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THREE years ago there was uproar among sports fans when it emerged that Sky had bought the rights to a raft of hurling and football games. The airwaves were filled with sceptical discussions about the UK company’s ability to cover GAA, and some fans eagerly awaited for its coverage to fall flat on its face. JD Buckley, managing director of Sky Ireland, was unperturbed by the contro- versy.
“We know what we are good at,” says Buckley from the company’s airy Dublin 4 headquarters. “We have a decent pedigree, so I wasn’t nervous at all. I knew we would do a fine job, and I knew we would treat our national games with the utmost respect and integrity. Hopefully viewers will see that’s exactly what we do. We play the ball, not the man.”
For Buckley, a huge sports fan, it was a big win for the Irish business. It showed a commitment to the Irish market, which has grown significantly since he joined in 2012. When he started, Sky employed 40 people here. Now it has close to 1,000 staff.
While RTE and other broadcasting insiders sometimes argue that Sky takes advertising revenue out of Ireland without giving much back, Sky points out that it does invest here.
“I think the fact that we have done a groundbreaking deal with the GAA just shows you how serious we are about it,” he says of this market. “I think our customers are finding the level of analysis and professionalism we are bringing to the coverage has upped everyone’s game.
“We’re fighting to win hearts and minds with the GAA coverage each season. What we find is it just works great for us, because the Premier League ends in May — just as the GAA season is kicking off. And having 14 exclusive games means that it is great timing in terms of keeping our subscribers.”
In another win for Sky’s Irish business, the company has now committed to spending €2m on Irish programming. “It’s a big budget in an Irish context and for us at this point,” says Buckley. “We have had great success with Moone Boy, we did 50 Ways To Kill Your Mammy with Baz (Ashmawy) and both shows were international Emmy award-winners, which was great for us. We felt it was time to kick on again.
“In recent months, Zai Bennett, director of programmes at Sky Entertainment, and other company executives visited Dublin. They have done several days with the local independent production houses at this point and we wanted to formalise it, put a fund in place and go out formally looking for pitches, which we have done.
“All the independent producers have that now, and they have until the end of October to come back and pitch ideas and, really, we are looking for the next big hit for Sky One. We view this as the start, rather than a one-off.” Sky One is undergoing a re-brand in the next few weeks. “We’re kind of growing up Sky One a little bit,” says Buckley. “We’re going to have great shows, Modern Family, The Simpsons, etc... But post-watershed, we want to make it a little bit edgier.”
Now five years into the job, Buckley has seen how broadcasting has changed dramatically. Linear viewing is on the wane, and people are increasingly choosing when and how they want to view content.
“We’re in an era where content is absolutely king,” he says. “There is a great thirst from consumers for content and it is up to us as content developers to ensure we are offering the best content to people who choose to pay for Sky every day. It has to be content worth paying for.
“So you’ll see from Sky Atlantic we have a very, very clear vision of what we want that channel to be. It’s the very best of the US and then big-budget epic drama.
“The way we think of content has become very different. Previously, we would have taken a more scatter-gun approach.”
The broadcaster is learning from the likes of Netflix, putting out new series all at once, instead of over several weeks.
“We are trying to be very focused and go with a couple of big shows a quarter and really get behind them,” he says. The next big Sky Original show is Tin Star, with Tim Roth and Irish actress Genevieve O’reilly.
Buckley is the oldest son of Leslie Buckley, a long-time business associate of Denis O’brien and chairman of Independent News & Media, which publishes this newspaper. He spent his first six years in Cork and then moved to Dublin. “I support the Dubs, but I am slightly confused, as I am a Munster rugby supporter,” he says.
Business was always in his blood. “I come from an entrepreneurial family,” he says. “My granddad set up a floor-covering business in Cork. It was one of the oldest family businesses in Cork at one point. And, clearly, my dad has been involved in business all his life.”
After school, he studied economics in UCD and then completed an MBA in the University of Ulster. He then joined Coopers and Lybrand, which later became PWC, and then went into management consultancy.
“That allowed me to cut my teeth in various different projects, from Government sectoral studies to strategy plans for private sector businesses,” says Buckley. “It was a great breadth of experience.”
In 2003, he went to work in Digicel, O’brien’s telecoms company. “It was great,” says Buckley. “I had just got married (to wife Fleur) and we went to the Caribbean. It’s a great business, it was going through a massive growth phase.”
Buckley spent five years there, building up the brand in the north Caribbean, but a return to Ireland beckoned.
“We had two kids when we were there and decided it was time to head home and bring up the family,” he says.
At this stage, Buckley was keen to go it alone, setting up an interim management consultancy.
“Then the Sky opportunity came along, and I just jumped at it, because it’s a phenomenal company which has a great history of innovation, with a big brand, and extremely well-run.
“And it was going through a big growth phase, which is right up my street.”
Buckley was tasked with ramping up the company’s operation in Ireland. “My remit was what could we do in Ireland to really step-change in our presence,” he says. “To grow the number of employees, launch broadband, double down on content through things like Moone Boy. To me, that was so compelling.
“For me, content is so fantastic. I love watching content, people love talking about content…we’re not making widgets, TV is something people are engaged with. I am into my sport, so being surrounded by sports is fantastic.”
Sky launched a new product this year, Now TV, which allows people to sign up for a month at a time or for different sports events. There was a big marketing push on during the recent Game Of Thrones series to get customers to sign up.
“Now TV gives potential customers the opportunity to dip in and out of Sky content,” says Buckley.
He says that the company is very happy with its performance. It targets the ‘ straight to streaming’ generation, who have different viewing patterns, while its more sophisticated Sky Q product is aimed at the other end of the market.
While Sky is focusing on content, other broadcasters are doing likewise. RTE, for example, is fighting for the introduction of retransmission fees, which would see Sky pay for the right to carry RTE. The public service station argues that the most popular programmes on the Sky box are RTE shows.
Sky strongly rejects this proposal. “RTE looking to charge platforms for content that is free-to-air is truly RTE wanting its cake and eating it,” he says.
“Our position is very simple. RTE derives a lot of benefit from being on the Sky platform. Nielsen ratings would say that we are in over 40pc of Irish homes and as a result of that, RTE is deriving benefit from reach into those homes and probably over €30m of advertising revenue due to its prominent position on our Electronic Programming Guide.”
Sky and other platforms will go before the Oireachtas Com- mittee on Communications on October 3 to discuss this and other possible changes to broadcasting legislation.
RTE is also eyeing Sky’s advertising business, which sells commercials on behalf of UK channels, which are available in Ireland. There have been calls for a levy on this advertising revenue to bolster the Irish broadcasting sector.
Buckley argues that this advertising is complementary to RTE, rather than a competitor. “We are hitting a demographic which wouldn’t be served traditionally for RTE or TV3,” he says.
“It’s slightly more urban, upmarket demographic. Because we don’t have the reach that the terrestrials would have, we can’t charge the same level as them. Therefore, we are providing important reach as part of an overall campaign.”
Sky’s ad business is performing well, slightly outperforming the market, which will be down in single digits this year.
Sky’s next-generation ad service, Adsmart, has been up and running since May. It is running campaigns for around 20 advertisers to date, tailoring the ads to the viewer profiles.
“It’s going well so far, and we’re continuously having conversations with clients both directly and through agencies about how TV can work for their communication mix,” he says.
In the UK, Sky has recently launched a mobile phone offering. “It’s early days, but we are very happy with the progress. And we are keeping an eye on the Irish market,” he says. “We have no concrete plans at this point.”
Dixons Carphone is selling its Irish mobile business ID. Surely this might be an opportunity for Sky here? “I can’t comment on specifics in relation to Carphone,” says Buckley.
“Suffice to say, we have good relationships with all the mobile network operators and we are keeping on eye on the UK at this stage.” He has been pleased with its broadband launch here. “We came into a market which was really dominated by Virgin and Eir. When we came into the market, we were the fastest-growing and we continue to be the fastest-growing quarter in, quarter out since 2013.
“We launched fibre in 2014 and next year, we launch fibre to the home. That will mean speed of up to a gigabyte.
“And really, broadband is providing us with an extra product which increases average revenue per user. But also, customers who take triple play from us are less likely to leave.”
For Buckley, that further entrenches Sky’s position in Ireland. “While some of our competitors are going offshore with their services, we have taken a slightly different tack.
“We want to get even closer to our customers.”


