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Traditional PC shipments during the first quarter of 2021 grew by 55.2% year-on-year to 84 million units worldwide, the technology analyst firm IDC says, adding that this included desktops, notebooks and workstations.
The use of artificial intelligence is growing in companies in the Asia-Pacific region, but it is mostly used in silos for isolated projects, the technology analyst firm IDC says.
The India server market saw a 11.2% drop in revenue in the fourth quarter to US$266.1 million (A$347.4 million), compared to US$299.6 million in the corresponding quarter in 2019, the technology analyst firm IDC says.
Japanese manufacturing giant Hitachi is set to acquire US-headquartered digital engineering services company GlobalLogic.
GUEST OPINION by Byron Yeung, Vice President APAC, Data Integration Division at Qlik: Data is critical to local government operations. It helps them allocate resources, address pressing issues facing the community, and so on. Ultimately, data helps local governments better serve communities through data-informed decision-making. Unfortunately, it’s not utilised nearly as much as it can and should be.
New Zealand has experienced its strongest year of PC shipments in 2020, with the technology analyst firm IDC putting it down to demand for devices to be used in education and switching from desktops to notebooks. But the company predicted that 2021 shipments would drop by 5.5%.
The Australian PC market — desktops, notebooks and workstations — grew by 11.8% year-on-year in 2020 to reach a total of 4.87 million units, the technology analyst firm IDC says, adding that this trend will reverse in 2021 with a fall of 4.4%.
Global shipments of PC monitors grew to 39.2 million units in the final quarter of 2020, an increase of 16.9% year-on-year, and last exceeded in 2021, the technology analyst firm IDC says.
The Asia-Pacific market, including Japan, saw very little movement of the traditional PC market in 2020, the technology analyst firm IDC says, adding that there was only a 0.3% increase year-on-year to take the total units shipped to 103.8 million.
Security software and services firm Blackberry has announced a new critical event management (CEM) solution - BlackBerry Alert - designed to help commercial organisations prepare for, respond to and recover from major incidents.
Global smartphone shipments in 2021 are predicted to grow 13.9% year-on-year in the first quarter and 5.5% for the full year, the technology analyst firm IDC says.
IT leaders are increasingly concerned about security and scalability of remote work tools adopted early in the pandemic to address the sudden shift to remote work, according to a study by remote support software specialist LogMein.
Shipments of smartphones to India, the globe's second biggest market, in 2020 fell after a number of years of growth, with 150 million units being shipped, a drop of 1.7% year-on-year, the technology analyst firm IDC reports.
Chinese smartphone brands Vivo celebrates being listed in the top 5 smartphone brands of the 2020 calendar, alongside Samsung, Apple, Huawei and Xiaomi, according to IDC.
Over the next three years, a third of hybrid workforce and business automation efforts will be delayed or else fail outright, the technology research firm IDC says in a 2021 report on digital trends for Australia.
The global semiconductor market grew by 5.4% in 2020 the pandemic notwithstanding, pulling in US$442 billion (A$581 billion), a better than expected showing, the technology research firm IDC says.
Global smartphone shipments have returned to positive growth in the final quarter of 2020, led by Apple, with its iPhone 12 helping the company to ship a record 395.9 million units and take top spot for the three-month period, according to technology research firm Counterpoint Research.
Company News: Jamf, the standard in Apple Enterprise Management, today announced that IDC, a global provider of market intelligence, has named Jamf a leader in its inaugural 'Worldwide Unified Endpoint Management Software for Apple Devices 2021 Vendor Assessment.'
Predicting technology trends is a challenging task—even more so coming out of a year where the world flipped in unforeseen ways. In 2020, circumstances accelerated years’ worth of digital transformation in mere months, bringing a profound and sustained impact to how we live and work. COVID-19 has expedited digital adoption in every business across every industry. It has also highlighted the critical role digital infrastructure and technology play in enabling business success. So, what can we anticipate in the coming year and beyond?
Many Australian businesses believe COVID-19 has presented them with an opportunity to innovate, according to new research by Microsoft which found that for the majority of organisation surveyed, the pandemic accelerated digital transformation and the digitisation of customer and supply chain interactions.
ACMA is again taking the easy way out.RSP Blocking is done using DNS blocks. Changing you DNS to a public[…]
All mobile phone repeaters are illegal in Australia, with the exception of the celfi units, because the carriers can remotely[…]
To this day there is still some 700MHz spectrum unallocated.NO there isn't! I'm sorry but you are wrong here. The[…]
If TPG or Optus are limited in the amount of spectrum they can buy (by a cashed up telstra with[…]
All of the repeaters linked to in this article are ILLEGALThe only legal repeaters authorized for use by the ACMA[…]


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More than three-quarters of small businesses in the country say they have been negatively affected by the coronavirus pandemic, a survey released this week by the NFIB Research Center.
The survey comes as non-essential workers have been ordered to stay home in New York, California and elsewhere in the country in order to contain the spread of the virus.
Only one in five small businesses say they were not affect by the outbreak, but 77 percent of them expected to at some point.
The crisis has brought the economy to a virtual standstill, jobless claims are on the rise and thousands of people have been thrown out of work.
Only 5 percent of businesses reported being positively impacted, but that could change in the coming weeks after a bump in consumer spending in the initial days of the outbreak.
Businesses are reporting supply chain disruptions, slower sales and sick workers.
“Almost all small business owners are taking some sort of action adjusting to their changing economic condition or to protect themselves from potential disruption,” the NFIB found.
For now, it’s not clear what sort of an effect congressional or central banking action will have on the overall economic outlook.
The Federal Reserve has sought to shore up small businesses in the coming days; congressional action has stalled.
“The outbreak will leave few, if any, owners unscathed,” the group found. “We know the economic impact will be immense, and now, the question is how long will it last and how quickly can the small business sector recover once on the other side. Small business owners are anxious to seek clarity to both questions.”

domain: news


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The all-electric Kia Soul has beat fellow electric runners up Mini Cooper SE and the Volkswagen T-Cross to bag the title of World Urban Car of the Year at the 2020 World Car of the Year Awards.
First introduced in 2017, the urban category judges affordable runabouts under 4.2 metres aimed at practical city driving. The Kia Soul EV, one of two electric models from the South Korean auto maker, runs on a 64kWh liquid-cooled li-ion battery with 391km driving range based on the US EPA ratings.
With four drive modes (eco, comfort, sport and eco+), 150kW power and 394Nm torque, Kia says the 2020 Soul EV offers an “effortless pull” and improved handling and driving dynamics up from the previous model.
“It is a great honor for us to see the Soul EV named as World Urban Car,” said Thomas Schemera, executive VP and head of product division at Kia Motor of the award.
“This is one of the hardest-fought competitions in the global automotive industry, proving that the Soul EV is a truly outstanding vehicle for drivers in towns and cities. This accolade is testament to the talents and efforts of a worldwide team, who all strive to create desirable, high-quality and practical cars that drivers love.”
World Car Awards Program co-chair, Mike Rutherford praises the Soul EV – which in the UK starts from £36,645 (which converts to $A73,032 in Australia) excluding on-roads and the UK plug-in car grant for its value and accessibility.
“The World Urban Car award is increasingly significant as these clever, comparatively small cars measuring up to 4.2m long are among the biggest-selling, most accessible, best value vehicles in showrooms across the globe.”
“The fact is that large towns and cities with limited road space/off-street parking facilities continue to attract more residents, workers and other visitors. With this trend in mind, the popularity of urban cars is growing – and can only grow further. These are the logical, affordable, real-world automotive products for the motoring masses.”
Originally slated for the Australian market along with the Kia e-Niro crossover, the Soul EV is also now facing delays due to high demand overseas and the car maker’s need to shunt supplies to markets with vehicle emissions targets.
Its fellow electric competitor, the Mini Cooper SE is due to arrive in Australia in late 2020, with early estimates based on UK pricing suggesting it could come in around the same price of the Nissan Leaf and Hyundai Ioniq.
Bridie Schmidt is lead reporter for The Driven, sister site of Renew Economy. She specialises in writing about new technology and has been writing about electric vehicles for two years. She has a keen interest in the role that zero emissions transport has to play in sustainability and is co-organiser of the Northern Rivers Electric Vehicle Forum.


