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WESTFIELD-For many local artisans, 2020 has been a challenging time to showcase their work with art shows and craft fairs being canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. One bright spot for artists has been the overwhelming support of local business owners who are finding creative ways to showcase their works.
While some artists are also experimenting with virtual holiday craft fairs and selling items through their own social media platforms as well as the “Westfield Small Biz Saturday” postings on the We Love Westfield Community Forum Facebook page, they still welcome the opportunity to be featured in a local business outlet.
Sonia Avery-Kulig of Blandford, owner of Humblebee Handmade, sells her handmade wreaths and floral arrangements, gnomes, and various painted and upcycled home decor items at Blended Vintage Marketplace. She also offers direct sales and custom orders through her Facebook page.
“Establishing a connection with local businesses is a fantastic way for artists and businesses to mutually support one another,” said Avery-Kulig. “A local shop offering unique, handcrafted items can help draw attention to that business as a whole while giving independent artisans a platform to share their work and expand their reach in the community.”
Danny Nason of Westfield, whose business Danny Nason Photography specializes in real estate and all types of events, shared a similar sentiment.
“I have a few photos at Blended Vintage Marketplace and people can contact me personally,” he said, adding he encourages other artists to consider making connections with local businesses.
“Connecting with local businesses gets recognition for both the artist and the business,” he said. “It’s a win-win situation.”
Lucille Nason of Westfield, owner of Lady Crow Creations, concurred.
“I used to do a lot of craft shows and such, but since COVID, well, it is definitely a more challenging environment to sell handmade products,” she said, noting a lot of her works are items that are recycled and reclaimed.
“I love to search for odd and interesting pieces that come to life with a different purpose,” said Nason.
Nason added she too encourages artists to seek out local opportunities to showcase their work.
“The reason I would encourage other artists to connect with local businesses is it is our community, and artists are some of the hidden treasures that is often never seen,” said Nason. “When we add art to our cities and businesses, we connect in a positive and sometimes lucrative relationship. It is truly a win for everyone.”
Sarah Nuttall and Richard Ponti-Smith, owners of Current Decor, have also branched out after selling their unique gift items at the Westfield Farmers’ Market.
“Being a vendor at the Westfield Farmers’ Market went really well,” said Nuttall. “We were able to meet people in the community, hand out our cards, and that increased our Facebook action.”
Their unique patterned items go through a process of fractal burning which entails running 14,000 volts of electricity through scrap wood – turning each piece of wood into art.
“We are excited to explore this new art form,” said Nuttall, noting a variety of their gift items can be found at Results In Wellness on Springfield Road in Westfield, as well as Blossoming Acres in Southwick.
Some of their pieces at Results In Wellness include coat racks, clocks, food trays and key hooks, and at Blossoming Acres, coasters, wall art pieces and small food trays are featured items.
“We are always uploading new products on Facebook and can provide no contact drop off at houses locally,” said Nuttall.


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Sun Microsystems is to build the world’s first online computer processing exchange, allowing companies to buy computing power for specific tasks.
Sun has gone into partnership with online stock exchange Archipelago Holdings. The pair will trade computer processor power, in a similar way utility companies sell electricity or gas over industry exchanges.
Based on Sun’s grid computing solutions and Archipelago's electronic matching technology, the companies plan to introduce a type of electronic trading in which companies bid for computing power.
Sun said, "Being able to dynamically bid for open compute cycles will provide companies across the globe with unprecedented flexibility in planning for the purchase and use of compute power. This is a new paradigm in computing where companies can access an unlimited number of CPUs as they need them."
"As the demand for computing power increases we see great potential in building an exchange for trading CPU usage cycles," added Steve Rubinow, Archipelago Exchange chief technical officer.
Earlier this week Sun announced a utility computing service, including $1 per CPU per hour and $1 per Gbyte grid storage deals.
The two companies are expected to roll out the computing exchange later this year.

domain: news


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MARKET REPORT: Industrial engineer Smiths Group eyed by equity vultures
As the acrid smell of burnt fingers wafted around the City and flabbergasted dealers called for a ‘stewards’, shares of Invensys plummeted to 206.26p before closing 37p or 14.4pc lower at 220p.
The drop followed Invensys’ belated decision yesterday to finally inform the London Stock Exchange that it had received an abortive bid approach from Emerson Electric of the US.
Undeterred, many professional punters turned their attentions to another old takeover favourite. They piled into industrial engineer Smiths Group, chasing the stock up to 1047p on revived talk of a private equity cash bid at a significant premium to the current price before a close of 1030p, up 4p. Turnover swelled to 13million.
Private equity vultures are believed to have been hovering above Smiths ever since its board last year rejected a £2.45billion bid approach from Apax for its medical devices business, saying the deal was not ‘in the interests of shareholders’.
Not long after that, the Smiths board had to warn that the second-half performance of its Detection business, which makes X-ray scanners used at airports and accounts for almost 20 per cent of sales, had fallen short of expectations due to delayed orders.
But what makes speculators confident that Smiths will be a likely bid target in the short-term is that wheeler-dealer Philip Bowman is chief executive.
He joined in September 2007 and could now be getting itchy feet. He sold drinks giant Allied Domecq to Pernod Ricard for £7.65billion and while at Scottish Power agreed its sale to Spain’s Iberdrola. Smiths Group would make a formidable hat-trick.
Already in retreat on disappointment that Ben Bernanke and the Fed extended ‘Operation Twist’ instead of pumping more liquidity into the system and weaker-than-expected manufacturing data from China, the Footsie fell away further following a series of reports from the US that manufacturing, employment and housing growth all remain below par. It closed 55.93 points lower at 5,566.36, while the FTSE 250 shed 78.15 points to 10,944.66. Wall Street traded around 250 points down towards the end of the day.
Dealers were relieved to hear that a Spanish debt auction had got away safely but were not happy to see five-year borrowing costs trade at a 16-year high of 6.07 per cent.
Talk of a pending upbeat circular lifted household goods giant Reckitt Benckiser 52p to 3419p.
Unilever rallied 18p to 2080p on reassuring comments by Liberum Capital. Analyst Martin Deboo says it is a company that is gaining momentum rather than losing it, whose input pressures are getting better rather than worse, who is relatively less exposed to slowing geographies and who is less of a hostage to guidance fortune.
Miners reacted to news that China’s factory sector contracted for an eighth straight month in June. Fears that a weakening Chinese economy could threaten demand for metals left Anglo American 114p down at 2101p, Vedanta Resources 48p easier at 930p and Lonmin 34p off at 756p.
Down more than 60 per cent over the past three months, Aquarius Platinum fell 6.5p further to a 52-week low of 53.2p. The world’s fourth-largest producer, which last week said it was to suspend operations at its Marikana joint venture which produced 53,000 ounces of platinum in 2011, yesterday announced it would close operations at its Everest mine, which contributed 21pc to group production last year – 100,000 platinum ounces.
Finance director Martin Payne’s purchase of 300,000 shares at 11.96p in the wake of satisfactory annual results helped Norcros improve 0.38p to 11.5p. The home consumer products group has completed bank refinancing, securing a £51million bank facility on improved terms until October 2015.
Discount airline easyJet firmed 4p to 536p following an Oriel Securities buy recommendation. The broker reckons the decision to shut its Madrid base yet continue to serve the area will bolster investor confidence that its management is committed to improving returns.
Jet2.com and Jet2Holidays owner Dart Group added 0.88p to 69p after reporting higher full-year revenues and profits as passengers at its package holiday business more than doubled over the period. Peel Hunt’s target price is 98p and says the potential for a re-rating remains substantial.
Shanta Gold rose 2p to 22.12p on hearing that it has reached a significant milestone with its flagship asset, the New Luika Gold Mine in Tanzania, and that plant commissioning is under way and on track for first gold production in August. Initial estimates suggest it will produce between 13,000-17,500 ounces of gold in the fourth quarter of 2012.
- Today sees the arrival on AIM of e-commerce business Global Market Group, at 130p, With a market value of £127million, it is the largest Chinese company to join this year and should attract a good following. It is a leading business-to-business e-commerce service provider that has developed an online marketplace to link international buyers with accredited high-quality manufacturers in China.
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Finance Magnates’ London Summit 2015 is now less than a month away and the industry is abuzz. All the big movers and shakers from around the world are getting ready for this exclusive gathering of over 1,500 top FX and Fintech executives held in the heart of the City of London.
Secure your seat at the trading industry’s leading event!
Participants will get the chance to see first-hand how the whole market is shaping up with a multitude of panel discussions, experts’ presentations, company exhibitions, and much more. A number of cocktail parties and other networking opportunities will also facilitate networking and lead to deals that will push the industry forward.
When Is the Right Time to Take Out a Business Loan?Go to article >>
Panels will cover the implications of the FX rates rigging scandal by major banks one year on, the potential and challenges of multi-asset trading as well as the best stories and secrets behind sport sponsorship deals. Experts sharing their insights will provide participants with actionable information on data mining, retention, marketing, connectivity, conversion, regulations and more.
With the City of London functioning as a major global fintech hub, the Summit will also shine the spotlight on those developments set to disrupt the industry, with an ongoing stream of firms presenting their products and solutions.
The event will conclude with the Finance Magnates 2015 Awards Ceremony, where the industry’s most prestigious accolades are presented. A full explanation of the transparent selection and voting process, which makes the Finance Magnates Awards the only true measure of peer respect in the industry, is to be published in just a couple of days – stay tuned!
Finance Magnates’ London Summit 2015 will take place on November 2-3, 2015 at the Brewery on Chiswell Street. Register now and mark your calendar. To secure your exposure at one of the world’s biggest B2B online trading conferences, contact firstname.lastname@example.org.


