Why additive manufacturing isn't a fad and how it's transforming the way companies design and make things. Additive Manufacturing (AM). or 3D Printing (as it's more commonly known), is already changing the way manufactures design and make things. From small commercial units to large production machines, the adoption of AM is happening at a rapid rate. In particular this is happening in Australia with 100's of manufacturers implementing additive manufacturing into their processes, often in unique and novel ways. This session will look at the latest advancements in AM, the ways that manufacturers are or can implement AM and break down some of the traditional barriers associated with adoption of AM in the design and manufacture workflow. Join presenter Matthew McKnight, Autodesk Australia at next week’s events in Auckland or Christchurch ...

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Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew is welcoming the Food Safety Law Reform Bill having passed its first reading in Parliament last night, with unanimous support.

The Bill is the final step in implementing the Whey Protein Concentrate (WPC) Inquiry recommendations, in particular those which require legislative change.

“This Bill is an important part of putting the false Botulism scare behind us. It illustrates the Government’s commitment to ensuring the safety and suitability of food, which is vitally important for the health of consumers – both in New Zealand and overseas – and our international trade reputation,” says Mrs Goodhew.

“Food and beverage exports account for 60% of our merchandise exports, generating $27 billion of export income in 2015 and employing nearly 80,000 people. It is vital that we do all we can to protect our reputation as a supplier of safe and suitable food, both domestically and internationally, by ensuring all steps have been taken to address the recommendations of the independent inquiry.

The Bill standardises enforcement tools from the recently passed Food Act through into the Animal Products and Wine Acts. This will mean that regulators have similar tools available to encourage behaviour change and deal swiftly with operators who do not comply. The changes include:

Strengthening risk-based plans, which are the foundation of our food safety system, by ensuring key parts of the plans are supplied to the regulator for registration.Strengthening the framework for food product traceability, enabling the use of systems that both producers and the regulators know will work.

“I welcome the opportunity for New Zealanders to have their say on this Bill, when the Primary Production Committee begins accepting submissions in the next few weeks,” Mrs Goodhew says.

Graphic Packaging International (GPI) has launched a new laminated carton board pack to improve shelf life and presentation.

Meat, fish and poultry retailers can now access a laminated carton board pack that provides a unique combination of longer shelf life and dramatic presentation, thanks to

The SlimFresh pack was developed jointly by GPI and tray sealing machinery specialist G. Mondini.

SlimFresh is a high performance pack that utilises two high barrier shrink films around the meat, fish or poultry product to create a vacuum pack that has a second skin appearance.

GPI said the pack provides excellent oxygen barrier properties, an easy open feature for increased convenience and allows vertical display of the pack, and is designed to enhance food safety through leak proof packaging, which locks in juices.

The packs are suitable for both chilled and frozen products.

The SlimFresh product has also been proactively tested by a panel of nine consumers to gain their valuable opinions. During discussions the consumers described the pack as having great product and information visibility, being simple to use, and they associated the product with high end premium ranges.

Nikki Clark, marketing manager, convenience and consumer products, GPI, pointed out that WRAP figures show that 15 million tonnes of food was wasted in the UK in 2014.

“At GPI, we believe the right packaging solution can increase the time a product retains its freshness and attractiveness when on the shop shelf. SlimFresh is a vacuum pack that can ensure food remains fresher for longer.”

Packaging News

Six of New Zealand’s leading independent wine experts have come together to create “The Fine Wines of New Zealand” – a list of the country’s most prestigious wines.

Air New Zealand will start to feature wines from the Fine Wines of New Zealand selection in its Business Premier cabins from September.

A selection panel comprising Masters of Wine Alastair Maling, Michael Brajkovich, Sam Harrop, Simon Nash and Steve Smith along with Master Sommelier Cameron Douglas has agreed on the list for 2016, which includes 47 wines representing seven varietals.

This group of leading New Zealand wine experts met several times in late 2015 and in the first half of 2016 to define the criteria that had to be met for a wine to earn the prestigious Fine Wine of New Zealand status. One of the key criteria is consistency, with a wine having had to have been produced to an exceptional standard for a minimum of five consecutive years.

A wine could only earn its Fine Wine of New Zealand status if all of the selection panel, which was supported by Master of Wine Bob Campbell, agreed it met the highest of standards. This saw several wines drop out of contention.

“It’s been a real pleasure to be involved in this process and play a part in promoting the country’s very best wines. For New Zealand wine to truly compete on the world stage there needs to be an ongoing focus on quality and on continually lifting the game,” Brajkovich said.

Air New Zealand will start to feature wines from the Fine Wines of New Zealand selection in its Business Premier cabins from September.