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Trading profits at Co-op fall 21 per cent
Tuesday 15 April 1997
Graham Melmoth, who became chief executive in November, described Mr Regan as "an irrelevance" who "does not stand a hope" of buying parts of the CWS's non-food businesses.
"It is a South Sea Bubble puff ... and I am not going to see the Co-op movement collapse into a share ramp," Mr Melmoth said.
He stressed that the CWS currently had no businesses up for sale and if some were to be sold for strategic reasons in the future then they would be sold "to maximise value, not to an asset-stripping middleman".
He admitted that the CWS would have to improve its performance and that the disparate parts of the movement would have to move closer together.
But he said the society had the backing of the 30-strong board and its 300 members. However, he said he could not rule out the possibility that Mr Regan might have some support from the membership.
Walter Douglas, secretary of Airth Co-operative, which has one village shop between Falkirk and Stirling, voiced his support for the Co-op yesterday. "We would fully support the CWS and vote against Andrew Regan," he said. "The CWS has been very supportive of us over the past nine or ten years."
The view from the Deeside Farmers Co-op was rather different. "I don't know anything about it," a spokesman said. "We're just a farmers' buying group."
The Falklands Islands Co-operative could not be contacted.
Mr Melmoth's comments came as the CWS reported poor profits for last year.
Stripping out the contribution from the Co-op bank, which reported its results earlier this month, trading profits were 21 per cent lower at pounds 41.5m. The retained surplus was halved from pounds 31m in 1995 to just pounds 14m last year.
Mr Melmoth said a strategy review was under way which would see costs reduced and staff participation improved.
He also said that the Co-op "divi", which has been reintroduced in Northern Ireland and parts of Scotland, might be rolled out across the country.
Though he did not earmark businesses that might be sold, he admitted that the garages and opticians business would be reviewed. It also seems likely that some of the engineering businesses such as a safety footwear manufacturer will be regarded as non-core.
However, he dismissed suggestions that the food retailing operation, which is facing tough competition from the big supermarkets, would be sold: "There's no way we can get out of food retailing. It's a core part of the Co-op role."
The main reason for the decline in profits last year was a 14 per cent decline in profits at the food operation. This was largely due to difficult trading in Scotland where Tesco's purchase of William Low is thought to have increased competition.
Though some critics have said that the Co-op supermarkets may be losing money, the CWS said yesterday that its stores were trading profitably. However, it is clear that some superstores are struggling and it is possible some will be sold.
Profits at the specialist retail businesses, which include the funeral directors and travel agency business, are 12 per cent up at pounds 12.8m. Group sales were flat at pounds 3bn.
Mr Melmoth said his priority was mainstream retailing and he would target the CWS's 700 food and non-food stores to improve their performance.
Lanica Trust yesterday restricted itself to a brief comment on the CWS figures. "Overall it makes a diabolical return on a huge amount of turnover."
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Southern Europe 'is excellent value for money'
Many Australians dream of travelling to Europe, but with money being so tight at the moment, it simply isn't feasible for a lot of people.
However, it is possible to do the trip on a budget – but you have to be on the ball.
Obviously, Europe is a big continent and different countries have their own unique charms, cultures and currencies. According to a new study conducted by Trivago.co.uk nations in southern Europe are particularly good value for money at the moment, as accommodation costs have tumbled.
Travel Daily News reports that hotel prices in Granada in Spain have fallen by 18 per cent in June compared to last month, while Athens and Budapest are six and seven per cent cheaper respectively.
However, the opposite trend is happening in northern Europe, as room rates in Norway and Denmark have gone up.
Therefore, if you want your overseas travel money to last the duration of your trip, it may be worth swerving the more expensive countries in favour of the cheaper ones.
Have a question about travel money? Ask the money gurus at Mozo Answers.


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Retail bank investments in technology are paying off with regard to digital-only bank customers. But some of the growth may be coming at the expense of customer satisfaction, says a new study by consumer insights firm J.D. Power.
28 percent of retail bank customers are now digital-only, but they are the least satisfied among all customer segments examined in the 2018 US Retail Banking Satisfaction Study.
Overall satisfaction is lowest among customers who exclusively used online or mobile banking channels during the past three months (791 on a 1,000 point scale). This was driven by weaker performance in three areas: communication and advice, products and fees, and new account opening.
Conversely, branch-dependent digital customers had the highest level of satisfaction (823 points). This group used their branch two or more times in the past three months, in addition to online or mobile banking channels. They were followed by digital-centric branch-using customers, who used a branch once in the past three months (808 points), again in addition to online or mobile banking channels.
The gap in satisfaction between digital-centric and branch-dependent customers cuts across all age groups. However, it is most pronounced among millennials (35-point gap) and generation X (those born 1965-76) with a 24-point gap. This bucks the conventional wisdom that millennials do not like to use branches.
Perhaps banks confuse digital savviness with financial sophistication. This leads to a misinterpretation of customer needs. Younger consumers often turn to their parents for financial advice. But if parents do not feel confident with financial matters themselves, banks have a opportunity to attract millennials into branches for in-person help and advice.
“There is no doubt that digital banking channels give banks an enormous opportunity to reduce costs, but the risk is that those cost savings come with lower levels of customer engagement,” said Paul McAdam, senior director in the banking practice at J.D. Power.
Retail banks need to address the growing digital divide emerging within certain customer segments. They must “provide better, more personalised advice that is consistent across both digital and branch interactions to ensure that customer needs are met regardless of channel,” maintains McAdam.
This is the crux of the bank branch dilemma. Branches are a retail bank’s biggest strength whilst at the same time being their biggest liability. Banks have been closing branches to reduce costs. But growing revenue is also key. An engaged customer uses multiple channels, including branches. And engaged customers are several times more profitable and loyal than those who only use digital channels.
The 13th annual US Retail Banking Satisfaction Study is based on responses from more than 88,000 retail banking customers of 200 of the largest US banks. It measured satisfaction in six factors: channel activities; communication and advice; convenience; new account opening; problem resolution, and products and fees.


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USA -(Ammoland.com)- Andy Graham, Deputy Assistant Director of ATF’s Industry Operations and Jon Rydberg, CEO of Orchid Advisors will provide attendees of the 2017 FICC with a 90 minute discussion on the ATF Inspection process.
Mr. Graham leads the ATF’s national inspection efforts and works directly with Directors of Industry Operations (DIOs) and Industry Operations Investigators (IOI)s located in each of the field offices.
Mr. Rydberg has over 20 years of experience conducting regulated audits and is a leading expert at firearm industry business software such as ERP, POS, the Serial Number Inventory Tool (SNIT) and electronic A&D Books.
Mr. Graham and Mr. Rydberg will be holding their session on the morning of May 9 in at the Arlington, Westin Gateway hotel. Interested parties can register online.
For more information, click here.
About Orchid Advisors:
Orchid Advisors helps firearms manufacturers, distributors and retailers achieve compliance and operational excellence through education, technology, software and consulting solutions that reduce risk, cut costs, and provide expert guidance to make our clients’ businesses more successful and efficient. Orchid Advisors is the Firearms Industry’s Trusted Compliance & Operations Experts and is endorsed by NSSF, the National Shooting Sports Association and a partner with the National Association for Sporting Goods Wholesalers (NASGW).
For more information, visit their website.
This post ATF Inspection Discussion to be Held at the 2017 FICC appeared first on AmmoLand.com Shooting Sports News .


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A new video on Instagram by Olive Garden’s marketing department shows how the food and beverage giant can use social media to drive sales.
The video, which will be posted on Thursday, shows an employee with a stylist helping a man decorate his new olive garden.
The company says it has more than 1.2 billion customers worldwide and is looking to grow its audience by 10% this year.
The employee in the video is not wearing a mask.
The video is part of a marketing campaign to promote Olive Garden products, which include olive oil, olive oil blends and salad dressing.
The campaign includes video ads and an Instagram campaign called “Olive Garden Promo.”
It also includes a video with an employee showing off a product with a new feature that allows customers to create a “promotional profile” that can be shared on social media.
It shows a man using a stylus to decorate a new olive tree, and the company shows off the video to promote the olive tree.
The Olive Garden promotion video, posted Thursday, will air in the coming weeks, said Lisa Dube, a marketing manager for Olive Garden.
It will be on Instagram, YouTube, YouTube Red, Vine and other social media channels.
Dube said the video was created using Instagram’s new advertising platform called Content Management Platform (CMP), which allows advertisers to post videos on social networks without having to do any of the traditional content production.
The goal is to allow brands to build a broader audience by allowing them to interact directly with customers and to use the same social media platforms as their competitors, Dube said.
The company has been working to increase its presence on social platforms and to target the same audiences it does with the traditional media.
In May, it announced that it was opening a digital agency in New York to promote its products.
The agency is expected to start operating next year, according to the company.
It also has been using social media in a more strategic way in its marketing and product development.
Last year, the company launched the hashtag #WeAreInIt for its olive oil campaign, which has been watched more than 25 million times.
In April, the brand launched a new Olive Garden promo video, featuring a new customer.
The Instagram video, titled “I love my new olive,” was posted in April and shows a customer with a haircut and a new product.
The Instagram video is similar to the one shown in April.
But the new promo video is much more graphic and has the customer looking at a painting of a new tree and the customer saying, “I’m so happy to be in the new Olive Gardens.”
“We want to show customers the value of a beautiful, natural product,” Dube told ABC News.
“That’s what the Instagram campaign is about.”
She said the company was using Instagram to reach a younger audience.
“We want people to see the value in the product and to see that the product has a high-quality and high-reward quality,” she said.
“They’re not just going to see it on Instagram.”
The new promo is part for the company’s brand, but also because the Instagram account was created by an employee, Dubes said.
In fact, the video, and other Instagram content, is the same account that the company uses to promote a range of products including its Olive Garden olive oil and the brand’s premium organic salad dressing, she said, adding that Olive Garden had not yet decided how it would distribute the new video.