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This is a submitted sponsored story. CCN urges readers to conduct their own research with due diligence into the company, product or service mentioned in the content below.
Blockchain technologies are beginning to enter a new phase of existence; practicality, versatility and accessibility are hallmark features that indicate great potential in the future for a blockchain company. If those desired traits are stacked on top of a brilliant blockchain product or platform, then things are really beginning to look up — especially as more and more start-ups are beginning to deliver over and above expectations.
As Blockchain tech slowly begins to exit an experimental phase, there is still the issue of public and industrial mass adoption. It is apparent that the crypto industry is struggling to create routes into crypto that are easily navigable for the layman and the startup seeking to adopt this bubbling technology into their business, startups such as Fabrictoken — a crypto startup that wants to make Dapps more user-friendly.
Enabling a grass roots workforce
The issue of accessibility is high on the priority list, it’s not just the industry and public this entry barrier is causing trouble for — it also comes down to an extremely skilled and critically required workforce and, if left out of the picture, could cause the active population of crypto participants to stagnate. Developers and programmers who will be on the frontlines creating DApps (blockchain based applications) are being met with barriers caused by an absence of user-friendly software lessons and tutorials, creating a costly demand for highly skilled technological expertise.
From there, companies are forced to seek out expensive specialists, who, to a startup or small enterprise, could be unprofitable and unaffordable; this begins a vicious and unproductive cycle that could easily be avoided, if DApps become inaccessible at the grass roots of the industry then it is inevitable that innovation will be all but stymied within multiple crypto industries.
Fabrictoken, a crypto startup, is aiming its sights directly at the issue with their platform and token that will solve essential problems with the adoption of smart contract and blockchain technologies. This will be including the difficulties involved in the development of smart contracts, primarily taking action to create an official testing framework for the Ethereum programming language, Solidity.
The Right Tools for the Job
The Fabrictoken ecosystem is made up of four main components; for one, there is the Fabric Token which is a utility coin to be used within the Fabric ecosystem for payments and products.
Secondly, a TokenGen feature which allows for smart contracts to be easily created for tokens and their respective fundraisers, taking the focus away from this underdeveloped area to the important part, their idea.
Another fruitful edition is the DApp Workbench that provides businesses of any size a means to easily integrate blockchain and smart contracts into their intra and inter-organisational business processes all the while improving their management capabilities and workflows with an intuitive drag and drop interface. Finally there is the Fabric Store, a one stop shop for third party developers to create smart contracts, expanding the full functionality of the Fabric software and promoting the growth and larger scale adoption from users and business.
Fabric Token Generation Event
The Fabric token actually managed to raise more than $1 Million USD in under 24 hours of their TGE (token generation event opening). This is an indicator that they have managed to put a solution in place that is being recognised for its potential, this will be a platform to watch for some time to come. The token sale is currently still running and will end in just over a months’ time, head here to find out more.
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To succeed in today’s highly complex and fast-changing home entertainment market, companies need a broad understanding of issues, ranging from high-level business strategies, down to consumer views and attitudes. That’s why IHS is hosting the PEVE Entertainment 2013 Conference, a one-of-a-kind event that combines presentations from top media executives and experts with insights from actual consumers.
The conference will take place at the British Museum located in the heart of Bloomsbury, London, on April 16 through 17.
“The home entertainment video market is being reshaped by revolutionary changes wrought by the rise of online digital media,” said Ben Keen, chief analyst and senior director for consumer, media, and communications research at IHS. “These changes affect everything, from company strategies to consumer buying preferences. PEVE is a unique event where a broad range of individuals come together to discuss how these events are impacting their lives and businesses.”
PEVE will feature a fireside chat with Josh Berger, U.K. president and managing director at Warner Bros.; and Adam Dawtrey, European editor of Variety. Berger and Dawtrey will offer a look from the studio perspective at how the various revenue streams are shaping the home entertainment business today and tomorrow.
Another fireside chat will be delivered by Ian Lewis, director of Sky Movies and Sky Box Office at BSkyB.
Lewis will provide an overview of Sky Movies strategy, outlining how Sky is bringing together what it deems as the best content and innovation for its customers.
Back by popular demand, two live consumer panel sessions will take place on each day of the conference. Two different age groups, 18-year-olds and 50-year-olds, will provide the PEVE audience with insight into their entertainment choices. Discussions will be built around where they want to consume and why they choose these options. The panels will provide detailed knowledge about how to target these consumers.
PEVE also will feature panel discussion sessions covering key issues in the home entertainment business.
A panel session entitled “Different Strokes” will examine the way that content distributors from the different entertainment categories of music, video, games and books address retail customers and end consumers to learn which approaches work and which don’t.
Another session, dubbed “Entertainment Innovation: The Dragons Den,” will feature a discussion on how many of the entertainment formats available to consumers now are considered old, even for newer platforms such as Blu-ray or digital downloads. This session looks at ways to put some new energy into existing formats.
Also highlighting the PEVE event will be presentations and session moderations delivered by top IHS experts, including:
- Jonathan Gear, senior vice president, electronics and commercial management
- Ben Keen, chief analyst and senior director, consumer, media, and communications research
- Chris Christopher, director, global and U.S. consumer markets economics research
- Richard Cooper, principal analyst, video research
- Ian Fogg, senior principal analyst, head of mobile research
- Tom Morrod, senior principal analyst, TV and broadcast technology research
- Guy Bisson, research director, television research
- Dan Cryan, research director, digital media research
The registration fee for the PEVE Entertainment 2013 Conference is priced at £860 plus value-added tax. A group discount of 20 percent is applicable when four or more delegates from the same company register together via the online registration form.
Press registration is free.
Learn More > PEVE Entertainment 2013


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The rendering image of the 2022 version of the Moto G Stylus has been revealed
It seems that Motorola is planning to release a new phone from the Moto G series with a built-in stylus. Some time ago, the key specifications of the Moto G Stylus 2022 and some renders were released, and now according to Gsmarena, the more detailed design of this phone is shown. The new Moto G Stylus, codenamed Milan, follows the design language of Moto’s latest phones from last year, and the latest renders show a new gold color.
- Possible specifications of the third generation Motorola Razr foldable phone have been revealed
The phone is said to feature a 6.8-inch punch-hole display with a 90Hz refresh rate, an integrated stylus with its own port near the bottom speaker, and a triple camera setup on the back. According to the latest rumors, the said phone will probably be powered by the Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G chip and will come with a 4500 mAh battery. In addition, in the software department, it will apparently use the operating system Android 12.


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Stocks in cautious ranges ahead of China data, trade talk hopes fade
By Stanley White TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian stocks clung to tight ranges on Thursday as investors awaited key Chinese data for clues on how much the 16-month trade war between Beijing and Washington has hit growth in the world's second-largest economy. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.01%
By Stanley White
TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian stocks clung to tight ranges on Thursday as investors awaited key Chinese data for clues on how much the 16-month trade war between Beijing and Washington has hit growth in the world's second-largest economy.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan <.MIAPJ0000PUS> fell 0.01%. Australian shares <.AXJO> were up 0.12%, while Japan's Nikkei stock index <.N225> fell 0.02%.
Dashing previously upbeat expectations about a resolution to the Sino-U.S. trade war was a Wall Street Journal report that said negotiations had hit a snag over farm purchases. Worries about violent anti-government protests in Hong Kong also soured investor sentiment.
In the cautious climate, the yen and the Swiss franc, two currencies considered safe-havens, held onto gains against the dollar.
Investors are trying to determine whether the stimulus measures the Chinese government has taken so far are helping prevent further economic slowdown. However, complete confidence in the global outlook is unlikely to return until there is a lasting solution to the U.S.-China trade war.
"The markets have been pushing to new highs, but it's been a bit of a bumpy ride," said William O'Loughlin, portfolio manager at Rivkin Asset Management in Sydney.
"The markets have realised that the news on trade is going to swing back and forth. I wouldn't be surprised if there is more weakness in China's economy. I would want to see several months of improvement before I saw we've reached the bottom."
U.S. stock futures
U.S. stocks have climbed to record levels recently, fuelled by interest rate cuts, positive earnings, and signs the economy is bottoming out, but doubts about progress in U.S.-China trade negotiations remain a huge risk to financial markets and global growth.
Washington and Beijing have imposed tariffs on each other's goods in a bitter dispute over Chinese trade practices that the U.S. government says are unfair.
Chinese data for October due at 0200 GMT is expected to show industrial output growth slowed but retail sales accelerated slightly.
Investors and economists will scrutinise the data to determine whether China can shake off the negative impact of punitive tariffs.
In currency markets, the yen
Sentiment in the currency market remained weak after U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday threatened China with additional tariffs if they do not reach a so-called "phase one" trade agreement.
Traders are also keeping an eye on unrest in Hong Kong.
Anti-government protesters dug in at several university campuses across the city on Wednesday, setting the stage for further clashes with the police. Protests against Chinese rule of the former British colony started in June this year.
Barkindo also said he was confident that OPEC and its allies will continue to curb supplies next year.
The yield on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes
(Editing by Sam Holmes)
This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Find latest and upcoming tech gadgets online on Tech2 Gadgets. Get technology news, gadgets reviews & ratings. Popular gadgets including laptop, tablet and mobile specifications, features, prices, comparison.
By Arunima Kumar (Reuters) - Aurora Cannabis on Tuesday announced a new round of staff reductions and plans to shut five facilities over the next two quarters, as the COVID-19 pandemic pummels the cash-crunched cannabis industry. For most marijuana companies in Canada, which legalized recreational cannabis in October 2018, profits have proven elusive due to fewer-than-expected retail stores, cheaper rates on the black market and slow overseas growth. The industry has been further hit by the COVID-19 crisis, which has also upended financial markets, making it harder to get investor dollars
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India has imposed an anti-dumping duty on flat rolled steel products that are plated or coated with alloy of aluminium and zinc originating in, or from China, Vietnam and South Korea, according to a government order https://www.cbic.gov.in/resources//htdocs-cbec/customs/cs-act/notifications/notfns-2020/cs-add2020/csadd16-2020.pdf issued on Tuesday. The duty will be in the range of $13.07-$173.10 per tonne for 5 years, according to the statement
By Diptendu Lahiri (Reuters) - Gold prices surged to their highest since October 2012 on Tuesday, driven by a weakness in the U.S. dollar and widespread monetary stimulus packages by central banks as a jump in coronavirus cases dents the economic outlook


