Shareholders at sausage skin manufacturer Devro have approved the sale of its cellulose business to Teepak, a new entity comprising the management at the cellulose business and US private equity fund Lake Pacific Partners. Shareholders at Richmond Foods have approved the purchase of Nestlé's UK ice cream business. Safeway is rolling out to the West Country its Skills For Life scheme to help young farmers improve their IT skills and keep in touch after successful trials in Aberystwyth. Sara Lee's Dutch subsidiary is to buy Polish coffee business Prima. Gallaher has closed its offer for the 57% of state owned cigarette manufacturer Austria Tabac that it doesn't already own. Procter & Gamble has agreed to sell its Comet cleanser brand to US company Prestige Brands International. Beer and wine giant Foster's has added the spirits brand portfolio of Tarac Liquor Marketers to its mix for A$2.2m (£743,000). French retailer Casino plans to open 180 Leader price discount stores and 22 Geant hypermarkets in Poland by 2004, representing a total investment in the country of ZL5bn (£809m). Exotic and fresh food ingredients supplier Beacon Foods has completed a £1.6m expansion of its site at Brecon, Powys. The extension has created 60 new jobs. Brake Bros has bought fresh seafood and fish supplier Scotia Campbell Marine in a £4m deal. Carrefour and Metro have ended their cross shareholding agreement and will sell their respective stakes of each other's businesses back. Leading recipe site www.recipes4us.co.uk is launching a new series of recipes catering for people with food allergies. Glacé cherry maker SD Parr has opened a £200,000 extension of its factory in Winsford. Parr supplies major retail customers with own label and branded glacé fruits. Labels on drinks sold as health supplements will have to provide information concerning vitamin and mineral content under an EU directive. Unilever has completed the $175m sale of its north American seafood business to Nippon USA. Specialist bakery sales and marketing firm Food from Scotland has bought Le Maison Du Patissier ­ a supplier of French desserts and bread to the foodservice sector. A lorry containing 46,800 bottles of VK Vodka Kick Watermelon was stolen from Goole, Humberside, on Monday. Police say there have been attempts to sell the product in Yorkshire. The stock can be identified by its lot number PO L-2671 to PO L-2681. Anyone offered the stock should call Goole CID on 01405 762131. {{NEWS }}

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