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Just like that, the first quarter of 2024 is all wrapped up! While we don’t have big industry updates for it just yet, we do have updates from the entirety of 2023, now that the stats analysis and collection is complete. Furthermore, we look to the future as Wendy’s announced an exciting experiment they’re looking to implement in 2025. We also have exciting news about InfoComm 2024 to share, alongside intriguing digital signage world records to talk about. Let’s go!
Price-changing menus at Wendy’s
Wendy’s recently revealed their plans to experiment with “dynamic pricing” in 2025. As part of a $20 million investment in new digital menu boards at its US-based restaurants, it will feature menus with discounted prices during slower times of the day. In an official statement, Wendy’s said the company doesn’t plan on raising prices during peak demand, as some may have feared.
“Any features we may test in the future would be designed to benefit our customers and restaurant crew members.”
The practice of such dynamic price-changing is certainly not new. It has been present in services like Ticketmaster and Uber. However, the restaurant industry is rather new to it. This is partially comes from the amount of effort to update the menus. Considering the possibilities of digital signage software, however, it quickly becomes clear that this will not be much of a challenge in the future. It’s very likely we’ll see this feature roll out more in the coming years.
Las Vegas Sphere to host InfoComm kick-off event
InfoComm, one of the much-awaited events in our industry, is set to take place from June 8-14th, 2024. This month we learned that the, now world-famous, Las Vegas Sphere will kick off with “An Evening at the Sphere.”
This special opening event aims to welcome AV professionals from all around the world and excite them for the trade show. The event has limited seating, with tickets available through the official InfoComm website. The event is planned to last for 3 hours, featuring interactive experiences in the Atrium and Darren Aronofsky’s Postcard from Earth.
AVI Systems is the presenting sponsor of An Evening at Sphere. “The AVI Systems team is thrilled to join InfoComm to kick off the show at Sphere and share this exclusive experience with hundreds of our customers at Sphere,” said CEO Jeff Stoebner.
Digital signage world records!
Dubai is a home to remarkable things, in particular when it comes to its buildings. With that said, it recently added not one but three digital signage related Guinness World Records in architectural projection mapping. This was achieved through a collaboration between BUREAU BÉATRICE, the luxury creative technology company, and One Za’abeel, a landmark development in Dubai. Together, they set up a colossal display across two skyscrapers of Dubai.
The first of the three digital signage records was the Largest Architectural Projection-Mapped Display (temporary), covering 30,662 square meters (330,043 square feet). The second record was the Longest Architectural Projection-Mapped Display (temporary), with the projection spanning 272.25 meters (893.21 feet). The third was the Largest Mesh Screen on a Building (multiple screens), covering a total area of 28,665 square meters (308,547 square feet).
Take a look!
US Out-of-Home grew by 2.1%
By now, sufficient time has passed where all the stats from 2023 have solidified. Out of Home Advertising Association of America (OAAA) released figures looking at OOH ad revenue for 2023 in the United States. Revenue increased by 2.1%, compared to previous years, amounting to $8.7 billion. Digital Out-of-Home represented 33% of total OOH spend, growing almost 10% in 2023. This is in line with the predictions that the demand is gradually switching over to the digital variant.
Furthermore, the report included the top ten product industries that saw the greatest growth. This includes Public Transportation, Hotels & Resorts, as well as Local Services & Amusements. Meanwhile, among the frontrunner product categories ranked by their spending on OOH were Legal Services, Hospital Clinics & Medical Centers, and Domestic Hotels & Resorts. If you’re interested in more stats, such as the top 10 advertisers of 2023, check out the full report!
Digital signage is enhancing senior living
This week on the OnSign TV blog we covered an area where digital signage doesn’t appear often, but is very important nonetheless. Senior care homes consist of many fields where digital signage can help. You can use them to entertain residents, fill the day with activities, inform visitors, and even recognize staff members. Displays can also keep everyone on the same routine by focusing on schedules and maintaining organized content.
Digital signage software is quite valuable here as it can reinforce information the residents may easily forget due to conditions prevalent in senior citizens. With digital signage it’s easy to schedule and repeat the content steadily throughout the day. It can also section up the display to provide information to visitors, without compromising the main content for residents or staff.
Cover image by ZQ Lee.


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This simple breakthrough could stop hangovers
A simple invention could be the key to preventing the infamous “wine headache” experienced by some drinkers, says the device’s inventor.
A product called Üllo reportedly filters out the sulphites added to wine during production to keep them fresh.
“Wine makers will add up to a hundredfold more sulphites artificially. These are completely synthetically derived chemicals,” founder of Üllo James Kornacki has told Fox Business.
“The problem with those sulphites is that they cause a lot of reactions in people and they are known to be toxic and they taste really, really bad as well.”
Wine poured through the Üllo filter is apparently cleansed of these nasties…
“It takes the sulphites right out of the wine and it’s the first product to do that,” James said.
“What enables this product is the select sulphite-capture technology that I developed which treats sulphites more as like something that can be pulled out with a magnet…
“We don’t screw up the wine chemistry,” he said. “Wine is one of the most complex beverages that we know of—there are about 1,000 compounds in there.”


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A family affair that is reaping dividends
Next Level Can
CDE making a splash with water treatment
Cde was founded 20 years ago by chartered mechanical engineer Tony Convery and his wife - Mr Convery remains the chair of the company. But today the Cde Group consists of several companies and employs around 250 people around the world.
Some 90 of these are based in the CDE Ireland headquarters in Cookstown, Co Tyrone, with another 110 employees based in the Indian division at Kolkata. In addition, there are a further 60 workers who work full-time for the company in various locations on sub-contract.
Throughout the history of the business, CDE has concentrated on the supply of similar products, but the customer base has evolved, as has the detail of the business's operations. "We started out working mainly for the water treatment industry in the use of sand and water filters," said Mr Convery.
Since then the business has developed and today it is also a leading supplier to the minerals and aggregates sectors. The CDE Design Team recently designed the world's largest sand washing system. The group also has a consultancy arm.
Most of the major British water supply companies, including Thames Water and Severn Trent Water, are CDE customers. Mr Convery said that while the water companies are very good at filtering their waste water supplies, they can have difficulty in extracting from their waste water the sand and grit from run-off from the roads after heavy rains.
CDE's products assist the water companies to cost-effectively sift the water. This produces a waste product that can be used on farm land, saving water companies the expense of having to dispose of the waste in landfill sites - and to pay the high cost landfill tax.
Offering a cost-effective and environmentally friendly solution to waste problems is at the heart of CDE's business. "Our big focus is on recycling," said Mr Convery. "Not just as a green flag to fly over the building, but as a very commercially focused operation." He said that customers typically recover their costs in buying CDE's equipment in nine or 10 months. "Return on investment is our big thing," he explains. This is important as equipment is expensive - one item has just sold for £1.7m.
The same principles are applied to support mining businesses, where CDE equipment prevents the loss of valuable minerals that get caught up in general wastes. "Our equipment is still much the same, but we are applying it to different markets," said Mr Convery.
A willingness to exploit new markets has been central to CDE's success, said Mr Convery. The company became over-dependent on the water industry here, but recognised at the right time the need to diversify. "At one time we left the water treatment market because we were too focussed on Northern Ireland," he said. "They were big contracts on very low margins and the big English companies came into the market. So we had to change our focus."
CDE was also forced to radically reshape itself with the onset of the economic crisis in 2008, which caused a turnover reduction in the region of 60% as corporations massively cut back on capital spending. "We have not recovered our position [in terms of turnover], but profit-wise we have," said Mr Convery.
The key to the group's success, though, said Mr Convery, is concentrating on what is good for the customer. "Our big driver has been development of new equipment. We are focused on product delivery for the customer."


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US-based internet retailer Overstock has seen a surge in its share price after the CEO announced plans to sell its retail-oriented business and to focus on previously acquired blockchain startups.
Patrick M. Byrne, CEO Overstock
One of Overstock’s best-known startups is the trading system tZero.
In October, tZero issued its preferred tZero security tokens.
Full text here.


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Food Processing, with a total planned outlay of USD 1.45 bn, is among the 10 sectors which lies at the heart of the Government of India’s Make in India initiative and resonates with Prime Minister Modi’s call for ‘vocal for local’. Recently as a major development in this sector, the Government of India gave its approval to introduce the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for the sector as part of its efforts for enhancing India’s manufacturing capabilities and enhancing exports under Atmanirbhar Bharat.
Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) is also taking all necessary steps to boost investments in the food processing industry and to encourage investments across the value chain through its entire gamut of initiatives.
On regulatory front too, an enormous amount of work is being done by the FSSAI. FSSAI sets globally benchmarked food standards and process standards with the help of the country’s most eminent scientists and experts. FSSAI has also created digital ecosystem which is a further helping in ease of doing business including food licenses and registration; portal for import clearance; food fortification; India food sharing alliance etc.
Looking at the current trends, the Indian food processing industry is experiencing a paradigm shift due to the growing global demands for food safety, increasing consumer demand for higher quality and sustainability and reliability of supply chains post COVID-19. Food consumption patterns and preferences are undergoing significant changes all over the world. Due to increased awareness about health and wellness, evolving lifestyle changes, and increasing incidence of food-heart-related diseases like diabetics, obesity, etc., consumers worldwide are showing an interest in a preventive lifestyle rather than a curative approach.
Further, with introduction of Work from Home Culture amid the pandemic there has been a rapid shift in the consumer behavior and their eating habits even in India. Trends indicate a sharp increase in on-the go eating, snacking in between meals, switching to healthier eating alternatives, pre-cooked ready to eat meals and increasing consumption of organic foods. This has led to a host of new opportunities in the consumer foods market for both domestic and international companies to build a stake in this fast-growing processed food market.
Today consumers demand and understand about the ingredients present in the products. Hence, Health and wellness movement has been on the radar of the major food companies who are proactively tapping into the rapidly growing product categories in this market.
In a huge and diverse country like India, this trend is relevant in two radically different ways; while a large part of rural India suffers from malnutrition and seeks foods that supplements basic minerals like iodine, and iron, and other nutrients like Vitamin A, a lot of people in urban India suffer from lifestyle-related disorders like obesity, coronary heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension, and seek solace in low fat, low sugar, and low cholesterol products.
New trends in sustainability, health and wellness, and convenience are the key pillars that are driving formulation, packaging, marketing, and more in the food and drink industry.
The author is Chair, FICCI Food Processing Committee & CEO- Food Division, ITC Ltd


