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The fourth agricultural commodity to be featured in just-food's management briefing on sustainable sourcing is the world's largest - sugarca...
In the fifth part of just-food's management briefing on sustainable sourcing, Ben Cooper examines how consumer demand for certified sustaina...
| 23 Jun 2015
The fourth agricultural commodity to be featured in just-food's management briefing on sustainable sourcing is the world's largest - sugarcane. While sugar is already a much-discussed subject in the context of the obesity debate, Ben Cooper writes, food companies are under increasing pressure to step up engagement on sugar from a supply chain perspective and scale up current sustainability efforts.
| 22 Jun 2015
In the fifth part of just-food's management briefing on sustainable sourcing, Ben Cooper examines how consumer demand for certified sustainable cocoa has fostered corporate action to improve the living standards of their agricultural suppliers and make their raw material supply chains more sustainable.
| 16 Jun 2015
The first section of our management briefing examining how the food industry is working to make agricultural supply chains more sustainable looks at cocoa, a commodity facing grave challenges but now receiving increased and concerted attention from companies following the launch of the CocoaAction collective initiative a year ago.
| 25 Mar 2015
This morning's (25 March) news HJ Heinz and Kraft Foods Group have inked a definitive merger agreement sent shockwaves through the US food sector. But, when the dust settles, what are we likely to see from the enlarged Kraft Heinz Co.? Katy Askew investigates.
| 17 Feb 2015
Privately-owned US free-from snacks group Enjoy Life Foods has joined the likes of Cadbury and Oreo in the global giant's portfolio. Joel Warady, Enjoy Life's chief sales and marketing officer, has been at the business since it was set up in 2001. He speaks to Dean Best about why Enjoy Life was looking for a "partner", what Mondelez's ownership means for the business and the fledgling firm's growth ambitions.
| 9 Feb 2015
R&R Ice Cream is the second-largest ice cream manufacturer in Europe by sales, behind only Unilever. But the UK-based business's CEO, Ibrahim Najafi, promoted to the top job at the company 18 months ago, has his sights on expansion further afield.
| 2 Jun 2015
Kraft Foods Group and Mondelez International have called for the dismissal of two counts of the case alleging the companies manipulated wheat prices in 2011.
| 28 May 2015
Mondelez International today (28 May) acknowledged challenges in its work to reduce saturated fat in its products and to lower the water and energy use in its manufacturing.
| 26 May 2015
The US Department of Agriculture's development of GMO certification scheme emerged this week, adding to the debate over the labelling of foods containing genetically modified ingredients. Elsewhere in the US, Mondelez International revealed jobs will go at a biscuit plant in Chicago. Meanwhile, dairy giant Arla Foods announced a deal in Egypt with local processor Juhayna Food Industries.
| 22 May 2015
Mondelez International chocolate unit Cadbury has cut 80 manufacturing jobs in Australia, according to union sources.
| 18 May 2015
Mondelez International has revealed jobs will be lost at its biscuit plant in Chicago, whether or not the company chooses the facility - and not one in Mexico - for fresh investment.
| 14 May 2015
Mondelez International is looking to invest in its biscuit production in North America - and is weighing up whether to invest in a plant in the US or in Mexico.
| 11 May 2015
This week, Kellogg reported its first-quarter results and, despite sales and profits being down, CEO John Bryant said the firm was on the right track. Elsewhere, Mondelez International took steps to bolster its e-commerce efforts, announcing a tie-up with technology firm ChannelSight. Dean Foods announced it was bringing its 31 milk brands under one label, a move we analysed to find out whether it could put the dairy maker back on the road to recovery after a string of loss-making quarters. Here is the week in quotes.
| 11 May 2015
Kellogg reported its first quarter results and despite sales and profits being down, CEO John Bryant said the firm was on the right track. We took a look at the Chinese milk market which revealed the importance of international dairies in its future. Lactalis swooped to acquire a majority holding in Yildiz Holding's AK Gida. And we explored what UK supermarket Sainsbury's latest loss and plan to cut prices would mean for suppliers. Here are the highlights from just-food this week.
| 8 May 2015
Mondelez International has signed a partnership deal with technology firm ChannelSight in a bid to maximise e-commerce sales opportunities.
| 1 May 2015
Mondelez International has officially opened its Marvellous Creations production line in Egypt.
| 1 May 2015
Mondelez International has said it is "encouraged" by its progress in China after another quarter of sales growth, led by Oreo and gum brand Stride.
| 1 May 2015
Mondelez International reported on its first-quarter results this week (1 May) and the group was eager to emphasise its performance in China, which was stronger than many multinational peers. Nestle is a company facing its own challenges in China and we analysed how the appointment of CFO Wan Ling Martello to head up its Asia unit can boost the group's outlook in the market. Elsewhere, we spoke to Gardein founder and CEO Yves Potvin as well as learning about Muller Wiseman's plans to launch a liquid milk brand in the UK. Here are the highlights from just-food this week.
| 1 May 2015
This week, Mondelez International reported its first-quarter results, with news of a solid performance in China. Elsewhere, Associated British Foods announced the launch of a high-protein bread in New Zealand. Yves Potvin, founder of meat-free brand Gardein, spoke to just-food about its plans under the ownership of Pinnacle Foods. And Kerry Group said moves to reposition its portfolio to focus on snacking trends were paying off. Here is the week in quotes.
| 29 Apr 2015
Mondelez International has reported a jump in net earnings, despite a slump in sales for the first quarter of the year.
| 22 Apr 2015
Mondelez International has added a "premium" line to its Philadelphia cream cheese range in Spain.
| 17 Apr 2015
Mondelez International has developed an "indulgent" whipped Philadelphia cheese it believes will offer UK consumers more ways to eat the product
| 10 Apr 2015
Mondelez International has moved to take its Ritz savoury biscuit brand into the bagged snacks market in the UK.
| 10 Apr 2015
US ice cream maker Blue Bell Creameries this week expanded its product recall as it reacts to a listeria outbreak linked to three deaths. In Europe, Dutch horsemeat trader Willy Selten was sentenced to a jail term. And China has filed a dispute at the WTO over the EU's tariffs on poultry products.
| 10 Apr 2015
This week, Wrigley confirmed it is building a new gum plant in Kenya to help expand in a number of African markets. US confectioner BBX Sweet Holdings announced the acquisition of local peer Kencraft Candy, while FrieslandCampina revealed plans to close its cheese packing plant in Lochem. We also interviewed the general manager of Al-Rawabi, Dr Ahmed El Tigani, who told us about the UAE dairy company's recent move into functional dairy. Here is the week in quotes.
| 7 Apr 2015
Mondelez International has confirmed it will appeal a US$92m tax bill in India over what is alleged to be a "phantom factory".
| 7 Apr 2015
Mondelez International is reportedly planning to appeal a US$92m tax bill in India over what is alleged to be a "phantom" factory.
| 2 Apr 2015
Kraft Foods Group has played down the possible impact of any penalties that could be imposed for allegedly manipulating wheat prices after charges were brought in the US against the company and Mondelez International.
| 3 Jun 2015
The development of markets for gluten-free products in the UK and the US has grabbed much of the sector's attention in recent years but what are the opportunities in Europe? just-food has headed to Barcelona this week to find out.
| 6 Feb 2015
Dubai is the modern day New York, with its towering skyscrapers and bright lights and tomorrow just-food is again flying over to the city for this year's annual Gulfood exhibition, where food manufacturers convene to build their presence in the city and the wider Middle East.
- Focus: ConAgra own-label exit plan is about growth
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- CMA "accepts" Muller's revised Dairy Crest offer
- Kraft faces lawsuit over 'natural' claims


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Pokémon Go’s Remote Raid Passes will no longer appear in cheap weekly bundles
Pokémon Go gets easier and cheaper to play while you’re stuck at home
The game now offers 1 PokéCoin bundles and an overview of the latest news.
It could be tough getting enough Poké Balls when you have to stay at home and can’t visit PokéStops. To make sure you have enough balls to catch monsters with, Niantic has started selling a 100-Poké Ball bundle for 1 PokéCoin in the Pokémon Go shop. The company has launched a rotating 1 PokéCoin bundle that will change every week and will be available as one-time purchases. It’s also increasing daily bonuses and giving you three times the Stardust and XP for your first catch of the day, as well as adjusting the number of gifts you can open in a day to 30.
In additio, Niantic has also launched a new feature called Today View that shows the latest things you should know about Pokémon Go. It displays the latest and upcoming events you can participate in, the Pokémon you have in gyms, as well as your spin and catch streaks.
Unfortunately, the company had to cancel Raid Hour and Lugia Raid Week, which was scheduled to begin today and would’ve given you the chance to catch the legendary diving Pokémon. You can, however, still get Cobalion as a Go Battle League reward until March 31st, 2020.

domain: news


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East Coast Video Show Kicks Off Sept. 303 Sep, 2003 By: Erik Gruenwedel
The burgeoning DVD market for old TV shows and the ubiquitous appeal of adult entertainment are two key topics that will be addressed at the East Coast Video Show, being held Sept. 30 to Oct. 1 at the Atlantic City Convention Center in Atlantic City, N.J.
The show's opening business session will include TV producers and directors who will talk about how shows are developed, produced and released on DVD.
“We wanted to share how retailers can profit from the public's great appetite for these shows,” said Bo Andersen, president of the Video Software Dealers Association (VSDA).
Presented by Home Entertainment Events, which is partners with the VSDA and Advanstar Communications, publisher of Video Store Magazine, the trade show will feature nine seminars on topics ranging from the VHS/DVD dilemma and adult product trends, to staffing issues and surveys on increasing store profits.
For attendee and booth registration information, please visit the show's Web site at www.homeentertainmentevents.com or contact by phone at (888) 778-8892.