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This coming holiday season, WaterMark Corners (1500 River Drive, Moline) and its co-owner Amy Trimble have extra reasons to celebrate.
Their 23rd-annual Holiday Open House, will for the first time be split into four days (to be more COVID safe), Nov. 10-13. Hours will be 4-6 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, and 4-7 p.m. Friday, with store specials (all day all four days), free stationery giveaway, live music and drink specials. The Quad Cities Chamber will have a ribbon cutting for the new Corner Bar, on Thursday, Nov. 11 at 4 p.m. Masks must be worn inside the store at all times, except when eating and drinking.
They’re also coordinated with Moline Centre’s Holiday Hop Friday and Saturday nights.
In addition to many items being 10% off during the open house, the store will offer $10 in “WaterMark” cash for every $50 in purchases from Nov. 10-13, and that can be used for any purchases Dec. 1-24. “That’s been hugely popular; we’ve done that for years,” Trimble said this week.
She worked with their Chicago-based business coach last January on annual changes to make to the gifts and stationery store (such as what kind of things to stock), after looking at sales data and what went well the previous year.
“I kept remember thinking, coming out of COVID, I want to fill the store with people having fun,” Trimble said. “I kept coming back to our open house night, thinking of everyone having fun, drinking wine. I kept thinking, how do we do that more often?”
“The answer was, put a bar in the store, rather than always having a caterer coming in,” she said. It’s a natural way to expand the experience of having fun while you’re shopping.
For the new Corner Bar area, they added tables and chairs, and closed off a former stairway upstairs, which before 2007 was another part of the store and has been since leased to other businesses. There’s now a refrigerator, sink and bar area in a small kitchen type setup – with several glasses and liquor bottles on display.
Blackhawk Builders, which did the original renovation of the historic building for the gift shop, also did the bar renovation work.
Trimble wanted a bar focusing on alcohol, instead of a coffee bar addition since Dead Poets Espresso is a stone’s throw from the store. “We had a coffee bar the first six years we were open upstairs, with a whole gourmet coffee section,” she said. “We had cappuccinos and espressos and then Dead Poets opened, and we let them do that. They’re amazing at it. And we already caried entertaining things related to drinks,” such as many kinds of funny coasters.
The wine and beer will be perfect to complement women out shopping, and the bar offers a place for their husbands or boyfriends to park while they shop. Watermark had a soft bar opening about two weeks ago.
The business worked with the city of Moline last February to get a new kind of liquor license that allows them to sell by the glass or bottle, Trimble said. Previously, the city didn’t have an option to do both.
She’s hired two bartenders (including Jeff Adamson), and they specialize in wines that you can’t find at other local businesses. Beer to be sold includes local favorites Front Street (Davenport) and Bent River (Moline).
“I want to really specialize in the area ones,” Trimble said. “I want to see what our customers want – do they want IPAs? Of course, we’ll expand to whatever they’re asking for.”
The bar menu includes:
- Prosecco, white, rose, and red wines
- Beers, sodas and cider
- Cocktails like mimosa, Old Fashioned, margarita, root beer float, gin and tonic, tequila, and rum and Coke
- Frozen cocktail slushies and snack crackers
WaterMark arranged to get bagged cocktail mixes, with a private label, that people can buy and make without a blender. The frozen drinks are mixed, and put in a freezer overnight. “We sell the mixes and we can also do them here and offer them as a flight,” Trimble said.
The QC Old Fashioned is made with cherry bourbon, she said. Customers can also buy the mixes from the website, www.watermarkcorners.com. The store includes many varieties of wines by the bottle, and cocktail mixers.
The poured wine and beer can be served during regular store hours, while the cocktails and other mixed drinks will be available Friday noon to 6 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Starting next week, Jeff Adamson will be serving Wednesdays and Thursdays.
After Christmas, Trimble may re-evaluate the bar hours. “This is a whole new business; we just have to see what our customers want,” she said. “It’s also gonna enable us to do special events.”
Starting in January, she wants to do tastings, game nights and host groups. In December, they’ll have a holiday happy hour every Thursday (4-6 p.m.) with drink specials, and after Christmas, have more themed events, Trimble said.
“What really excited me about this was, the bar gave us an opportunity to be open evenings,” she said. “That’s my goal, by next year, to be open Thursday, Friday and Saturday at least until 8.”
Currently, WaterMark is open 10 to 5 Monday to Thursday, and 10 to 6 Friday and Saturday. In evenings, they may be able to host private parties, Trimble said.
“We’ve had women say, my investment club, I’d love to meet there,” she said, noting they’ve done private hopping events before, but not with the bar. “We’ll just see how it works.”
“It’s very exciting; I always look for the new, what’s next in this business,” Trimble said. “It’s very different than when we opened 23 years ago. Nothing is the same here, except the arches and the ceilings. Especially with retail, you have to change and grow.
“We needed something exciting, something to celebrate,” she said. “We needed a reason to celebrate and get together with friends. Hopefully, people see this as a safe environment. It’s not a packed bar.”


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Yahoo Finance's Brian Sozzi joins the Live show to highlight Starbucks' earnings miss citing disappointing same-store and overseas sales.
Starbucks reported quarterly results that mostly missed expectations.
(Bloomberg) -- Starbucks Corp. reported profit and comparable sales that trailed Wall Street’s expectations as weakness in international markets — especially China — weighed on results. The shares fell in late trading Thursday. Most Read from BloombergMerck Covid Drug Linked to New Virus Mutations, Study SaysAdani Crisis Deepens as Stock Rout Hits $108 BillionPorsche Blunder Puts $148,000 Sportscar on Sale for Just $18,000How Extreme Bets Fueled an $11.4 Billion FortunePlenty of Americans Are Dr


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Tue, May 01, 2012 | 11:26 BST
Metal Gear Solid HD Collection gets Vita trailer
Following news of a late June UK release last night, Konami’s released a new trailer for the Vita version of the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection. The video details the unique capabilities the handheld version will hold over its console brethren like touch controls, as well as trophy support and Transfarring between Vita and PS3.
Get the video below. Thanks, Andriasang.


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The Kardashians have become embroiled in a 'slave labour' clothing manufacturing saga.
The new issue of UK Star Magazine (to be released on Thursday, UK time) features an expose claiming the family 'are endorsing and selling fashion products manufactured in foreign sweatshops, where workers…as young as sixteen, are abused and virtually imprisoned,' according to RadarOnline.com.
The Executive Director of The Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights (which has launched an investigation into the claims), Charles Kernaghan, told Star magazine: "The Kardashians are in bed with some pretty bad people… taking advantage of these workers" and "holding hands with a government that spits on democracy and human rights."
He also said temperatures inside the factories can reach over 100 degree Farenheit, and claimed workers earning as little as $15 a month "can't stand up and stretch."
Kernaghan has since revealed his comments were taken out of context, telling TMZ he was referring to the region in China as a whole, and he has 'no proof' the Kardashians 'employ such practices.'
Kris Jenner has denied the allegations, saying: "As far as I know the factories that are used to manufacture the Kardashian clothing and shoes have nothing terrible going on at all and the factories are very well policed and meet factory standards"


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Scandic strengthens digital self-service offering – new online booking feature for meetings
During the past 19 months, the rate of digitalization has accelerated rapidly, placing new demands on how people want to manage their working hours. The need for digital self-service and flexible meetings is increasing and to satisfy this demand, Scandic is launching the possibility to book meeting and conference rooms for up to 30 people directly on its website. The digital booking service offers an overview of all Scandic hotels that offer meeting facilities, making it easy for meeting planners to choose the hotel and number of participants as well as the length of the meeting, from two hours to a half or full day.
- We’re seeing greater demand for digital self-service solutions in our Nordic markets, which is why we’re introducing a digital booking service for smaller meetings on short notice. This is a much-anticipated feature for anyone who wants to schedule and hold meetings on short notice, regardless of where they are in the Nordic region, says Anna Spjuth, Chief Commercial Officer at Scandic Hotels Group.
The booking service has been integrated as a natural part of Scandic’s website, with both booking and payment managed in Scandic’s regular booking system. From December 7, the service will be launched at 50 hotels in the Nordic region. By the end of the first quarter 2022, all 195 hotels offering meeting and conference facilities in the Nordic countries, Germany and Poland will be available for direct booking online.
- Throughout the pandemic, our rate of innovation has been high and we’ve launched several new offerings for our guests. Due to the current situation, digitalization in the entire industry has picked up speed in pace with changed guest and visitor needs and behaviors. The fact that we’re now launching a digital booking service for meetings is a good example of how we are creating flexibility in our meeting business, both for our guests and team members, continues Anna Spjuth, Chief Commercial Officer at Scandic Hotels Group.
The new online booking feature has been developed in cooperation with Finnish hospitality SaaS (Software as a Service) company MeetingPackage, sole provider of the only omnichannel sales automation software for meeting, conference and event bookings.
- We’re delighted to have been chosen to deliver an online booking solution for meetings and events to Scandic Hotels. This cooperation further strengthens our mutual belief that customers want to book services online, saving time for both Scandic’s guests and team members, says Joonas Ahola, CEO & Founder of MeetingPackage.
Since the start of the pandemic, Scandic has launched a number of successful, innovative offerings including coworking, hybrid meetings, digital check-in/check-out and multi-booking, which allows guests to book an entire holiday or business trip at several hotels in one booking.
Book your meeting for up 30 people here!
For more information, please contact:
Elin Westin, Director of Communication, Scandic Hotels Group
Phone: +46 702 777 526
Henrik Vikström, Director Investor Relations, Scandic Hotels Group
Phone: +46 709 528 006
About Scandic Hotels Group
Scandic is the largest hotel company in the Nordic countries with more than 280 hotels, in operation and under development, in more than 130 destinations. The company is the leader when it comes to integrating sustainability in all operations and its award-winning Design for All concept ensures that Scandic hotels are accessible to everyone. Well loved by guests and employees, the Scandic Friends loyalty program is the largest in the Nordic hotel industry and the company is one of the most attractive employers in the region. Scandic Hotels is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. www.scandichotelsgroup.com


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Valve announced today that there are currently over 30 million active Steam accounts and that its sales keep growing astronomically..
Everybody loves Steam. It’s a great service and more and more gamers are adopting it as the distributor of choice for downloading and playing games on their PC. Today, Valve reported that the 30 million accounts it currently boasts is the result of 187 percent growth in the last 12 months. In addition, actual sales in the last twelve months have increased over 200 percent from the same period the year before, marking the sixth straight year of such an increase in sales. In short, Gabe Newell is loaded.
“Steam is on track to record the biggest year in its six year history,” said Gabe Newell, president of Valve. “We believe the growth in accounts, sales, and player numbers is completely tied to this work and we plan to continue to develop the platform to offer more marketing, sales, and design tools for developers and publishers of games and digital entertainment.”
More impressive are the amount of gamers who access the service. Valve reports that peak users hit the 3 million mark this year, with another milestone of 6 million unique users accessing Steam in one day. To cover all of that bandwidth, the Valve servers can now stream up to 400 gigabytes of data per second. For those of you wondering, “Hey, how many times a second can Valve distribute the Oxford English Dictionary over Steam?” Well, for those of you stumped by the obvious question that popped into everyone’s brain, the answer is 92.6 times per second. That’s a lot of words, people.
Anyway you cut it, Steam is a success. But, of course, you PC gamers already knew that.