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After a very strong run higher, stocks are falling in early morning trading. The drop in the markets is being heavily attributed to renewed fears of a growing number of Coronavirus cases. China announced that there were 15,152 new cases and 254 deaths yesterday. The spike in new cases is due to the count now including people who show the symptoms of the virus without actually being diagnosed. With this increase, the number of people who are considered to have the virus is nearly 60,000, with the death toll around 1,367. With many in China still hunkered down as a protective measure against catching this deadly virus, there are certain to be long term global economic impacts. We will have to see how the markets respond as time goes on.
We received an update on consumer inflation this morning via the Consumer Price Index (CPI) report. The Headline number showed that prices increased by 0.1% last month, which was just beneath expectations of 0.2%. When stripping out volatile food and energy prices, the Core rate showed an increase of 0.2%, which increased the year-over-year number from 2.3% up to 2.5%. Given that this is well above the Fed’s target rate of 2%, it seems strange to thing the Fed will likely be cutting rates one more time in the months to come. They must know that the economy isn’t strong enough to sustain without the Fed’s support, which is not something many discuss when talking about how good the economy is right now.
We will maintain a locking bias.


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China’s biggest carmaker, which own brands like Maxus, MG, Roewe and Yuejin, plans to invest $1 billion in India manufacturing unit, reports Swaraj Baggonkar from Mumbai. IMAGE: For SAIC, the maker of marquee MG (above) and Roewe cars, India is next on the agenda. Photograph: Reuters. China’s largest automaker SAIC Motor (formerly Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation) is finalising plans to invest about $1billion in India by 2018. It would look to manufacture products that would ... Rediff.com, 3 days ago
Tata Tiago finally brought some refreshing sales numbers to the gloomy board-room of managers and product planners at the Indian company. Tiago is easily the best car for first time buyers as it is a jack of all trades and master of some. Since the Tiago is such an important product for the Tatas, Indian automobile website MotorBeam.com decided to induct the car into its long-term fleet and test how good the car is to live with. The Tata Tiago is a pleasant car to look at and the affection to ...Rediff.com, 1 week ago
A dreamy Ohio man named Matthew made his wife a Harry Potter -inspired wedding gift that was positively Dumbledoreable. Matthew, who asked us not to print his last name for privacy reasons, spent weeks crafting a homemade Pensieve to give to his ...Huffington Post, 1 month ago
Even with its mammoth size, the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT is fleet-footed and has all the trappings of a luxury car. says P Tharyan. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’s most expensive Jeep product, the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT, is not just a large-sized SUV but has all the trappings of an uber luxury car. The Jeep brand comes with a great legacy. It may be recalled that Willys Jeep vehicles transported US soldiers, with their machine guns and pistols, to the war front during World War II. The ...Rediff.com, 2 months ago
From a Rs 9-lakh Maruti to a Rs 2 crore-Nissan, Indian auto industry packs quite a surprise for car buyers Year 2016 has been an eventful year for India's automobile industry. Long awaited cars like the Vitara Brezza were launched and now the roads are getting ready to welcome some more stunning cars incliding a few SUVs. As we enter the final quarter of 2016, the automotive industry is queuing up quite a few surprises. Here are the top cars which are due to be launched in the fourth quarter of ...Rediff.com, 2 months ago
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Hewlett-Packard plans to redirect channel financing funds supporting SMB market initiatives to smaller solution providers that need more extended credit and flooring, executives said.
In the process, those funds will be diverted from larger, well-heeled partners that may have been using the funds in ways not originally intended by HP.
The changes also bring distributors more into the SMB financing loop. In the past, the credit was meted out for purchases through distribution, but funds flowed from HP directly to VARs. Now the funds will be processed by Ingram Micro, Tech Data and Synnex, which can work with third-party financing companies or come up with more creative programs aimed at attracting solution providers, executives said.
Some of HP's larger partners were "inappropriately" using the funds to improve their own profitability rather than for financing deals, said Kevin Gilroy, senior vice president of worldwide SMB Segment Operations at HP. "We want to use the monies for what they were originally intended, which is to extend them to partners with great skill sets that need HP to help them," he said.
HP would not identify which solution providers would lose the extra financing, but channel sources said the changes are aimed at CDW, Insight Enterprises and PC Connection. Under the new strategy, the number of solution providers receiving financing under HP's new Partner Capitalization program rolling out Aug. 1 could multiply to 4,000 partners from 400, according to HP.
"Hallelujah! For traditional resellers buying through distribution, this is huge," said Steve Harper, president of Network Management Group, a Hutchinson, Kan.-based solution provider. "If they're giving resellers extended terms, it helps level the playing field."
Matt Troka, vice president of purchasing at Vernon Hills, Ill.-based CDW, said the change will have minimal impact on his company because the new program only affects products purchased through distribution, not directly from HP. "We buy an enormous amount directly. This changes only a small percentage of our business," he said.
Executives at Insight and PC Connection could not be reached for comment.
HP's previous financing programs derailed its attempts to penetrate the SMB market because large solution providers like CDW used the extended terms to sell far below the prices set by smaller solution providers, said one distribution executive, who asked not to be named. As a result, small solution providers were not motivated to grow their HP business, he said.
"The range between our highest price to resellers and our lowest price is not 12 points. We're not charging 17 points to some guys and 2 points to others," the executive said. "But when you start talking about vendor promotions and [capitalization] subsidizations, you can see why resellers could lose bids to CDW by 10 points."
The move will help HP drive business with value-added SMB solution providers, executives said. "It's a little more work on our end, but overall it allows us to be more flexible and offer some more creative financing tools," said Paul Bay, vice president of vendor management at Ingram Micro.
"This is a core competency of distributors. We're supportive of HP focusing on the SMB space," said John Paget, North America president and COO of Synnex, Fremont, Calif.


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French hypermarket chain Carrefour has appointed Gérard Lavinay as the new head of its Italian branch. His successor as logistics director will be François-Melchior de Polignac. Remarkable: both gentlemen were previously in charge of Carrefour Belgium.
Carrefour Belgium as launch platform
As executive director of the group in Italy, Lavinay will report directly to Alexandre Bompard and will remain a member of the group executive committee. The 57-year-old began his career at Euromarché in 1980 and held multiple operational positions in France, including head of supply chain, director of fresh products and supermarket director. He then became director of the supermarkets in Greece and executive director of Carrefour in Chile and Belgium. From 2013 to 2017, he led Carrefour's operations in Northern Europe (Belgium, Poland and Romania) and since 2017 he was executive director of merchandise, supply and formats.
De Polignac (45) takes over Lavinay's tasks and thereby automatically joins the executive committee. The Frenchman started his career as financial controller at L'Oréal, before joining the Boston Consulting Group for a period of three years. In 2000, he joined the mergers and acquisitions department of Carrefour and thereafter became director of a hypermarket. Next step in his career was being director of all supermarkets in Poland and not much later, he got assigned to a group-wide transformation project and the hypermarket chain appointed him as executive director in Romania. In 2013 he became managing director of Carrefour Belgium, and since 2017 he has been holding the position of executive director for transformation, merchandise and partnerships.


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Many pork producers in the U.S. take water for granted due to its easy accessibility and affordability. Brigit Lozinski is studying water quality and its influence on nursery pig growth performance and health.
A new index, known as the digestible indispensable amino acid score (DIAAS), parses out the digestibility of individual amino acids making up proteins. It relies on pigs, not rats, as the preferred model for humans.
From studying how essential fatty acids affect inflammation, joint health and fatty acid metabolism to helping young swine enthusiasts discover career paths, Spenser Becker is leaving her mark on the pork industry.
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen announced the country has agreed to drop import restrictions on U.S. pork fed ractopamine. In addition, Taiwan will drop import restrictions on U.S. beef from cattle older than 30 months.
ISU researchers won a National Institute of Food and Agriculture grant to further genetic improvement of livestock by integrating biological models of growth developed by animal nutritionists. Here's how they'll do it.