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Happy Mothers Day wishes quotes image in English – Mother’s Day is a day celebrated to honor the mother, motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in our lives and society.
Article source: https://www.tentaran.com/happy-mothers-day-wishes-quotes-image-whatsapp-status/
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Fruit warehouse sale falls through
The Young Shire Council has withdrawn its offer to buy a large fruit warehouse because it is too expensive.
The council considered purchasing the Fruitgrowers Coolstores in February this year and wanted to upgrade the building to expand local services.
There had been plans for the block to be used to construct a library, museum or art gallery.
But, the Mayor Stuart Freudenstein says the sale did not offer value for money.
"Our due diligence investigations that have been taking place over the last few months," he said.
"The result of that due diligence brought us to the conclusion that the costs were going to be way above, well it was going to be way above our original offer and we didn't think the price that would end up costing us was a fair price for the ratepayers to be paying for the building.
He says the warehouse will continue to be used by other businesses.
"Their business declined due to the changes in the fruit industry, you know more of the larger growers loading trucks and distributing from their own businesses so their business declined over the years and at the moment the building is used mainly for storage.
"There are people renting the space there, so it's not sitting idle."


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Following a successful trial this year, Alaska Airlines is fully launching electronic bagtags.
Alaska Airlines is the first U.S. airline to launch an electronic bag tag program. Although electronic bag tags have been around for more than a decade they are little used. Indeed Alaska originally started a trial of electronic bag tags in 2016.
Passengers will be able to buy the Alaska Airlines electronic bag tag starting in 2023. The airline gives no details yet about the price, but about $75 is possible. That’s per tag and passengers need one tag per bag.
With that possible price (and other restrictions mentioned below) it will be really interesting to see how wide the take up is.
What are electronic bag tags?
The electronic bag tags enable passengers to tag their bags through the airline’s mobile app before they reach the airport.
The device is about the size of a smart phone with a durable screen. The screen shows the bag tag details including the bar code. It doesn’t need charging or batteries.
Passengers attach the device to a bag just like a traditional tag. They can remove it and attach it to a different bag for future flights.
The electronic bag tag has two main differences from the other types of bagtag:
- it is reusable (possibly for a lifetime)
- it costs (probably a one off charge)
The big benefit is that passengers can attach the tag at home or anywhere before getting to the airport and so avoid the self tagging at the airport hassle.
Self tagging at an airport can be a slow, tedious and complicated process that actually increases check-in time. Alaska Airlines estimates its electronic bag tag reduces the time passengers spend in airport lobbies by about 40%.
It is a bit restricted (at least for now):
- Only 1 passenger in the booking
- Only 1 checked bag
- Only applies to flights solely within the United States on Alaska Airlines and Alaska flights operated by Horizon or SkyWest
How it works
- Passengers enable the electronic bag tag feature in the Alaska app
- Then check-in on the Alaska app
- They ‘activate’ the tag by touching the phone used for check-in to the electronic bag tag
- The device reads the information transmitted from the phone
- The bag tag screen then shows the passenger flight information
Passengers will be able to activate the devices from anywhere up to 24-hours before their flight.
Alaska has posted a video showing how it works.
Charu Jain, senior vice-president of merchandising and innovation for Alaska:
“The last thing our guests want to do is stand in line. With the addition of the Alaska Airlines electronic bag tag, our guests can complete almost all of their check-in tasks – from the comfort of their home, at work or on the way to catching their flight.”
“We’ve tested our electronic bag tags on countless flights across the country, including international routes where Alaska Airlines flies, and the devices have performed exactly as they’re meant to. We’ll collect feedback from our first wave of users before the devices become available to purchase to all our guests early next year.”
This week, Alaska is sending the electronic bag tag to 2,500 devices to Mileage Plan members.
The device works on all Alaska Airlines marketed flights operated by Alaska Airlines, Horizon Air and SkyWest Airlines.
Alaska is partnering with Dutch company BAGTAG on the electronic bag tag program.
Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian, Air Dolomiti (all part of Lufthansa Group), China Southern and KLM use BAGTAG.
Jaspar Quak, BAGTAG managing director:
“Alaska Airlines is an excellent example of a carrier on a mission to improve all aspects of their passenger’s experience. This vision is leading their choices for innovation such as electronic bag tags and we are very proud to assist them in this project.”
N.B. Image credit: Alaska Airlines


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Grilled Cheesus, meet Princess Bean?
Seems Kate Middleton is having a Willy Wonka moment. Her image has turned into a Golden Ticket for a Somerset, England, man who claims he’s not only spotted the soon-to-be Princess of Wales on a jelly bean, but he’s selling the Kate-like Kandy on eBay!
When Wesley Hosie opened his jar of Jelly Bean Factory sweets, one mango-flavored bean stood out, he told The Telegraph. The speckles on the candy’s surface had formed a pattern that created an image of Kate Middleton, flowing hair, Mona Lisa smile, and all. “She was literally lying there staring back at me,” he told the paper. (Question: Wesley, what were you drinking with those jelly beans?)
Another man would have just popped the Kate-like candy in his mouth and gone back to watching the cricket match. But not Mr. Hosie, who has decided to take the jelly bean to the world, through eBay, where the starting bid will be 500 pounds sterling (about $800 and change). Next up, a Prince William chocolate bar? (via Kate Middleton Jelly Bean To Be Auctioned on eBay - Slashfood)
And so it goes…


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Reports had come out in November from Tesla Motors saying that the Enhanced Autopilot should start to see the light of day around mid December. Now that has been confirmed by Elon Musk tweeting, 'Looks like we might be ready to rollout most of Autopilot functionality for HW2 towards the end of next week.' The HW2 hardware cannot currently access the features which give self driving abilities such as smart summon, auto lane change and collision warning, for instance. However, Tesla still need to get in millions of road miles to further improve the efficiency of the system before they can fully activate them on the HW2 hardware.
Looks like we might be ready to rollout most of Autopilot functionality for HW2 towards the end of next week— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 23, 2016
Although the start of the rollout maybe next week, current Tesla owners will probably have to wait a few months more to get the full array of features, with most being fully rolled out throughout 2017. These eventual upgrades hope to make the autopilot potentially even safer than human driven vehicles.
One of the updates, which is causing news at the moment is the ability to stick to the top speed limit and speed limits of the area they are driving. When Tesla's Autosteer function is activated, the autopilot will limit the speed of the vehicle to a capped limit on highways, but it won't apply to the freeway with the limit being 90 mph. The previous editions of the software allowed the vehicles to exceed the speed limit by 5 mph, now that won't happen with strict speed limits being adhered to. The system updates will also be able to alert the driver when they need to take back the wheel when necessary. These updates ultimately will make the vehicles even safer than before.
Studies from a Purdue University in 2008 stated that most US drivers don't necessarily follow the speed limits, which can be one of the causes of major accidents. “Of the 988 drivers in the survey, 21 percent thought it was safe to drive up to 5 mph over the speed limit, 43 percent thought it was safe to drive up to 10 mph over and 36 percent thought it was safe to drive up to 20 mph over the speed limit.”
This all means that orders of the Model S or Model X from October 2016 will have a new autonomous vehicle on their hands, with feature rollouts coming regularly in the next year. For those of the Knight Rider generation, we now potentially have our very own K.I.T.T. cars. Shame Tesla won't add the cool, red hood lights from the show's car, but we can't have everything.


