2019 Aussie food favourites on coins
In 2019, The Royal Australian Mint issued a series of one-dollar coins featuring a range of Australian symbols on the… Read More
2010s
2019 Gut health, peganism and faux meat food trends
Food trends identified as important for 2019 were eating for gut health, food shopping more frequently, "peganism" (a cross between… Read More
2019 Vegan certification introduced in Australia
With the a growing number of Australians adopting a vegan lifestyle, Vegan Australia launched a vegan certification program in January… Read More
2018 Needles in strawberries sabotage
In September 2018 a 21-year-old man was rushed to hospital in Queensland after swallowing a sewing needle that was embedded… Read More
2018 Single-use plastic bags banned. Or not.
From 1 July 2018, the two major supermarket chains planned to ban single-use plastic bags at the checkouts. On the… Read More
2018 Domino’s vegan pizza
All the pundits predicting the 2018 food trends agreed on one thing. Vegetable-based foods were HOT, they said. It seemed… Read More
2018 Violet Crumble ownership change
In January 2018, Nestlé sold the iconic Australian chocolate bar to the South Australian confectionery company Robert Menz, returning it… Read More
2017 Good Food Guide goes national
Instead of publishing a separate book for each state, in 2017 Fairfax made the move to a national Good Food… Read More
2017 Vegemite Australian-owned again
Some people have suggested 19 January should become a national holiday to commemorate the day we saw Vegemite Australian-owned again.… Read More
2016 Halal snack pack is People’s Choice Word of the Year
The Macquarie Dictionary named 'halal snack pack' as a runner-up word of the year for 2016, behind 'fake news'. However,… Read More
2016 Shark Bay Scampi Caviar released
In 1984, the Melbourne Age ran an article announcing the beginnings of a new fishery on Australia's northwest coast. "Australian… Read More
2016 Goodbye Sunnyboy
In September 2016 the Daily Juice Company announced that the Sunnyboy was being deleted. The pyramid-shaped ice-block in a Tetrapak… Read More
2016 More Aussies are vegetarian
Roy Morgan research found that between 2012 and 2016, the number of Australian adults whose diet is all or almost… Read More
2016 Free range eggs standard set
In a controversial move, the consumer affairs ministers from the various Australian states and territories agreed in March 2016 on… Read More
2016 Our favourite supermarket brands
A survey commissioned by Canstar Blue revealed a list of supermarket brands Australians said they couldn’t live without. As the… Read More
2016 International Year of Pulses
We'd had the International Year of the Potato. Then the United Nations declared 2016 the International Year of Pulses. As… Read More
2015 Spending on takeaway rises
The ABS Household Expenditure Survey (2000) found that the average household spent $127 a week on foods and non-alcoholic beverages,… Read More
2015 Voluntary Supermarket Code of Conduct
In March 2015 Aldi was the first of the major supermarket chains to sign up to a new voluntary Supermarket… Read More
2015 Sugar a health hazard
Although some nutrition scientists had sounded warnings about sugar as early as 1972, its dangers were largely ignored by those… Read More
2015 Flat white hits Starbucks USA
Reversing the usual direction of cultural exchange, Starbucks introduced the Flat White coffee in US outlets. This Australian (we claim)… Read More
2014 Macca’s healthy cafe
In a world first, McDonald's trialled a new cafe concept in Sydney's Camperdown, opposite the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. Macca's… Read More
2014 Fruit juice less popular
According to research company Roy Morgan, Australians drank less fruit juice in 2014. This continued a four-year trend. They reported… Read More
2014 Health Star Rating on food packaging
In a response to growing concerns about obesity, the Health Star Rating system was developed by the Australian, state and… Read More
2014 Food trends according to Good Food Guide
Commenting on 2014 food trends, Larissa Dubecki and Jane Apelgren of The Age Good Food Guide identified pickles, kale, milk… Read More
2014 Alternative milks grow in popularity
A report by research company IBISWorld in 2014 showed that the growth rate for alternative milks such as soy and… Read More
2014 Riesling tops in wine survey
According to a survey by online wine retailer Vinomofo, Riesling was Aussie wine drinkers' preferred white in 2014, ahead of… Read More
2014 Woolworths supports SPC Ardmona
In a PR triumph, supermarket chain Woolworths announced a five-year deal with struggling Victorian fruit packer SPC Ardmona to supply… Read More
2014 Google Streetview inside Coles
The Coles store in Sydney's Broadway became the first supermarket in Australia to use Google Business Photos. Google Streetview inside… Read More
2014 GMO legal case – neighbour vs neighbour
It was a landmark GMO legal case. A Western Australian farmer sued his neighbour after losing his organic status, when GM canola seedheads… Read More
2013 Seaweed farm in New South Wales
The harvesting of seaweed isn't new but, in Australia, the actual cultivation of seaweed for culinary purposes is a relatively… Read More
2013 Keto diet becoming popular
The Keto diet (or ketogenic diet) was originally developed in the 1920s as a treatment for epilepsy. It echoed some… Read More
2013 International year of Quinoa
It's touted as a superfood. Quinoa (which we all know to pronounce as keen-wah) is often described as an ancient grain… Read More
2013 Weekly shop a thing of the past