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Correction Appended May 29, 2013 at 2:45 p.m.
BuzzFeed has already captured the much sought-after attention of Millennials, and while other online media companies continue to clamor for the 18-34-year-old demographic, it seems the social media-savvy website is making a trade.
Early Tuesday morning BuzzFeed and CNN launched a joint YouTube channel, which will feature videos created from CNN’s archival footage in the form of news mash-ups tailored for social media and sharing. As the Wall Street Journal reports, BuzzFeed, which sees 18 million monthly unique visitors according to comScore, is aiming to add more news content to its already wildly popular website that includes addictive pop-culture lists frequently passed around social media platforms.
Meanwhile, CNN, which comScore reports already has 60 million monthly unique visitors, will cash in on BuzzFeed’s sweet spot of 18- to 34-year-old readers. According to Quantcast, CNN has less than 15% of viewers under age 24, which means perhaps CNN is benefiting as much as BuzzFeed. BuzzFeed President and COO Jon Steinberg said in a statement that more than 70% of the company’s traffic is social and more than half is mobile, which could be a boon for CNN’s demographic reach.
But rather than jumping into monetizing the partnership, CNN is taking a page from BuzzFeed’s business strategy and delaying advertising sponsorship. Steinberg pointed out in the Journal that BuzzFeed didn’t implement advertising until five years after its launch in 2006.
The YouTube strategy is nothing new for BuzzFeed, which already manages six channels with more than 500 total videos, but the CNN partnership is one of a few recent efforts to increase its credibility as a news source. Earlier this year BuzzFeed installed New York Times editor Lisa Tozzi as its news director and poached Reuters veteran media reporter Peter Lauria to helm a newly-launched business section.
“There is increasingly this big, social conversation around business content that people are sharing and reading, and we want to be in it,” BuzzFeed editor-in-chief Ben Smith told the Journal in March.
But instead of making news fit its sharable, digestible format that many other media organizations have already experimented with, BuzzFeed is focusing on aligning with a big newsbrand like CNN. BuzzFeed will also collaborate on original lists that will be featured on CNN.com, and plans to open a social video studio in Los Angeles that will involve hiring 30 new employees to hone video content for the project.
“It’s a different way to use their business model, which they’ve already proven, and just expanding it to another level to see if it can work on the news-aggregation mash-up approach,” says Aaron Ginn, a growth hacker and head of growth for discovery engine StumbleUpon. “If they can take a meme approach to news, more power to them.”
The partnership underscores a looming question that other news outfits have attempted to answer in a variety of ways: Can applying the BuzzFeed format educate and engage young readers while creating wider distribution?
“I can read [BuzzFeed] while walking and still know what’s going on,” Ginn says. “Whether or not they can apply that to say, the IRS scandal, I don’t know if that’s going to have the same success.”
The channel’s first video, which has raked in more than 7,000 views in its first day, is a two-minute collection of CNN’s best footage of rescue moments, with a soft voiceover explaining, “inspiring moments of human courage,” according to the page. The video is not so much news-y as it is reminiscent of an Apple iPhone commercial.
But with only one video available, the model is still ripe with opportunity to engage the demographic that even Yahoo has recently tried to rein in with its $1 billion acquisition of Tumblr.
Ginn, a Millennial himself, says that content that resonates with the much coveted 18- to 34-year-old readership requires sharing entertainment value in less than five seconds. He points to Instagram as a successful model among young people because it’s engaging users with instantaneous, new content. With the CNNBuzzFeed YouTube channel only planning to offer three videos each week, perhaps the partnership is less about creating a new model and more about association.
The original version of this article included a misleading traffic comparison based on different traffic metrics. It stated that Buzzfeed has more than 60 million monthly unique visitors, according to a press release, while CNN has 22.4 million monthly unique visitors, according to Quantcast. According to comScore, Buzzfeed has 18 million monthly unique visitors, while CNN has 60 million monthly unique visitors.


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Until recently, Pandora was almost unnoticed by Canadians, maybe due in part to the lack of access we get, but when it was announced last week that Pandora Radio was in panic mode, two questions came to mind: why would anyone go somewhere other than JazzRadio.com for music, and what is Pandora?
For people who live outside the United States, a quick tune-in: Pandora Radio was created in 2000 during the pre-iTunes era. It works by fragmenting people’s listening habits, using their activity and manually selected likes and dislikes to create a radio station specific to that person’s tastes. For instance, if you listen to Jack Johnson, it might suggest John Mayer; you’d hear Free Falling, decide that he’s almost as good as Tom Petty, and ‘like’ what you heard. It uses everything you submit to make your radio station your way, making Pandora Radio the Burger King of Internet listening (albeit with a slightly less-creepy mascot).
And then, Apple spoke up.
According to Bloomberg.com, Apple has engaged in talks with Warner Music Group and Sony (amongst other major recording labels) to create a radio service for 2013. As soon as the report was leaked on October 25, Pandora’s stocks dropped 12 percent, and for good reason: Apple services 155 countries worldwide and has more than 400 million registered iTunes accounts. Also, while Pandora has to restrict artist availability and often prohibits people from skipping songs, Apple has the resources to fix both issues.
Imagine creating a website that simulates brilliant cooking recipes, from people’s submissions as well as from other websites. First, this needs to exist – please contact me when it does. Now, imagine that Google starts talks to create exactly the same thing, calling it Google Chef. Would anyone buy shares to your website? Not cool, Google. Not cool.
Back to Apple, their purpose of meeting with these labels was to discuss how to split ad revenue, implying they already have Apple Radio ready to go. With this in mind, we should expect AR to launch by the expected date, putting more pressure on Pandora radio. On a side note, stocks for Pandora are currently around $8.50 per share, whereas Apple falls in at about $609.
Where will digital radio stand a year from now?
To start, Apple will probably succeed with their radio project. Admittedly, IOS Maps was a complete and utter failure, as Apple admits. The last major mistake Apple made was with the button-less iPod shuffle, in ’09, and the mobileme in ‘08. Before that? The Newton was supposed to be the first iPhone in 1993, and given the iPhone’s actual release in 2007, it didn’t work out at all. Point being, Apple does mess up here and there, but no one would bet on it.
Assuming the release of Apple Radio goes ahead without a hitch, Pandora is basically terminal, and will be defunct by this time next year, barring some sort of miracle. Apple can bring their prices down to below Pandora’s (currently $36 a year), and were every Apple account to sign up with their radio at $30, they’d pull in about $12 billion in gross revenue. Pandora is currently worth about $4 billion. Not to set it in stone, but Pandora’s lid is about to be shut – and most of the world won’t even notice.


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Pier 1 plots aggressive growth strategy
September 9, 2002-- Home Textiles Today,
Pier 1 Imports sees a base of at least 1,500 stores from its current 900-plus units that currently deliver $1.6 billion in sales driven by an average 15 percent annual growth rate in earnings over the next several years, the company told an audience at the Goldman Sachs Retailing Conference here.
Charles Turner, executive vp and cfo, pointed to Pier 1's unique market position and merchandising style as key drivers to that growth. During his Friday presentation, he positioned the company as a value player on a par with Bed Bath & Beyond, above Target and Cost Plus and below Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn.
The company last week reported August comp-store sales at 8.6 percent and second-quarter sales comps at 5.8 percent.
Pier 1 employs a three-tiered merchandising strategy: trend, style and basics, Turner explained.
"One of the things we believe the consumer is looking for is something that's new and different," he said. "That's one of the reasons we're always introducing something new into the stores. If, last year, it was a deep red, this year it's maybe a little more purple. The earlier we bring product in the better off we are."
The company began selling some Halloween goods in July, he noted. Moreover, Pier 1 stores begin transitioning into spring merchandise in late January as clearance events end.
"As we speak the stores are setting up some Christmas items," Turner said. "And as they yell and scream that we're setting Christmas up too early, they're also buying them off the shelves. And we get a very early read on what skus are selling out quickly so we can reorder some still for December."
The mix, which has been set for about the last four or five years, involves a 40 percent sales base of furniture. "We're a furniture store, but we're not a furniture store," Turner quipped. "That allows us to make money every month of the year. Our furniture carries our business for the first six months of the year."
Pier 1's fiscal year begins in March, he noted.
That later start transitions to an accessory and gift-related items business.
In the three-tier product scheme, trend items later become style items and, then at the basics end, are price-sensitive staples.
In marketing, the company makes sure it "talks" to its customers every month with its proprietary credit card, on which its five million cardholders charge 28.6 percent of total sales — averaging 15 percent more on a per-transaction basis than other credit cards or cash, Turner said.
Additionally, the company communicates with existing and new customers with a mix of television, direct mail and newspaper FSIs, all carefully timed to play off each other.
Another developing area is the chain's bridal gift registry, which is delivering strong incremental sales.
"We know we're not the top tier," he acknowledged. "But we're getting 1,000 to 1,500 new registrants per week — that's 2 per store, amounting to 1.5 percent of sales, which we believe can grow to 3.0 percent."
Additionally, Turner said the Back-to-School category was another still-developing segment, identifying it as a "second Christmas."
Related Content By Author
Previewing Heimtextil 2017


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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- For those looking for that Rolls-Royce experience but in a smaller package, the Mini Cooper will soon be available in a special edition featuring plush design touches straight from the iconic ultra-luxury British automaker.
The Mini Inspired by Goodwood, the limited edition Mini's full name, won't fool anyone into thinking it's an actual teeny Rolls. But those who know, will recognize various exclusive Rolls-Royce colors and materials including "corn silk" colored roof linings and leather trim and "Walnut Burr" wood touches on the dashboard.
Underfoot, the Mini Inspired by Goodwood has the same extraordinarily thick pile carpet found in a Rolls-Royce.
The interior palette was selected for this car by Rolls-Royce designers at that automaker's Goodwood, England headquarters. Various other design elements, such as the typeface used on the speedometer are also borrowed from Rolls.
Rolls-Royce and Mini are both owned by Germany's BMW.
Instead of the massive V12 engine you'll find under the hood of a Rolls-Royce, the Mini Inspired by Goodwood is powered by the same 181-horsepower turbocharged 4-cylinder engine found in a Mini Cooper S. One benefit for the ecologically minded rich: the Mini will get an estimated 30 miles per gallon in combined city and highway driving, more than double that of a Rolls-Royce Phantom.
Thousands of Brits were left without pay heading into the holiday weekend after HSBC botched payments for many of its corporate customers. More
Brazil's government announced that its economy fell into recession, shrinking 2.6% from a year ago. More
Smartphones are expensive. So using the one your employer gives you can save a lot of money. But in exchange you may be forfeiting control and privacy. More


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All News Entries
Friday, July 29, 2011
Second quarter earnings for Echo Global Logistics, a non-asset based freight brokerage company and a provider of technology-enabled transportation and supply chain management services, were strong, with total revenue up 37.9 percent at $151.5 million.
The survey found that larger carriers—those with more than $25 million in revenue—are twice more likely to be interested in buying a company compared to smaller carriers (with less than $25 million in revenue).
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Rail traffic was up slightly for the week ending July 23, according to data released by the Association of American Railroads (AAR).
Posted on 07/28 at 12:02 PM
Rail Freight •
An edict from the European Union (EU) focused on emissions reduction is drawing the ire of the United States Congress and the air cargo industry.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
At a time when economic momentum continues to fluctuate, new orders for durable goods showed in June did nothing to quell that notion, falling 2.1 percent—or $4.0 billion.
Data published this week by ACT Research, a provider of data and analysis for trucks and other commercial vehicles, indicated that June marked the third straight month to see a decline in U.S. commercial trailer net orders with a 26 percent decrease from May.
UPS said this week that it has begun operating flights into Chengdu, China as part of an effort to expand its connections between Asia, Europe, and the United States.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
FedEx officials said that this deal will allow FedEx Express to provide a wider range of domestic and international transportation and logistics offerings in Mexico
The American Trucking Associations (ATA) reported today truck tonnage took a step in the right direction, snapping two months of declines, with a 2.8 percent increase in its advance seasonally-adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage index in June.
The average price per gallon for diesel increased 2.6 cents to $3.949 per gallon.


