Chief Executive’s Weekly News for 10th February 2020

Dear All,

Detailed below is the Weekly News for 10th February.

Have a good week.

Gordon Polson

Chief Executive – Federation of Bakers Ltd

CBI Economic Quarterly highlights:

  • UK economy growing at a subdued pace – the UK economy is expected slow slightly from an estimated 1.3% in 2019 to 1.2% in 2020, before picking up to 1.8% in 2021
  • Global growth eases – The recent global economic slowdown is expected to have bottomed out in 2019, as tentative signs of a thawing in trade tensions should boost market sentiment and support global manufacturing activity and trade flows. Consequently, the IMF expects global GDP growth to pick up from an estimate 2.9% in 2019 to 3.3% in 2020 and 3.4% in 2021.
  • Downside risks recede in near-term, but remain salient – Although major downside risks to the UK economy – such as a no-deal Brexit – seem to have receded in the near-term, they remain a key consideration in our outlook going forward (particularly due to the uncertain end-state of UK-EU trade talks).

 

Guidance on Brexit FSA published on 29 January 2020 updated guidance for food and feed businesses in preparation for the UK leaving the EU on 31 January 2020. The guidance also highlights that there will be a transition period, until the end of 2020, during which the current rules on trade and business with the EU, including food and feed, will continue to apply. It also explains that, during the transition period, the UK and EU will negotiate additional arrangements. Defra has also published guidance, on the following, when the UK leaves the EU on 31 January 2020 and after the Brexit transition period ends on 1 January 2021: • Moving Balai Directive animals, semen and embryos from 1 January 2021; and • Export goods to countries outside the EU.

Coronavirus This is a link to information published by the CBI. https://www.cbi.org.uk/articles/coronavirus-a-need-to-know-for-business/

Food Waste – Courtauld Commitment 2025 Milestone Progress Report Published WRAP published on 24 January 2020. The Courtauld Commitment 2025 Milestone Progress Report, setting out progress in food waste reduction since 2007. The report highlights that total food waste levels have fallen by 480,000 tonnes between 2015 and 2018. In terms of household food waste, 1.4 million tonnes have been prevented from going to waste each year compared to 2007 and a 4% reduction achieved in food waste in the supply chain. WRAP is also calling for further action to reduce food waste and pressures on water to help tackle climate change and intends to launch a public campaign to get people talking about food, to complement the work of Love Food Hate Waste.

FDF Environmental Ambition 2019 Progress Report FDF published on 28 January 2020 its Environmental Ambition 2019 Progress Report. The key findings of the report on progress by FDF members include the following: • The food and drink manufacturing sector delivered a reduction in food waste of over 30% per capita since 2011; • CO2 emissions have halved since 1990 and total emissions reduced by 53.2%; • A 38.5% reduction in water consumption has been delivered between 2007 and 2018; and • The amount of water consumed per tonne of product was reduced by 39.6% between 2007 and 2018.

The latest newsletter published by the Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA) is available here read the GCA newsletter online

 

The Federation of Bakers (FOB) is delighted to welcome We Seal as a new associate member.  We Seal are the resealable, recyclable bag seal experts. Recently re-branded from Select Bag Sealers, they have been sealing and resealing some of the world’s biggest bread brands for the past 30 years. 95% of the UK’s bagged bread is sealed the We Seal way.

We Seal is proof of the power of small. Their innovative tape seals and reliable, low-maintenance sealing machines are surprisingly small but the impact of their bag sealing solutions can be felt worldwide. Their resealable and recyclable tape seals, machines and support, provide a single, innovative solution for food brands – simplify high-speed production, lock in product freshness, reduce food waste, making labelling clearer and safer. What’s more their solutions are 100% recyclable.

With this passion for sustainability and recycling, We Seal don’t just talk about plastics and recycling, they take action. Educating the consumer to understand how to recycle plastic bags and tape seals through BreadBagRecycling.org,  supporting our customers in their sustainability strategies and by redesigning their products to ensure that they can not only be recycled but are renewable and sustainable.