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California Pistachio Acreage/Production Expected to Surge in Coming Decade
Production report from American Pistachio Growers estimates California acreage will top 811,000 acres and production will reach 2.08 billion pounds in 2031
FRESNO, CA – A new production report, commissioned by American Pistachio Growers (APG), underscores an undeniable fact - the U.S. pistachio industry’s preeminence as a world leader in growing the popular nut will continue in the coming decade. With a projection of annual bearing acres in California running at a 5 percent annual growth clip, the state’s pistachio growers are on a trajectory to shake more than 2 billion pounds from their trees by 2031.
The projections by Dennis H. Tootelian of the Tootelian Company of Sacramento forecasts annual pistachio production from 2023 through 2031. His study focused on California, which provides 99 percent of total U.S. production. Pistachios are also grown in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.
For the 2023 pistachio crop, which California growers are currently harvesting, Tootelian pegs the crop as 1.36 billion pounds from 453,750 bearing acres. His study projects the rise in new plantings, number of new bearing acres and total annual production in California for each of the next nine years.
New plantings of pistachios are projected to mirror what growers have planted on an annual basis in the past decade. Tootelian said that will mean the total number of acres in California will grow by 28,489 per year, from 2023 through 2031, to total nearly 811,300 acres.
As new orchards mature, the number of bearing acres is expected to grow at a rate of 5.1 percent annually. That will mean the 2031 crop will come from 668,850 bearing acres. Non-bearing acres are counted as trees in their first year of being planted through year five. Measurable production begins in the 6th year, the year they are considered “bearing” acres.
Tootelian’s forecast takes into account the alternate bearing characteristics of pistachios. Pistachio trees tend to fluctuate between “on” years of high yields followed by “off” years of lower yields. This year is an “on” year when he expects the harvest of 1.36 billion pounds. He expects this “on” year/“off” year cycle to continue with an “on” year in 2031 of 2.08 billion pounds.
Interest in pistachios has grown steadily in recent years, not only in California, but also in the Southwest where orchards are thriving in Arizona and New Mexico. Texas has also emerged as a contributor to the U.S. pistachio industry, according to APG President Richard Matoian. Data from the new production projections will be employed in a variety of ways to help guide decision-making in marketing and consumer education.
“It was time for our industry to update industry crop projections as we chart the course for the future,” Matoian said. “This information is very helpful to anticipate the expected crop production in a given year and to implement effective plans to market each year’s harvest. Backed by the support of our industry, APG is uniquely positioned in the domestic and international markets to help sustain the economic viability of U.S. growers.”
Tootelian noted that total number of acres devoted to pistachio production is nearly five times what it was 20 years ago and the number of bearing acres has more than doubled in the last decade, growing at nearly 9.2 percent annually. With the new projections, Matoian said the industry will need to rise to meet the challenges of larger harvests coming in the future.
“It took the industry 30-plus years to reach its first billion-pound crop,” Matoian noted. “It will take less than 10 years to double that production to 2 billion pounds.”


text:
Published on January 10th, 2014 | by admin
The Growth Of Internet Shopping
Almost one in five non-food items were bought online in December according to the latest figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC).
The BRC has also revealed that a staggering growth of 19.2% was seen from a year ago in terms of internet purchases which apparently is the fastest increase in four years.
And its not just computers and laptops which are accounting for the surge in popularity of shopping online, its now also down to the increased use of smartphones and tablets too.
The figures from the British Retail Consortium show how Christmas online sales in different types of goods fared:
- Online clothing sales accounted for 21.2% of sales in December – an increase of 3% from last year
- Furniture and flooring products bought online represented nearly a third of all sales
- Electrical goods and toys came in at 14.4%, a fall from November’s 15.5%
Our own poll of online shopping habits at the Post Office Shop revealed that price is the most important factor to consumers cited by 57% of those we asked however the BRC has also seen a growing influence of flexible delivery options.
BRC director general Helen Dickinson said: “More of us clicked into Christmas than ever before, with online non-food sales growth putting in its best performance since March 2010 and accounting for nearly 20% of spending.
“This Christmas we’ve seen innovative retailers using click and collect and other approaches to make a virtue of both their website and their physical shops. And that’s something we see growing in importance.
“The surge in the use of tablets and smartphones last year, together with the ever-faster delivery times achieved by an increasing number of retailers, has provided a new spur of growth to online shopping.”
David McCorquodale, head of retail at KMPG which is behind the figures, added: “Whilst store sales continue to flatline, online sales remain the main driver of growth for the sector, contributing nearly three quarters of the uptick in non-food sales in the last quarter of 2013.
“The winners this Christmas were those retailers with slick multichannel operations, who could offer consumers the flexibility to shop how, and when, they wanted to.”


text:
DURBAN – Several companies offered incentives to South Africans who exercised their democratic right and voted in yesterday’s elections.
At Nando’s, customers needed to just show their voter’s thumb to get ¼ chicken, chips and roll for only R25.
The offer was limited to 300 meals per restaurant.
Galito’s was yesterday selling a ¼ chicken and a roll for R25 to celebrate the general elections and 25 years of democracy. Galito’s Election Day Deal was valid for yesterday only, while the Nando’s special continues today.
Wimpy and Mike’s Kitchen also gave free coffee for showing a marked thumb; Mike’s Kitchen’s offer was subject to buying a meal.
On the other hand, Uber was offering R50 off fares to and from voting stations, on condition that the passenger used the right discount code.
Getting discounted Uber trips required users to open the Uber app and add the VOTESA19 promo code before completing the booking as usual.
The code was valid until 9pm yesterday to voters in Joburg, Pretoria, Ekurhuleni, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and Durban.
At Checkers, the supermarket promised a R15 “Voters’ boerewors roll” for voting efforts.


text:
Amazon has considered installing two machines at dozens more warehouses, removing at least 24 roles at each one, these people said. These facilities typically employ more than 2,000 people.
PARIS: US online retail giant Amazon will create 1,800 permanent contract positions this year in France, its largest European market after Britain and Germany, although furniture retailer Conforama went the other way in cutting jobs. The increase will bring Amazon’s total number of permanent staff to 9,300
Retail companies in the United States (US) are using promotions to boost sales during the weak shopping season. Amazon.com’s Prime Day is now a major marketing opportunity and shopping event in the annual calendar for other US retail
The formal investigation opens a new chapter in the European Union's campaign to address the dominance of US tech firms with Google, Facebook and Apple also regular targets of regulators in Brussels.
Medical tourism sales in the UAE increased 5.5 per cent year-over-year to reach Dhs12.1 billion in 2018 with growth supported by a number of government-led initiatives and the rising number of medical tourists in the country,
Travel is expected to reach an all-time high in the upcoming weeks for Emirates Airlines, as the carrier expects yet another busy period with travellers arriving into Dubai after the summer holidays and Eid breaks.
The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority’s (Dewa’s) Water, Energy, Technology, and Environment Exhibition (WETEX) 2019 is an opportunity for green solution suppliers and providers, investors, and decision-makers


text:
Clean Seas driving kingfish sales in Europe
Clean Seas, Australia’s largest commercial producer of farmed yellowtail kingfish, is doubling its European marketing efforts with its recently rebranded Spencer Gulf Hiramasa Kingfish, and introducing a new ‘Sensory Fresh’ frozen product range to complement its traditional fresh offering.
Clean Seas Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer David Head, who was hired more than two years ago to turn the company around following a disastrous period during which high mortalities nearly resulted in the company's failure, explained that all issues had been resolved and that production was back on track. in 2017, the company's turnover was NZD 35 million (USD 24.7 million, EUR 20.7 million) on production of 2,287 metric tons (MT), up 25 percent on the previous year. In 2018, the firm expects turnover of NZD 47 million (USD 33.2 million, EUR 27.8 million) on a harvest of 2,850 MT.
Head is overseeing a strategy that has seen Spencer Gulf Hiramasa Kingfish voted best fish at the Australian Food Awards for the past two years and has top chefs all over the world flying the fish in fresh, particularly for use in sushi and sashimi dishes.
“To complement our fresh hiramasa kingfish we have just introduced a new frozen range, which will make the fish accessible to a much wider range of customers including banqueting, airlines and cruise ships, as well as sushi chains who are seeking a high quality product that is more convenient to use,” Head said.
The new range has been made possible by installing the latest rapid freezing liquid nitrogen technology in the company’s processing plant, based in Adelaide.
“Our new system freezes the fish down to minus 10 degrees in 22 minutes, then takes it down further to minus 40 degrees for storage. Sensory testing has confirmed that this produces a very superior product to traditional freezing systems, and produces four to five times less water when defrosted. Chefs who have tried both whole fish and fillets, cannot believe they have been frozen,” Head said.
Clean Seas now plans to increase production to more than triple its kingfish output and to develop a range of value-added products such as smoked fish, pre-sliced sashimi cuts, ceviche, and tartars.
“These are exciting times, and interest at SEG was very encouraging,” Head said. “Our new marketing campaign is taking us into 1400 restaurants around the world, introducing our hiramasa kingfish to individual chefs, and our increased production and new products will make this fish even more widely available.”