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ANAHEIM (CBS) — An Anaheim supermarket agreed to pay a $527,000 fine for falsely advertising generic meat as being Islamic approved.
KNX 1070’s Mike Landa reports the fine comes after Super King Market misleadingly labeled some of its meat products.
“Halal” is an Arabic term used to describe meat butchered in the name of “Allah”, the Islamic name for God, making the food permissible to eat in accordance with Islamic law.
A judge ordered the civil settlement on Monday, according to the Orange County district attorney’s office.
The district attorney’s office began its investigation into the case in 2010 after the county health officials learned there was possible mishandling of meats at Super King Market.
“There were various meats being delivered to the store that were not clearly marked or labeled, but all of these meats were ending up in the same display case,” said Orange County district attorney spokesperson Farrah Emami.
For any meat product to be considered halal, they must be properly segregated from other meats and designated as halal by a sign, placard or similar advertisement.
Super King Market has multiple locations in Southern California, but this settlement is exclusive to the Anaheim location.


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Has the influence of online advertising on actual purchasing behaviour, and the decline of TV as an advertising medium, been over-stated by marketing industry?
In yet more startling findings, the MOP Awareness Survey conducted by THINK Global Research asks big questions of those who believe that online advertising is – in and of itself – a new dawn for advertisers, or that good old TV ads have done their day.
The survey dug down to discover how often consumers are currently utilising various media channels, which advertising channels they perceived as being the most impactful, and perhaps most importantly, which channels have the most influence on consumers’ real life purchase decisions.
Seeking to link purchasing preferences with actual behaviour, the survey also asked the public how often consumers had made a purchase directly after clicking an ad they came across on a website or social media site.
Magnum Opus Partners say the findings require careful analysis by all those who recommend media purchases for advertisers, because the results are notably different to what many people are being led to believe.
CHANNEL USAGE SNAPSHOT
According to the people, TV (however delivered) is still by far their most utilised medium, clocking up 16 hours a week compared to 9 hours a week on social media, 7 hours a week on radio, and just 2 hours a week reading magazines and 2 hours spent on online shopping.
Needless to say, two hours a week online shopping is a new phenomenon that needs to be taken seriously. But it’s probably less than many have been suggesting.
But the real shock comes when people are asked which channel they considered impacted on them most and then which channel they found most influential.
The questions were phrased very carefully to discover both things.
Advertising is presented to you in many ways. Thinking about all the different ways you experience advertising, which of the following advertising types do you find impacts on you most?
Based on the list below, which channel would influence you the most to purchase a product or service?
TV BY FAR STILL THE MOST IMPACTFUL AND INFLUENTIAL
With the sole exception of Gen Z, who marginally preferred social media, for getting their information, (please see later), TV was considered by far the most impactful ad medium, quoted by 62% of the survey as having the most impactful advertising.
This contrasted with just 33% for social media, and a paltry 18% for an online ad on a website, and even less for the new darling of advertising commentary, just 16% for a video ad on a website.
Consumers said that TV was also considered the most influential medium for them, with 25% quoting it as having influenced their decision to purchase something, as opposed to 15% for social media, and just 5% for an online ad on a website and 2% for a video ad on a website.
(Note these were multiple response questions which means the totals do not equal 100%.)
SO WHAT DOES THE DETAIL OF THE SURVEY REVEAL?
Magnum Opus Partners Director of Creative Strategy, Stephen Yolland, was emphatic:
“First of all, we must emphasise again that these are findings from a rigorous independently-conducted survey, and not just opinion.
If the survey had come up with reversed results, we would have faithfully reported those.
But this survey shows categorically that, at least as far as Australia is concerned - and we doubt it is wildly different in similar markets overseas because Aussies are known as “new adopters” of technology - that TV still remains by far the most important medium available to advertisers, and “online” has been over-sold as an effective ad medium to drive actual sales. Certainly so far, at least.
So if an advertiser is diverting a large percentage of their funds into online the may end up disappointed in the actual result.
Our survey previously revealed that brands were now having difficulty “cutting through” on TV, and we speculated that this was because ads weren’t getting a long enough run on TV, that the push for TV creativity has slowed somewhat, and also as a result of a large switch of media investment into online – what we called “Robbing Peter to pay Paul”.
We invite debate, of course, but to our eyes the core message of this part of the MOP Awareness Survey is nevertheless clear and indisputable.
Essentially, the decline of TV as an ad medium has been greatly exaggerated. And rumours of the new dawn of online advertising suggest it is certainly a growing medium, but the wilder claims for it are somewhat inflated.”
CONSUMERS CLICKING ON ONLINE ADS? NOT SO MUCH.
The survey also drilled down to understand more about real consumers’ behaviour. It asked “How often would you click on an advertisement displayed on a website?”
It was revealed that a massive 2/3rds of the survey reported “Never” or “Not Often”, and only 11% reported “Often” or “Very Often”.
Yolland commented further:
“No one would suggest that online advertising is useless, that would just be silly. But it is clearly not the ‘cure all’ that some people have assumed it must be, just because it’s new and shiny.
Anecdotally, when we encouraged consumers to say why they are cautious about buying online, they reported some nervousness about the medium, and this might explain why the changes in buying patterns that flow from online use are still relatively small. (See later.)
Of course, even a very small percentage of a massive total market is still huge, but nothing like what is going on in the rest of the economy.
This has profound implications not only for where advertisers place their money, but also for real world business strategies way beyond just decisions on where to place advertising dollars, such as the decisions surrounding the future of investment in “bricks and mortar” retailing for example.”
FOR 2/3rds OF CONSUMERS, ADS ON WEBSITES DON’T DRIVE ACTUAL PURCHASING, AT LEAST SO FAR
Websites certainly don’t seem to be exciting all that much real-world purchasing activity yet.
“We need to be totally clear that we’re talking about websites as an advertising medium. Obviously the online economy is robust and growing healthily. It’s how people are getting to the moment when they actually buy something that the survey looks at.”
Asked “Have you ever made a purchase directly from an online advertisement that you have seen and clicked on while browsing a website (excluding social media websites)?” the public said that more than 2/3rds of them had not made a purchase this way.
And of those that had, their purchase history was a total of four times.
When the survey sought to understand why people weren’t clicking and buying on online ads, answers like these came back:
• “I like to research my options … not much of an impulse buyer.”
• “It ended up being more expensive than I thought.”
• “I don’t look at advertising on websites often.”
• “I don’t trust online advertising and am worried about where links can lead.”
And when the question was asked of social media sites like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and LinkedIn, only 27% said they had made a purchase, and 73% said no. And of those that had, they had also done so less often.
RESULTS VERY CONSISTENT
What makes the survey results more compelling is that it doesn’t seem to matter whether you’re male or female, or where you live in Australia, the figures track very similarly. Men and women seem equally impacted and influenced by TV, for example, and equally unlikely to click on online ads and buy things.
And the situation looks unlikely to change anytime soon. Whilst there is more likelihood of people to consume social media the younger they are, Australians spent virtually the same amount of time online shopping regardless of their age.
The youngest consumers spent three hours a week, and the oldest two.
And for those that actually buy online after clicking through on an online advertisement, the frequency was startlingly similar regardless of age. The average was 3-4 times – hardly a revolution in buying patterns.
GEN Z SOMEWHAT DIFFERENT, BUT FOR HOW LONG?
Only in “Gen Z” was social media considered more impactful than TV (79% to 53%) and most likely to influence a purchase, by 49% to 17%.
“This makes sense” said Yolland “but we suspect it might not be the sign of a huge demographic or psychographic shift in buying patterns coming down the line. It might be just that Gen Z simply has better things to do than watching TV, especially if it’s with their folks.
They’re in their rooms face-timing friends, they’re studying, or they’re out of home: a lot of online activity now happens on smart phones out of home, of course. They were much more enthusiastic about cinema previews than anyone else, for example, as cinema is a key part of their social activity.
Ask us to speculate, and we wouldn’t be surprised to see these results duplicated in five years or so, when a new generation of younger people will mimic the current Gen Z results, but by then we will also see today’s Gen Z exhibiting more typical media habits as their lifestyle choices have changed.
On the other hand of course, we can also speculate that if, later in life, they carried on preferring online over media then that would really would be a dramatic shift. But there’s no current evidence that they will. We’re really getting into the area of guessing here.
In simple terms, we need to keep surveying, and watch the results.”
BOTTOM LINE? DON’T TURN YOUR BROADACRE ADVERTISING OFF TO FUND ONLINE ADVERTISING
Yolland said the results of the survey made one thing plain:
“This was a very large survey, conducted with scrupulous care, using carefully-crafted questions to avoid ambiguity and to produce meaningful, usable data.
