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Livestock and Meat
Cuts for minced meat production were the focus of demand and sales prices remained unchanged compared to the previous week. There was only a very limited supply of cattle for slaughter, so that the producer prices for both male cattle for slaughter and for slaughter cows rose slightly in some cases. According to the first overview, young bulls of the meat trading class R3 brought in a weekly average of 2,58 euros per kilogram slaughter weight, two cents more than in the previous week. The prices for cows in class O3 increased by three cents to 2,08 euros per kilogram slaughter weight on the national average. When exporting beef to neighboring European countries, the proceeds were based on the level of the previous week. In the coming week, beef cattle prices are likely to remain stable due to the tight supply.
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Current PwC study Food Sector 2003/2004: M&A volume falls by 2003 percent in 40 / France and Great Britain are the most active M&A markets in Europe / Pressure on manufacturers to produce healthier food is increasing
The volume of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the European food sector almost halved last year. While the number of transactions among food producers fell by only seven percent from 374 (2002) to 349 in 2003, the total volume fell by 40 percent in the same period from 12,8 to 7,7 billion euros. The mainstay of the M&A business were smaller deals with an average value of 27 million euros (2002: 44 million euros). Five of the eight largest takeovers valued at €100 million or more involved French companies. The UK recorded the most mergers and acquisitions with more than 60 - it was on par with Central and Eastern Europe, where M&A activity in Poland (16 transactions) and in Hungary (20 transactions) stood out in particular. In Germany, the number of transactions increased slightly compared to the previous year to around 2003. These are the results of the current Insights study. Food Sector 2004/10. Analysis and Opinion on European M&A Activity by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). The study is based on publicly available data on mergers and acquisitions in the European food sector over the past year. According to this, none of the 2003 largest transactions in 500 exceeded the value of 42 million euros - the largest transaction was the sale of the Italian energy group Edison's 397 percent stake in the French sugar producer Beghin-Say for XNUMX million euros to a French agricultural consortium.
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Arcobacter in meat samples
Vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramps and fever are the typical signs of salmonella disease. Salmonella enteritis is the most common known foodborne illness caused by infected food. The reasons for this are usually a lack of hygiene during preparation or processing, as well as improper storage of perishable foods such as eggs, raw meat or mayonnaise. Although the population mostly speaks of "salmonella", the statistics show that there are now bacteria that are far more widespread and cause the same symptoms. Campylobacter, for example, has overtaken salmonella as the causative agent of bacterial diarrhea in humans. The germ Arcobacter is similar to it. Little is known about its importance. Food hygiene experts at Freie Universität Berlin have now tracked down the "new" bacteria and found something alarming: Arcobacter germs were detected in 37 percent of the tested fresh chicken drumsticks and in four percent of the minced beef on the Berlin market.
An essential task of consumer protection is to assess the significance of "emerging pathogens" as early as possible. These are disease-causing germs that until recently were either unknown or classified as harmless. This group also includes the bacterium Arcobacter, which originally belonged to the group of Campylobacter spp. was counted. After intensive investigations, they were assigned a separate genus in 1991. Some subgroups of the bacterium can cause gastrointestinal diseases in humans.
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Moksel Group in the half-year in a difficult market environment with 3,1 million euros stable in the plus
Continued high competitive pressure - Turnover and sales increased - Foreign activities expanded in line with strategy - Moksel continues to focus on quality for self-service and convenience - For the year as a whole, operating earnings level as targeted for 2003 Continued high competitive pressure
In the first half of 2004, the continuing uncertainty and the associated reluctance to buy on the part of consumers persisted. As a result, the strong competition in the food retail sector also continued. This situation was exacerbated by the fact that the trend towards discounts for meat is unbroken. At the same time, livestock prices for cattle have risen by more than 20 percent since the beginning of the year, and for pigs by more than 30 percent. Against the background of tough competition, especially in the retail trade, it was not possible in the current year to implement the increased purchase prices with largely constant consumer prices on the sales side.
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Solomonella like it warm. Every year, with the temperatures in summer, the infections and problems caused by germs in food also increase. Hygiene or the growth of germs is naturally correlated with the ambient temperatures. Carelessness can turn safe food into risky food. This applies in particular to the handling of food in communal catering, at street, club and garden festivals as well as in private households. Problems and health risks can be avoided by consistently observing simple rules and handling instructions when purchasing, storing and preparing food, food ingredients and ready meals. This includes the awareness and knowledge of food and food-changing processes, which - depending on the environmental conditions - can initially be imperceptible and not noticeable to the senses.
All companies that deal with food commercially, ie with the production, preparation and sale of food, are obliged by law to maintain the highest level of hygiene. The hygiene laws prescribe the requirements of "good hygiene practice", which includes the appropriate selection and care of the devices, the personal hygiene of the employees, compliance with cooling temperatures and much more. With regard to the microbiological quality of the food, the law requires that it must be "safe", ie that e.g. B. the number and type of microorganisms may only be such that there is no health risk.
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Train leadership skills in the new CMA/DFV seminar
"I see myself primarily as a coordinator, as a source of ideas and occasionally also as a peacemaker," is how the former CEO of Thyssen AG Heinz Kriwet described his top position. And Henry Ford is said to have once said: “When the boss speaks, the people listen. And when the boss acts, they watch him. So you have to think carefully about your words and actions.” Defining goals, coordinating tasks, motivating people, recognizing and solving conflicts, being a role model - the demands on managers are varied and high, because business success depends to a large extent on all employees being proverbially pull together. However, since neither captains of industry nor master craftsmen are born bosses, they too have to acquire leadership skills and review them from time to time.