Air New Zealand chief operations officer Bruce Parton says as a longstanding supporter of New Zealand’s wine industry, the airline is proud to share with its premium customers some of the country’s leading wines, many of which retail for more than NZD 100 a bottle.

“We believe we can help further build awareness and appreciation of these world class wines with international travellers and propel leading New Zealand wineries to even greater commercial success. We will be doing this through promoting the wines on board via our inflight entertainment system, at offshore events and using our contacts internationally to help open up key export markets for the wineries should they need this support.

“Air New Zealand has carved out an enviable reputation globally for its premium on board wine selection over many years and we believe this latest commitment to the Fine Wines of New Zealand takes it to another level.

British Airways is reportedly tightening up on some of the special touches, both comfort and culinary, that it bestows on passengers.

A report in Britain’s Daily Express says BA has already removed the amuse-bouche (a single, bite-sized hors d’œuvre served as a special treat, rather than ordered) from its First Class meal service and has removed the blanket from day flights, now providing blankets only on request.

In an economy drive flowing through all classes, Club World has seen kitchen changes, with more “ambient” items, like chocolate bars, stocked and fewer fresh items.

World Traveller Plus has seen the second meal removed on shorter routes, the Express report says, to be replaced with the opportunity to select something from a basket of ambient snacks passed around by cabin crew. Pretzels, cheese and biscuits have been removed entirely.

What this mean, according to the Express, is that if you are flying London to New York, “your second meal might be just a chocolate bar”.

Similar changes have been made in World Traveller, where the bottle of water has been replaced by a small plastic cup of water, the report says. Toothbrushes and toothpaste will no longer be provided but will be available on request.

British frequent flyer website Head for Points (www.headforpoints.com, devoted to helping UK business and leisure travellers maximise their miles) cites cabin crew reports on Flyertalk that the cutbacks will increase next month, with invitations to the First and Club World arrivals lounge no longer handed out to passengers on flights arriving after midday.

Head for Points admits it couldn’t confirm reports suggesting that from London, Club World passengers are about to receive a compulsory tomato, mozzarella and avocado salad rather than a choice. The change, reportedly, will be tried for a month and kept if successful.

Rumours are rife that ice cream will be removed from the Club Kitchen.

Commenting on the spate of reports, British Airways told Express.co.uk that all customers on transatlantic flights received a three-course meal, bar service and snacks “and on our longer transatlantic flights, including to the West Coast, customers are offered an extra meal during the flight”.

“We regularly review our catering to ensure we are investing where it matters most to our customers,” the airline said.

Written by Peter Needham

Hyperloop One tells TechCrunch it might be building its crazy fast transportation system at the Jebel Ali port in Dubai if all goes according to plan.

And it could be the first place to build an actual Hyperloop for commercial use, says CEO Rob Lloyd. “It’s got the infrastructure, regulatory movement and kind of capital in place needed to build it already,” he told TechCrunch.

The startup will conduct an economic and feasibility study in partnership with the third largest supply chain and terminals operator on the planet DP World, which operates its flagship port out of Jebel Ali in Dubai, to determine if it makes sense to build there and what advancements the Hyperloop might bring to the region and shipping on a global scale.

The Hyperloop, once just a twinkle in the mind of Elon Musk, is said to eventually go more than 700 miles per hour, or faster than a speeding plane, and have the ability to transport both humans and cargo all around the world in less than a day. Hyperloop One, one of two main companies working on making Musk’s blueprint a reality, has already started testing the tech in the Nevada desert with what it believes to be positive results.

Leadership in the United Arab Emirates and the CEO of DP World, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, no doubt, would like to be a part of that fast-moving train should everything work out and are looking at where the tracks might go should the Hyperloop prove itself capable.

DP World believes it could possibly use a submerged, floating Hyperloop to redirect its cargo and free up some space on the land, should the feasibility study pan out as well. The company just spent billions on Terminals 4 and 5 and will need to move cargo fast as it continues to grow – something Hyperloop One could potentially help them do.

But this isn’t the first global partnership for the startup. HO is also conducting feasibility studies in Russia, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland and in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, California and has chatted with TechCrunch about a similar submerged floating Hyperloop off of the Pacific Coast that could load and unload cargo for shipping as well.

Silence from Shanghai has New Zealand First asking if Shanghai Maling will invest into Silver Fern Farms given the financial woes faced by its parent – Bright Food Group.

“Where is the reassuring media release from Shanghai Maling/Bright Food following Silver Fern Farms special resolution? Or are there increasingly cold feet up in Shanghai? ” asked Mr Peters.