text:
Angry Birds Creator Rovio Preparing for 2013 IPO
May 7, 2012 11:43 AM
comment(s) - last by
Analysts have valued the company at $9 billion
Rovio Entertainment, the creator of the popular mobile game Angry Birds, is looking to go public in 2013 after a knockout 2011.
Rovio, which was founded in 2003, is looking at an initial public offering (IPO) next year in either New York or Hong Kong. Analysts have valued the company at $9 billion.
The Finnish video game developer launched Angry Birds in 2009, and has seen massive success ever since. The game has seen over 800 million downloads, and had 200 million active users monthly by the end of 2011.
Back in March, Rovio unleashed its latest Angry Birds release alongside NASA engineers called
Angry Birds Space
. In the first 35 days of launch, Angry Birds Space hit 50 million downloads, making it the
fastest growing mobile game ever
. The game allows PC, Mac, iOS and Android users to launch various types of birds at the green pigs using a whole new set of moves based on a zero-gravity environment. It offers 60 levels with six new characters and powers.
But Rovio's success doesn't end at the Angry Birds games. Last year, Rovio said
one million plush toys and one million Angry Birds T-shirts
were being sold on a monthly basis. In addition, the game was locked into a film deal with 20th Century Fox, where Rovio was able to release an Angry Birds "Rio" version based on the 2011 children's movie.
In 2011, Rovio's profit before tax was at $48 million on sales of $99 million. This was a huge boost from 2010's revenues of about $10 million. Rovio also raised $42 million from venture capital firms last year.
According to the Angry Birds maker, 2012 is expected to look just as good. Rovio plans to release many more Angry Birds and non-Angry Birds-related titles, and is aided by an increased cell phone sales outlook. The company has also placed large investments in branding, brand protection and product development.
"2012 looks fantastic," said Mikael Hed, Rovio CEO. "We have had some very strong download numbers over four months."
Rovio hasn't mentioned any other specifics regarding the upcoming IPO, but Rovio head of Investor Relations Anders Lindeberg said the company is preparing itself for a 2013 IPO.
This article is over a month old, voting and posting comments is disabled
RE: retarded multiple
5/7/2012 12:52:09 PM
Welcome to the decade of hype. Where hype is the denominator of value, rather then quality or longevity, earnings, revenue etc. It's all about the marketing now.
It's not so bad. After all it is still supply and demand, even though it's questionable what people demand. The only thing you shouldn't do is actually invest in these companies. Because hype is a fickle thing. And the next angry birds or farmville *will* come.
For actual companies it will be hell. If they manage to capture hype, it will inflate the company beyond what it's worth. When the hype moves to another company, that first company will deflate to below it's worth and they will lose a lot of money, possibly even go bankrupt. For the CEO's of said companies... well... This is insider trading heaven. Sell your stock after the IPO then buy it back at a fraction of the cost, or start a new company and do the same thing.
For ye ol' investor... eh... it's best to not be an investor in this decade. Get out and wait for the 2018-2020 buyers market. Or go into agriculture, that'll be hot next decade.
RE: retarded multiple
5/10/2012 3:02:27 AM
Hype's nothing new.
Do you not remember the .com hyped up bubble?
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text:
Can the new iPad camera really see through clothing, as suggested by Expansys video?
An Expansys YouTube, which was made by Brazen to mark April Fools day, has attracted 55,000 views and has caused something of an internet stir. Because the sequence, which stars Jason Bradbury, rather convincingly asserts that the new iPad camera can see through clothes.
Brazen sent this report of their antics to The Drum: “Come on. Be honest. We got you, didn’t we? When EXPANSYS tech expert Jason Bradbury revealed that the iPad 2 could take photographs through clothes, you believed it didn’t you?
You weren’t alone.
Thousands fell for the convincing April Fools video stunt. Even hardened tech experts and journalists were fooled.
It was one of the most talked about tech videos of the day on the internet both yesterday and this morning. And had registered more than 10,000 views in its first few tentative hours online.
Said our founder Nina Webb: “We managed to get TV tech expert Jason Bradbury to strip off to his boxer shorts to pull this video April Fools stunt off. It’s never easy to convince a celebrity to do something like that. But the result is testament to the hard work of the team that works on the EXPANSYS account and the relationship they have built with Jason.The video had huge talkability built into its DNA and just enough tech fact to make it believable. It was a fantastic April Fools stunt and massively engaged the whole digital community.”
In the video Jason proclaimed that using a new iPad 2, just a little cling film and a pair of toy infrared goggles costing £40, he could take a photo through your clothes.
And then he went on to demonstrate exactly how to do it, claiming that it was all down to the iPad 2’s camera, which had a semi-closed aperture.
Missed it? Still want to see Jason in his Superman pants?