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Lotus Agrees To Sponsorship With Emaar Properties Ahead Of Italian Grand Prix
Lotus "has announced a new two-year sponsorship deal with Emaar Properties" ahead of this weekend's F1 Italian Grand Prix, according to CRASH. The agreement with the Dubai-based residential and commercial property investment company "is for two years and will see Emaar enjoy a presence on the team's E21 car, in addition to a range of other Lotus F1 Team 'marketing collateral.'" Emaar logos "will appear on the E21 for the first time on Friday, when practice commences at Monza." The deal "follows on from recent new partnerships" with brands such as Microsoft, Unilever and Coca-Cola and "is good news given rumours of financial strife at Enstone and comments made" by team Owner Gerard Lopez at the end of last month (CRASH, 9/5).
READY TO RACE: Red Bull Racing has named Italian supermarket chain Simply as an official race partner for the Italian Grand Prix. The partnership means that Simply's logo will be featured on the front wing of the RB9, as well as on the race suits of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber. The agreement renews a relationship which began last year, when the Simply chain was featured on the RB8 in Monza (Red Bull Racing).


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Three directors of The Delivery Group – which operates a national network of e-commerce and specialist mail services, delivering over 550 million items a year for leading international businesses and e-commerce brands – have successfully completed a management buy-out, with support from the corporate and employment teams at Stephens Scown.
The Delivery Group, comprising Secured Mail and CMS, is pleased to announce that three directors of the Group have acquired the majority interest in the Company from the other shareholders.
Led by Steve Stokes, James Wilkins and Paul Carvell the deal was made possible following the successful sale by TDG of its international e-commerce logistics business, P2P, to FedEx Corporation in March 2018.
Steve Stokes will become Group CEO, James Wilkins moves up to Managing Director of Secured Mail, and the current Sales Director at CMS, Mark Calladine, will become its Managing Director. Paul Carvell will continue as Executive Chairman, and Mark Bigley will remain as a Non-Executive Director and consultant to the Group.
Additionally, Ian Brewer will join the team as Group CFO; Ian was the former CFO at parcels company Tuffnells, and was part of the successful team that sold the business to Connect Plc in 2014.
Commenting on the deal, Steve Stokes said:
“I’m delighted to have the opportunity to lead The Delivery Group into the next chapter of its development, building on its strong financial performance, excellent growth prospects, and working with the tremendous teams across the business. We look forward to developing new services for our loyal customers and have exciting plans to enter new markets that will further confirm our position as the specialist mail and e commerce provider of choice.”
Paul Carvell added:
“We are equally delighted that our former majority shareholder Next Wave Partners LLP, have chosen to remain as an investor in The Delivery Group, and we thank them for their support on the journey as we grew from £32 million revenues in 2011 to £250 million in 2017. Next Wave funded a major depot consolidation, an operational automation programme and significant software developments to further improve the customer experience.”
The Management Buy-Out team were advised by BDO and Stephens Scown LLP on the transaction and Next Wave and the vendor shareholders were advised by Hill Dickinson and PWC Corporate Finance.
The Stephens Scown corporate and employment teams work in partnership with organisations to guide them through the deal process. To discuss a management buy-out or any other corporate or employment issue call 01392 210700 or email@example.com


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View Nesara 2013
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This time TechBoom try to give a brief review of the latest security system from Symantec, Norton Internet Security 2013. What are the advantages? Consider the following reviews.
The main features
Norton Internet Security (NIS) 2013 already have all [...]
Have you ever felt annoyed when someone you do not know to keep trying to be your friend on Facebook? Several steps were quoted by CNET, Friday (11/02), the following could be a solution.
1. Log in to your Facebook account and select the down arrow in [...]
Electronic Arts announced Saturday game four-person co-op shooter called Fuse, which will be launched on May 28 in North America and May 31 in Europe.
Fuse is the first multiplatform game from Insomniac Games for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, but not [...]
Eidos Montreal announced a new game genre action adventure titled Thief 4, which is scheduled to be released on the PS4 console, PC and next-gen Xbox.
The game is scheduled to be released in 2014. Thief Game is a reboot of the classic series that brings [...]
Apple Inc. finally officially launched the smallest version of the iPad on Tuesday (10/23).
iPad Mini-sized 7.9-inch marks Apple’s first breakthrough in the segment of a smaller tablet. Apple hopes its products is given at crushing the tablet market [...]
BlackBerry Live event held in Orlando, USA, Tuesday (14/5), BlackBerry announced their new hero on the BlackBerry 10 platform, the BlackBerry Q5.
Quoted from Ubergizmo, Wednesday (15/5), according to a recent leak outstanding, the Q5 is a cheap version [...]
Without compromising on quality and technology.
Lenovo finally decided to enter the smartphone market with the signing of five champion Indonesia in the launch event which took place on Tuesday night (16/10). Fifth smartphone is Lenovo Ideaphone A60 [...]
The news about BlackBerry 10 smartphone presence in the cheaper version of the more widely heard.
This time, the phone will be called the BlackBerry R10 predicted that re-emerged in cyberspace, but with different colors.
Quoted from Ubergizmo, Monday [...]
Beat the record photo teen star Justin Bieber.
Obama seems destined to be the person who created history. Being the first black president in the United States and the second democrat politician who was elected president for two terms in a row since World [...]
During the 8 years of its action in the virtual world, the video sharing site YouTube was only a contest to find out who the winner of the best video.
Surprisingly, Google was now ready to shut down the site because they have finally reached the point [...]
A leak of GizmoChina mention that Lenovo is preparing a smartphone with an amazing battery.
The products allegedly named Lenovo P770 is a smartphone based on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. To accommodate all the needs, Lenovo immerse powerful battery 3500mAh.