“That would explain the three-month extension and their silence since last Friday’s vote.

“The Australian Financial Review speculated two months ago that all was not well with this deal, while in May, ratings agency Moody’s downgraded Bright Food’s outlook from stable to negative.

“The issue is the 37% hit it has taken on its NZ$3.46bn flagship investment in Israel’s Tnuva Food Industries – ironically a former farmer co-operative. In March and in a glimpse of the future here in New Zealand, it was reported that Bright Food was demanding sharp job cuts of about 8%.

“Fitch, another ratings agency, only gave Bright Food A- due to it being a Chinese state-owned enterprise. Without that support, Bright Food’s ‘standalone credit profile is assessed to be non-investment grade, constrained by consistent negative Free Cash Flow and high financial leverage’.

“And these are the people a majority of Silver Fern Shareholders voted to get into bed with!

“As a sizeable minority of Silver Fern shareholders pointed out, there was no hard financial analysis by the Board on Shanghai Maling/Bright Food aside from ‘trust us’. Given Fitch noted Bright Food’s enthusiasm for acquisitions has cooled since Tnuva, is this deal going the same way as 2008’s abortive merger of SFF with PGG Wrightson?” Mr Peters said.

A climate change expert from Victoria University of Wellington says New Zealand's decision to ratify the Paris agreement this year shows a welcome commitment to addressing climate change.

Professor Dave Frame, Director of the New Zealand Climate Change Research Institute at Victoria University, says the Government announcement today is positive.

“It's good to see an early signal. Coordinated action is vital in solving the climate change problem. By showing enthusiasm for the recent agreement, early ratifiers make it easier for other countries to justify their own commitments.

"Big countries will lead on this issue, globally, because of the importance of scale in climate change, but by making an ambitious commitment early, New Zealand is playing a constructive role in how the world addresses climate change,” Professor Frame says.

“New Zealand's target is quite ambitious: as is clear from comparing the last Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report with the commitment we are now making.

“If the world as a whole matched New Zealand's target for reducing emissions, we would be broadly on track to meet the agreed target of keeping warming at or below 2°C compared with pre-industrial levels."

Labour Market Statistics: June 2016 quarter (includes Household Labour Force Survey) – Media Release

This labour market statistics release includes data from the Household Labour Force Survey (HLFS), which was delayed from the original publication date of 3 August. The HLFS was recently redeveloped, and the June 2016 quarter results are the first to be published from the new survey.Unemployment rate down to 5.1 percent

The unemployment rate decreased to 5.1 percent in the June 2016 quarter (from a revised 5.2 percent in the March quarter), Statistics New Zealand said today. Compared with the March 2016 quarter, 1,000 fewer people were unemployed in New Zealand.

The official estimate of unemployment is based on people who are both actively seeking work and available to work, as measured in the HLFS.

Unemployment was also down from where it was a year ago (5.5 percent in the June 2015 quarter), particularly for women.

“Compared with June 2015, there were 8,000 fewer unemployed women, and their unemployment rate fell from 6.2 percent to 5.4 percent,” labour and income statistics manager Mark Gordon said.

In unadjusted terms, unemployment was down from a year ago across many North Island regions, including Auckland, which had an unemployment rate of 4.7 percent in the June 2016 quarter. This is the lowest rate for the Auckland region since the September 2008 quarter (when it was 4.1 percent).Employment change comparisons are complex

The June 2016 quarter results indicate that 66.2 percent of the working-age population were employed. Compared with the March 2016 quarter, there were 58,000 more employed people (up 2.4 percent). However, part of this increase reflects improvements to the redeveloped HLFS alongside any real-world increase in employment this quarter. Key changes to the survey included: improved questions about undertaking paid work, which now identify more self-employed people; and the inclusion of members of the armed forces who live in private dwellings.

“The redeveloped HLFS presents a more-accurate and complete picture of the New Zealand labour market. The latest estimates are more in line with the current state of the labour force. However, comparisons with previous estimates will not always be straightforward and should be made with caution,” Mr Gordon said. Employment change comparisons will be clearer in the coming year as more data becomes available.New underutilisation measure

For the first time, we include an official measure of the underutilisation of labour in New Zealand. This measure provides an indication of the potential labour supply and includes: people who are employed but want to work more hours (underemployed), those who want a job but are not currently actively looking or available to start work, and people who are unemployed by the official definition. A total of 342,000 people were underutilised in the June 2016 quarter, which equates to an underutilisation rate of 12.7 percent.

“In future we will present this measure along with the unemployment measure as a way to better understand the untapped potential in the labour market,” Mr Gordon said.