For this purpose, the CMA Centrale Marketing-Gesellschaft der Deutschen Agrarwirtschaft mbH and the DFV Deutscher Fleischerverband eV have developed a further training seminar entitled "Fit for more management - or: How to do it better with the employees". The event will take place on September 13th and 14th, 2004 in Kassel. It is aimed at business owners and managers in the butcher trade and answers the following questions: How do I convince and motivate my employees? How do I successfully solve sticky situations?
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Development of energy and nutrient intake in German children and adolescents from 1985 to 2000
How did the energy and nutrient intake of children and adolescents develop within 15 years between 1985 and 2000? Answers to this can be found in the long-term study, the so-called DONALD study (DOrtmund Nutritional and Anthropometric Longitudinally Designed Study), which is unique in Germany. Results:
The total intake of energy remained constant over the years - this was shown by the examination of the 795 children and adolescents examined. That is, children consumed on average no more calories in 2000 than in 1985. However, the composition of the diet with regard to the three macronutrients fat, carbohydrate and protein has changed: the intake of total fat decreased noticeably in all age groups over time back, the intake of carbohydrates increased. In recent years, the study participants have come close to the recommendation of the German Society for Nutrition (DGE) of more than 50 energy percent carbohydrates in the diet. With an average fat intake of around 36 energy percent in the year 2000, the nutritional behavior of children and young people is also approaching the DGE guideline value of 30 to 35 energy percent for these age groups with regard to fat. The ratio of protein, polyunsaturated fatty acids and added sugar in the diet of the children and adolescents remained unchanged over the period of time observed.
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Continuing Medial Education (CME) supports doctors in further training in nutritional medicine issues
What can or should you eat and drink if you have certain illnesses? How do you lose weight permanently in a healthy way when it is medically necessary? Patients are increasingly asking these and similar questions from the field of nutritional medicine. This is where the consulting skills of doctors come into play. Knowledge that doctors need to acquire through further training. Since August 2004, the CMA Centrale Marketing-Gesellschaft der Deutschen Agrarwirtschaft mbH, in cooperation with the Medi Didac Institute for further training in the healthcare sector and the Bavarian State Medical Association, has been offering the option of online further training with "CME Continuing Medical Education". "Via www.cma.de or www.cme-checkpoint.de, physicians can conveniently acquire points on the subject of nutritional medicine at no additional cost, which count as proof of medical training," explains Andrea Dittrich, Head of CMA Science PR, the online Offer. In the future, the website will contain regularly updated learning modules and questions. The first CME questions deal with the main topic of nutritional medicine in the PHOENIX special issue "State of the art".
Since June 2004, the documentation of further training measures for doctors has been mandatory due to the Health Modernization Act (GMG). "The CMA has been supporting medical training with the PHOENIX doctor's magazine for seven years, and we are now expanding our range with CME," explains Dittrich. Score points online is not just for doctors who have or want to acquire the additional qualification "Nutritional Medicine", but also for all other doctors. The online training has a modular structure. For each module, users must show their knowledge and document the correct answers. They will then receive their certificate for submission to the Medical Association.
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Multilingual helpful thesaurus
New opportunities are now available for the development of bioethical literature: the German Reference Center for Ethics in the Biosciences (DRZE) at the University of Bonn, together with its national and international partners, has published a new, multilingual thesaurus for ethics in the biosciences. The tool for literature research and indexing is not only met with great interest in Germany.
To a certain extent, a thesaurus is a catalog of hierarchically structured keywords with cross-references to related subject areas. If you are looking for literature on the subject of genetic engineering, for example, the thesaurus will quickly take you to the sub-areas that interest you. The keyword catalog refers to a number of sub-terms such as "cloning", "green genetic engineering" or "genetically modified organism". Under each keyword, the user will find further thematic limitations on the one hand, but also references to related subject areas. In this way he can quickly and precisely find the relevant references. On the other hand, the thesaurus developed by the Bonn reference center in conjunction with its partners in Göttingen (IDEM), Tübingen (IZEW), Paris (CDEI) and Washington (KIE) also helps with internationally standardized indexing of bioethics literature.
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"Consumers cannot rely on the best-before date," sums up AK consumer advocate Heinz Schöffl. An AK test on 30 pre-packaged sausage samples from 20 Viennese supermarkets shows: Every second pre-packaged, sliced sausage was spoiled on the day of expiry due to excessive bacterial counts. The AK demands more realistic expiration dates from the manufacturers. In addition, it must be ensured that the cold chain is maintained throughout from production to sale.
The AK (Vienna Chamber of Labor) bought 30 pre-packaged sliced sausage samples in 20 Viennese supermarkets in June. Until the inspection, the products were properly stored refrigerated as indicated on the label and examined on the day of the expiry date. The sensory and bacteriological investigation was carried out by the Food Research Institute in Vienna.
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Dutch delivered less to Germany
According to the Federal Statistical Office, Germany received almost 150.000 fattening and slaughter animals weighing more than 50 kilograms from Denmark from January to May of this year. This corresponded to an increase of 75 percent compared to the same period last year. In contrast, 551.000 animals from this group came to the local market from the Netherlands in the same period, nine percent fewer than a year earlier. Overall, however, total imports in this category remained almost constant compared to the previous year.
On the other hand, in the first five months of this year, significantly fewer piglets and runners weighing less than 50 kilograms came from abroad. Danish deliveries fell by ten percent to 485.000 animals by May. And the Netherlands even exported 523.000 animals to Germany, 18,3 percent less.