And the wash up is undeniable – bottom line, it would be a very brave marketer who switched their ad spend massively away from mainstream media into online and expected either their brand salience to survive or very much by the way of immediate sales to be the result.
Essentially, this survey punctures the recent groupthink that online is “where it’s at”, certainly as far as the general consumer ad dollar goes. Online cannot be ignored - of course - it is definitely a useful additional advertising medium and it is increasingly important as a way in which we understand our world. We can speculate that it may produce different results in B2B advertising, which could usefully be measured separately. And without any doubt it represents, taken as a whole, an important new market.
But anyone denuding their main media expenditure to fund online advertising, and especially at expense of their TV advertising, certainly in terms of broadacre consumers, is being – frankly – unwise.”
Stephen Yolland pointed to advertiser Trivago (with whom Magnum Opus Partners have no relationship) as illustrating the research’s findings.
“Media choice – where to place your investment as an advertiser - is all about horses for courses. Trivago’s brand has been built through enjoyable, simple, high-rotation ads on TV. Yet their entire business is online.
One of the great arguments in favour of online advertising is that you can A/B test different messages and maximise on what works, and that’s true. But that doesn’t mean you can’t do the very same – and very successfully – on TV, too, as Trivago have proven.
He also noted that recent cutbacks in online advertising from some of the largest advertisers in the world has apparently not affected growth, and he urged advertisers to look at these examples and others to understand which mediums they should be using to drive “real world sales” and to support their brand.
“In short, TV advertising is not dead. Quite the contrary. And the Magnum Awareness Survey now proves it.” said Yolland.
Supplementary background data sources, background reading:
P&G and Unilever cut back online ad spend
The MOP Awareness Survey conducted by THINK Global Research was performed nationally in early June 2017 with an ABS representative sample of 1,500 participants representing the voice of Australia. One more set of findings will be released in coming weeks after further data analysis.
For further comment call Stephen Yolland on 0419 290 708 or email firstname.lastname@example.org.
• Australians largely unable to name ads or brands they really like, or dislike.
• Findings markedly different from previous surveys.
• The huge growth in media expenditure generally, and the advent of online
advertising, seem to have “muddied the waters”.
Independent agency Magnum Opus Partners (MOP) have a long history of polling the public to find out what advertising they like and dislike, with their well-respected MOP Awareness Study, conducted by Think Global Research.
So imagine if you poll 1,500 people that reflect the general Australian population today and ask them which ads they’ve seen that really made an impact on them: ads that they really liked, or disliked, by just letting them nominate any ad from amongst the thousands they see every week.
And then the majority of those Aussies come back and tell you they can’t think of a single one.
Pretty depressing for the ad industry, right? And advertisers, yes?
So what’s going on with that result?
Startling findings from Magnum Opus Partners Awareness Survey
Surveying 1500 Australians nationwide of all ages, the MOP Awareness Survey – professionally conducted by well-known market research agency TH?NK Global Research – was expected to throw up a range of ads that the public found easy to recall.
In previous surveys there have usually been clear winners – in the past, for example, iconic ads like “Not Happy, Jan” for Yellow Pages, and “Which Bank” for the Commonwealth Bank stood out from the crowd.
But this year, a massive 857 people – 57% of the sample – couldn’t indicate even a single ad that they could remember feeling positive about.
Not only that, but an even bigger percentage – 66% – couldn’t think of one ad they actually disliked, whereas previously the survey had found ads that seemed to drive everyone nuts. While a few market segments – gambling ads, for example, “screaming retail”, and insurance and banking – seem to be polarising, no one advertiser seemed to be saying anything much that stirs people up very negatively.
So is nothing apparently cutting through a media morass?
Commenting on the survey, Agency Director of Strategy Stephen Yolland commented:
“It’s been awhile, so we were very interested to see what’s changed. And it’s very obvious from the results that consumers today seem increasingly underwhelmed by the advertising on offer.
Almost nothing seems to be both cutting through and impressing people. There are successful exceptions, but certainly very little is being spontaneously remembered. Which means we all seem to be spending an awful lot of money just to leave people ‘cold’, and as ad agencies if we’re going to be responsible with our clients’ money then we need to look at that.”
“We all know that advertising works in different ways, and just because an ad or a brand doesn’t come up in an unprompted survey like this as being liked and remembered doesn’t mean it isn’t doing any good. It can perform better when people are prompted to recall it, or it can work well when seen or heard in conjunction with other mediums, such as radio, billboards, online, catalogues, or other reminders.
But to have almost nothing producing a “watercooler effect” that is strong enough to be picked up in a survey like this does suggest that both the creativity and the entertainment value of the work we do has declined somewhat, and also possiblythat there is now so MUCH advertising in the market that many ads seem to be being effectively “tuned out” by consumers.
Switch into "online" weakening brand awareness?
We also suspect that the big switch of media dollars into online* has resulted in a fall in product and brand awareness from the days when the vast majority of media money was spent on TV. Nearly two billion Australian advertising dollars now go into online. That’s a huge switch in advertiser behaviour. Where that growth in online expenditure has replaced expenditure in other mediums, as opposed to supplementing it, there may well have been a fall in both ad and brand standout.
Online ads might be useful - indeed they are, just as with any medium - but we think these findings suggest that they are pretty much useless in terms of creating brand positivity, as they are nearly always transactional in nature.
And frankly, it is very hard to convey emotion in a banner ad or create an emotional connection with it, when all’s said and done.”
Key brand findings
Interestingly, three supermarket brands did score well, with Woolworths, Aldi and Coles level-pegging at the top of the list of remembered and liked advertising.
1st. No Brand/No Ad
2nd=. Woolworths, Aldi, Coles
Of those advertisers that did register, Yolland singled out Aldi for praise.
“They’re obviously a “challenger” brand to the giant duopoly of Coles and Woolworths, and both their TV advertising in the last couple of years** and their choice of products show a commitment to surprising and pleasing the public. And despite not always having the prime positions in retail centres, they have obviously carved out a place for themselves in the Australian psyche with their quirky advertising and an interesting consumer promise.
In October last year, Aldi’s “share of voice” was reported as being 11.95% between April 2015 and March 2016, behind Woolworths (50.82%) and Coles (24.27%). That they are achieving a similar level of awareness and likeability would seem to suggest that the content of their advertising is cutting through better than their bigger rivals.***
In our view, Coles and Woolies have performed creditably, but it’s the arrival of Aldi as a genuine contender brand that we find most newsworthy.”
For further comment call Stephen Yolland on 0419 290 708 or email email@example.com
*Total online advertising spend continues to grow, with first quarter expenditure at $1.86 billion, up 7.2 per cent year on year. This represents a seasonal decline of 5.8 per cent on fourth quarter expenditure, although classified increased by 7.1 per cent compared to Q4 and had the strongest year on year growth of 15.9 per cent. All categories grew year on year with search up 6 per cent and display 4.5 per cent.
**Aldi increase ad spend including in main media as Coles and Woolies cut back
***Aldi “Share of Voice” less than Coles and Woolies
The MOP Awareness Survey conducted by TH?NK Global Research was performed nationally in early June 2017 with an ABS repressive sample of 1500 participants representing the voice of Australia. At least two further sets of findings will be released in coming weeks after more data analysis has been completed.


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MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) - In an ordinary year, The Market Common’s “A Southern Times Square” functions a little like the New Year’s Eve celebration in New York’s Times Square, in that, the more, the merrier for celebrating.
But because of the coronavirus pandemic, changes had to be made to the event in order to keep the New Year’s Eve celebration alive.
Caitlen Buffkin, the marketing coordinator, said they plan for 10,000 people every year at the event, but now only 1,000 people will be allowed in and they must have a ticket.
“That is the number that has been given to us by the fire marshall,” said Buffkin. “Taking into consideration social distancing rules.”
The Market Common also had to get special approval from the South Carolina Department of Commerce in order to hold the event.
A manager at King Street Grille said New Year’s Eve is generally the busiest night all year. While that may still be the case this year, that 1,000 is still 90% less than a typical year.
Not to mention ringing in the New Year will have to go without ringing glasses because of the governor’s “Last Call” executive order which means vendors and restaurants can only sell alcohol until 11 p.m.
A manager at Gordon Biersch said the restaurant usually stays open until 2 a.m., but won’t this year.
But Coordinators aren’t “dropping the ball” on making sure businesses still get a positive boost from the festivities.
“You do need to make a purchase at a restaurant or retailer in the Market Common, and one $25 purchase is valid for one ticket to the New Year’s Eve event,” said Buffkin.
In order to claim that ticket, you need to present your receipt at the Market Common office.
Buffkin is hoping the limited capacity, coupled with social distancing and hand sanitizing stations, will make for a safe, and fun, celebration.
“We think we can enjoy New Year’s in a responsible way, and that’s what we’re trying to do with the event,” said Buffkin.
Buffkin said they’ve handed out about 650 tickets, which means there’s still 350 or so left for the celebration that will be a little more exclusive this year.


