Endeavour Group has reported modest sales growth but weaker earnings for the first half of FY26 as the liquor and hospitality giant stepped up price investment and accelerated capital spending across its network.

Bulla Dairy Foods CEO, Allan Hood, has stepped down after 12 years of leadership within the company. James Downey, a fifth-generation member of one of Bulla’s three founding families, has taken up the role of acting CEO.

Entries for the 2026 Hive Awards are open, but the clock is ticking, with 1 week left to get your entries in – the closing date is 13 March. There are nine awards up for grabs, with three new categories this year – Best Food Product, Best Beverage, and Best NPD.

The Australian horticulture export sector has recorded its strongest year on record, according to the Hort Innovation 2024/2025 Australian Horticulture Statistics Handbook. Nuts, particularly almonds, and fresh fruit have led the charge, with growing demand across key Asian and global markets.

Premium food company Maggie Beer Holdings (ASX: MBH) has reported a sharp improvement in profitability for the first half of FY26, as cost reductions and operational reforms begin to deliver results.

Infant formula and baby nutrition company Bubs Australia has reported a strong improvement in earnings for the first half of FY26, driven by rapid growth in the US market and a favourable product mix.

Sea Forest has reported strong first-half revenue growth and accelerating commercial traction for its methane-reducing feed additive, SeaFeed, as the company builds scale following its ASX listing in November.

Australia has slipped to 21st out of 42 countries in the Business Council of Australia’s (BCA) 2025 Global Investment Competitiveness Index, down from 17th in 2019, highlighting growing structural pressures that directly affect capital-intensive sectors such as food and beverage manufacturing.

International cold storage organisation, Lineage, is working with logistics and container terminal services group, Flinders Port Holdings (FPH), to open a DAFF-accredited cold storage facility in South Australia.

Melbourne-based independent brewery, Stomping Ground Brewing Co., has opened expressions of interest for its upcoming equity raise through OnMarket. The company is now ready to scale up, as it celebrates a decade of beer.

Coles Group has delivered solid first-half earnings growth, driven by strong supermarkets performance and accelerating eCommerce, while reported profit declined following a significant item linked to the Federal Court judgment in the Fair Work Ombudsman proceedings.

Noumi has reported improved first-half revenue and underlying earnings growth, with record sales from its plant-based business and a strong turnaround in Dairy & Nutritionals.

Queensland’s best beverages have been awarded at the 2026 Royal Queensland Distilled Spirits and Beer Awards, with Happy Valley Brewing Co and Nil Desperandum taking out the top honours.

Adelaide Hills wine producer, Sidewood Estate, has entered a national distribution partnership with Samuel Smith & Son, the domestic distribution arm of Hill-Smith Family Estates.

Twelve months after bringing four businesses together under the SPC Global banner, CEO Robert Iervasi says the biggest shift has been cultural as much as financial: the company has moved from making what it can and “finding a home” for it, to building the portfolio around what consumers want, in the channels where demand is strongest.

The federal government is backing the development of a National Vineyard Register – a major Wine Australia project that aims to support a more sustainable future for Australia’s wine and grape industry.