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News Digest: Agri-food Markets, Production and Trade
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: ACP EN, News
Changes to EU and GB pesticide maximum residue levels
Following the departure of the UK from the EU, Fresh Produce Exporters Association of Kenya’s (FPEAK) monitoring of pesticide regulations now covers maximum residue level (MRL) changes in both the EU and Great Britain (GB), enabling FPEAK to keep members and partner-beneficiaries up to date. During the period April-June 2022, notifications of MRL changes were issued for flutianil (EU), sulfoxaflor (GB), cyantraniliprole (GB) and cinmethylin (GB). The EU and GB have also recently notified the World Trade Organization of additional proposed changes involving a further 20 substances including 12 that are key in ACP horticulture (chlorothalonil, cyfluthrin, ethoprophos, fenamidone, propiconazole, pymetrozine, benalaxyl, epoxiconazole, fenamiphos, clothianidin, thiamethoxam and abamectin).
Source: Fresh Produce Exporters Association of Kenya, 26 July 2022
New banana fungus is rapidly spreading across the globe
A new banana fungus, Fusarium wilt, is rapidly spreading across the world. The fungus hit Africa 10 years ago, but it is now spreading, according to a genetic study conducted by Wageningen University & Research (WUR) and Utrecht University. According to plant pathology professor Gert Kema and his colleagues, the disease poses a threat to Africa’s food security. Fusarium wilt is advancing in Mozambique, where the dominant TR4 strain is affecting banana farms. Over the past decade, the disease has also spread from Asia to South America and Africa. The new study, conducted by Anouk van Westerhoven (WUR) and Michael Seidl of Utrecht University, shows that the TR4 fungus has spread as far as at least 200 km from the original site. Genetic research shows that the strains found in different locations are closely related, meaning that the pathogen found in Mozambique has a single origin. “The question is not whether, but rather when, the disease will spread to other African countries,” says Van Westerhoven.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 23 September 2022
PAFO organises International Young Farmers Summit (IYFS2022)
The Pan-African Farmers’ Organization (PAFO), with the support of its financial and technical partners, is organising the International Young Farmers Summit from 24 to 29 October 2022, in Kigali, under the theme: “Youth in agricultural transformation through innovation”. Young farmer representatives from five continents will meet to discuss the challenges and difficulties they face, and also swap solutions and perspectives. This event is an opportunity for young farmers to present their proposals for the future of agriculture worldwide in the presence of representatives from international organisations, the agricultural world and civil society. The main objective of the Summit is to promote, strengthen and spread the voice of young farmers in the international arena.
Source: Pan-African Farmers’ Organization, 1 October 2022
Ghanian minister woos investors for the coconut industry
Western Regional Minister Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah has appealed to investors to consider the huge opportunities that exist in Ghana’s coconut industry and invest in it. The minister said that the government has to position the coconut industry as a key export earner and will provide incentives for businesses that opt to create employment opportunities in the coconut sector. “There is so much more that can be done with coconut but we have failed to capitalize on the marketing potential of the crop. Western Region is endowed with an estimated 14.500 hectares of in-land valleys with water resources for irrigated agriculture and contributes more than 80% of the country’s coconut for export” said Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah. “I therefore call on investors to come to the Western Region and invest in the coconut industry. In 2020: I personally launched a 5 million coconut project in the Western Region. The project kicked off with the establishment of two new gardens in Shama and Jomoro Districts.”
Source: Fresh Plaza, 26 September 2022
Pre- and post-harvest practices and varietal preferences of tomato in Ghana
A recent study published in the journal Sustainability provides key information on improving tomato value chains and the breeding of improved tomato varieties in Ghana. The study included 180 tomato-producing respondents from across seven regions in Ghana, who were predominantly male (81%), literate (84%) smallholder farmers generally cultivating less than 5 acres. The most important farmer and market preference criteria included: yield, fruit size, fruit shape, fruit colour, time to maturity and disease resistance. The major production challenges to tomato production included threats from pests and diseases, and poor access to water for irrigation. The major marketing challenges were low producer prices, low demand for produce, and competition from other farmers.
Source: World Vegetable Center, 1 October 2022
PlantwisePlus launches to help farmers in Ghana produce more and higher quality food
A new CABI-led worldwide programme – PlantwisePlus – launches in Ghana to help smallholder farmers produce more and higher quality food. Special emphasis will be placed on improving extension services for the country’s female farmers who have limited access to advisory services, including plant health services due to various challenges. PlantwisePlus will support Ghana’s Ministry of Food and Agriculture to predict, prepare and prevent a range of plant health issues which put food security and livelihoods at risk. The new programme will also work in partnership with the Plant Protection & Regulatory Services Directorate, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA Ghana), the Ghana Green Label Scheme and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research.
Source: CABI, 23 September 2022
Tissue culture technology should increase Kenyan potato yields
Currently, Kenya’s average potato yield per hectare is around 10 tons. According to Anthony Kibe, principal investigator of a potato community action research project led by the Uganda-based Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture, it has the potential to increase to three times that amount with the use of disease-free seeds. The forum’s project in Kenya – one of 11 across Africa – has benefitted about 5,000 smallholders since starting in 2017. It gives farmers access to quality seeds through tissue culture. “Tissue culture offers an excellent technique for the rapid propagation of seed potato, offering high yielding disease-free planting materials,” says Kibe. Tissue culture produces plantlets also known as apical root cuttings, and mini tubers (tiny potato seeds) which are clean and free of disease, Kibe explains, adding that the technology speeds up the multiplication of material to facilitate distribution and large-scale planting.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 3 October 2022
Kenyan fresh produce traders lose case to block new levy
Fresh produce exporters have lost a bid to stop the Kenyan government from imposing a 0.25% levy on the customs value of their export consignments. High Court judge Anthony Mrima dismissed the case filed by the Fresh Produce Exporters Association of Kenya, the Fresh Produce Consortium of Kenya, the Avocado Society of Kenya and the Avocado Exporters Association of Kenya. Mrima said they failed to prove how the disputed regulations infringed Article 201 of the constitution. It provides that there shall be openness and accountability including public participation in financial matters. The judge said he was convinced there was adequate public participation and consultation. The petitioners wanted the court to quash the 2020 crop regulations, designating them as ‘unconstitutional’. They also hoped for an order stopping the Agriculture Ministry and other players from imposing, charging or enforcing collection of the fee.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 4 October 2022
Kenya: Global avocado demand still creates business opportunities in Africa
Demand for avocados has soared globally in recent years as consumers become aware of their health benefits. Kenya is now Africa’s largest producer of avocados exporting about 80,000 tons annually. The country ships produce to Europe, the Middle East and also trades with other African countries including Egypt and South Africa. Farmers in Kenya are starting to shift from traditionally grown maize to avocados because of their better prices and yields. Small-scale farmers are shifting to avocados because of poor maize sales and changing weather patterns. In addition, farmers are able to harvest the crop continuously for 8 months. The country has also ventured into the Asian market in August this year, becoming the first African country to export fresh avocados to China. Kenya offers a favourable climate to grow avocados with many farmers investing in the Hass variety for export which tolerates different rainfall conditions and diseases. The variety is also easy to propagate.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 5 October 2022
The Nelson Mandela-African Institution of Science and Technology sign MoU with Floresta Tanzania
The Nelson Mandela-African Institution of Science and Technology (NM-AIST) recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Floresta Tanzania with the main objectives of building the capacity of smallholder farmers, staff and students through collaborative learning, experimentation and mentoring. The implementation of this MoU will start within the framework of the Farmer Research Network project in which NM-AIST will lead farmer’s in evaluating pesticide plants and other sustainable pest management activities in farmer groups at Floresta Tanzania.
Source: Nelson Mandela-African Institution of Science and Technology, 10 September 2022
Tanzania Horticultural Association seeks investors for cold storage facilities
The Tanzania Horticultural Association (TAHA) has stated that existing cold rooms in the country are very few compared with those required, and those that are available need to be improved. Tanzanian perishable items are being exported to Europe, the Middle East and Asia, but lack of infrastructure is hampering the sector. According to TAHA Business Environment Manager Kelvin Remen, recently increased facilities will allow exporters to preserve their perishable items, which include flower cuttings, fruit, vegetables and other items, in case there is a delay in flights or if a consignment missed a flight.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 6 October 2022
Strength in seeds: investing in building capacity for improved vegetable production in West Africa
A recent diagnostic study conducted in Benin, Burkina Faso and Mali indicated that lack of quality seed and poor pest management are key barriers to vegetable production in West Africa. When vegetable farmers have little or no access to good quality seed, they cannot tap into the growing market for vegetables. To address this issue, The World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg) has developed a new training course for vegetable seed producers in Africa to help improve the quality of seed production and take their business to the next level. Three WorldVeg projects worked together to develop the course: Safe Locally Produced Vegetables for West African consumers (SAFEVEG) funded by the EU and the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Choose, Grow and Thrive (CGT) funded by the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Germany, and Veggies 4 Planet & People (V4P&P) funded by IKEA Foundation.
Source: The World Vegetable Center, 15 August 2022
PlantwisePlus launches to help farmers in Zambia produce more and higher quality food
A new CABI-led worldwide programme – PlantwisePlus – has launched in Zambia to help smallholder farmers produce more and high-quality food. PlantwisePlus will support Zambia’s Ministry of Agriculture predict, prepare and prevent a range of plant health issues which put food security and livelihoods at risk. The new programme builds upon CABI’s Plantwise and Action on Invasives programmes and will particularly empower farmers to increase income, food security and food safety amid a changing climate, which can exacerbate crop losses.
Source: CABI, 1 September 2022
GLOBALG.A.P. registered trainer supports the export of new superfood in Zimbabwe
Registered Trainers are agricultural experts who are supported by GLOBALG.A.P. to train producers, certification bodies, and other interested parties on the implementation of GLOBALG.A.P. standards. One such trainer, Clarence Mwale, owns the multinational company Fair-Mark, founded in Zimbabwe, that supports the agri-food industry. He has trained more than 1,200 rural smallholder farmers in the GLOBALG.A.P. certification of Bambara nut production processes. The nuts will soon enter the European market as a certified novel food for the first time. Bambara nuts originated in West Africa, and despite widespread cultivation across the continent, are largely unknown in Europe and North America. Potentially the next big superfood, the Bambara nut is an excellent source of plant-based protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals such as iron, calcium and magnesium. The plant is also resilient in harsh conditions and known for improving soil fertility in dry regions.
Source: GLOBALG.A.P., 31 August 2022
Prioritising high impact crop pests to safeguard the plant resources of the Caribbean
CABI’s Naitram Ramnanan reports from the 15th meeting of the Caribbean Plant Health Directors Forum: prior to the meeting, experts examined a list of quarantine pests from nine CARICOM Member States. Thirty species were short listed, of which the following were prioritised: Rhadinaphelenchus cocophilus (red ring nematode), Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubens TR4, Ceratitis capitata (Mediterranean fruit fly), Ceratitis rosa (Natal fruit fly), rice panicle mite, Helicoverpa armigera (Old World bollworm), Ralstonia solanacearum Race 3 Biovar 2 (brown rot of potato), banana bunchy top virus, maize lethal necrosis disease, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (red palm weevil) and Peronosclerospora philippinensis (downy mildew). The list serves as an early warning system for the countries that do not have these pests.
Source: CABI Invasives Blog, 26 September 2022
Growers in Dominica can now process their fruits through advanced tech
The Ministry of the Blue and Green Economy, Agriculture and National Food Security of the Commonwealth of Dominica has announced that the national Export-Import Agency has bought and installed a state-of-the-art, industrial-grade multi-fruit extractor for the processing and pulping of fruits for local juicing companies. The Ministry said that the farmers who are engaged in the production of mangoes, passion fruit, guavas and pineapples are eligible to use the multi-fruit pulper which is accommodated at DEXIA’s Multi-Purpose Packhouse in Fond Cole. it is hoped to be highly beneficial for both farmers as well as local juicing companies and export markets.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 23 September 2022
Hurricane Fiona makes landfall in in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic
Hurricane Fiona made landfall in Puerto Rico on Sunday [18 Sept.], causing life-threatening flooding, mudslides and an island-wide power outage. According to the National Hurricane Center, heavy rains continued across Puerto Rico on Sunday. From Puerto Rico, Fiona moved to the Dominican Republic where it made landfall early this morning [19 Sept.]. Heavy rains and wind will spread over the area through today with life-threatening flooding expected across both Puerto Rico and the eastern Dominican Republic. Fiona could bring a total of up to 30” of rainfall to Puerto Rico and up to 12” to eastern and northern Dominican Republic. After moving away from Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, Fiona is expected to further strengthen. As a result, hurricane conditions are expected in parts of the Turks Caicos Islands on Tuesday. Tropical storm conditions are expected in the south-eastern Bahamas by late Monday or early Tuesday.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 19 September 2022
The impact of Hurricane Fiona on the Dominican Republic
Hurricane Fiona made its way through the Dominican Republic yesterday [19 Sept.] after knocking out power and causing seemingly significant damage to Puerto Rico on Sunday. However, some Dominican Republic growers and shippers are thankful that it was not worse. “We are kind of lucky,” says Cesar Perez of Frescura Tropical in the Dominican Republic, who says that reports indicated that Fiona lost some strength as she made her way through the Dominican Republic. He says early reports are the same in Miches in the north-east of the country, a production area for coconuts. The storm did bring some much-needed rain following months of drought-like conditions and that weather has since settled into regular rainfall. However, that is limited to parts of the island and Perez says that in regions in the west of the Dominican Republic near the border with Haiti, there has not been any rain yet.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 20 September 2022
Concerns over Dominican Republic banana operations post-Fiona
Hurricane Fiona moved through the Dominican Republic on Monday with 18 eastern provinces on red alert. “Even though the rain was good, it was not good with 12 hours of consecutive wind and storms,” said Cesar Perez of Frescura Tropical in the Dominican Republic. Andy Thomas-Stivalet of Kavidac Produce is familiar with the damage that a storm of Fiona’s size can do to a growing operation and says there could be concerns over banana production in the country in the near future. He notes that concern would be around leaf damage and leaf shredding which in turn slows growth and damages plants and roots – this is something that can happen already at a wind of 15 knots and reports indicate the island was hit with sustained wind at 78 knots. He adds that sustained +70 knot winds will flatten entire plantations, and that is without taking into account water damage from rising water levels.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 21 September 2022
Jamaican government invests in potato and onion production programme
The government of Jamaica is investing $200 million in a national potato and onion programme to increase the number of hectares under production and to improve yields. Seventy-five percent of the funds has been allocated for potato production and 25% for onion production. According to Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Pearnel Charles Jr, for the upcoming planting season, the intention is to target expansion of the programme in the traditional growing areas of Clarendon, St Catherine, St Elizabeth, Trelawny and St Thomas.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 6 September 2022
Domestic onion production satisfies 40% of Jamaican national demand