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Published on February 22nd, 2018 | by Subhash Nair0
Urgent Part Replacements on Mitsubishi ASX, Lancer and Outlander
Mitsubishi Motors Malaysia (MMM), the official distributor of Mitsubishi Motors vehicles in Malaysia, has requested for owners of Mitsubishi Lancer and Outlander, imported from Japan and the locally-assembled ASX to replace the engine control relay of their vehicles. Overall affected cars are about 5,000 units.
The relay protects the engine’s ECU from any sudden surge of voltage. If it is not replaced, the internal parts of the relay may fail and subsequently affect the engine’s ECU function.
Separately, MMM will also be conducting a Field Fix Campaign to replace the passenger side airbag inflator for 115 units of Pajero Exceed manufactured from March 2010 – July 2012.
Some of the passenger side airbags may release metal fragments when deployed causing injuries to the front occupants. This exercise is part of the Takata airbag recall campaign worldwide.
“Safety is our utmost priority thus MMM is taking this initiative to assure customer’s safety and regrets the inconvenience caused to the affected customers,” said Tomoyuki Shinnishi, Chief Executive Officer of MMM. MMM will issue notification letters to all affected Mitsubishi owners and the full cost of the replacement will be borne by the company. MMM kindly request all affected customers to make an appointment at any of the Mitsubishi Motors authorized service centres for the replacement of the above.
For the list of service centres and further information, please visit: www.mitsubishi-motors.com.my or contact our Customer Careline at 1800 18 8161 (9 am – 5 pm, Mondays to Fridays excluding public holidays).


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Games R18+ classification advocacy group, Grow up Australia, has gathered 16,055 signatures in a petition supporting the adults-only rating for computer games.
Australia remains one of the few developed countries without an R18+ classification for games. Despite overwhelming industry support for the introduction of such as rating, attempts to bring the issue to the fore have been stymied by South Australia Attorney-General, Michael Atkinson.
The most high-profile figure against an adults-only rating, Atkinson, claims R18+ for games will make it easier for excessively violent games to reach local shores and the hands of minors. Currently, games deemed inappropriate for under 15 year-olds are rejected or censored to fit into an MA15+ rating.
Electronic Frontiers Australia (EFA) recently conducted a survey and found 50 per cent of video games released in 2009 were inappropriately labelled as MA15+ due to the lack for R18+ classification.
The signatures will be tendered to the Attorney-General’s Department, which released a R18+ games rating discussion paper in December 2009 for public commentary. The petition was a joint venture between Grow up Australia and games retailer, EB Games. During the campaign, posters were displayed at 250 EB Games stores directing patrons to sign the online petition.
“Support for the introduction of R18+ rating has been overwhelming with 99 per cent of the submissions made through the website in favour of the change,” Grow up Australia founder, Aaron John Percival, said in a statement.
The Interactive Games and Entertainment Association (iGEA) and the Electronic Frontiers Australia have already sent in their submission on the issue.
Submissions can be made via http://www.ag.gov.au/gameclassifications before February 28.


text: Android M is official and it's set to bring a bevy of improvements to all manner of Google-powered phones. Battery life improvements, greater app permission controls, standardised support for fingerprint scanners, more granular volume controls, USB-C support and new Google Now features are all part of a mix that makes this an exciting upgrade for users - but is your phone actually going to get it? It doesn't have a name yet, though internally it's known as Android Macadamia Nut Cookie - but it's well on the way to launching, with a Q3 release planned (likely in September according to the sources). But do remember that when Android M does launch you won't necessarily have instant access to it, as it's down to device manufacturers to spend time with the new software before imbuing their phones and tablets with it. To make the rollout less of a mystery here's the latest - and constantly updated information - on when Android M is likely to land on the various devices out there. Google and Nexus Google's Nexus devices will naturally be the first to get Android M. One of their biggest selling points is speedy updates and stock versions of Android. There's every chance Google will launch one or more new Nexus devices to showcase Android M, with Huawei rumoured to be behind one of them, so expect any new Nexus device this year to ship with it. Not all existing Nexus devices will see the update on day one, but the developer preview is available now for the Nexus 5, Nexus 6, Nexus 9 and Nexus Player, suggesting they'll all get updated pretty soon after Android M rolls out. However earlier Nexus devices may not get the update at all. It's been rumoured that Google will institute a two year update guarantee with Android M and that it will be applied retrospectively, which would mean that while the Nexus 5 will get the update the older Nexus 4, both versions of the Nexus 7, the Nexus 10 and anything older still probably won't.


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Report from Bain & Co shows market positivity despite cooling Q1.
A new report from consultancy firm Bain & Co. created in partnership with Italian luxury goods organisation Altagamma has revealed "cooling" luxury goods growth in Q1 2013, following double-digit growth in 2012.
Despite this the report forecasts positive global outlook despite economic uncertainty, with growth across the world’s leading and emerging luxury markets anticipated in 2013.
The Altagamma Monitor report shows that global growth of personal luxury goods increased for the third consecutive year in 2012, totalling more than €200 billion (£169bn).
Asia remained the major growth engine in 2012 while, in terms of product, accessories and hard luxury items such as watches and jewellery outperformed the market in 2012, up 12% compared to 2011 and totalling 23% of personal luxury sales.
However this latest report reveals that Q1 2013 growth has cooled, with unfavourable impact from exchange rate fluctuations.
A drop in tourism has also impacted sales in Europe, with a particular decline in tourists coming to Europe from Japan. The average spend by Chinese tourists has also reported dropped due to narrowing price gaps between Europe and China, potentially due to luxury brands wishing to increase spend within Asia. Similarly Chinese tourists are changing their travel habits with many more flocking to Australia as a new retail destination.
Within Europe itself the report says local consumption has not recovered yet, especially in Mediterranean countries, while price increases further threaten sales, as well as the rise of premium brands gaining market share, such as Michael Kors.
The report also outlines the sense of caution among luxury good wholesalers, with a "clean-up of independent wholesale distribution networks" – some brands have cut the number of retail outlets they work with – and cautious retail plans such as new format stores in key locations and popup stores that can be trialled without the full commitment of a long-term lease.
In the US, however, luxury personal goods are a growing sector thanks to high consumer confidence and reaction from retailers who are offering synchronised in-store and online shopping, bolstered by a boost in interest in luxury goods from younger consumers.
In China high single-digit growth for domestic consumption is anticipated, according to trends recorded so far in 2013, while Chinese e-commerce is set to grow at double digit rate thanks to a new generation entering luxury arena through e-tail and digital platforms.
At the same time China is experiencing polarisation of consumers’ attitudes. While some are still shopping for high-end and sophisticated luxury is booming there is a simultaneous "fatigue of logo-businesses", with aspirational consumers seeking out accessible luxury or premium brands.
The changes to gifting, impacted by the new Chinese government anti-corruption campaign, has also hit luxury sales, in particular for watches, with a shift towards women’s apparel.
Blogging and social networking have also lead to the growth of a "negative buzz" around luxury ostentation.
In Greater China Hong Kong and Macau have been benefiting from a shift in tourist flows previously targeting Europe, while South Korea is suffering against political tension which has lowered consumer confidence, adding to a slowdown in luxury consumption that began in late 2012.
In South East Asia Singapore remains a major retail hub – it is the 8th luxury destination in the world – while Malaysian and Indonesian consumers are becoming more familiar with luxury brands and as a result these brands are considering more direct presences in the region.
The report concludes that 2013’s market outlook is positive despite economic uncertainty. Luxury goods growth in Europe could increase by 2%, while the Americas could grow by up to 7% and the Asia Pacific and mainland China region by up to 9%. The rest of the world could grow by 6%.
The report follow’s Walpole’s recent report focused on the UK luxury sector, which is set to double in the next five years to a value of £12.2 billion,


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Fitbit has launched a new Sleep Profile feature for its Premium subscribers, which provides an analysis of your sleep with different archetypes. While Fitbit…
Fintech Black Pay and Durban-based Ithala SOC Limited have partnered to offer R250 million for township and rural development.
The partnership will see the startup support the bank’s clients and entrepreneurs in obtaining finance.
Its role will be to simplify the process and ensure easy access to capital for assets such as taxis.
“We’ve found a partner who is as committed as we are in developing and uplifting the township and rural economy,” co-founder Zakhele ‘Zakes Bantwini’ Madida said in a statement.
The partnership with Ithala will promote development in townships and rural areas in KwaZulu-Natal.
Madida co-founded Black Pay with Black Space Group Managing Partner, Nkonzo Mbetha. The startup offers multiple finance products such as vehicle finance solutions, home loans, and insurance, through simplified processes.
“We believe the time is now to inject much-needed investment in underdeveloped communities,” he added.
Black Pay and Ithala to bring financial products to townships, rural areas
The partnership with Ithala will promote development and entrepreneurship in townships and rural areas in KwaZulu-Natal. It will achieve this through home loans, backyard financing, and taxi and vehicle finance.
The partnership will also prioritise women and young people.
A state-owned entity, Itahala SOC Limited operates 38 branches in KwaZulu-Natal. It is a subsidiary of Ithala Development Finance Corporation Limited.
It offers a full range of financial services with the aim of providing them in remote areas of the province, while also contributing to its socio-economic development.
“We recognise that a significant part of our work should be the improvement of the lives and livelihoods of our people,” CEO Dr Thulani Vilakazi said.
“Our partnership with Black Pay is a valuable step towards that endeavour, and will serve as a model for future partnerships.”
Featured image: Steve Buissinne via Pixabay