text:
A sign at a gas station in San Mateo County, California, on May 10, 2022 shows the price of gas.
Liu Guangguan | China News Service | Getty Images
The rise in gasoline prices is impossible to miss and is at the top of consumers’ minds as large billboards announce that gas prices are now $ 4, or $ 5, or even more than $ 6 per gallon in some places.
With prices at record highs, Americans are immediately feeling the effects of the pump. But higher fuel prices are also a headwind for the larger economy, only costing consumers less. Rising fuel costs – especially diesel – are affecting everything from trucks, trains or ships.
Fuel costs are a major contributor to the decade’s high inflation numbers, with prices of all kinds of goods and services appearing higher.
“Energy, in a way, is wagging its tail here,” Rapiden Energy Group President Bob McNally told CNBC’s “Power Lunch” on Wednesday.
“Diesel is really an economic fuel. It’s the lifeblood of the economy, transportation, energy in some cases … so it’s really embedded in economic activity and it’s filtered through a lot of products and services.”
Why is the price of fuel so high?
Thanks in large part to the rise in gasoline prices and the rise in oil prices. Russia’s attack on Ukraine is the latest catalyst for higher crude oil prices, but prices are already rising ahead of the war.
Even before Kovid, under the pressure of lower prices and the demand for higher returns from institutional shareholders, power producers reduced investment and less profitable projects.
Producers then further reduced output during the throes of the epidemic, when the need for petroleum products fell from a hill. People weren’t going anywhere and businesses were closed, so little fuel was needed. Demand fell so sharply that West Texas Intermediate crude, the benchmark for U.S. oil, traded in negative territory for short.
Since then the economy has revived, production has revived and people are driving and flying again. This has led to increased demand and a growing tight oil market at the beginning of last fall. In November, President Joe Biden tapped the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in a concerted effort with other countries, including India and Japan, to try to calm prices. But the relief was short-lived.
Russia’s subsequent invasion of Ukraine in late February has already led to a slump in fragile energy markets.
On March 7, 2008, US oil prices peaked at স্ত 130 a barrel. Russia is the world’s largest exporter of oil and commodities, and the European Union relies on it for natural gas. The United States, Canada and others banned Russian oil imports immediately after the attack, with the European Union saying it could not do so without harmful consequences.
Now, the bloc is trying to hammer out a sixth-round embargo against Russia, which includes oil, even though Hungary has pushed them back.
Oil has since retreated from its post-attack height, but is still firmly above $ 100. In that context, the price of a barrel of crude oil was brought down to 75 75 in early 2022, from around $ 63 at this time last year.
The rapid rise in oil and hence fuel consumption has become a headache for the Biden administration, which has called on producers to pump more. On the one hand, oil companies are reluctant to drill with the promise of capital discipline to shareholders. Executives, on the other hand, say that even if they want to pump more, they can’t. They are facing the same problems that are plaguing the economy as a whole, including labor shortages and rising prices of parts and raw materials such as sand, which is the key to stopping production.
Oil prices make up more than half of the final cost for a gallon of gasoline, but that’s not the only reason. Taxes, distribution and refining costs also affect prices.
Limited purification capacity has begun to play a larger role. Refining is the main step that crude oil uses in petroleum products consumers and businesses every day. From the epidemic, especially in the Northeast, how many barrels of oil can be refined has decreased.
Russia, meanwhile, has been hit hard by sanctions on petroleum products exports from Russia, leaving Europe looking for alternative suppliers. Refineries are running at full capacity, and diesel cracks are spreading – the difference between the price of refined oil and the price at which they sell their products – is now at record levels.
All this is increasing the price of gas. The national average for one gallon of gas hit $ 4.589 on Thursday, up from $ 3.043 at this time last year, according to the AAA. Numbers are not adjusted for inflation.
Each state is now averaging over $ 4 per gallon for the first time on record, while the statewide average in California is now above $ 6.
Diesel prices are also on the rise. On Wednesday, retail diesel prices hit an all-time high of 5,577 per gallon, 76% higher than last year.
Families are now shelling out $ 5,000 a year for gasoline, up from $ 2,800 a year ago, the firm said, according to Yardney Research.
How are fuel prices affecting companies?
Demand for this specialty has grown significantly as a result of recent corporate scandals. Higher prices on pumps mean less money in the pockets of consumers. This means increasing costs for companies, some or all of which will go to consumers later.
Target is one of the high cost companies. Shares of the store chain traded 25% higher on Wednesday – the single worst day since 1987 – following the target earnings results, at which point it warned of inflationary pressures.
“We didn’t anticipate the rapid change we’ve seen in the last 60 days. We don’t anticipate the way transportation and freight costs will rise as fuel prices rise to an all-time high,” said Target CEO Brian Cornell. The company’s quarterly earnings call was issued on Wednesday.
He told CNBC that higher fuel and diesel consumption would increase costs by about $ 1 billion in fiscal year and “significantly increase” [Target] I didn’t expect that. “
Walmart executives have made similar comments. “[F]Doug Macmillan, president and CEO of Walmart, said during the retailer’s first-quarter earnings call on Tuesday, “Yuel’s costs have accelerated to a faster quarter than we were able to outperform them, creating a one-time problem.” We are the United States of America, more than forecast. “
Tractor supply executives noted that domestic and imported freight costs have increased “substantially” compared to last year, and they expect this trend to continue throughout 2022.
“The cost of shipping a foreign container has more than doubled compared to the pre-epidemic rate, and the cost of fuel is about one and a half times higher than a year ago, “Amazon noted in its quarterly update.
Monster Beverages executives say the company has “significantly increased sales costs compared to the first quarter of 2021, mainly due to increased freight rates and fuel costs.”
The airline industry is also feeling the effects, especially on the east coast – of rising jet fuel prices.
Southwest Air noted that it had seen a “significant increase in market jet fuel prices” in the last quarter, when United CEO Scott Kirby told CNBC that the airline would cost $ 10 billion more than in 2019 if today’s jet fuel prices were maintained.
Bob Bisterfeld, CEO of CH Robinson, outlined this: “The challenge we face is the rising cost of diesel fuel and the record costs that have had such a huge impact on overall freight prices,” he told CNBC’s “Closing Bell” on Wednesday.
To put the wave in context, he said a carrier would now have to pay about $ 1,000 more in fuel costs than it did last year to move a shipment from Los Angeles to the East Coast.
“This is a real pressure on inflationary spending,” he said.
Is there any relief in sight?
Looking ahead, experts say that the destruction of demand, or the level at which high prices affect consumer behavior, may be the only thing to curb rising gasoline prices.
John Kildoff, a partner at Again Capital, said the card has a national average of $ 5 for the busy driving season between Memorial Day weekend and the fourth month of July.
“It appears [the national average] He was speaking on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” on Wednesday. “Last week we saw that the demand for petrol usually increased at the summer-type level … there is more to the contrary,” he said.
Despite the high prices, Kildoff points to two main reasons for the increase in demand: rising demand after the epidemic and a strong labor market, which means people have to pay for what they get to get their jobs.
Andy Lipo, president of Lipo Oil Associates, on the other hand, said he believes the national average will be between $ 4.60 and $ 4.65.
He noted that the sell-off in stocks has led to lower petrol futures, which could lead to some temporary remedies for customers at the pump.
But petroleum is also used in a lot of consumer goods, especially plastics, which means that even if gas prices temporarily cool, higher oil prices could increase costs in the economy.
Rapidan’s McNally says at the moment that it will take a slowdown to curb commodity inflation. “It simply came to our notice then [gas prices] Just have to go higher, because there is no sign of real demand capitulation yet … they will go even higher until it happens, “he said.


text: Aurora Cannabis (NYSE: ACB) announced that it had entered a binding letter of agreement to acquire Hempco Food and Fiber Inc. (TSXV: HEMP). Under the agreement, Aurora will pay C$63.4 million or US$1.04 per share to purchase Hempco. This is not the first hemp company that Aurora has acquired. Last year, Aurora purchased Agropro and Borela and ICC Labs. Aurora hopes to leverage these acquisitions to help the company position itself as a global leader in hemp and CBD products.


text:
In pursuit of amazing photos of 2,000-degree hot lava, Erez Marom flew his $1,500 DJI Phantom drone too close and caused it to melt. The melted drone was worth it though according to Marom. He said:
“When you take a drone through a volcano, you take a certain risk that the drone isn’t going to come back,” Marom says. “I knew the drone might not come back, but it was worth it.”
Heat from lava in Hawai’i National Volcano Park melted drone
The National Geographic reported on Marom quest to get the perfect lava shot. Early October, the Israeli photographer and self-proclaimed lava-addict hiked out together with tour guide Eric Storm to the national park’s lava flows in Hawaii. At some point during their hike, new streams of lava erupted from the side of the mountain. The massive flows of lava extended beyond the boundaries of the national park. Because flying a drone inside a national park is illegal, Marom hiked outside of the park boundaries and before launching his DJI Phantom 4 drone. For the next few hours, he was able to take amazing photos of the lava streams until he noticed that one side of his screen started turning dark. After landing his drone and inspecting it, he noticed that the drone camera had melted.
“I’m super happy with the shots. It’s going to encourage me to use drones even more,” he says. “If anything, I’ll fly closer to lava.”
The DJI Phantom 4 series is arguably the best pro-consumer drone one can buy to capture amazing photo and video footage. If you want to make a significant step up in quality you would end up at the Inspire 2 and one of the new Zenmuse x7 lenses. Such a combination would be a lot more expensive. Undoubtedly it would deliver better photos, but see one of those devices melt would hurt.
Note: this is not the first time we see amazing photos from the lava in Hawai’i, take a look at this one for instance.
Would you possibly sacrifice your drone in pursuit of the perfect photo? Or have you lost a drone while trying to get that amazing photo? Let us know and tell your story in the comments below.


text:
In a short but controlled trial of beverages and weight loss, diet soda linked to slightly greater loss compared to other beverages, according to a new study published in the journal Obesity.
The study adds to the limited, but growing body of human research on diet beverages. With obesity being a cause of eight cancers, understanding how our food and beverages affect weight gain or loss is important to cancer prevention.
For the trial, one-half of the 300 overweight participants were instructed to drink at least 24 ounces of water daily and not to consume any diet beverages. The other half were told to drink at least 24 ounces of diet drinks, but they could also drink water. All participants also attended weekly group meetings as part of their behavioral weight loss program, to help with weight loss strategies, including learning about portion sizes, self-monitoring and physical activity. They all received the same information, except for instructions on drinking water or diet drinks.
After 12 weeks, those consuming the diet beverages lost more weight than the group consuming water. The difference was small, but significant, with the diet drink group losing an average of 13 pounds and the water group, 9 pounds.
Although it isn’t clear why the diet drink group would lose more weight than the water group, one finding that could be a factor was that the water group reported more hunger than the diet beverage group. The authors note too, that all participants came into the study drinking diet beverages, so the water group had to make the greatest behavior change – switching from diet drinks to water. This 12-week study was part of a larger 1-year trial also looking at weight loss maintenance. At the end of the year, researchers will determine how successful participants were at keeping the lost weight off.
AICR recommends avoiding sugary sodas and drinks as they link to weight gain, overweight and obesity.
This study was funded by the American Beverage Association. Two authors, John C Peters and James O Hill received consulting fees from the Coca-Cola Company outside of the submitted work.
Source: Peters JC et al. “The effects of water and non-nutritive sweetened beverages on weight loss during a 12-week weight loss treatment program.” Obesity. 2014 Jun;22(6):1415-21.