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Apple TV still isn’t doing any damage to Roku’s control of the TV streaming media player market, based on the latest study that show’s Apple device is still sitting in fourth place in the rankings.
Roku now boasts 38.9 million users and has grabbed the top spot from Google according to eMarketer’s new data. The firm estimates that Roku will grab one third of the market by 2021. Currently it has about 23.1% of the market.
As you can see in the graph below, Google’s ChromeCast is the number two most used TV media streamer with 36.9 million users, capturing 22% of the market.
Apple TV Struggles
The future doesn’t look too bright for Apple TV. Even though it currently has 21.4 million users, eMarketer only expects Apple TV to pick up about 4 million users between now and 2021. It’s current marketshare of 12.7% will likely dip further as Google and Roku are expected to add 20 and 30 million users.
“Apple TV has been held back by the absence of a compelling content offering, a lack of support for increasingly popular Amazon video content, and a much higher price bracket than its competitors,” said Paul Verna, principal video analyst at
eMarketer. “Apple TV devices currently start at $150, whereas Google, Amazon
and Roku all sell streaming sticks that are priced well below $40.”
A new Apple TV device make Apple more competitive in the market. The fourth generation model was released in 2015. Rumors earlier this year indicated that Apple is planning a new 4K Apple TV, but leaks and other evidence have been in short supply.


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According to Euromonitor, the world’s fastest growing economies by 2030 will be in Africa. This consequently makes the continent the next big e-commerce market. And as this positive narrative continues to place Africa as a top investment destination, the need for advanced logistics systems has become inevitable. The growth of e-commerce will significantly depend on the quality and efficiency of logistics networks; from intra and cross trade to financial transactions in payment of goods and services. When writing the African e-commerce story, I often leap at the chance to explore only the enviable milestones the continent has made. Nevertheless, there still exist formidable challenges especially in logistics, a vital constituent of the industry. The African Development Bank, in its 2019
AfricaCom, the continent's largest and most influential technology, media and telecoms conference and exhibition, is adding a Technology Arena to help celebrate the 20th anniversary of the event, which this year takes place in Cape Town from 7 to 9 November 2017. The Technology Arena, which will be located in the new extension of the CTICC (Cape Town International Convention Centre), will host: AfricaCom 20/20, an interactive space where developers will demonstrate their latest innovations and discuss emerging technology trends; an Innovation Stage; the AHUB (where startups and investors come together); and the TV Connect Africa event track. Incorporated into the technology arena will be an innovation stage, featuring insights and discussions on tech trends, including the Interne...
Kenya’s electronic commerce market is primed for major growth in the next five years as mobile internet performance continues to improve, a proposed national addressing system comes into existence, and people become more comfortable with digital transactions. The first E-commerce ventures in East Africa used to focus on affluent costumers and the diaspora, with payment by credit cards, mostly in the travel and gifting industry, with startups such as TravelStart or MamaMikes, but the landscape is now narrowing with mobile money and mpesa. Kenya’s enthusiastic adoption of person-to-person mobile payments creates a solid base for the growth of mobile and electronic commerce. According to the Communications Authority of Kenya, the e-commerce market in Kenya was worth around Ksh.4.3 b
The e-Commerce sector in Kenya is developing at a high rate to keep pace with the ever changing technology. On this note, LG Electronics is now tapping into the online space with the launch of an independent e-commerce channel in an effort to increasing the company’s footprint in the country. According to LG, opening the online platform the company is increasing its products’ availability beyond the physical stores. "We are thrilled to launch online shopping in Kenya,” says Janghoon Chung, Managing Director East and Central Africa. “This significant milestone fully rounds out LG’s multichannel offering. Along with seven retail stores and products available in major supermarkets, our customers in Kenya will now have twenty-four-hour access to the best of our innovative, genuine and qualit
Walmart has taken its biggest digital commerce stride against Amazon. The retail giant announced that it would be acquiring Jet.com — an online-only shopping site that has been live for a little over a year — for $3 billion in cash, plus up to $300 million in shares for the founders and others at the company. Jet.com will continue to retain a separate brand, Walmart said today, as part of Walmart’s strategy to widen the types of consumers that it targets beyond Walmart’s core user base today; and also to broaden the companies that it works with to serve those customers. Marc Lore, the CEO of Jet.com, will lead both Jet and Walmart online, taking over from Neil Ashe. “This is Walmart being even more committed to winning in e-commerce,” said Doug McMillon, president and CEO of Walmart, i


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Brace yourselves: Even more autoplay videos are coming to your Twitter timeline.
Starting in the next few days, broadcasts from Periscope will automatically play within tweets as Twitter tries to expand the appeal of its livestreaming app.
People can watch a stream on Twitter and use Periscope’s hearts (a.k.a. liking a video) and see comments if they double-tapped to full screen. They’ll still need to have Periscope downloaded to start a broadcast or to write a comment.
“This adds a whole new dimension to Twitter,” Periscope wrote today, revealing that there have been 100 million broadcasts from its roughly 10 million users since its launch less than a year ago.
Periscope broadcasts now come alive within Twitter https://t.co/R346R1lgZb
— Periscope (@periscopeco) January 12, 2016
This closer integration of the apps means Periscope users can expose their broadcasts to a larger audience and eliminates the need to open the app and sign in just to watch a stream. Perhaps not a coincidence, but the tie-in comes more than a month after behemoth Facebook said it add livestreaming capabilities for its users.
Still, expanding further into autoplay video is a tricky area for Twitter since it unintentionally exposes people to things they might not want to see, as evidenced by the Virginia news crew shooting, or be a battery and data-draining complication. Twitter, however, is attracted to the format because video commands higher ad rates, and brands like it because it’s hard to ignore.
‘Not the future’: European publishers remain steadfast in blocking alternative IDs to third-party cookies
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Ali Mack, head of TV and agency, Experian Major streaming video providers have recently made headlines by adopting new currencies for ad measurement, threatening Nielsen’s long-standing TV ratings monopoly. NBCUniversal, for example, has certified iSpot and VideoAmp as currencies for advanced audiences and formed the Joint Industry Committee with Paramount, TelevisaUnivision and Warner Bros. Discovery. […]
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Dentsu’s new Web3 readiness tool shines light on the tech’s potential to complement AI
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Bill Newell says growing up on a farm in Michigan taught him to be innovative.
"If something did not work, you couldn't just go out and buy something to fix it," he said. "You had to make what you had work."
As a result, he and his brother, Jack, both of whom now live in unincorporated West Chicago, are very mechanical, a talent also shared by Bill Newell's 25-year-old son, Butch.
Their patented invention, the Newell Water Wacker, was to be featured on the NBC television show, "Why Didn't I Think of It" at 12:30 a.m. Monday.
The Newell Water Wacker is a motor for small boats, which is actually an adaptation of the common gas-powered weed trimmer. Interchanging the tube of the trimmer with the one designed by the Newells, the Water Wacker helps boats cut through water.
Besides working effectively on a variety of small crafts, including canoes, the invention is good for the water, Bill Newell said.
"We made it so that the exhaust doesn't go into the water but into the air. In a small pond, you don't want gas and oil," he said.
Butch Newell originally thought of the idea, his father said.
"He was outside one day mowing the grass and doing the trimming, when he began to wonder if it could be adapted."
Newell said he believed his son's idea could work, but it took four years before they were successful.
On Dec. 11, 1990, they received patent No. 4,976,637. Newell said getting the patent is easy, but manufacturing and marketing the product is harder.
"It would take about $300,000 in startup costs," he said, "to be able to produce it in quantity."
Newell said they did a market survey at the O'Hare Sports Show, interviewing 700 people. "If we had them to sell, we would have sold 500 that day," he said.
The invention was featured on television for the first time last year during an "Oprah Winfrey" segment on inventors.
Then, a couple of months ago, Newell's girlfriend learned about a Chicago competition at the Hotel Inter-Continental, with about a couple hundred entries, Newell said.
About four days after the competition, the three Newells were notified that their invention had won. Butch Newell then flew to Los Angeles to tape the NBC show.
The Newell Water Wacker will compete with other inventions on the show, and the winner will receive a $2,000 gift certificate to Sharper Images stores. It also means inclusion in a store catalogue that features inventions that may be on the market soon.