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Objective-C, used for developing Apple iOS applications, climbs to No. 6 in the monthly Tiobe Programming Community index for most popular programming languages, after being ranked at number 8 a year ago. Also posting gains, C# rose to No. 4, a jump ...
Amazon's SDKs (software development kits) for Android and Apple's iOS have exited the beta testing phase, the company said on Wednesday.
The latest iPhone 5 rumors say the next iteration of Apple's smartphone will almost certainly be a CDMA/GSM dual-mode “world phone.” An unidentified iOS device has popped up in the usage logs for at least one popular iOS app sporting identifiers that...
Startup iZettle has made its payment application available for Swedish iPhone users, and now plans to distribute 2,000 card chip readers, the company said on Thursday.
Rumors of system-wide voice recognition in iOS have been floating around since Apple acquired speech technology companies Siri and Nuance last year.
Mobile phone sales floundered during the second quarter, in the wake of the earthquake in Japan. But smartphone sales continued to grow, as Android extended its lead in the operating system race, according to market research company Gartner.
The new developer beta of iOS 5 released last weekend contained a number of new image filters that should let developers manipulate photos much more quickly and easily.
Apple reviewers are already sounding off about features and functionality in the fifth beta version of iOS 5 that was released to developers this weekend.
A 10-year-old California girl's presentation at a hacker conference in Las Vegas is getting a lot of attention.
Using data collected from its Mobile Threat Network, Lookout today released a full report on the state of mobile malware and security. The report covers both Android and iOS, and compares the risks that both platforms face. You can view and download ...
With Microsoft trumpeting the idea that PCs and tablets should run the same operating system and have all the same capabilities, will Apple go down the same road?
With Apple revealing iCloud price details along with the beta version of iCloud.com, now seems like a good time to explain what the service is to anyone who missed Apple's announcement in June.
Telstra has launched the Mobile Device Management Portal, which allows IT administrators to remotely manage Apple iPhone and Android-based smartphones.
Mozilla, the makers of the Firefox browser, hopes to revolutionize the modern operating system with Boot to Gecko, a universal-platform OS primary aimed at mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets that could theoretically drive futuristic deskt...
Earlier today (Monday), Apple released iOS 4.3.5, a security update that patches a flaw in its handling of security certificates. If you're looking to jailbreak 4.3.5, though, here's some good news: "MuscleNerd" of the iPhone Dev Team decided he woul...
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Fitbit, makers of fitness trackers such as the Flex, has decided it’s not going to jump aboard the HealthKit train, and confirmed via its product forums that it’s going to stand back and observe what direction Apple’s new health-related venture takes for now. HealthKit is part of iOS 8, and is a system which allows companies to share health and fitness data and make it viewable in one central spot.
The news comes after Fitbit users questioned whether HealthKit support would arrive in the near future, but any hopes were rapidly squashed by the company. “We do not currently have plans to integrate with HealthKit,” it stated, adding, “ We will watch as it matures, looking for opportunities to improve the Fitbit experience.”
To make amends, Fitbit says it’s working on “other exciting projects which will be valuable to users.” We’ll have to wait and see what these projects are, because no further details have been provided for now.
HealthKit has already had a difficult start in life, having been disabled following iOS 8’s release, due to a bug. HealthKit was eventually reinstated with the release if iOS 8.0.2. That hasn’t stopped a great many developers from integrating it into their apps, and the continually growing list contains names such as MyFitnessPal, Endomondo, Garmin, Runtastic, Up by Jawbone, and Weight Watchers.
Fitbit isn’t the only major fitness player without HealthKit support for its products. Long-time Apple partner Nike hasn’t updated its own apps, or the FuelBand tracker, to work with Apple’s new app either. It’s early days for HealthKit, but it’s still surprising to see a slight lack of interest, particularly from those we’d have expected to be romanced by Apple prior to its release.
All is not lost though, and Fitbit is encouraging its users to post suggestions on its forum, about how HealthKit integration would benefit them. It promises to review the responses, and take them into consideration for the future.


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Colao said last month that the company would fold some of its operations in sub-Saharan Africa into Vodacom as part of a "single, coordinated Africa strategy".
Vodacom, on the other hand, will control 87.5 per cent stake in Vodafone Kenya, giving it indirect control of 35 per cent interest in Safaricom. As this is a related-party transaction, Vodafone, which now owns 65% of Vodacom, is precluded from voting on this at this meeting. "In addition to producing mutually beneficial opportunities for growth, it will create further incremental value through the close cooperation between the two businesses, particularly in driving M-Pesa adoption across our operations", said Shameel Joosub, CEO Vodacom Group.
Completion of the transaction is subject to a number of conditions, including approvals from Vodacom minority shareholders, approval from the Financial Surveillance Department of the South African Reserve Bank and confirmation from the Kenya Capital Markets Authority that the Transaction does not trigger an obligation for Vodacom to make a mandatory bid for Safaricom.
Customers in South Africa grew to 8,6% to 37,1m.
The proposed transaction will expose Vodacom Group to the attractive high growth Kenyan market, being one of the largest and most advanced economies in east and central Africa that has made significant strides in technological innovation.
Energy carries 'Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2'
In this case, Fox probably own the rights to Uatu, the Watcher for Earth's sector who has interacted with the Four in the comics. Extremely simplistic in its approach, but driven by fantastic characters and how they interact with one another.
South Africa's largest mobile operator by subscribers, is buying a $2.59 billion stake in Kenya's Safaricom Ltd.in the hope of popularizing the highly-touted East African mobile money service M-Pesa across the broader continent.
All this will leave Vodafone with a raised 70% stake in Vodacom, and a much reduced 5% stake in Safaricom.
Equipment sales negatively affected the South African and group revenue figures, contracting 4% over the year.
Vodacom also said on Monday that full-year earnings per share increased by 4.5 percent to 9.23 rand, which are in line with estimates.
Based on Friday's JSE closing price of R152.49 per Vodacom share, this values the proposed transaction at R34.6 billion. In its global operations, service revenue declined by 5,6%, though it would have climbed by 2,2% if it hadn't been for currency movements. The company's EBITDA increased in the period under review, to ZAR31.238 billion (up by 2.9% y-o-y), while net profit grew 1.7% to ZAR13.126 billion (ZAR12.910 billion in FY2015/16).


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The nationwide bird flu epidemic has caused the culling of approximately 40 million chickens and turkeys and affected at least 10 percent of the country’s egg supply, although its impact thus far seems mostly to be limited to large industrial farms.
The seemingly unstoppable H5N2 avian flu outbreak has already caused a spike in grocery store prices, leaving agricultural experts to predict an egg shortage and empty coolers where poultry should have been.
The virus has now been confirmed on farms in 16 states and in Canada as well – but the figures are still growing.
“I can’t tell you how many farmers this is affecting,” Oscar Garrison, director of food safety for United Egg Producers, which represents the ownership of 95 percent of egg-laying hens, told The Washington Post. “It’s been absolutely devastating. Just abysmal.”
About 40 percent of the egg-laying flocks at factory farms in Iowa, the largest egg-producing state in the union, have been impacted. Post Holdings Inc., which make breakfast cereals and other foods, said the flu has impacted a whopping 35 percent of its chickens.
The bird flu outbreak has surely caused a poultry crisis in America, but the strong and rapidly evolving virus has struck primarily factory farms and has largely left small family farms and backyard chickens alone. Most small farms and backyard flock keepers allow their birds to free range on the property, as their ancestors did for generations.
Experts aren’t entirely sure how this strain is spreading, but they believe it does so through droppings left by migratory birds such as ducks and geese. If that’s the case, then backyard chickens can catch it. But so far, the virus has mostly spared them, although it has impacted some small farms in Iowa.
“No one wants to see (bird flu), but because of how it is transported through the air, for example, it’s not easily avoidable,” backyard chicken owner Sandra Mrachina told USA Today. “You do the best you can and take the precautions when you can, but at the same time it’s six chickens or a dozen chickens. It’s not a giant commercial chicken farm that’s going to lose its livelihood and maybe have trouble making ends meet.”
There are several theories why factor chickens are more susceptible:
- The ventilation system, meant to keep the birds cool in the buildings, brings in dirt and spreads the virus.
- Employees and machines constantly on the move through the buildings could be accidentally aiding in the spread.
- Factor chickens are locked up inside a building, where the virus can grow in dampness and cooler temperatures, while backyard chickens stay outside in the sun and warmth, which kills the virus.
Michael Greger, director of public health and animal agriculture for the Humane Society of the United States, told USA Today that when there is an outbreak, “any birds are susceptible.” Greger said.
“I don’t want all these backyard hobbyists to all of a sudden freak out because they must realize, as we’ve seen in the Midwest, most of these outbreaks are happening within these networks of these large commercial entities and not so much in these backyard flocks,” he said.
The USDA maintains on its website that “poultry and eggs that are properly prepared and cooked are safe to eat” – even if the meat is contaminated — and that the “chance of infected poultry entering the food chain is extremely low.”
Are you concerned about the spread of bird flu? Share your thoughts in the section below:


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Organic growers across the Southeast have different opinions on the latest recommendations for what should be considered organic, issued by the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB).
The NOSB, made up of 15 industry leaders, recommended that hydroponics and aquaponics be considered organic at a 2017 meeting in Jacksonville, Florida. The NOSB’s recommendations are considered for the USDA’s organic certification rules.
Many industry leaders have opinions why this recommendation is or is not correct.
Marty Mesh, the executive director of Florida Organic Growers, weighed in on the issue.
The vote is viewed as having a “significant majority” when 10 votes are reached for either side of the issue, said Mesh. However, in this year’s recommendation, the vote was 8-7.
“[The vote] shows that there wasn’t consensus within the community or the industry,” he said.
Mesh believes one possibility to finding common ground between the opposing sides is labeling products.
“Certified organic hydroponically grown,” is the labeling Mesh gave as an example. He said this labeling has been used in the past for products grown organically and hydroponically.
This labeling gives consumers the option to choose which types of production systems they support, Mesh suggested. Soil health might be important to some consumers, while water conservation might be important to others.
Consumers would have total transparency of what they are purchasing and how it is produced through this process.
The decision will be placed back into the industry communities for discussion. Though not every person involved will be happy with the result, Mesh hopes the outcome is found through respect and dialogue among everyone involved.
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