Jamaica’s agricultural sector has met 40% of the national demand for onions, surpassing the original target of 20%, with growers producing roughly 4,000 tons of the total demand of 10,000 tons last year. In addition, the agricultural sector was also able to meet 70% of the national demand for potatoes, which grew from 15,000 to 17,000 tons. Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Pearnel Charles said that by improving the sector’s capacity to meet local demand, the Ministry is focusing on reducing the country’s import numbers. Meanwhile, with the impact of the pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine on input costs and supply availability, the Ministry has activated several strategies to help farmers, including the recent provision of over 24,000 bags of fertiliser to farmers across the island and renewed focus on the country’s Production Incentive Programme.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 14 September 2022
St Thomas farmers are increasing onion yields
Farmers in St Thomas are being praised for their significant strides in onion production, which has considerably surpassed the national yield. Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Pearnel Charles Jr noted that during the fall season, more than 100 hectares of onion were produced in the parish, with the support of the Ministry’s Production Incentive Programme. “The parish also exceeded the national yield of 17 tonnes per hectare, with farmers achieving between 22 and 38 tonnes per hectare. So, before I announced ‘Grow Smart, Eat Smart’ for efficiency, St Thomas was doing it,” said Charles.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 30 August 2022
New pest could decimate tomato crops in Trinidad
The tomato leaf miner, a plant pest new to the area, has been spotted in parts of Trinidad. It has the potential to destroy tomato, pepper and melongene [aubergine] crops. According to an entomologist at the Ministry of Agriculture, Lands and Fisheries, Rishi Mohansingh, the pest, a tiny moth, burrows into the stems of tomato plants and fruits during the caterpillar stage and can cause 80 to 100% plant loss. Mohansingh said the ministry has set out traps to catch the pest and so far have noted the leaf miner along Trinidad’s east-west corridor, with some spread also into the Caroni area.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 16 September 2022
Papua New Guinean potato growers demand market to sell
Enga province potato growers are calling for government intervention to develop a more efficient supply chain system. They want their supplies to reach the food markets in cities such as Port Moresby and Lae. According to the programme coordinator for the Lagaip Poverty Relievers Association, Tony Sulupin, there is a need to establish an effective and efficient supply chain system for potato so that the 200 farmers can sell their fresh potato without a loss in quality. Sulupin said that potato was not a new crop as people have been used to cultivating it for many years, but to plant on commercial scale, government intervention would be required.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 2 September 2022
Papua New Guinea to embark on developing avocados as an industry
Moves are afoot to develop avocado as an alternative industry in the Asaro Valley of the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea. Project initiator and secretary of the Eastern Highlands Agricultural Society, Solepa Aganisafa, said avocado as an alternative crop has the potential of being developed into an industry and will create wealth and economic opportunities for the country. Aganisafa has commenced trial planting of the avocado seedlings on his property after initial research into avocados at the end of 2020. He has identified the main commercial varieties such as Hass and other varieties such as Shepard, Fuerte, Pinkerton and Reed within the locality and is using Reed avocados as rootstocks. Aganisafa is looking to visit New Zealand next year during the World Avocado Congress to engage and learn from the global avocado industry players.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 30 September 2022
Coffee growers in Papua New Guinea explore new ways of working together
In June, five coffee farmers from Papua New Guinea travelled to the World of Coffee in Milan, where their beans were roasted, brewed and sampled by the world’s top buyers. They then visited Hamburg and London to meet with more merchants and roasters – a unique opportunity organised by the UK Trade Partnerships Programme. Large multinational enterprises once dominated Papua New Guinea’s export business but reforms to the export licensing regime have opened up opportunities for smaller companies to sell overseas. However, getting Papua New Guinea coffee to European and American markets can be challenging. Shipping costs are nine times higher than for African farmers, and four times more than for South American farmers. That makes Papua New Guinea coffee more expensive than similar beans from other regions.
Source: International Trade Centre, 12 September 2022
Reducing horticultural loss in the South Pacific
A new research project, jointly funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) and Canada’s International Development Research Centre, seeks to reduce horticultural loss in the South Pacific region. ACIAR Research Programme Manager for Horticulture Irene Kernot said the project would focus on food loss in horticulture supply chains in Fiji, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Tonga. “Reducing loss at all points in the value chain will help to boost the availability and affordability of nutritious fruits and vegetables,” said Kernot. “In the Pacific region, the health implications of people not eating enough fruit and vegetables result in them experiencing among the world’s highest levels of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes.”
Source: Fresh Plaza, 29 August 2022
World’s first International Plant Health Conference to set global agenda on biosecurity and address challenges in plant health
The world’s leading authorities on plant health and biosecurity will come together for the world’s first ever International Plant Health Conference, co-organised by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the Secretariat of the International Plant Protection Convention and Defra (UK). More than 500 policymakers, academics and experts from over 74 countries will convene at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London to address current and future plant health challenges, including the impacts of climate change, food security, environmental protection, facilitating safe trade, and new pest and disease pathways. Held on 21-23 September, delegates will share knowledge and discuss global scientific, technical and regulatory issues, alongside actions to tackle these existential threats to our society, economy and environment.
Source: UK Government, 21 September 2022
UK: Lidl to sell misshapen drought-affected vegetables
The supermarket Lidl plans to sell misshapen vegetables that are affected by England’s recent drought in an effort to support British farmers. It will also encourage other supermarkets to follow suit in selling “stunted crops”. The discounter says it is part of the company’s efforts to tackle food waste. British farmers, who supply most of Lidl’s fresh vegetables, have been hit hard by the recent hot and dry weather which has dramatically lowered yields. As a result, fruit and vegetables on the shelves will be smaller and look different, although they will taste the same.
Source: BBC, 25 August 2022
Economic Development in Africa Report 2022 published
Africa is among the least diversified regions in the world with regard to exports. Commodities account for more than 60% of total merchandise exports in 45 of the 54 countries in Africa, leaving them highly vulnerable to global commodity price shocks and undermining the continent’s inclusive growth and development prospects. UNCTAD has recently published the Economic Development in Africa Report 2022 which shows that neglecting the potentially transformative role of high knowledge-intensive services, such as information and communications technology and financial services, is among the key reasons why export diversification remains a challenge in Africa. The report shows that effectively addressing barriers to services trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area will be key to unleashing the transformative role of services in enhancing the diversity and complexity of products from Africa.
Source: UNCTAD, 14 July 2022
Four ways to transform Africa-Caribbean trade
African and Caribbean leaders will meet this week at the first-ever AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum, organised by the Government of Barbados and the African Export-Import Bank. The Forum comes at a pivotal time, when both regions are battling rising inflation like never before and seeking economic stability and growth, including new trading partners. However, Africa-Caribbean trade remains well below its potential. In 2020, not even 0.1% of African exports were destined for Caribbean markets, while Africa bought less than 1% of Caribbean exports. But with the right opportunities, analysis and support, this situation can change. Analysis by staff at the International Trade Centre estimates there is US$1 billion of export potential between the two regions, across goods and services.
Source: International Trade Centre, 26 August 2022
Kenya’s produce exporters urged to take advantage of Kenya-UK partnership
Kenya’s fresh produce exporters have been urged to take advantage of the Kenya-UK economic partnership that was signed in January 2020 to increase their market share in Britain’s imports. According to Kenya’s High Commissioner to the UK Manoah Esipisu, Kenya is committed to making sure the partnership bears fruit: “We think we have done all the right things in Kenya to sustain a level of commitment to building what is necessary to foster growth to build our infrastructure, to continue to work on our ICT, our tourism infrastructure, and committing to work on value addition.” Statistics indicate that Kenya’s exports to the UK stand at about Sh49.5 billion. Of these, 43% comprise vegetables. But despite the UK being Kenya’s fifth top export destination – after Uganda, Pakistan, the US and The Netherlands – a report by Oversees Development Institute said trade between the two nations remains relatively stagnant.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 29 September 2022
West Africa Connect: a platform to promote mango and cassava
Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) in the mango and cassava sectors are being connected to buyers both inside and outside the ECOWAS sub-region to promote regional trade and access to market. At a 2-day event West Africa Connect 2022 focused on creating linkages between mango, cassava and ICT value chain actors, while establishing new and durable business partnerships and increasing commercial transactions. The aim was to strengthen the competitiveness of West African countries and improve the business environment and quality of the products sold and exported from the region, while complying with stringent market requirements on product safety, health and environmental impact.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 22 September 2022
Uganda enjoys increased capacity to access more profitable regional and European markets
Uganda is enjoying increased capacity to access more profitable regional and European markets for its fresh fruits and vegetables thanks to a project aimed at helping the country comply with SPS requirements. Uganda is now exporting 5.8 million tonnes of fresh fruit and vegetables worth US$35 million a year – second only in Sub-Saharan Africa to Nigeria which produces around 11 million tonnes a year. The project helped to develop the capacity to conduct specific survey and monitoring systems and standard operating procedures for five priority pests. The 3-year project was funded by the Standards and Trade Development Facility, the World Trade Organisation, the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries and the Royal Netherlands Embassy.
Source: CABI, 21 September 2022
Barbados Agricultural Society recommends import ban on certain produce
The Barbados Agricultural Society has recommended an import ban for certain produce, which should reduce the island’s $700 million food import bill by at least $2 million. According to Chief Executive Officer James Paul, farmers have the capacity to satisfy local demand for pumpkins, watermelons, cucumbers and carrots. He claimed that the importation of those fruits and vegetables was undermining the industry. Paul added that it made no sense to ask farmers to ramp up production to boost the country’s food security when imports were still saturating the local market and forcing farmers to sell their products way below market price. That, he said, was a demonstration of disrespect to farmers who toiled to support their families and provide nutritious food for Barbadians.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 5 September 2022
Dominican Republic: Bagrícola to finance pineapple cultivation for export to Europe and US
The Agricultural Bank of the Dominican Republic (Bagrícola) will finance pineapple cultivation for export to small- and medium-sized producers in the provinces of Monte Plata and Sánchez Ramírez, with an investment of US$60 million. According to the administrator of Bagrícola, Fernando Durán, the provinces of Sánchez Ramírez and Monte Plata have land in excellent condition for the production of high-quality pineapple, which meets the demands of European and US markets.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 6 September 2022
Dominican Republic to increase local production of potatoes for industrial use
Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader attended the signing of an inter-institutional agreement between the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and MSMEs, the Agricultural Bank (Bagricola) and the PepsiCo company (Frito Lay Dominicana), to support the growth and empowerment of potato farmers in the municipality of San Juan de la Maguana and Constanza. The agreement establishes a public-private partnership between PepsiCo and the government of the Dominican Republic that will seek to increase local potato production from 7,200 to 14,400 tons.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 1 September 2022
Dominican Republic: Impossible to keep banana prices at the same level
According to Elnio Durán, Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, the banana plays an important socioeconomic role in its production areas, and it is one of the main agricultural products exported by the Dominican Republic to the UK and the EU. “Right now we are dealing with extremely high production costs, which have increased by 30–40%, but Dominican banana prices have remained stable over these last 2 years,” said Elnio. In 2022, the cost of maritime transport in the Dominican Republic has increased by about 41% compared to 2018; land transport has become 58% more expensive, cardboard prices have increased by 14%, those of fertilisers are up by 57% and labour costs are 25% higher.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 15 September 2022
Jamaica: Long-awaited Negril market finally on track
The construction of a multimillion-dollar fruit and vegetable market for Negril is back on track following a long period of delays. Local Government Minister Desmond McKenzie said the contract will be put to tender shortly.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 30 August 2022 https://www.freshplaza.com/article/9454414/jamaica-long-awaited-negril-market-finally-on-track/
Agriculture ministry of St Lucia restarts banana exports
St Lucia’s Minister for Agriculture has stated that the fortunes of St Lucia’s banana industry are changing for the better: “I am happy to report that we have recommenced the shipment of bananas to the UK for the past 9 weeks. To date, we were able to restore production levels to our contractual obligations of 2000 boxes a week as of the end of July 2022. The hard work and commitment of our farmers, field officers, the Banana Task Force and the NFTO have paid off.” However, the minister also said there was still work to be done: “The UK banana market is highly competitive. Once you lose your spot on the market shelves, it becomes an uphill battle to regain that position. Farmers, we must focus on keeping with international standards in order to gain a competitive advantage.”
Source: Fresh Plaza, 16 August 2022
Citrus from Fiji soon to be exported to New Zealand
Citrus from Fiji will soon be exported for the New Zealand market. This follows the endorsement of the Citrus Export Plan by the Biosecurity Authority of Fiji (BAF), the New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries, and the New Zealand High Commission to Fiji earlier this week. According to BAF Board Director Jay Whyte, the new market means growth in foreign exchange earnings for the country and additional income for exports and citrus growers. He says the endorsement of the Citrus Export Plan is the first of many export plans to be prepared and implemented for fruit and vegetable exports to New Zealand. The first shipment of citrus exports to New Zealand is expected early next month.
Source: Fresh Plaza, 16 September 2022
How digital connectivity facilitates inclusive global trade
UNCTAD has released a new compendium featuring the experiences of 22 countries participating in its Automated System for Customs Data (ASYCUDA) programme. ASYCUDA – UNCTAD’s largest technical assistance programme – supports customs authorities in over 100 countries to expedite the clearance of goods and ease trade. Examples of the ASYCUDA programme in action include in Dominica, 65% of commercial imports were cleared by customs authorities within 24 hours, and in Papua New Guinea, customs authorities reduced clearance times from 7 days to 2 hours in 2021.
Source: UNCTAD, 6 September 2022
ALDI sends a strong signal with a bold banana purchasing reform
On 22 August, ALDI SOUTH Group published its sustainable banana sourcing strategy which brings together fair price purchasing and its corporate responsibility into a genuinely integrated sourcing approach. At the heart of this new approach is what the company calls a “joint open-book costing approach”, based on the Fairtrade labelling system’s costs of sustainable production methodology, applied to conventional and Fairtrade certified fruit alike. The annual tendering round by potential suppliers, which was widely seen to exacerbate the race to the bottom in banana prices across the EU markets and beyond, is to become a thing of the past.
Source: BananaLink, 23 August 2022
Black Sea Grain Initiative helps stabilise global food markets
The UN-brokered Black Sea Grain Initiative is reintegrating much-needed grains to global markets and contributing to bringing down prices of basic staples across the world. The agreement was signed in Istanbul by the Russian Federation, Turkey, Ukraine and United Nations on 22 July 2022 to help stabilise spiralling food prices worldwide and prevent a food crisis that could affect millions of people. UN Secretary-General António Guterres also announced the establishment on the same day of a Joint Coordination Centre to monitor implementation. As of 12 September, the initiative had enabled over 2.7 million metric tons of grain and other foodstuffs to move from the Ukrainian ports of Odesa, Chornomorsk and Yuzhny.
Source: UNCTAD, 12 September 2022