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Hartalega is also expected to see higher sales volume with the H1N1 outbreak in
"The management is imputing the effect of the H1N1 outbreak in the US into its fourth quarter financial year 2014 numbers (4QFY14). The number of H1N1 cases in the US peaked at the end of
"With the US being the largest importer of nitrile gloves from Hartalega, with 40 per cent of its total sales, we expect the sales volume for Hartalega to increase in 4QFY14,"
The firm said the NGC commissioning is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2014.
"With the start of commissioning, the management expects a growth rate of 15 per cent per annum over the next eight years."
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Wari, a digital payments and money transfer firm has partnered with Mastercard to boost digital payment acceptance in 35 African markets.
The deal will see the two firms provide citizens with access to secure and easy to use financial solutions, ending the dependency on cash.
According to Kabirou Mbodje, Wari’s CEO, “The partnership with Mastercard will provide us with the ability to boost digital payment acceptance in the markets that we operate. With the Mastercard experience in securing payments across the world, customers can rest assured that their payment, whether done by card or mobile, will be secure.
Wari through its MyWari app will offeraccess to Mastercard digital solutions HomeSend, giving customers the ability to send and receive funds regardless of the payment method, cash, wallet, debit or credit card. MyWari app users will also have access to a virtual card solution which gives them access to funds as is linked to the customers prepaid, debit or credit physical card.
Wari customers will also have access to Masterpass QR, a mobile payment solution that gives Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) access to a low cost way to accept payments for their goods and services, helping them go beyond cash and traditional point-of-sale (POS) terminals.
Wari will also offer digital payment solutions such as prepaid, debit and credit Mastercard cards widely accepted at millions of locations worldwide. These payment cards offer EMV chip and pin technology, ensuring that all transactions are secure.
“Our partnership with Wari illustrates how much the payment industry has evolved, and how Africa is at the forefront of driving the shift towards digital payments,” explains Daniel Monehin, Division President for Sub-Saharan Africa, Mastercard.


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Indian ecommerce marketplace Flipkart Group has signed a deal with Authentic Brands Group (ABG) for the licensing and distribution of lifestyle brand Nautica in India.
Flipkart will manage Nautica’s online and offline business through its franchise partners.
Founded in 1983, Nautica has more than 300 stores globally and 1,200 concessions worldwide. ABG acquired Nautica in May 2018 to grow its international footprint by expanding into new markets. The brand launched in China earlier this year.
Rishi Vasudev, senior vice-president and group head of fashion at Flipkart Group, said: “Our goal is to bring the best of fashion to our consumers, and the launch of Nautica under the Flipkart Group label is a direct reflection of this effort.
“We aim to grow Nautica’s business in India and offer consumers the best shopping experience by integrating our technology expertise across various consumer touchpoints.”
Flipkart launched in 2007 and has a customer base of more than 160 million, offering 80 million products across 80 categories.


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NEW YORK — The basketball business could get a bounce this season.
With the NBA season set to kick off tomorrow night, a number of big retailers said last week they are bullish about the category overall, after several years of weak sales. But what part of the business is growing?
In his company’s second-quarter earnings call last month, Finish Line Chairman and CEO Alan Cohen said basketball sales at the Indianapolis-based chain were up in the low double digits for the quarter. A big part of that, he said, was driven by Jordan and Nike performance shoes and on-court, unbranded product.
Todd Kirssin, DMM of footwear for Baltimore-based chain Downtown Locker Room, said at least 40 percent of the retailer’s footwear business came from marquee product and retro basketball styles. “It’s never been as good as right now,” said Kirssin.
At Foot Locker’s three nameplates, where basketball is the “single biggest category,” nonperformance looks are leading the charge, according to Keith Daly, president and CEO of Foot Locker, Foot Action and Foot Locker Kids.
“A big piece of the basketball business is less performance, more lifestyle,” he said.
But Daly said he’s also been encouraged by recent gains the chains have seen in the performance category (the non-heritage shoes that don’t carry the name of any particular player). “Performance had been nonexistent until [Nike’s] Hyperdunk showed up,” he said. And while Daly declined to disclose what percentage the category now made up total sales, he said, “We’re very encouraged. It’s completely reenergized what had been a very soft category.”
Earlier this month, Foot Locker opened a House of Hoops shop-in-shop in Los Angeles’ Beverly Center. A third version of its Nike collaboration will open in November in Chicago’s North Riverside Park Mall, where it will convert a previous Foot Locker store.
For their part, vendors are hoping new product launches can energize their core 12- to-20-year-old male consumer.
Lawrence Norman, VP of global basketball for Adidas, said, “I’m pretty bullish on basketball in general.” The Portland, Ore.-based company — the official sponsor of the NBA — is launching its newest performance collection, Command and Create, next month.
The product, which is divided into shoes for both power and finesse players, will be supported all season long with targeted special product releases and a comprehensive marketing campaign that ties print and TV into the online centerpiece, Adidasbasketball.com, which relaunches tomorrow.
Nike, meanwhile, will be bringing new colorways of its Hyperdunk to market throughout the season. And Canton, Mass.-based Reebok, a division of Adidas, is targeting high-school players with its court-ready “Talkin Krazy” launch of dry-erase-upper shoes.
But some insiders think the growth is overshadowing a major weakness: performance.
“Sales for the last four weeks in performance have been down 25 percent,” said Matt Powell, an analyst with SportsOneSource. “It’s very clear that performance basketball shoes are becoming a team sport kind of footwear.” The Hyperdunk, he said, “did fine, but it’s not enough to move the needle.” Heritage basketball looks, he said, have some traction, but not because of their on-court bonafides. “Kids don’t come in to the store any longer and ask, ‘Where are your basketball shoes?’” he said. “They come in and ask, ‘What’s cool?’”


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Apple adds new features to its music creation app GarageBand
GarageBand for iOS features a redesigned sound browser that makes it faster than ever to explore touch instruments.
Now, Apple TV to allow app-size limit up to 4GB
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Google, Apple to increase app developers' revenue share
Instead of keeping 70 per cent of all revenue generated from subscriptions, publishers will be able to keep 85 per cent of revenue.


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Blog: Rockstar Energy? Not over here, matey
Olly Wehring | 6 May 2009
The father of the founder of Rockstar Energy drink has been banned from entering the UK, because of his right-wing views, it emerged this week.
Michael Weiner, who is better known as radio talk show host Michael Savage, has been added to the UK government's list of individuals likely to foster extremism or hatred and so banned from entering the UK.
Weiner's son, Russell, is the founder and CEO of Rockstar Energy drink. His wife, Janet, is Rockstar's CFO. Some reports name Weiner senior himself as a co-founder of the energy drink brand, although these have not been officially confirmed.
Michael Weiner, who has used his radio show to attack homosexuality and Muslims, takes his place on the UK list alongside an assortment of crackpots from around the world, from Russian ultra-nationalists to extremist Islamic and Christian preachers.
Neither Weiner's son nor his wife have been refused entry to the UK, according to UK Government records.
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Sell when price right
SELLING grain when it reaches a predetermined budget price has got to become part of the cereal growers philosophy, Richard Whitlock, director of Banks Agriculture, told the conference.
Low support prices meant it was now possible for even the best farmer to make a loss because he was not a good marketeer.
Poor farmers had gone bust in the past because they failed to achieve sufficient yields. Now failure to secure a sufficient price was also a business threatening risk.
The best defence was information. Knowing which factors were driving the market and understanding the appropriate trends were the most useful pieces of information.
But what was an acceptable price? he asked. Far too often in volatile markets sellers missed a reasonable price by waiting for an exceptional price. If a farm budget was good enough to sow crops on, it should be good enough to sell them on, said Mr Whitlock.
"Growers need to know their costs of production and have in mind a price at which it is profitable for them to sell. "Marketing is the key to success. Learn to watch the market so that sales decisions can be made on the call," he advised. Farmers should not alter their selling price in a rising market, unless they understood why the market was going up. And they should not be "all or nothing" sellers. "As prices approach the level you believe is acceptable, be prepared to start to sell small lots," he said.
crops should be marketed according to the farms budget.


