== Northern highlights ==

Northern Foods’ bakery division performance improved in the first half of the year, according to its interim results statement. Revenue increased to £97.6m from £91.4m for the 2007/08 period. Profit from operations also rose to £6.5m compared to £4.4m last year. "Selling prices increased by 4% as we successfully recovered commodity inflation, and volumes increased by 2.8%," said the company.

== Wheat fall predicted ==

According to the Soil Association, yields on non-organic wheat could fall by over half between 2040 and the end of the century - from an average of nine tonnes per hectare to four tonnes. The expected drop is due to a decrease of phosphorus on the planet, a key part of the fertiliser used for non-organic crops.

== Israeli price drop ==

The price of subsidised bread in Israel is set to drop by 3%. The Industry, Trade and Labour Ministry’s economists had previously been considering reducing bread costs by 7.4% in order to equalise losses suffered by bakeries in the past year, according to ynetnews.com.

== Lower coffee crop ==

The biennial nature of the coffee crop could see Nicaragua produce 21.4% less coffee for export in the 2008/09 growing season, than in 2007/08, which saw about 1.6m 60kg bags of exports produced - a 37.1% increase on the year before. Coffee trees by nature tend to produce less after a boom year.

== Protient plant opened ==

US dairy ingredients firm Protient, part of ABF Ingredients, has opened a new research and applications centre in Eagan, Minnesota. The facility, which cost over $1m, features labs, a processing room and a sample storage and preparation area.