Nestle reiterates commitment with Maggi making difference towards 2020

NaijaAgroNet:

The Nestlé Central and West Africa has reiterated commitments towards 2020 to help people cook the difference with Maggi, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The Business Executive Officer Culinary for Nestlé Central and West Africa, Mr. Dominique Allier, gave this reaffirmation on the company’s commitment at the recent Nutrition Forum in Dakar and attended by stakeholders from across West and Central Africa.

He disclosed that the iconic Maggi brand is on a mission to support home cooks with healthier and tastier choices, by simplifying ingredients lists, reducing salt and increasing micronutrient fortification.

“With 4600 food portions around the world prepared every second with Maggi, Nestle believes that these changes will have a positive impact,” he said.

He also pointed out that the company is committed to reshaping Maggi’s products to emphasize the use of familiar and common ingredients that people know and have at home.

‘’Consumer expectations are changing, they want products with common ingredients they know, minimal processing, natural or organic and ideally locally produced. Our company has a role to play in contributing to the needs of the society,’’ Allier said.

He stressed that Maggi is reorganizing its supply chain to privilege local sourcing of ingredients; even as a careful selection of each ingredient will uphold the quality of Maggi products and meet the homemade cooking standards of consumers around the world: trusted, tasty and good for consumers.

Nestlé is also continuing to lower salt in the Maggi range. This will contribute to help people in their efforts towards reducing their salt intake and meeting WHO recommendations on reducing risks associated with high blood pressure.

Fortification is a means Maggi uses to help prevent malnutrition in countries where daily consumption of essential micronutrients is lacking. In 2016, Nestlé provided 65 billion of fortified servings in Central and West Africa out of which Maggi delivered over 100 million iron fortified cubes daily to 78 million households in Central and West Africa.

He explained that in Central and West Africa, fortified Maggi stock cubes and other products are known as a staple for many households, Maggi “Simply Good” summarises the commitments of the iconic brand to help cook the difference.

In addition, to the strong commitments on improving ingredients, he said, Nestlé in Central and West Africa will highlight nutritional challenges by engaging with government authorities, civil society and consumers.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology

Pix: Dominique Allier, Business Executive Officer Culinary for Nestlé Central and West Africa

Court rejects Nestle’s trademark claims over Kit Kat bar

NaijaAgroNet:

A London court penultimate Wednesday, May 17, 2017 has rejected an attempt by Nestle to trademark the distinctive four-fingered shape of the KitKat chocolate bar in Britain, reports NaijaAgroNet.

According to The Washington Times, the four finger KitKat bar, which is characteristic of Nestle’s Kit Kat bar not a trademarkable feature, the Court of Appeal ruled Wednesday, in what the BBC described as “the latest twist in a decade-long UK chocolate wars saga between Nestle and Cadbury.”

NaijaAgroNet recalls that issue at stake has been the sale in the U.K. of the Norweigan candy bar, Kvikk Lunsj, which also has a four-finger shape, although its packaging is distinctive and not readily confused with that of the Kit Kat bar.

The UK court affirmed the evidentiary findings of a lower court, which had rejected Nestle’s claim for trademark protection.

“As the Hearing Officer said here, trade marks are intended to permit consumers to make informed choices between the competing goods of different undertakings in the course of trade,” Lord Justice David Kitchin wrote for the court. “The shape of the KIT KAT bar has not been used to promote or market KIT KATs in recent times. It has nothing, therefore, to do with the informed choices that consumers make between similar products.”

For its part, Nestle suggests the ruling is out of step with legal protections in other country where Kit Kat is sold.

“Nestlé’s four-finger shape has been granted trademark registration in many countries of the world, for instance,” The Washington Times reported.

Uboshe Uboshe/GEE

... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology