BASF solutions help Australian food and beverage industry compete in global markets

Sydney, Australia – July 14, 2017 – At the FoodPro Exhibition in Sydney from July 16-19, BASF will showcase a wide range of science based solutions that help supply people with nutritious, safe and affordable food, while reducing impact on resources – key factors in helping Australia compete in the global market for the food technology and processing industry.

“With the global population predicted to reach nearly ten billion people by 2050, people will need more nutritious, healthy food all over the world. Australia’s food processing industry will play a key role in meeting this need, with the help of BASF solutions from the world of chemistry,” said Greg Catterall, Head of Manufacturing Solutions Australia and New Zealand, BASF.

Australian food and beverage products are increasingly competing at a global level, challenging local processors to ensure their products meet multiple standards for quality, nutrition, safety, environmental impact and shelf life. BASF solutions help tackle these challenges and can also help food producers combat increasing societal health issues, for example those caused by excess trans-fat consumption and nutrition deficiencies.

Additionally, BASF solutions help improve not only the food itself, but also safety and quality in production facilities. “We understand the challenges of maintaining food production facilities efficiently. BASF has a range of industrial flooring solutions, such as Ucrete®, that can demonstrate extraordinarily high resistance to mechanical, chemical and thermal stress, and depending on the layer thickness, are able to withstand temperatures ranging from -40°C to 130°C,” explained Matt Ross, Head of Construction Australia and New Zealand at BASF. “Our construction solutions have been applied in local food processing plants operated by major Australian manufacturers and around the world since 1969”.

BASF solutions for the food processing industry include:

• Range of plant sterols, Vegapure®, that can be easily used in a variety of applications. Plant sterols have been scientifically proven to lower LDL-cholesterol, a major risk for the development of cardiovascular diseases.
  
• BASF’s aerating emulsifier, Spongolit^®, improves operations with the “all-in-method” while ensuring consistent, high quality results in cake volume, crumb structure, texture and moistness
  
• Ucrete^®, the world’s toughest floor, helps processors meet stringent hygiene requirements and can withstand extreme thermal, chemical and industrial impact.
• BASF’s high-strength MasterFlow^® grout range is low shrinkage and fatigue resistant for the most demanding dynamic load environment.
• BASF’s plastic additive solutions, such as ultraviolet (UV) light stabiliser, Tinuvin^®, filter harmful UV light and act as free radical scavengers to maintain the product’s best appearance.
• The clarifier Irgaclear^® offers excellent “see-through” clarity in plastics to enhance visual appeal of the food packaging.
• For packaging plastics, BASF has antioxidants and process stabilisers, organic and inorganic pigments, effect pigments, and flame retardants such as Flamestab®, that also provide UV and thermal stability and other additives.
• Certified compostable polymer ecovio®, which is also formed partly with renewable raw materials, can be disposed of and composted with the rest of the food waste.

In 2016 alone, BASF invested €1.9 billion into research and development worldwide to develop solutions that enable customers to stay ahead of trends.

To learn more about the solutions BASF offers to the food and technology industry visit stand W31 at FoodPro.

About BASF in Australia and New Zealand

BASF posted sales of about €417 million in Australia and New Zealand in 2016, serving key industries in the agriculture, coatings, construction, manufacturing and mining sectors. As of the end of 2016, the company had 493 employees and operated 13 production sites across the sub-region, manufacturing agricultural solutions, performance products and functional materials & solutions. BASF has been active in Australia for more than 90 years, and for about 60 years in New Zealand. Further information is available on the Internet at www.basf.com/au.

About BASF

At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. The approximately 114,000 employees in the BASF Group work on contributing to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into five segments: Chemicals, Performance Products, Functional Materials & Solutions, Agricultural Solutions and Oil & Gas. BASF generated sales of about €58 billion in 2016. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (BAS). Further information at www.basf.com.