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(Updates to midday)
* HSI down 0.9 percent, HSCE down 1.4 percent
* CSI300, Shanghai Comp off 0.6 pct
* Prada, Esprit weak as retailers on backfoot
* BYD shares in HK slump 10 pct on CLSA report
* HKEx down 2.3 pct, erases all gains post-QE3
By Vikram Subhedar
HONG KONG, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Hong Kong shares slipped on Wednesday, hit by profit-taking ahead of the quarter-end and as weak overseas markets and festering eurozone concerns kept investors wary of chasing this month’s rally.
The Hang Seng index fell 0.9 percent to 20,514.32 by the midday break, with retailers bearing the brunt of pain. Esprit Holdings, which reported weaker-than expected annual results after the end of the morning session, was down 2.7 percent.
Profit margins in China and Hong Kong are expected to remain under pressure through the rest of the year with a mild recovery expected only next year, according to Credit Suisse.
“Any way we slice it, growth trends are sliding,” said Credit Suisse analyst Karim Salamatian, the Hong Kong-based regional head of Credit Suisse’s consumer research team.
The Hang Seng index is, however, still up 5.3 percent so far this month.
The China Enterprises index fell 1.4 percent while in China, the CSI300 of the top Shanghai and Shenzhen listings and the Shanghai Composite were both down 0.6 percent.
Both Hong Kong and China markets got off on a weak start after the S&P 500 suffered its worst day since June. Key to the declines were comments by Philadelphia Federal Reserve President Charles Plosser that questioned quantitative easing as a policy to counter sluggish economic growth and stubbornly low unemployment.
Protests in debt-laden Spain ahead of the planned announcement of a new round of austerity measures did little to enthuse investors back into stocks.
In Hong Kong, consumer-related stocks fell on relatively healthy volumes on an otherwise lacklustre day for trading.
High-end brands, jewelers and apparel makers were all weak as investors continued to take money off the table after the strong run-up in stocks this month.
In addition to Esprit, Prada SpA was down 1.4 percent while consumer goods exporter Li & Fung fell a 2.3 percent, extending this week’s losses to 4.1 percent.
Hong Kong jewellers, a sector favoured by the brokerage partly due to low valuations, also fell on Wednesday with Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group down 0.7 percent and rival Luk Fook Holdings off 1 percent.
A pullback in gold prices this week continued to weigh on mining companies with Zijin Mining off 1.8 percent in Shanghai and down 2.3 percent in Hong Kong.
BYD SLUMPS, HKEx ERASES POST-QE3 GAINS
Shares of Warren Buffett-backed BYD Co Ltd slumped 9 percent in Hong Kong trading after brokerage CLSA slashed its target price for the electric car maker.
In its report, CLSA maintained its “conviction sell” rating on the company and cut its target price on the stock to HK$0.41, suggesting a further 96 percent decline from current levels.
Rival Great Wall Motor, to whom CLSA believes BYD is losing market share, rose 2.5 percent in Hong Kong and 1.1 percent in Shanghai.
BYD shares had traded nearly two-and-a-half times their average daily volume by midday in Hong Kong. The company’s Shenzhen listing fell 5 percent.
The drop off in overall market volumes continued to plague shares of Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing which fell 2.3 percent and have now erased all gains following the launch of latest round of asset purchases by the U.S. Fed on Sept 13. (Editing by Edwina Gibbs)


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Facebook unveiled a new feature called 'Place Tips'. When you're near a store, restaurant, or location that Facebook thinks you might like, a little pink notification will pop up on your News Feed.
Consumer tech brands may get all the love, but there are actually millions of business software that's behind some of your favorite apps and sites.
The move is a part of a strategy that comes weeks after the organisational reshuffle that resulted in the wing being realigned to the company’s service lines.
To provide free medical diagnostic services in rural areas, Rajasthan government today started a "mobile portable-lab" in ten districts of the state.
The company will tie up with a local partner to set up reference laboratories and run for 5-10 years in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique and Uganda.
The specialised lab is focussed on extracting information from Apple devices using forensic softwares from devices such as iMAc, Mac book pro.
"Epilepsy is a result of hundreds of brain cells producing abnormally high levels of electricity, which results in different manifestations.
The firm is optimistic about adding new clients in India and plans to set up more testing and certification laboratories in the country.


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#TransformTuesday: 2 December
Every week, Transform examines recent rebrands and updated visual identities. This week’s picks are below. For more from #TransformTuesday, follow @Transformsays.
1. The Tusk Conservation Awards now has a memorable identity that represents its purpose as designed by The Partners.
2. In a return to gradients, the Adelaide Airport does away with its plane icon but replaces it with a 3D-esque formation and a gradient colour scheme from Adelaide-based agency Nicknack.
3. Coca-Cola announced its entrée into the milk business with the launch of Fairlife, a lactose-free milk.
4. As a pre-Christmas move, Virgin announced the #VirginTraindeers and complemented the social media campaign with the implementation of a festive mini-rebrand of its trains.


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The car - which Sir Jimmy called "The Beast" and still has his personalised JS 247 plate - is expected to be the highest priced single item at the sale in Leeds.
It was bought by an internet buyer as hundreds of people packed Savile Hall in the Royal Armouries complex.
More top news
Weather: Early morning forecast with Jon Mitchell
Weather: Late update with Jon Mitchell
Who's in charge and what happens if there's an international crisis? Here are answers to key questions about the dissolution of parliament.


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Members of the FDA's advisory panel will meet at the end of June to discuss the agency's working group report that calls for stronger warnings and dose limits on prescription and OTC products containing acetaminophen to reduce the risk of liver injury.
"There is extensive evidence that hepatotoxicity [liver toxicity] caused by acetaminophen use may result from lack of consumer awareness that acetaminophen can cause severe liver injury," according to the report.
The working group, made up of 12 top officials in the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, recommends 6 options:
Acetaminophen-related liver injury was the leading cause of acute liver failure from 1998 to 2003. Analyses of national mortality data show that acetaminophen-associated overdoses account yearly for 56,000 emergency room visits, 26,000 hospitalizations, and 458 deaths, according to the FDA report
The Consumer Healthcare Products Association said it "looks forward to working with the FDA and other interested parties to further build awareness among consumers about how to safely and effectively use acetaminophen."
For a related article, see:
For other articles in this issue, see:


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With many businesses closing their doors during Victoria's six-week lockdown, and fears some may not reopen, the State Government has launched a campaign aimed at buying local.
The $1.5 million Click for Vic campaign was launched today, but the State Opposition has said much more may need to be done to get businesses through the second wave.
What is Click for Vic?
The Click for Vic campaign will be rolled out across television, print, radio, digital and social media channels to encourage Victorians to support one another by buying local produce, meals, alcohol and even music.
Under Melbourne's stage 4 restrictions, many workplaces have closed entirely, while others are operating at reduced capacity.
Many regional Victorian businesses operating under stage 3 restrictions have had to reduce their output, while cafes and restaurants remain open for takeaway only across the state.
While financial support is available, there have been fears the second, tougher shutdown could be the end for many Victorian businesses.
The Click for Vic campaign centres around a website which collates what Premier Daniel Andrews called "a quality offering" of Victoria's best goods and produce.
"Whilst many, many businesses are closed and Victorians are not in a position to be able to be out shopping other than for the absolute basics, there are so many outstanding products, so many outstanding small businesses for whom quality is the real key," Mr Andrews said.
"And it's only appropriate that we work as hard as we can to try and direct Victorians to those amazing Victorian businesses."
Who is involved?
The campaign has partnered with Providoor, a delivery service for some of Melbourne's top-end restaurants, Co-Lab Pantry, which involves a range of hospitality businesses, and Victorian Country Market, which delivers fresh produce via its online marketplace.
A slew of other restaurants, cafes, fashion brands, produce providers and retail outlets have been included in the campaign.
Providoor was launched earlier this year by chef Shane Delia, who is known for his SBS cooking show and Maha restaurant.
"Don't get me wrong, you're never going to be able to replace the romance and the experience of coming to a restaurant and being around your favourite friends and the venue that you love," Mr Delia said.
"But what Providoor has done has given restaurants a chance to connect directly with their customers, keep their relationship strong, and bring a little bit of that magic into people's homes."
The campaign will include promotional videos from regional producers like Sallie Jones of Gippsland Jersey, Nathan Cowan of Billson’s Brewery in Beechworth and Gabrielle Moore of Sailors Grave Brewing in Orbost.
What other support is available?
Under the initiative, online market places primarily selling Victorian agricultural produce will be able to apply for grants to help with the cost of onboarding, online marketing and registration fees.
Marketplaces can also apply for funding to cover freight costs to reduce delivery fees for customers.
The Premier also said the state's business support fund, launched during the crisis, had approved more than 126,000 applications and paid out about $1.3 billion.
Opposition Leader Michael O'Brien said more needed to be done to support small businesses, particularly sole traders, through the restrictions.
"Small business are doing it so tough at the moment," he said.
"A website's one thing but the Government should be putting its hand in its pocket to really support small business."
Could it last for longer than the lockdown?
Mr Delia hopes so.
The chef said it was an opportunity for the hospitality industry to work with governments on reform and focus on how the industry moves forward.
"We've actually unlocked an opportunity to create new revenue streams for the long-term, we don't see this as a COVID business, we see this as a thriving business post-COVID," he said.
"But what it's also done is it's given the wider community, the ecosystem around restaurants a chance to survive too. You're talking about fruit and veg growers, you're talking about sparkies who need to go in and repair things, you're talking about air conditioning mechanics and all these guys who rely on restaurant trade who sometimes get forgotten about."