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Two years after Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) announced that it will sell more vegetarian burgers in India, it is looking back at chicken in a big way.
As competition in India’s burger market heats up, fast-food chains are returning to what they know best—in KFC’s case, tubs of fried chicken—leaving the vegetarian menu as it is, for now.
“The food scenario in India has evolved really quickly since then. Consumers are well-travelled, exposed to global trends, willing to try new food, and seek food that is authentic,” Lluis Ruiz Ribot, chief marketing officer, KFC India, said in an interview.
In the last six months, the fast-food chain has already rolled out three big marketing campaigns for its new chicken launches, including the Chizza which is fried chicken slathered with cheese.
In the same period, the company did not launch any new ads for its vegetarian meals. This does not mean that the chain, with around 300 outlets in India, will stop selling vegetarian meals or launch vegetarian variants that account for 30% of its menu in the country. However, it will not invest significantly on it either.
“While chicken has always been a large part of our menu, 2016 is the year that we have refocused on our core, as a result all the big ticket launches so far have been driven by chicken,” added Ribot, who took over as head of marketing nine months ago.
It was in 2014, a decade after re-entering India, that KFC gave the country a dedicated vegetarian menu.
Over the years, most large fast-food chains have “Indianized” their menus for religious and cultural reasons. Beef and pork were shunned as they are not widely consumed in urban India. Besides, nearly 30% of Indians do not consume meat at all.
So, the logic was simple: sell more to vegetarians.
McDonald’s, for instance, has been selling aloo tikki (or potato patty) burgers in India since 2004. In 2012, it opened its first vegetarian restaurant in Vaishno Devi, a pilgrimage centre in the northern state of Jammu and Kashmir. Pizza chain Domino’s has, on Hindu festivals such as Navratri, restricted its menu to veg pizzas in Gujarat and Maharashtra—states that have a higher proportion of vegetarians.
In 2014, KFC inducted the Paneer Zinger and Veg Rockin’ Burger to its menu, backed by major ad campaigns.
But market dynamics have since then changed.
In recent times, more fast-food chains such as Burger King and Carl’s Jr have joined the fray, pushing existing players to distinguish themselves.
Moreover, the Indian fast-food sector faces tepid demand. KFC’s parent company Yum! Brands itself has been struggling with low same-store sales growth for over 10 quarters now. For the April-June quarter of the calendar year 2016, KFC reported a 1% drop in sales on a yearly basis.
So, the chain is now putting extra marketing muscle to revive footfalls, besides reverting to its core strength.
“We feel that it is just the right juncture to reiterate what we stand for—chicken,” said Ribot.
Hopefully, these tubs of chicken will come to the rescue.