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text:
Next month Memoori will publish its latest research, estimating that all physical security product sales at factory gate prices in 2021 totaled $37.8b, a positive figure considering challenges from the ongoing pandemic. The comprehensive study also anticipates a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.2%, resulting in a market worth $53.5b by 2026 and demonstrating a strong bounce back from a COVID-19 related downturn felt by almost all industries around the world.
Next month Memoori
will publish its latest research, estimating that all physical security product sales at factory gate prices in 2021 totaled $37.8b, a positive figure considering challenges from the ongoing pandemic. The comprehensive study also anticipates a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.2%, resulting in a market worth $53.5b by 2026 and demonstrating a strong bounce back from a COVID-19 related downturn felt by almost all industries around the world. While the pandemic put a dent in physical security market growth, its quick revival has brought a new sense of optimism to the sector.
The global physical security industry actually outperformed overall performance predictions made in the crisis. This was, in part, due to a temporary spike in demand for thermal cameras for “fever screening” during global virus mitigation efforts. These “fever cameras” helped significantly in holding up video surveillance revenues in the most challenging times of 2020, with the majority being exported from Asia to Europe and the US. This has caused us to revise up our previous estimate for 2020 total physical security product sales from $32.4 billion (in our best-case scenario) to $33.8b.
While the pandemic is shifting the overall balance of priorities for many organizations, security as a whole has retained its importance, particularly for solutions that enable enhanced remote control and monitoring of sites (cloud). As the world gets more remote and automated, these features, alongside improving image resolution, power-efficiency, and intelligence (AI), will drive continued growth in the physical security space.
Despite constricted supply chains and mounting US pressure on specific companies, Chinese manufacturers actually weathered the pandemic storm well, after a slow Q1 2020 during the first wave of coronavirus they have roared back with impressive growth in the 18-months since. Margins for these vendors are somewhat lower in 2021 than the highs they hit in late 2020 but as the market settles into a new growth phase it is the impact of president Biden’s ‘Secure Equipment Act’
that will be attracting the most attention.
“The Secure Equipment Act is now the law of the land and will ensure that insecure equipment from Huawei, ZTE, and other untrustworthy entities can no longer be inserted into our communications networks,” FCC Commissioner, Brendan Carr
, said in a statement. “This gear poses an unacceptable risk to our national security. I am pleased with the overwhelming support their legislation has received in Congress to close the Huawei Loophole, and for President Biden’s signature enacting this important reform.”
Cybersecurity also remains an issue for the industry, in fact, the situation has become worse during the crisis. Cybercrime is up 600% during the COVID-19 pandemic
according to a 2021 PurpleSec report, and this rise is expected to cost companies around the world $10.5 trillion annually by 2025, growing from just $3 trillion in 2015 according to Cybersecurity Ventures, who claim modern cybercrime is “the greatest transfer of economic wealth in history”. Smart buildings are now in the eye of this cybersecurity storm with a number of high profile hacks
as connected building systems and internet of things (IoT) devices bring digital dangers into the physical world. The culture in IoT manufacturing of ‘get to market, be first’ needs to change, products and systems need to be designed with security as a priority.
Whilst challenges remain, there is growing optimism in the market, and this has been reflected in a steady stream of M&A & investment activity in 2021. Motorola Solution’s two security acquisitions of Openpath Security
, and Flock Safety’s $150m Series D
investment are representative of this trend. Indeed the $297m paid by Motorola Solutions for the 5-year-old Startup Openpath represents one of the highest valuations for a physical security company we have ever seen. Memoori’s
new report will include a full analysis of M&A and investment activity.
While competition has certainly heightened in the last 3 years, wider trends suggest there is still plenty of scope for consolidation and market growth potential is high over the next five years to 2026.
Memoori’s new report “The Physical Security Business 2021 to 2026” will be published at the beginning of next month and will be a definitive resource for Access Control, Video Surveillance & Intruder Alarm / Perimeter Protection Market Research. For further details you can email email@example.com.


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Innovate and flourish
Revising its earlier forecast on natural rubber supply outlook, the Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) has reported that prices may not rise in the short-term after five years of heavy decline. In India, import liberalisation has also contributed to the current decline in NR prices, says Dr KJ Joseph, Professor at the Centre for Development Studies (CDS) in Kerala. As a short-term measure, it may be advisable to impose some import restrictions to address the issue of price drops. However, it is myopic to depend entirely on trade restrictions as a means to stabilise prices
Well-known economist Dr KJ Joseph, Professor at the Centre for Development Studies (CDS) based in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, says import liberalisation is one of the contributing factors that has led to the crash in natural rubber prices.
To curb the current price decline, as a short-term measure, it may be advisable to impose some import restrictions, he observed. “Having said that, it will be myopic to depend entirely on trade restrictions as a means to achieve price stabilisation.” India has to look beyond this and encourage innovation, he said adding that these are his personal views and do not represent that of CDS.
The long-term solution lies in further strengthening the competitiveness of NR sector that can be achieved only through increasing productivity and bringing down production costs, he noted. It is also important to build an internationally competitive rubber-based industry in Kerala, the state which contributes more than 90 per cent to India’s NR production.
“This becomes especially important in Kerala because during the last 25 years, the share of manufacturing in the State Domestic Product (SDP) has declined from 15 per cent to 6 percent,” he noted.
While the national policy-makers were much concerned about their inability to increase the share of manufacturing output from 15 per cent in 1991, the state government has failed to take appropriate action to mitigate the problem.
Such inaction is unacceptable because Kerala still remains as a raw material supplier to other states. Piecemeal attempts like establishing Rubber Parks at the instance of government-run Rubber Board with a meagre investment of Rs 500 million will not be of much help, Dr Joseph said.
The challenge before Kerala, which now has a new government, is to establish an international rubber park covering a wide range of products by harnessing the resources from different stakeholders like planters, the commodity board, manufacturers, both foreign local and foreign.
Make in India
Dr Joseph suggested Kerala should take advantage of central government’s Make in India programme and produce value added products. In that case availability of land will not be a constraint as one of the rubber estates under the state government could be utilised for this purpose.
The sustained competitiveness of such an initiative would depend on the R&D and knowledge input to such projects. Hence, the Rubber Research Institute of India (RRII), which is under the Rubber Board, could be upgraded its work with additional mandate to undertake research on rubber-based products.
Such industrial parks should be established in other rubber growing states as well. It should be done in such a way that their synergy through backward and forward linkages is fully utilised instead of squandering away resources in wasteful competition.
In this process both the large and small holders will find that they have major roles to play in the country’s NR economy. The small growers, apart from discovering new investible resources, could also contribute to economic development by of their social capital.
While the large holders could contribute in the form of investible resources, knowledge and managerial resources will help the rubber sector achieve sustainable and equitable development, he felt.
Commenting on ageing of the plantations and labour shortages, Dr Joseph said it is important to take appropriate policy decisions to handle the issue of ageing plantations, which in turn will prevent a total collapse of the NR economy.
Systematic efforts towards timely replanting through utilisation of government subsidy notwithstanding, NRPPD (National Research Programme on Plantation Development) has shown that a major issue facing Kerala’s NR sector is the ageing of plantations. This in turn is shown to have adverse impact on the yield performance.
Dr Joseph said there is an inexorable link among NR prices, rubber-wood prices and replanting. Therefore, the ultimate solution to this issue lies in ensuring stable and remunerative prices along with required investible resources.
Yet another issue of much concern is the acute shortage of labour, especially for rubber tapping. Given the new opportunities from other growing sectors of the economy and new employment opportunities offered under MNRGEA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act), there has been an acute shortage of labour in all plantation crop sectors, including NR.
In this context, the initiatives of the Rubber Board like training new tappers and setting up Tappers Bank are timely interventions. NRPPDP studies have called for harnessing woman labourers and utilise institutions such as woman neighbourhood groups like Kudumbashree, a female-oriented, community-based poverty reduction project of the Kerala government. It can be done with appropriate modifications under MNREGA.
“However, I am inclined to say that in a highly status-conscious Kerala society, the young generation is not at all interested in the conventional type of work in the agricultural and plantation sectors. Hardly any attempt has been made to adapt the work and work environment and improve the work status to make it more attractive and acceptable to the youth,” Dr Joseph said.
The long term solution, therefore, lies in bringing about appropriate technological changes along with organisational innovations. Perhaps it is high time to do away with terms like plantation thottam thozhilali (labourer in local parlance) vettukaran (rubber tapper).
Addressing another complaint from the NR growers, the economist said that the inverted duty structure is harming the plantation sector. Under this tax regime, the import duty on the raw material is higher than the import duty on the finished goods.
Different segments of the rubber sector like tyre and tube manufacturing, rubber and latex goods industry etc are confronted with the impact of the inverted duty structure leading to high-costs that in turn is adversely affecting their international competitiveness.
Given the adverse effect of the inverted duty structure on the competitiveness of the producers of the final product, it is important to rework the policy to ensure that this anomaly is done away with.
Dr Joseph emphasised that there should be a relook to bring sustainability-oriented innovations to India’s NR economy. “The term sustainability has at least three dimensions: Economic, social and ecological,” he said. These are interrelated and sometimes in conflict with each other.
The challenge before policy-makers is to facilitate the growth of the sector in such a way that sustainability in all their dimensions is ensured. In the context of globalisation, economic sustainability depends to a great extent on building international competiveness.