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THE MOST powerful countries in the world 2018 have been revealed in a new study by the US News and World Report, with the UK making a surprising entry.
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If you planned on standing on a line all night to get those Air Yeezy 2s, forget it kid.
Nike has officially decided to end their “midnight release” tradition after the riots and violence resulting from both the Air Jordan Concord 11 and Foamposite Galaxy releases. Instead, they’ve initiated a new ‘Twitter RSVP’ method that actually makes you “reserve” your sneakers, compared to risk of getting robbed coming out the store or not getting a pair at all.
According to The Smoking Section, here’s how it works:
The Twitter RSVP Process:
On the RSVP date, our store will send a tweet at a random time to begin our Twitter RSVP process, including a product specific hashtag (#tag).
Once registration is open, you must Direct Message(“DM”) the store within 60 minutes. The DM must include:
—The product-specific #tag tweeted by the store
—The last 4 digits of your State/Passport/Military/School ID number
—Your shoe size (limit one).
Confirmations from the store will be sent via DM to those who have successfully secured their requested size. Shoes will be awarded on a “first respond, first serve” basis. Confirmed recipients must pick up their product (in person w/ identification) from the store on the day of launch. Unclaimed product will be announced on Twitter and will be re-released at the store’s discretion.
This new ruling only applies to official Nike stores, so other retailers—like Foot Locker and Champs—can still do midnight releases if they want. On one hand, it eliminates the lines. Then again, the online competition just gets bigger—especially with a reported 100 million+ users on Twitter. Sound off and give us your opinion.—Keenan Higgins


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Manchester-based online fashion giant Boohoo Group plc on Thursday announced a proposed placing of new ordinary shares with existing and new institutional investors to raise up to £200 million.
“Zeus Capital and Jefferies International Limited are acting as joint global coordinators and joint bookrunners in connection with the placing …” said Boohoo.
“The group intends to use the net proceeds of the placing to take advantage of numerous opportunities that are likely to emerge in the global fashion industry over the coming months.
“The group continues to review a number of possible M&A opportunities and will update shareholders as required.”
Boohoo later confirmed the bookbuild had closed and it raised gross proceeds of £197.7 million through the successful private placing of 58,140,591 placing shares, representing 5% of the company’s issued share capital, at a price of 340p per placing share.
Boohoo said it had audited net cash of £240.7 million as at February 29, 2020, and that since the year end the group has remained cash generative.
“Following the placing, the group will have an even stronger balance sheet to help accelerate its vision to lead the fashion e-commerce market globally,” added the Manchester firm.
“Boohoo has demonstrated that its platform is capable of integrating high-quality fashion brands.
“The recent acquisitions of the Karen Millen and Coast brands evidence its successful transition of brands to a pure online proposition on its scalable multi brand platform; plugging them into its test and repeat model, and leveraging the group’s infrastructure and insight into the fashion e-commerce market.
“Moreover, the group’s earlier acquisitions of the NastyGal and MissPap brands demonstrate its ability to develop and grow brands successfully.
“The group sees significant opportunity to replicate this success globally.”
On current trading, Boohoo said: “At the time of the group’s preliminary results announcement on 22 April 2020, the group noted that since mid-March, trading had been mixed, as a result of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, initially with a marked decrease in the year-on-year growth rate.
“Performance then improved during April, delivering improved year-on-year growth of group sales.
“The group is pleased to update shareholders that trading into May remains robust.
“The group does, however, remain cautious regarding the outlook, as a result of the uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic together with the impact of lifting lock-down restrictions and the potential influence on competitive behaviour for the remainder of the year.
“Given the uncertainty generated by the continually evolving COVID-19 pandemic, it is not appropriate to provide guidance for the financial year ending 28 February 2021 at this stage.”


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When you consider the opportunity to fraternize with the beloved penguins of Simon’s Town, stopping to smell the flowers that adorn Adderley Street or zipping along the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway all in one day, it’s no surprise that the City of Cape Town was recently named “The Best Place in the World to Visit” by The New York Times.
Not surprisingly, this vibrant city perched on the shore of Table Bay is world-renowned for its conservation and biodiversity initiatives.
Dramatic social, economic and environmental progress is clearly evident these days in diverse South Africa. For example, it’s quickly grown from international isolation to seeing the City of Cape Town recently chosen as the proud host of the 2016 International LGBT Travel Association Global Convention.
Indeed, from the flea-markets of Greenmarket Square to the beaches of Sandy Bay, the residents of Cape Town are now more than ever, ready for the world.
Newsbyte — WALLDORF — SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) today announced recipients of the 2017 SAP Pinnacle awards, recognizing partner contributions to customer success and innovation.
The awards are presented annually to the top SAP partners that have excelled in
Newsbyte — WALLDORF — SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) today announced two new partner products, ProQ and Code Search Pro, are now available on SAP Store through self-service, digitally enabled purchasing methods.
These offerings fit with the SAP Digital
Feature Article — If there are two distinct advantages of running a small and midsize company, it’s size and simplicity. When compared to their much-larger rivals, smaller firms have the innate ability to fully adopt technology investments quickly


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It is estimated that the average social media user spends approx Two and a half hours a day on social media.
So thanks to tactics like newsjacking, getting brands interested has never been easier.
In many cases, brands have used news hijacking to put themselves in the middle of the conversation and show off their media prowess.
However, associating your brand with a viral story and being silent on certain issues can get you in the middle of a firestorm of criticism.
So how should brands handle viral news stories, and is it worth a newsfeed?
Creating a successful news penetration strategy can bring huge benefits to any brand. But it’s all about execution.
What is hack?
Newsjacking is a common media strategy where a brand markets itself using a viral news story.
For example, social media influencers frequently use news snatching to present their unique snippets and build their audience.
However, this strategy is frequently adopted by major brands to help them direct and expand their brand reach. In rare cases, a brand can become the focus of a news story, for better or for worse.
However, news hijacking is primarily about associating your brand with an existing story, not making yourself the story.
The benefit of news hijacking is that it takes a little bit of effort and a bit of creativity to get your brand trending in no time.
There are several ways to penetrate a story using traditional marketing strategies, including:
- Social media campaigns.
- Writing blog articles.
- Partnership with other brands.
- hosting events.
Most importantly, news hijacking is a tactic available to anyone with a personal or professional brand, so anyone can try it.
While news capture offers great benefits with very little effort, there are pros and cons to this tactic that every brand should consider.
The pros and cons of newspaper hijacking
As the saying goes, “All publicity is good publicity.”
This is very much true in the age of social media, although brands walk a tighter rope than political pundits and your average Twitter user when it comes to vibe or relevance.
For this reason, there are many advantages and disadvantages to hacking the news.
- Leverage a news story with little effort.
- Dramatically expand your brand’s reach and take it to the mainstream.
- Grow your social media engagement widely.
- Promote brand loyalty (if done right).
- Explain your brand values in real time.
- It could potentially damage your brand’s reputation.
- He missed the story and failed to take advantage of its benefits.
- Appeal to the wrong audience.
So, to reap the full benefits of newsjacking, you need to know how to approach a story and which story to choose.
How to benefit from breaking news
Find trending stories relevant to you
First and foremost, you need to find the right breaking news for your news outlet.
Small brands can benefit from researching trending topics in their niche using tools like Google Trends to find relevant trending topics.
As you can see, interest in cryptocurrency in general is decreasing, but there are a lot of popular sub-topics, which any brand can capitalize on.
platforms like smrash And SE order They also provide tools that allow us to explore popular subtopics in any given niche. For example, the SE classification provides a mind map and clusters for each popular topic.
For smaller industries, I recommend even writing about stories that are trending in the future and that you can move forward with.
For example, new technologies, such as ChatGPT and AI, provide opportunities for SEO tags to rank high in these keyword searches because they eventually rise over time.
Additionally, you can find trending topics by searching for trending hashtags on Twitter, hot posts in Reddit communities, and by monitoring what people post on Facebook and Instagram.
Providing a unique brand spin
Next, you need to provide a unique perspective that will help separate your brand from the competition.
For example, many brands during the pandemic, such as Uber and Busch, have successfully created unique and tasteful branded ad campaigns, and have fostered greater loyalty to their customers.
Make your campaigns relevant to your brand and its customers.
For example, if you were a car company, creating ad campaigns about the need for more electric cars or even mocking Elon Musk might be appropriate.
However, commenting on other news stories that are not related to cars or transportation would appear inauthentic.
appeal to your audience
We also need to consider the type of audience we want to market our brand to. Leveraging popular keywords can help you craft an ad creative that meets your audience’s needs.
In addition, growing your message to your audience will make you appear more real.
Finally, marketing to your audience will help your campaign through the right channels.
For example, professional brands in the academic field would benefit from writing about stories that are trending on platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter, rather than on Facebook or Instagram.
Timing is another major consideration for stealing news. If your brand is unable to create something fast, it may become irrelevant.
Of course, I would recommend researching a news story properly before attempting to create a marketing campaign out of it to be safe.
In many cases, it will take a lot of resources to work on a news story quickly and effectively, which may not be realistic for many brands.
Build traction with promotion
Once you have designed your advertising campaign, you must promote your brand to reach as many eyeballs as possible.
Adding hashtags to viral stories will help your brand reach a wider audience.
In addition, sharing creatives across all social media platforms and via email in newsletter lists will help you reach more customers.
Again, the key is to be quick, especially if you want to promote ads through standard or digital channels.
Use it in moderation
Finally, I think it’s important to remember that news hijacking is not an everyday strategy, and it shouldn’t be used more than a few times a year.
Brands can take serious risks by engaging in news hijacking, and can betray any credibility they are trying to manufacture by engaging in this tactic too often.
For this reason, I recommend keeping a close eye on your industry for any popular stories and picking only one that you feel is a good fit for your brand.
Going out and looking for stories can be more expensive in the long run and provide little benefit.
5 examples of successful news theft
To help you strategize better, let’s examine some examples of successful and unsuccessful news theft.
1. Bush Bear sponsors dog adoptions
One of the more heartwarming stories of the early pandemic was attempted before Anheuser Bush To encourage more people to adopt dogs.
The company has offered a free three-month supply of beer to anyone who adopts a dog from a Midwest Animal Rescue & Services (MARS) sponsored shelter.
The story helped bring to light an unreported phenomenon and helped the company gain widespread exposure across social media and its customer base.
2. Uber ad campaign: “Thank you for not driving”
Of all the industries hit hardest by the pandemic, ride sharing had to be one of the hardest.
However, not only was Uber able to save its brand, but it also capitalized on the pandemic with its “Thank You for Not Riding” campaign, encouraging drivers to stay home.
While the company certainly lost a lot of money due to the global event, this ad campaign helped create greater trust and loyalty with its customers, which was more rewarded in the long run.
3. Oreo’s famous “Blackout ad”.
Perhaps the most notorious example of news-stealing occurred nearly a decade ago at Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans. After a faulty relay caused a power outage for a few minutes, Oreo responded by posting a real-time post on Twitter that set the internet on fire.
This incredibly simple but expertly timed tweet remains one of the best examples of news-stealing done right in a split second of the moment.
4. Budweiser saves the World Cup
During the 2022 World Cup, Budweiser—one of the major sponsors of the World Cup for more than three decades—wakes up to discover that Doha has banned all alcohol at its sporting events.
While the company deleted a tweet saying, “Well, that’s embarrassing,” it responded subtly by awarding the beer it promised in the cup to the winning country.
This is amazing story is a great example of how brands can pivot a breaking news story and manipulate it for their own benefit.
And in the same way that Oreo manipulated the Super Bowl blackout in his favor, Budweiser has also pulled the news and cashed in on it in the long run, even if it lost tens of thousands of dollars in sales.
5. This year’s search from Google
Finally, this year’s Google Search is another creative example of a brand being able to leverage trending news stories to tell its unique brand story.
By placing its brand at the center of these stories, Google is helping to forge a stronger relationship with its customers and cement its brand’s edge in technology.
The newspaper hijacking went wrong
Of course, for every news-hijacking success story, there is an equally unsatisfying one.
Perhaps the most famous failure to hijack the news came from Pepsi with its infamous Kendall Jenner ad.
While political turmoil and hot social issues were growing, the Pepsi advertisement completely missed the point and embarrassed his reputation.
Let this be a lesson that political messages can be powerful themes, but they must be treated with courtesy and directed specifically at your audience.
All in all, news hijacking is a very effective strategy for increasing your brand’s reach and gaining publicity.
However, news hijacking requires tact and focus for correct execution, as well as proper timing.
Follow these examples above for a successful news story and help your brand reach new eyeballs.
- 17 Great Social Media Marketing Examples
- How to Find Trends: 14 Tools for Theme Inspiration
- Content Marketing: The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to What Works
Featured image: Yurii_Yarema / Shutterstock


