Rivals Danone and Nestle both released their third-quarter sales results this week. Both spoke of struggles in Southern Europe, and Spain in particular where firms are suffering amid the Euro-zone’s debt crisis. Elsewhere, there was plenty of M&A activity with the acquisition of Gläserne Molkerei by Emmi’s organic business.

“We need innovation to bring some growth and consumer excitement back into these categories” – Roddy Child-Villiers, Nestle’s head of investor relations says the company is working on a broad communication strategy.

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“If we don’t do a good job with that we can’t move forward with sustainability in the areas that we need to” – FMI senior director of sustainability and industry relations Jeanne von Zastrow says facilitating discussions with senior executives is key.

“I have a dream. We need to reach a situation where the healthy choices are easier for people” – Dr. Roberto Bertollini, chief scientist at the WHO’s European arm, questioned the food sector’s work on health and the effectiveness of its work to change the recipes of their products.

“Brand equity typically takes 12-18 months to show sustained improvement” – PepsiCo chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi said Frito-Lay’s improved performance was being driven by the increased investment in advertising. 

“The environment in Spain is at the higher end of what we expected in terms of difficulties” – Danone’s CFO Pierre-Andre Terisse says the climate in Europe will “not be very different in 2013”.

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“It’s quite difficult to innovate in Europe” – Jim Moseley, president of UK industry body The Food and Drink Federation says the EU’s regulation of the food industry could lead manufacturers to shift their R&D investment outside the bloc.

“The beauty of the deal is to benefit from the strong position of Gläserne Molkerei in Germany which will help to stronger position our organic products in that market” – a spokesperson for Emmi said its partnership with Gläserne Molkerei will strengthen its position in the “important” German market.

“Products bearing the logo help reassure consumers that what they are buying has been independently inspected to accredited standards from farm to fork” – NFU director of corporate affairs Tom Hind on Sainsbury’s decision to phase-out its use of the Red Tractor logo.

“The new shopping style is more like an interactive game” – a Yihaodian spokesperson on its plans to open 1,000 virtual grocery stores.

“The CFIA will allow the plant to resume normal operations only once we have determined that the plant has fully and consistently implemented effective controls to manage food safety risks” – a spokesperson for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency on its inspections at XL Foods’ facility.

Just Food Excellence Awards - Nominations Closed

Nominations are now closed for the Just Food Excellence Awards. A big thanks to all the organisations that entered – your response has been outstanding, showcasing exceptional innovation, leadership, and impact.

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Winning five categories in the 2025 Just Food Excellence Awards, Centric Software is setting the pace for digital transformation in food and FMCG. Explore how its integrated PLM and PXM suite delivers faster launches, smarter compliance and data-driven growth for complex, multi-channel product portfolios.

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