas the total U.S. beer market grew by only 1%, according to newly published data from the Brewers Association, a trade association representing small and independent American brewers. There were 2,403 breweries operating in the United States in 2012, 2,347 of which were craft breweries, representing an 18% increase over 2011. The total number of barrels of craft beer produced in 2012 was more than 13.2 million. Compare this to the 7.1 million produced in 2006. 

“Beer is a $99 billion industry to which craft brewers are making a significant contribution, with retail sales share hitting double digits for the first time in 2012,” said Paul Gatza, director, Brewers Association. “Small and independent brewers are consistently innovating and producing high quality, flavor-forward craft-brewed beer. Americans are not only  responding to greater access to these products, but also to the stories and people behind them.” 

Chimps may think about food they eat 
Chimpanzees pay attention to what they eat and when they eat it, and anthropologists believe this may indicate that these primates might be thinking about the quality of their food. 

The researchers of this current study, who are investigating the dietary habits of wild chimpanzees as part of research on the history of diet in human evolution, analyzed the nutrient content of two species of saplings from Uganda’s Kibale National Park, which is home to a large chimpanzee population. They found that the levels of various carbohydrates like simple sugars, starches, and digestible fiber in the leaves that are consumed by the chimpanzees changed throughout the day, with hemicellulose increasing 15% and simple sugars and starches increasing 100% from morning to late afternoon. The levels of more difficult to digest ingredients like cellulose and lignin decreased by the end of the day.  

“If these sugars or total non-structural carbohydrates are increasing, then the leaves are returning more calories late in the day,” said Bryce Carlson, an assistant professor of anthropology who studies primate ecology and nutrition in human evolution at Purdue University. “At this time, they may taste sweeter, and the chimpanzees may then learn and adjust their feeding behavior accordingly. We know they use vision, texture, taste, and smell to gauge when to eat fruit, so it’s understandable to think they may do the same with leaves.” Carlson cannot say for sure that the chimpanzees are consciously selecting the leaves when the  nutrient content is optimal but feels “this correlation presents an intriguing hypothesis to explain feeding behavior in this primate species and mechanisms for ingestive behavior in general.” 

The study, “Diurnal Variation in Nutrients and Chimpanzee Foraging Behavior,” appeared in the April 2013 issue of American Journal of Primatology. 

Youths spur ethnic food market growth
Young Americans and parents with children younger than 18 are driving the ethnic foods market, reported market research company Mintel. These two demographics are more likely to prepare or purchase ethnic food offerings than others. 

Mintel’s research showed that nine in 10 adults aged 25–34 said they prepared ethnic food at home in the past month versus only 68% of those aged 65 and older. Other results indicated that 91% of Americans with children younger than 18 in the home cooked ethnic  food compared to 78% of those without children in this age range. Hispanic food is most popular among adults with children, with 72% saying they prepared this cuisine at home in the past month. 

Overall, the ethnic food category had growth of 12% from 2007 to 2009, which was likely due to consumers purchasing more food to prepare at home rather than visiting restaurants. Even though sales have increased by only 4.5% beginning in 2010, Mintel expects consumer interest and more focused product development to help the market grow by 20.3% from 2012 to 2017. 

“The ethnic food category has had a very strong performance during the recession, followed by a still positive but slightly lower growth trend, likely driven by a return to restaurants,” said John N. Frank, category manager, CPG food & drink at Mintel. “However, the category is forecast to grow in the future due to its heightened popularity. As Americans, especially younger people, have palates that are becoming more adventurous and sophisticated, they are also eager to explore lesser-known cuisines with unique flavor combinations.” 

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Ensuring egg safety
While the egg industry relies on a number of postharvest procedures to keep eggs safe, more research is still needed to ensure that the nutritional quality and properties of eggs are maintained. These are the finding of a review article published in Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety.

The researchers analyzed studies that reported on the different preharvest and postharvest preventive methods used to reduce the contamination of Salmonella spp. of eggs, from the farms, where there is better control of the laying hens’ infection with bacteria, to the processing facilities, where chemical or physical methods are used to decontaminate eggshells. They also noted that these methods have proven efficacy but are still not accepted and used everywhere around the world.  

The study, “Control of Salmonella Contamination of Shell Eggs—Preharvest and Postharvest Methods: A Review,” appeared in the March 2013 issue of Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety.

Nominate for Borlaug Award
The World Food Prize is accepting nominations for the Norman Borlaug Award for Field Research and Application. The award recognizes science-based achievement in international agriculture and food production by an individual under age 40 who has clearly demonstrated the will to fight to eliminate global hunger and poverty. The deadline is June 30, 2013. For more information, contact Judith Pim at 515-245-3783 or [email protected], or visit www.worldfoodprize.org.

CFSAN updates website
The Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) has changed a portion of the FDA website to make it easier for individuals to find information about foods. 

The reorganized content is found at www.fda.gov/food. The website features new section titles that group food-related web content into categories for easy navigation. CFSAN wants to know what users think about the organization of the site. Questions and comments can be e-mailed to [email protected]  or [email protected].

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What’s new with food companies
• Grovepoint private investment firm has gained a majority stake in Algatechnologies, which manufactures AstaPure® astaxanthin.

• Arla Foods Ingredients will build a lactose manufacturing plant in Jutland, Denmark. 

• BI Nutraceuticals’ plant in Islandia, N.Y., has received SQF 2000 certification from NSF.

• Cargill and Arasco have formed a partnership to develop starches and sweeteners in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

• Cargill, CHS, and ConAgra Foods have agreed to combine their North American flour milling businesses to form Ardent Mills.

• Clabber Girl Corp. has received re-certification as a Level 3 Safe Quality Food supplier and has been awarded an excellent rating from the American Institute of Baking International.

• The Closure and Container Manufacturers Association on April 1, 2013, became part of the International Society of Beverage Technologists.

• The International Organization for Standardization has awarded Covance Inc.’s laboratory in Greenfield, Ind., 17025 accreditation.

• David Michael & Co. has formed a distribution partnership with Cambrian Solutions.

• Health Canada has approved Ingredion’s Nutraflora® prebiotic fiber to be declared as a dietary fiber source.

• Walt Disney Co. has named Joffrey’s Coffee & Tea Co. as the official specialty coffee at its U.S.-based theme parks and Disney Vacation Club.

• Health Canada has approved MPG Ingredients’ Fibersym® RW and FiberRite® RW resistant wheat starches as dietary fiber sources in unstandardized foods.

• ROHA Food Colors has received a “good” rating from Safe Quality Food for its St. Louis, Mo., facility.

• SunOpta’s International Foods Group is increasing its production of value-added organic and specialty cocoa ingredients at its plant in Middenmeer, the Netherlands.

• UL has acquired Innovadex.

• Virginia Dare and We-e Flavors of China have formed a new flavor company based in Shanghai.

• Watson Inc. has received an “A” rating on its British Retail Consortium certification.

• ZuChem and Godavari  Biorefineries have partnered to commercialize a renewable manufacturing bioprocess for xylitol.

Karen Nachay,
Associate Editor 
[email protected]