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Retailer Iceland has said that it will stop selling bananas in plastic packaging and is calling for other supermarkets to follow, according to Sky News.
Iceland is trialling the use of recyclable paper bands for pre-packaged bananas in three of its stores, with a further 120 branches to follow in the coming days.
This year’s REB Market Intelligence Summit is taking place on 2 October and will look at end destinations for materials. Find out more here
A national rollout is planned by the end of the year, and the supermarket is claiming that this will eventually save 10 million plastic bags annually.
Iceland managing director Richard Walker said: “People have become so used to buying their products wrapped in plastic, or indeed using plastic bags for loose produce, and this has to stop if we are to turn down the tap on plastics. This move alone will have a significant impact on our plastics consumption and is one of the first of many solutions that are in development.
“Our customers support our move to reduce single-use plastic and we are pleased to share this important milestone, with many more to come.”
Its newly packaged bananas are the first products in a big British supermarket to feature the Plastic Free Trust Mark, which was launched by the campaign A Plastic Planet this year, said Sky News.


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Two prestigious organisations in city — Defence Food Research Laboratory (DFRL) and Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) are said to be ready to help the stranded pilgrims at the flood ravaged areas in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh by providing Ready-to-eat food packets.
It may be recalled that CFTRI had despatched tonnes of food items to the victims of tsunami in 2004.
The two organisations are learnt to be ready to despatch about 3 tonnes of food items in 20 varieties like Bisibele Bath, Uppittu, Pulav, Chappati and Dal not to exclude Jamoon.
DFRL Director Dr. Harshavardhan Batra was said to have held a meeting of senior Food Scientists on Wednesday to apprise them of the gravity of calamity in Northern States and necessity to despatch food items to stranded pilgrims in affected areas. DFRL is said to have come out with light food items called reconstitutable products which on mixing with water would increase three-fold in volume. Transport of light products would be easy and the items would be nutritious too, it is said. Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Secretary Bhaskar Anand said the assistance of DFRL and CFTRI could be taken only after the stranded people were evacuated to safe zones.
Courtesy : Star Of Mysore


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So it is with the class of 2020, that unfortunate group of shopping centres that opened right in the midst of a perfect storm, when lockdowns, social distancing, mobility restrictions, international border closures and fear were reducing foot traffic to near-zero levels for months at a time. Worse, governments in Southeast Asia seemed to have their finger constantly twitching over an on-off switch for retail, food, and entertainment businesses.
For new centres, or those existing ones sporting fresh expansions or renovations, the only bright spot is that two years later they feel like they are brand spanking new, as though they have had a two-year long ‘soft’ opening.
Siam Premium Outlets Bangkok, US developer Simon’s first foray into Thailand, had the misfortune not only to open in the middle of the maelstrom, in June 2020, but also to be a factory outlet centre that was depending on foreign travellers for the lion’s share of its business. Thailand’s border had closed more than two months beforehand and it was to remain closed (with the exception of the ‘Phuket sandbox’ scheme that just held the door slightly ajar for a few months) until November 2021. As of this 1 July, entrance requirements will normalise and for the first time since the pandemic began, visitors will be able to rock up at the country’s international airports without testing, quarantine, vaccination or any other requirement. For Siam Premium Outlets Bangkok, it could be the beginning of something special.
A successful design
Simon’s centre is on the main tollway between Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport and the resort city of Pattaya 90 minutes to the south. It is a 50/50 joint venture with Siam Piwat, a local developer with a track record of successful ‘full-price’ malls in downtown Bangkok.
The centre has about 200 stores accommodated in just under 26,000sqm of gross leasable area, making it markedly smaller than most of its other Asian outlet centres. (Its outlet centres elsewhere in Asia average closer to 40,000sqm.) The store directory includes a limited lineup of luxury brands, such as Bally, Balenciaga and Versace, but on the whole this is a tenant mix for the people, rather than the truly aspirational luxury shopper. The mix is far more around upscale (Kate Spade, Lacoste, Coach, Burberry, Jim Thompson) and mid-end brands (Esprit, Cotton On, CK, Mango, Skechers), which could make a lot of sense in view of the location, since Pattaya-bound tourists tend to be party-goers rather than people focused on really high-end shopping.
Simon has repeated its successful formula for the premium outlet centre layout. The project, pleasantly landscaped with greenery, water features and street furniture, is laid out in the customary single-level, open-air elongated racetrack configuration with satellite parking on three sides.
Patience – foreign headwinds still loom
The loosening of entry restrictions for foreign travellers is a godsend for the centre but it will take a lot of time before things actually get to where they would have been in the event there had been no pandemic. The Tourism Authority of Thailand is hoping that Thailand will welcome 7-10 million foreign visitors this year, then another 20 million in 2023. However, even the high end of that range would mean a 75 per cent reduction this year on 2019’s nearly 40 million visitors. Moreover, the composition of those tourists will be materially different to what it has been in the past. Specifically, TAT has gone on a marketing onslaught in India and the Middle East to compensate for visitors not being able to come from China and longer-haul sources in Europe and North America.
Realistically, the spending gap for Thailand’s many tourism-dependent shopping centres will not be filled until 2024 at the earliest, even then if certain factors are in alignment. Specifically, China, which accounts for approximately one-third of tourist arrivals in ‘normal’ times, has to drop the exit barriers for its citizens first, the war in Ukraine needs to end and recession in Western countries, now widely believed to be imminent, needs to be avoided. It seems like a lot to ask that all of these stars can be maneuvered into alignment in the next 18 months, but Thailand’s long-suffering retail operators are keeping their fingers crossed.
Assuming TAT’s most optimistic projection, Thailand’s three most important tourist cities – Bangkok, Pattaya, and Phuket – will, by the end of this year, have foregone an estimated US$42 billion ($60.6 billion) of retail, food and beverage spending by international visitors since the beginning of April 2020. The effects on major shopping centres in those cities have been devastating, and the knock-on impacts on the local and national economies brutal.
So the Bangkok outlet project enters at a difficult time; however, both developers do have a formidable track record. Nearly 10 per cent of Simon’s net operating income is derived from its international assets, which include 33 factory outlet centres with a combined floorspace of more than 1,000,000sqm. Seventeen of these centres are in Asia: nine in Japan, five in Korea, two in Malaysia and the one in Thailand.
Simon/Siam Piwat have the financial wherewithal and the retailer connections to outlast the drought. They have a lot of experience at playing the long game. Just as well, because the challenges ahead for getting Thai tourism back on track are still formidable.