Research conducted for Woolworths by Bernard Salt of KPMG showed that Australians' shopping habits had changed significantly over the past… Read More
2013 Queensland redefines free-range eggs
Despite a growing community focus on the welfare of farmed animals, the Queensland Government changed its legislation to redefine what… Read More
2013 More Aussies drinking cider
According to Roy Morgan research, there were more Aussies drinking cider than ever before. In the 12 months to March… Read More
2013 Choc Tops change hands
Rowena Foods, manufacturers of that favourite of cinema-goers, the Choc Top, was bought by Bulla Dairy Foods. Rowena's Choc Tops have… Read More
2013 The modern sandwich
How the modern sandwich has changed! The lunch! event held in Sydney for the takeaway food industry in 2013 incorporated competitions… Read More
2013 Food retailing worth $141.4 billion
According to ‘Australian Food Statistics’, a report produced by the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) in 2013,… Read More
2013 Chips most popular snack food
Roy Morgan Research released the results of a snack food survey showing that 33 per cent of Australians bought potato… Read More
2013 Corner stores on the wane
In 2013, the Australian industry research group BIS Shrapnel reported a 34% decrease in the number of corner stores between… Read More
2013 Rosella closed down – then revived
In March 2013 the remaining factory of iconic Australian brand Rosella closed down after the receivers failed to find a… Read More
2013 First non-GMO certification scheme in Australia
European certification business Cert ID Europe, with food science consultancy HACCP Australia, launched the first non-GMO certification program for the… Read More
2013 McDonald’s becomes Macca’s
For a few weeks leading up to Australia Day in 2013, McDonald's in Australia became 'Macca's', on the website, in… Read More
2012 Peters Ice Cream Australian again, but not for long
In June 2012, international food company Nestlé sold Peters Ice Cream to the Australian private equity firm, Pacific Equity Partners.… Read More
2012 HelloFresh home delivery meals
Described as the food delivery business for home cooks, HelloFresh delivers a weekly box of ingredients including fresh meat and… Read More
2012 Australian Year of the Farmer
The Australian Year of the Farmer was launched by the Governor-General of Australia, Quentin Bryce, in October 2011 on the… Read More
2012 Death cap mushrooms kill three in Canberra
Two people died from liver damage after a New Year’s eve dinner in Canberra where they ate Amanita phalloides, or… Read More
2011 Superfoods redefined
The term "superfoods" (or, sometimes, super-foods) isn't new. As early as 1912, it was used in England to advertise a… Read More
2011 World population hits seven billion
It took 123 years for the world population to go from one billion to two billion but only 12 to… Read More
2011 Denmark introduces ‘fat tax’
The Danish government introduced a 'fat tax' surcharge on foods containing more than 2.3% saturated fats. This initiative to combat heart… Read More
2011 Politically correct product of the year
Australian supermarket Product of the Year was Organic Bubs Baby Food Pouches. This product ticked all the right boxes by… Read More
2011 Greenpeace attacks genetically modified wheat
On July 14, Greenpeace activists in full biohazard gear, broke into a CSIRO research facility in Canberra and destroyed a… Read More
2011 Fast food chains hit big numbers
In 2008 an IGA survey reported in Foodweek had found that 57% of Australians ate fast food at least once a… Read More
2011 Worst fast food named
The consumer organisation, CHOICE, named Hungry Jack's Ultimate Double Whopper as the worst fast food, with a single burger delivering… Read More
2011 Milestones in food presentation – blog
George Hill is a chef and educator who has clearly seen (and done) it all. Hel posted an amusing summary… Read More
2011 Cyclone Yasi destroys banana crop
Bananas suddenly became a luxury item when Cyclone Yasi ripped through Queensland banana plantations in early February. It was estimated… Read More
2010 Instagram food photography begins
Instagram founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger could hardly have predicted the effect their new social media platform would have… Read More
2010 Online grocery sales gain momentum
Coles and Woolworths saw their online grocery sales double in 2010, suggesting that a trend that got off to a… Read More
2010 134,000 agricultural businesses in Australia
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in 2010, there were an estimated 134,000 agricultural businesses across Australia operating on… Read More
2010s New cuisines draw crowds
As we entered the second decade of the 21st century, the latest “in” cuisines were Korean, Mexican, South American (BBQ)… Read More
2010 noma named world’s best
Chef René Redzepi's restaurant noma displaced El Bulli as Restaurant magazine’s best in the world. The restaurant, located in Copenhagen, Denmark introduced… Read More
2010 MasterChef trumps politicians
The culinary contest/reality TV MasterChef series proved so popular in Australia that it outranked national politicians. The pre-election television debate between… Read More
2010 House brands increasing
The major supermarket chains introduced house brands in the 1970s but these were initially sold on price. They were often… Read More
2010 Macaron craze
Macarons became 'the new cupcakes'. Consisting of two almond meal and egg white biscuits, sandwiched together with ganache, macarons in… Read More