ANZ Focus: NZ's Forty Thieves, Fonterra financial results, Tassal on 'nuclear' seafood challenges and more feature in our round-up

‘Amateurish but authentic’: NZ’s Forty Thieves keeps up with video marketing trends to appeal to short attention spans​

Auckland-based nut butter producer Forty Thieves is investing in social media content creation and influencer marketing to target online consumers, whom it says have increasingly shorter attention spans.

From roasting and milling of raw materials to blending ingredients and bottling of products, Forty Thieves has been producing its nut butters fully in-house for the past seven years.

According to co-owner and marketing director Shyr Godfrey, the brand’s marketing strategies have evolved considerably since it was launched, with the biggest difference being the way social media and its algorithms work today.

Fonterra posts record NZ$1.6bn profits on the back of strong protein and cheese margins​

The New Zealand co-op forecasted improved margins across consumer and foodservice channels for FY24 and said there were indications that demand for milk powders will begin to return from early 2024.

Fonterra’s normalized profit after tax was NZ$1.3bn, an increase of NZ$738m compared to the same time last year. The co-op completed the divestment of its Chilean business Soprole (a gain of NZ$260m) and China JV, China Farms, resulting in profit after tax of NZ$1.6bn, up NZ$994m.

‘Nervous and confused’: Japan nuclear wastewater release ramps up challenges for APAC seafood sector​

Japan’s decision to release treated wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear disaster could have far-reaching impacts for the APAC seafood sector, especially in terms of negative consumer perception and overall confusion.

Japan released its first round of treated wastewater from the 2011 nuclear disaster into the sea earlier in August this year to mixed reactions from nations everywhere, including its neighbouring countries, ranging from government support but outright consumer outrage​ in South Korea to anger and an overall Japanese seafood ban in China.

The impacts have been particularly prominent in the seafood sector such as China’s ban on Japanese seafood, and the worst appears to not yet be over as confusion is still reigning amongst seafood consumers in the region.

“The impacts are pretty far-reaching, especially when it comes to seafood items that are commonly associated with Japanese imports or Japanese cuisine such as salmon,”​ Australian seafood firm Tassal’s Head of Sales and Marketing Matt Vince told FoodNavigator-Asia​.

Choline concern: Only one-in-four pregnant Aussie women meeting guidelines​

Only 23% of pregnant women are meeting daily choline intake recommendations of 440mg/day, says an Australian study, despite its crucial role in cognitive development prenatal infants.

The significance of choline supplementation during pregnancy for cognitive development is gaining increasing recognition.

A new study by Australian researchers​ assessed choline intake using a food questionnaires from pregnant women enrolled in the population-derived birth cohort, the Barwon Infant Study (BIS).

Beauty-from-within space sees higher demand for multi-benefit products spanning gut and mental support – expert panel​

Asia-Pacific’s beauty-from-within category is seeing rising demand for products that address not only beauty concerns, but also those that provide multiple benefits spanning gut health and mental support, says a panel involving experts from Haleon, Blackmores, Renovatio, and more.

The panel was speaking at the Beauty-from-within APAC 2023 Interactive Broadcast organised by NutraIngredients-Asia ​and CosmeticsDesign-Asia ​on November 2.