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Suits Target Target
A predicted storm of litigation over Target's card data breach has begun to break over Target.
Last week, a second credit union filed a complaint against Target over losses it said it sustained as a result of the breach and law firms representing community banks announced their clients had also filed complaints.
The 5700 member, $38 million First Choice Federal Credit Union in New Castle, Pa., filed its complaint in federal court on Jan. 31.
The 28,000 member, $211 million Alabama State Employees Credit Union filed its complaint in early January. Both complaints are class actions.
Because of the later filing, the First Choice complaint included Target's Jan. 10 announcement of additional records stolen as well as reports of stolen credit and debit card numbers from the Target breach being sold on criminal websites in other counties.
“As a direct and proximate result of the Target Data Breach, Plaintiff and members of the Class have been damaged, because Target's wrongful conduct has caused Class members to incur significant losses associated with credit and debit card cancellation and/or reissuance;” First Choice wrote in its complaint, adding: “customer reimbursement for fraud losses; lost interest and transaction fees; lost customers; administrative expenses associated with monitoring and preventing fraud and administrative expenses in dealing with customer confusion; and claims alleging fraudulent activity”
The Pittsburgh law firms of Carlson Lynch, Del Sole Cavanaugh Stroyd, and Berger & Montague filed the complaint for the credit union and issued a statement.
“The complaint alleges that Target knew or should have known that its payment processes were vulnerable to this sort of attack, yet the company failed to take adequate measures to protect sensitive data and did not inform customers or financial institutions about the ongoing attack for several weeks after it was discovered. We believe Target is liable under Minnesota state law (where Target's headquarters are located) for these damages, and the purpose of the suit is to recover some of these losses for the plaintiffs.”
Meanwhile the Beaumont, Texas, law firm of Provost Umphrey has filed a complaint in Minnesota on behalf of CommunityBank of Texas, a Beaumont based bank, and FNBT.com Inc., an online bank headquartered in Fort Walton Beach, Fla.
“We feel that CommunityBank is well positioned to represent a nationwide class of banks, credit unions and other financial institutions. It is too early to determine just how much money banks have lost, but early indications are that losses could run in the hundreds of millions of dollars,” attorneys working for the firm said when they filed the complaint.
According to the lawsuit, the breach was the direct and foreseeable result of Target's failure to implement and maintain reasonable, industry-standard security measures to protect its customers’ credit card, debit card, and personal information.
Additionally, credit card companies require merchants to comply with regulations aimed at safeguarding customer information. These regulations generally prohibit the retention and storage of cardholder information after a transaction has been authorized, the firm noted.
While the legal storm might have begun to break over Target, its outcome likely remains very away and does not necessarily promise victory to the plaintiffs.
First, the profusion of lawsuits around the country means it is almost certain the courts will consolidate the cases into one venue in one court charged with hearing the cases and there is no guarantee of the outcome or its timeliness. Credit unions damaged by the Heartland data breach in 2008 were still fighting the case in 2013 and the outcome has yet to be finalized.
But executives in the credit unions which have brought these suits in the past have contended that they see their institutions holding the large retail firms and processors accountable for the damage they have done to their members. They also argue that Visa and MasterCard's fines for the breaches are so limited that strong legal action is one of the only ways to make retail firms and processors take the need for data security more seriously.


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It seems that the dream has officially been delayed. The Project Ara team has officially confirmed what was already foreshadowed in yesterday’s tweets. The modular smartphone won’t be coming this year. Instead, it will have a 2016 launch which still has no new timeline. And instead of doing it outside of the country, the first Project Ara smartphone might be launched somewhere in mainland US instead. Naturally, despite its best efforts to assuage fears, the delays would inevitably worry not just fans but also existing and potential hardware partners.
For a while, it seemed that Project Ara had become dormant, with not a single peep since the end of May. Then suddenly last week, the project’s Twitter account sprung back to life. Sadly, it seemed it was only in preparation for the bombshell it would drop the next day. Project Ara won’t be launching in Puerto Rico as initially planned and it was “re-calculating” its route. And apparently its schedule.
Instead of Puerto Rico, the team is now looking for another launch site somewhere in the US. The choice of Puerto Rico was, at that time, auspicious. Both technical and legal pieces were firmly in place and it would have boosted the image of the smartphone as something not just for the tech savvy market. Launching in mainland US, however, might prove to be more economical and practical.
ADDENDUM: The above parts of this article has been edited slightly to reflect the possibility of the launch happening within mainland US territory, versus unincorporated territories such as Puerto Rico.
As to the reason for the delay, the team isn’t saying much apart from the fact that they underestimated the number of iterations or possible combinations of modules. In other words, it might more be a logistics issue than a technical one. Project Ara has come a long way, to the point of an actually booting and basically working smartphone. But it will, of course, need to be more than that to fulfill its promise. Sadly, it seems that the modules that would make Ara a success are now also holding it back.
It is naturally disappointing, if not worrying, to hear that we won’t get to see Project Ara in the flesh this year. But the quest has been an almost impossible one anyway it would truly be a feat to see it come to retail at all. Whether or not it becomes a commercially viable product, however, is something still up in the air.


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BT and Ribbit, Alcatel-Lucent and ProgrammableWeb, Microsoft and Skype. These have been memorable acquisitions in recent years in the telecom space, and the trend points to disruptive web-based tech making a splash — enough for the establishment to cough up millions of dollars to buy out.
Although not a merger or acquisition, Twilio still scores big — in terms of press coverage and spreading its technology — in this partnership with AT&T. Not only did the news of this resale agreement reach telecom channels (NoJitter, Opus Research, Fierce) but also the mainstream technology blogosphere (TechCrunch, GigaOM, ProgrammableWeb). Plus, we’re talking about AT&T here. There’s a reason for the Ma Bell monicker.
Twilio will power the AT&T Advanced Communications Suite (ACS) offering for enterprise customers looking to leverage communications in order to streamline processes and enhance collaboration internally or externally. There will be pre-built voice and SMS-enabled apps made available for purchase on the ACS web portal, or an AT&T customer may decide to create its own app using the Twilio API.
So aside from the high-fives and vigorous handshaking going around in Silicon Valley and Dallas, what does this partnership really tell us?
First, Big Telecom is still behind in Web/Enterprise/Telephony 2.0 offerings, even though any U.S. carrier has a thick portfolio of business customers. These business customers are buying pipe capacity, SIP trunks, mobile subscriptions, and telephone numbers. Big Telecom has a menu full of products and services, but how many of them offer tools for customers to create their own solutions? The fact that AT&T (and probably its competitors) has to look elsewhere to offer web telephony APIs to its business customers is somewhat troubling. And to bill it as advanced communications. Web telephony has been around for years, why didn’t Big Telecom get on the bandwagon sooner with all its money and resources?
Second, will we start to see other similar partnerships (or even M&A) between competitors of Twilio and AT&T? Is this partnership enough of a threat to spur other web telephony/carrier ventures in the industry? I actually don’t think so. I think these web telephony platforms have been around long enough to have their share of loyal developers, including business app developers. In fact many of these web telephony providers have already signed up major companies as clients.
Finally, will a partnership like this spawn or accelerate innovation in web telephony? Well, one thing is very clear: web telephony didn’t need Big Telecom to be innovative and successful. Some may even argue that Big Telecom doesn’t really know how to deal with web telephony, as in the case of BT-Ribbit. Perhaps the timing wasn’t right back then for BT, but with or without Big Telecom web telephony is not only here to stay but here to flourish.