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Although it has yet to pass into law, the Tennessee Senate Commerce Committee has approved a bill that requires creditors to count the postmark date of a payment as the payment date, not the day they say they receive it.
The bill’s sponsor, Tim Burchett, said consumers shouldn’t have to be held accountable for delays beyond their control:
It is not right for credit card consumers to pay late fees if the payment is sitting on the desk of an employee of the credit card company or if it arrives late due to slow mail… Many Tennesseans have faced these charges, even though they made their payments on time…. Consumers should not have to pay for the mistakes of others when their efforts can be proved by a postmark.
What an awesome bill; we hope it goes through. It would be nice, too, if other states step up to protect their residents, especially since the federal government has been so slow to act.


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While Ukraine’s fight for its sovereignty continues on the frontlines of its Donbas regions, the country’s burgeoning fashion industry has almost finished preparing for the country’s very own fashion week which opens its doors tomorrow, giving designers a platform to reflect on the country’s current conflict and on Ukrainian identity as a whole.
Since 1997, fashion designers have been showcasing their best work at Ukraine Fashion Week, celebrating a country emerging from its Soviet past. After war erupted in east Ukraine in early 2014, the week has continued to run with designer’s finding new inspiration in the struggle with pro-Russian influence and the ongoing conflict.
Billed as “The Next Step”, a reference towards building a new Ukraine, this year’s fashion week will be a creative reminder of modern Ukraine’s culture, say organisers. Although details of this year’s designs remain a secret until the runways open tomorrow, the previous year’s event suggests that attendees will be treated to an imaginative display of the trials and tribulations that are currently testing the country.
Last year, in the wake of the Euromaidan movement which toppled pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych, Ukrainian brand Poustovit opened Ukrainian Fashion Week’s Spring 2014 collection with a silent catwalk as models walked the runway draped in the blue and yellow colours of the nation’s flag.
Meanwhile designer Olexiy Zalevskiy used his show to express solidarity for the country’s plight by having his models navigate through riot fences as they walked down the catwalk, after which they feigned being shot by rifle fire - a sight all too familiar to those involved in Ukraine’s Euromaidan protests.
Designers from Ukraine’s Lake label chose to dress their models in clothes inspired by the tires which anti-government protesters set on fire in Kiev’s city centre at the height of the violence in the heart of Kiev. Ukraine’s national anthem was among the more frequent additions to the runway playlists too.
This season Poustovit’s show will once again open the fashion week and Lilia Poustovit, the label’s founder, believes the event has invigorated participants to rediscover Ukraine’s traditions and outline a new cosmopolitan direction for the country.
“I know how important it is for everyone to share and enrich each other with the energy of their land,” she says. “It is a very strange and uneasy atmosphere without past, without culture and roots.”
Poustovit also believes fashion can help supplement many living in Ukraine with an identity that has been taken away “by propaganda and lack of self-identification.”
“I am sure that the war started in the regions of Ukraine, where the inhabitants at least appreciated and respected the traditions of the country in which they lived,” she says.
“For me it's important to make collections emphasising the richness and beauty of Ukrainian culture, and to talk about it far beyond my native country, to share it with other cultures and peoples,” she says.
Besides Poustovit, 61 other designers will help put on 67 events over the next eight days.
The social-charity project Ukraine Inspired will also be involved in the week long event, having previously collaborated with Ukrainian Fashion Week’s mid-season sister event - Holiday Fashion Week. The project will promote “patriotic Ukrainian prints” and a special design created specially for this season’s event will be incorporated in merchandise, clothing and accessories which the charity will sell. All proceeds from the sales will go to the treatment of wounded Ukrainian servicemen.
While the week will continue to support the war effort, in keeping with the theme of pursuing Ukraine’s “next step,” Iryna Danylevska, the founder of Ukrainian Fashion Week hints that this year’s event will do more than just reflect the turmoil in the country. Rather, she believes that it will give the world a more optimistic impression of Ukraine’s future.
According to organisers “more optimistic” designs will evident on the catwalks, including traditional flower patterns and those inspired by Ukraine’s wheat fields - which feature prominently in the country’s folklore and inspired the bright yellow in its flag. Local emblems will also be displayed such as Kiev’s chestnut trees and the traditional embroidery of its West Podillya and Vinnychyna regions.
“Every created print is very important for identification with Ukrainian culture, authenticity and creative potential,” Danylevska says. “It is important that most of Ukrainian designers create their prints often in collaboration with Ukrainian artists, illustrators, using national symbolism that makes them unique.”
“These prints help to promote Ukrainian ideas as well as Ukrainian talents creating a good association with our country,” Danylevska adds.
The opening ceremony for Ukrainian Fashion Week is today afternoon while the first show opens tomorrow at 5pm.


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AUSTIN, Minn. (AP) — Hormel Foods' fiscal second-quarter net income fell 2 percent as it dealt with one-time costs related to its acquisition of the Skippy peanut butter brand, higher grain costs and weaker turkey prices.
Its quarterly performance missed Wall Street's expectations.
The meat producer, known for Spam and other cured, smoked and deli meats, earned $125.5 million, or 46 cents per share, for the three months ended April 28. That compares with $127.9 million, or 48 cents per share, a year earlier.
Analysts predicted earnings of 49 cents per share, according to a FactSet survey.
The current quarter included about $9 million in one-time costs related to the Skippy deal. Hormel Foods Corp. agreed to buy Skippy in January from Unilever for $700 million.
Revenue rose 7 percent to $2.15 billion from $2.01 billion, but fell short of the $2.19 billion that Wall Street expected.
Revenue from the refrigerated foods segment, which comprises nearly half of Hormel's total revenue, fell 2 percent to $1.01 billion due to increased grain costs.
Grocery products revenue, which includes Spam and makes up 18 percent of total revenue, climbed 49 percent to $393.5 million thanks to the Skippy transaction and better sales of products such as Dinty Moore stew, Spam and Mary Kitchen hash.
Specialty foods revenue increased 7 percent to $245.7 million, while international and other revenue rose 21 percent to $117.4 million partly because of increased sales of Spam products.
Revenue from Jennie-O Turkey Store, which makes up 18 percent of revenue, declined about 2 percent to $384.7 million on higher grain costs and weaker commodity turkey prices.
The Austin, Minn., company still foresees full-year earnings of $1.93 to $2.03 per share. Analysts expect $1.99 per share.
Hormel shares finished at $42.40 on Wednesday. They have traded in a 52-week range of $27.28 to $43.17.


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Tags Nashville Business
Tag: Nashville Business
Launch: Chart-Topping Country Artist Jeremy Parsons Announces April-May 2022 Concert Tour In TN, KY,...
Product Launches: -- With the title track of his latest album, "Things To Come" climbing national radio airplay charts, San Antonio, Texas country artist Jeremy Parsons is hitting the road. The international iTunes chart-topper has just announced a series of April and May concert dates that will bring his tour to Tennessee, North Carolina and Virginia.
Product Launches: -- High Mountain Breezes today announced the release of their first record, "Daddy's Margarita Rose." The Record is now available on Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify, You-Tube and many other major streaming services.
Product Launches: -- High Mountain Breezes today announce the release of their second pre-sale song "Will The Circle Be Unbroken," a track from their soon to be released record "Daddy's Margarita Rose." The track is now available on Amazon Music, Apple Music, Spotify, You-Tube and many other major streaming services.
Advertising NEWS: -- Market Defense, the most sought-after Amazon Agency for Beauty and Passion Brands, published its latest research today, detailing the rise of Purpose Driven Brands and Amazon.
Product Launches: -- The American Freedom Foundation announces Your Next Mission™-- a new initiative supporting our Veterans, transitioning service members, and military spouses as they transition from military to civilian life. The goal of Your Next Mission™ is to help our Veterans write the next chapter of their lives and to make a real impact in the lives of those who have served our country.
Product Launches: -- Pop music artist, Ryan Hagan, is a voice that's crashed into the music scene, and he's quickly turning heads. His first two singles charted on the radio within one year and he's just released his third, "Don't Let Me Stop." And, it's looking like it won't be his last.


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The opening weeks of 2022 suggest another record year is on the cards in terms of the overall sale and purchase segment in shipping.
Last year set new highs in terms of ships changing hands with Clarkson Research Services tallying 148m dwt – equivalent of 7% of the global merchant fleet – sold for just over $47bn.
Clarksons’ overall secondhand price index rose 97% in 2021, with the boxship price index surging 168%.
Amid further price gains, the first six weeks of the year saw a busy start to 2022, clocking up another $6.2bn of secondhand spending. That’s an annual run-rate of around $53bn which would be another new record.


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Mitsubishi teases return of Ralliart brand at 8th PH International Motor Show
Back in November 2021, Mitsubishi Thailand officially brought back the dormant Ralliart brand. But instead of serving as the company’s in-house tuning division like before, the Ralliart name has been revived as an appearance pack for Mitsubishi’s current models.
In The Land of Smiles, the Ralliart name is now synonymous with sticker packs and extra accessories for the Pajero Sport/Montero Sport, Triton/Strada, as well as the Mirage Hatchback. While it may not offer go-fast bits, it’s nice to see Mitsubishi’s Ralliart make a comeback in this day & age.
Fast forward to September, and it looks like Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation (MMPC) is all set to bring it back to the country. After a senior executive confirmed to us that they will be bringing it back a few months ago, MMPC officially confirmed Ralliart's return.
While Mitsubishi did not announce it by name, they did release a teaser video on Facebook showcasing the legendary brand’s motorsport heritage. The company even showed Ralliart’s signature red and orange colorway, while offering a glimpse of the dressed-up versions of both the Strada and the Montero Sport that will be revealed at the 8th Philippine International Motor Show (PIMS).
Looking at what the Thai market gets, we can expect the Montero Sport and Strada Ralliart variants to come with red bumper garnishes, a black roof, a black tailgate spoiler, black wheels, red mudflaps, as well as the signature Ralliart decal on the rear quarter and doors. Other details regarding the two vehicles remain a mystery.
Don’t expect to find any performance upgrades in the new Ralliart models. As mentioned before, only exterior and interior upgrades are available to make the vehicles stand out more.
See MMPC and the revived Ralliart brand at PIMS 2022 from September 15 to September 18, 2022, at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. Tickets are available at the venue for PHP 200 each, while the first 1,000 ticket buyers will get a 50% discount every show day.