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IN its decade on the market, the Spanx line of modern girdles has become both a must-have undergarment and an easy punch line. Celebrities like Tyra Banks, Janeane Garofalo and Wanda Sykes declare their allegiance to Spanx, even as they joke about it.
“It sucks all that stuff in,” Ms. Sykes said recently. “It’s so funny that when you take them off you just become a blob. You look in the mirror, and it’s like, hey, now I’m an amoeba.”
The snickering rose a decibel level in February, when Spanx introduced its first products for men. On “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” the host was nearly ejected from his own Handsome Men’s Club after Rob Lowe accused him of wearing Spanx. Cue giggles from the audience and a horrified look from another club member, Matthew McConaughey, his tight abs unexposed for once.
Steve Carell, who received an early sample of a men’s T-shirt, said in a deadpan interview at the Golden Globes, “I have no unsightly bulges but an excellent product I’m sure.” Wink-wink.
The inside joke? Spanx for Men has been a huge retail hit.
“We are selling them as quickly as Spanx can make them,” said Nickelson Wooster, the men’s fashion director at Neiman Marcus, which was until recently the only department store carrying them. (This month Spanx for Men arrived in Bloomingdale’s, Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom, and at Web sites like freshpair.com.) “Men may not be talking about it, but they’re buying it.”Continue reading the main story
Men’s “shapewear” is “the next big thing,” declared Michael Kleinmann, the president of Freshpair, which sells underwear to both sexes. Already, compression garments from brands like Equmen and Sculptees, to name two, have been selling briskly.
Eighteen months ago, when Freshpair got Equmen’s compression T-shirts, “we sold out,” Mr. Kleinmann said. Men’s torso-enhancing T-shirts are part of a revolution in men’s underwear that has been taking place over the last decade, he said. Another popular but hush-hush product is profile-enhancing underwear, which he called “the equivalent of a push-up bra” for men.
The success of Equmen, an Australian label, is one reason department stores and online retailers have been eagerly awaiting Spanx for Men. At Saks Fifth Avenue, Equmen has been sold for less than a year and has already become one of the store’s best-selling underwear, said Eric Jennings, vice president for men’s fashion at Saks.
“It’s pretty remarkable,” Mr. Jennings said, adding that Equmen is neck and neck with better-known brands like Hugo Boss and 2(x)ist. Its robust sales are even more remarkable considering that Equmen isn’t cheap: tanks are $89, T-shirts up to $109. By contrast, Spanx’s men’s undershirts go for $58, its tanks for $55. The body-sculpturing tops from Ript Fusion are $58 to $62.
Just as it took time for men to embrace beauty rituals they considered effeminate — remember when moisturizing used to be a metrosexual thing? — so has there been a learning curve for shapewear. “The biggest obstacle is to get a guy to understand it’s a new category, and it’s O.K. to wear it,” Mr. Kleinmann said. “It is still a little taboo.”
Not surprisingly, some bashful shoppers are going online. “We’ve noticed, as good as in-store sales are — and they are good — the online sales are better,” said David Witman, the men’s general merchandise manager for Nordstrom. Men “might be embarrassed to ask for it, but they want it,” he said.
Some clever semantics may help. Mr. Wooster of Neiman Marcus suggested that one way for men to think of a foundation garment (as he called Spanx) is that it is about “problem solving, and another way of feeling secure and prepared for life.”
Stephen Viscusi, a career coach, couldn’t agree more. He thinks that all men over 40 should wear Spanx to job interviews. “When you feel good about the way you look, you interview well,” said Mr. Viscusi, the author of the book “Bulletproof Your Job.”
Although Mr. Viscusi is 39, he wears Spanx T-shirts routinely. He recently wore them to see executives from Bravo and VH1. “It gave me pecs, gave me definition, it gave me confidence,” he said.
Others want to hide more than a growing paunch. Some men have told Mr. Jennings that they’re “self-conscious about their nipples” and buy Equmen tops for camouflage.
And men in their 40s and 50s buy them to look more streamlined, Mr. Jennings said. “Shirts are fitting closer to the body. You want to make your physique look as flattering as it can be.”
Keith Peer, a 43-year-old software executive in Medina, Ohio, owns six Spanx crewnecks, which he credits with improving his posture and helping him look better in tapered shirts. “It enhances your figure, it fits tight, sucks you in,” he said.
Mr. Peer, the chief executive of Central Command, said he was fed up with undershirts that bunched up. With those, he said, you look “like you have a tire around your waist.”
Sara Blakely, the founder of Spanx, said that her products weren’t aimed at men with beer bellies and women with muffin tops. Stars as lean as Gwyneth Paltrow wear Spanx, said Ms. Blakely, who says she was a Size 2 when she invented it. The brand was never for “the hugely overweight,” she said.
Nor are people who buy shapewear necessarily middle-aged. Seventy-five percent of Equmen customers are 37 to 43, according to Corie Chung, a founder. “When men’s bodies start to change and life catches up with them,” she wrote in an e-mail. However, the products can’t work miracles. Some people think that by putting on shapewear “you’re going to shed pounds,” said Michael Vallarelli, a customer service representative at freshpair.com. It can smooth out a man’s midsection, but “it’s not going to flatten anyone out by any means,” he said.
While women tend to gush about what has been called the “flesh-compressing miracle of Spanx,” men are more likely to point to how super-tight tees relieve their back pain. Robert Hytner, a 51-year-old former defense contracting executive in New York, turned to Equmen shirts after a back injury, and then got hooked because they improved his silhouette. “Whatever garment I put on top, I had a tight look,” he said of his 10 Equmen undershirts. He says his back pain is gone, too.
Still, undergarment trickery has its pitfalls, especially on dates. Men have been known to express surprise when a Spanx-compressed woman disrobes in the bedroom only to reveal a less svelte figure. Now women can complain, too.
“Spanx for Men is all good, until you meet a chick,” one skeptic warned on Twitter. “You gain 45 lbs when you get naked.”Continue reading the main story


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Hewlett-Packard's purchase of enterprise software company Autonomy has already resulted in controversy, lawsuits and an $8.8 billion charge against earnings. Added to that list today: a Department of Justice investigation.
HP's annual report, released today, confirms that the federal government has opened an inquiry" into the deal.
"On November 21, 2012, representatives of the U.S. Department of Justice advised HP that they had opened an investigation relating to Autonomy," the report says. "HP is cooperating with the three investigating agencies."


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In Baltimore, delivering food to the homebound during the pandemic
This post is part of an occasional series exploring how our members are addressing the effects of the coronavirus outbreak in their states.
Soon after Maryland Governor Larry Hogan issued stay-at-home orders on March 30, the phones at Civic Works began to ring.
The Baltimore-based nonprofit, which provides a range of job-training and community service programs, was deluged with requests for food from low-income elderly people unable to travel to a grocery store.
Food delivery typically comprises a small portion of Civic Works’ mission in the community, but the organization was well positioned to help. Throughout much of the year, staff and volunteers grow fruit and vegetables at an urban farm located in a city park, and distribute meals to a small number of seniors. Some funders, aware of the rising food insecurity among local residents, offered grants so that Civic Works could ramp up its deliveries.
“Our food and farm manager said, ‘Yes, we can figure this out,’ ’’ said Maryland Delegate Dana Stein, the organization’s co-founder and executive director.
The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted a spike in demand for food assistance across the nation, and there have been reports of lines of cars stretching for miles outside food banks and at food distribution sites. In Baltimore City, officials have estimated that a third of residents will qualify for federal food assistance in the coming weeks as businesses close down and lay off workers.
At Civic Works, meeting the heightened need would require a reordering of staff. The organization trains people for jobs in sustainability and health care, educates teens at a community high school, and offers job placement for at-risk youths. With most of those projects halted or moving online, many employees were willing to pitch in to assemble and distribute meals.
“This is something they felt good about doing: [making] the direct connection to helping to feed people,” said Stein.
An exponential increase
As the requests for food deliveries accelerated, staff created a dedicated phone line to field the influx of calls. They found a local caterer willing to supply prepared meals at a discounted rate and pack them in individual containers. When callers place an order, they can choose from vegetarian or meat-based meals, and have the option to add other essentials, such as toilet paper and hand sanitizer, and fresh produce that is sourced from area growers and Civic Works’ urban farm.
The orders are assembled by a staff of around eight people, mostly members of AmeriCorps, the federally funded service program that provides grants to nonprofits such as Civic Works. Another staffer organizes the shipments by neighborhood, and distributes them to volunteer drivers.
“I’ll fill up the back seat of my car, and then for an hour or two I’ll drop meals off on people’s doorsteps,” said Stein, who has been delivering food to homes and apartments twice a week.
The organization typically provides meals to 50 households weekly; last week, it delivered 1,200. With some $100,000 in new grants, staff expect to be able to serve 1,000 meals every week through June.
The experience at Civic Works offers a hopeful example of resilience for other communities where food insecurity is on the rise. Many food distribution facilities have reported a shortage of volunteers who are staying home amid sheltering-in-place orders or out of fear of becoming infected, further limiting food access. Stein said that Civic Works assured its staff that it was observing strict safety measures to minimize any risk of infection. Employees were issued N95 masks and protective gloves, and they routinely disinfect food-distribution surfaces.
“I think once we made clear that we’re following all of the hygiene and distancing guidelines, people were okay to come,” he said.
Bridging the distribution gap
The growing food insecurity in Baltimore and communities nationwide contrasts with accounts of farms amassing huge quantities of food that they cannot sell. There have been reports of dairy farmers dumping thousands of gallons of milk, and vegetable growers plowing under fields of crops because distribution networks have broken down. Many of these producers sell to large commercial customers, such as restaurants and schools, that stopped buying after they were forced to shut their doors during the pandemic. Farmers say that redistributing their products to smaller retail outlets would be prohibitively costly and logistically challenging.
So far, Civic Works has been able to source enough food from farms in and around Baltimore for its meal deliveries, but there is concern that supplies may dwindle if the current lockdown orders continue into the summer. “If this goes on for three months, I don’t know if we’re going to be able to get all the food we need to seniors we’re delivering to,” said Stein.
Stein, who is vice-chair of the Environment and Transportation Committee in the Maryland House of Delegates, said the disconnect has laid bare the need for a reliable transportation and distribution network that can quickly adapt during a crisis. Finding a way to bridge the distribution gap and help farmers get their products to those who need them the most should be an essential component of emergency planning going forward, he said.
During his time in the state legislature, Stein has been a staunch supporter of efforts to address climate change, and to avoid the massive global disruptions that could flow from extreme weather, food shortages, global conflict, and pandemics.
Many advocates of climate action have noted that the current collaborative efforts among states in the Northeast to slow the spread of COVID-19 show that when communities and leaders join forces to address a shared threat, rapid change is possible.
The COVID-19 health and economic crisis “just reinforces the sense that in the future, climate shocks to the system are going to create a similar type of emergency that we need to be prepared for,” said Stein.