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Australia’s Great Keppel Island to Be Revamped Through $300 Million Crypto Funding
Per a report by The Sydney Morning Herald, on September 4, 2018, the Great Keppel Island in Queensland, Australia, is set to get “tokenized” to revamp the island’s economy which has seen better days in the past.
Crypto Paradise Down Under
Leisure islands and cryptocurrencies seem to meet at every crossroad which leads to ideal crypto fueled utopian ecosystem. This seemingly fictitious idea might not be a distant dream anymore, as investors gear up to fund a mammoth $300 million security token offering for an Australian island.
It is speculated that the island will feature world-class premium facilities, including luxury resorts, private apartments and mansions, a golf course, and retail outlets, among other fancy offerings.
Touted as the “world’s largest cryptocurrency-backed property deal,” the Great Keppel Island has the potential to become world’s first ever cryptocurrency powered self-sustaining micro-economy and usher in a new era of island economies that run solely on digital currencies.
As per the terms of the proposal, the present owner of the defunct resort at the island, Tower Holdings will be allotted 12 percent of the GKI tokens. It’s worth pointing out that Tower Holdings owns more than 70 percent of the Great Keppel Island’s area.
A detailed white paper is expected to be released come Friday or Monday, after which the investors will be invited to partake in the secured token offering. A total of three rounds of the offering will be held, with each ensuing round having a lower minimum investment required.
Greg Norman featured in a video marketing the upcoming GKI STO states,
“The development is fully supported from all levels of Australian government, federal, state and local, and has approval for the immediate development of an 18-hole international golf course. Also approved are 750 luxury villas … 300 luxury apartments and a five-star beachfront resort with 250 rooms and a 250-berth marina.”
STOs on the Rise
Thanks to incessant ICO scams, the need for a transparent and regulated mechanism of raising crypto funds has never been so crucial.
BTCManager reported on August 15, 2018, that investors had lost nearly $100 million in fraudulent ICOs till date. Hence, floating GKI digital tokens through an STO is a step in the right direction to attract government backing.
For the uninitiated, STOs differ from ICOs in the sense that collateral or a tangible asset is backing the tokens in case of a secured token offering, something that is lacking in initial coin offerings.


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For the past several months, rumors have been turning up periodically about Facebook launching their own phone, which would compete in the mobile space along with iPhone and Android. Recently, the Silicon Valley company announced an upcoming press conference, which took place earlier today.
At this announcement, Mark Zuckerberg stated that they wished to change the way people interact with phones. This was the intro to Facebook’s new product, Facebook Home. Built on top of Android, Home totally reworks the interface of Android, turning it into a Facebook machine. This doesn’t quite match expectations, and Facebook was clear to note that this is not a new phone or operating system. CBS News reports:
Zuckerberg went on to elaborate that the company is not announcing a new phone or operating system. Instead, the social network is launching a new “experience” called Home, which is a collection of apps that features a home screen and user interface that is focused around Facebook.
The first phone to feature Facebook Home was developed by HTC in tandem with Facebook, and is dubbed the HTC First. The first is available for preorder now, and is going for $100. Although this is the “official” Facebook phone, Facebook Home will function on any already existing Android device. As the weeks progress, we will likely see more and more companies implementing Home as an option on their devices.
In terms of features, Facebook Home brings extensive customizations to the familiar mobile OS. The home screen of the device, instead of pages of apps, features the Facebook News Feed. Furthermore, throughout the system, it is always easy to post statuses, so you can always easily share what you are doing.
For connecting with others, Facebook Home has Chat Heads, a messaging service that encompasses Facebook messages as well as texting. Unlike other messaging systems, Chat Heads is integrated system-wide into the UI of the device, so that it always accessible no matter where you are. Responding to a text will no longer take you away from whatever you are doing, and you can keep the chat open on the screen while you continue your work.
Overall, Facebook Home appears to have a very polished UI, and is quite focused on changing how users interact with their phone. It should be interesting to see if, and how, Apple responds. You can check out Facebook’s promo of Home here. What do you think? Could this spell trouble for Apple’s iPhone and iOS?


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China contemplates change
As China forecasts another year of GDP growth above 9% and America’s treasury secretary tries again to persuade Beijing to revalue the yuan, China's government does seem to be preparing to change its approach to economic growth. However, its main concern is not American policymakers but China's poor
ONE could practically hear the teeth gnashing and the garments being rent in Washington and Brussels. On Tuesday October 11th, China's planning agency announced that GDP had grown at an annual rate of 9.4% in the first nine months of 2005, causing it to raise its forecast for the full year to 9.2%, from 8.8%. The agency also predicted a record trade surplus of $79 billion for this year, more than twice last year's, even though the export growth rate has slowed somewhat. With workers in the West already up in arms about low-wage competition from China, news that the peril to the east is growing even faster than expected is the last thing politicians in the developed world wanted to hear.
In recent months, those politicians have been battling assiduously to keep China's good fortune from spilling too far into their domestic markets. The European Union has only recently resolved the “Bra Wars” contretemps, in which Chinese-made clothes piled up at European customs points thanks to import quotas imposed at the beginning of the summer, and retailers facing empty shelves howled for relief. The United States, too, has been pressuring China over textiles. Last week, as John Snow, the American treasury secretary, visited Beijing, negotiators worked furiously to reach an agreement on Chinese textiles. American manufacturers have been pushing for the kind of comprehensive quota agreement that the EU reached with China. But on Thursday, the American negotiators reported that they had once again failed to reach a deal on the touchy issue.
Americans have also been pressuring China because of its currency, which some on Capitol Hill claim is undervalued against the dollar by as much as 40%. This makes China's goods irresistibly attractive to American consumers, who have been on a buying binge thanks to low interest rates (in turn helped by China's stockpiling of US Treasuries), running down savings and taking on debt to finance their spending. Figures released on Thursday showed that surging shipments of clothing and textiles pushed America's imports from China to a record $22.4 billion in August.
Mr Snow used his visit to press the case for a looser currency peg. Though China revalued the yuan in July, pegging it to a basket of currencies rather than only the dollar, it has moved only a couple of percentage points against the American currency, far too little to hold back the flood of imports into the United States. On Tuesday, Mr Snow said that while he applauds steps towards a more liberal currency regime, America wanted to encourage China to “move forward” on the issue. Speaking to reporters on Thursday, China's finance minister, Jin Renqing, rebuffed Mr Snow's demands: “Using revaluation of the renminbi [yuan] to resolve global imbalances, particularly the imbalances of certain countries, is impossible and also unnecessary,” he said.
Mr Snow is treading reasonably cautiously for now. Speaking before the meetings took place, he said he did not want to threaten China with trade sanctions over the issue, and the Treasury has delayed its bi-annual report, which will contain its assessment of China's currency situation, until the results of last week's visit could be incorporated. On Monday October 17th, after the meetings, Mr Snow said the talks had convinced him that China was committed to moving to a more flexible currency regime, and was currently “seriously engaged” in laying the groundwork by putting the reforms into place that would make such a move possible.
But many in Congress are pushing for bolder action. Recently, Chuck Schumer, a New York senator, told Mr Snow that he would expect the Treasury report to label China a “currency manipulator” unless the yuan is allowed to fluctuate more. Mr Schumer is also co-sponsoring a bill to slap tariffs of 27.5% on Chinese imports unless China revalues, which has substantial support in Congress. The growing protectionist sentiment among America's legislators has had little obvious effect on the Chinese, who continue to resist fiercely any appearance of caving in to American demands. At his Monday news conference, Mr Snow called the tariffs “ill-conceived”, but gave a warning that Congress would take action if more progress was not made on liberalising the currency regime.
This is not the first time the Chinese have stood their ground. In the late 1990s, many saw the yuan as overvalued. But China resisted pressure to devalue in order to avoid exacerbating the Asian financial crisis. It is also worth noting that while China does benefit in some ways from an undervalued currency now, it has opened its markets to a greater extent than some other Asian countries during rapid, export-led development.
Nonetheless, China's leaders may finally be readying themselves for a change in the mercantilist, growth-at-any-cost model that has prevailed for decades. The Communist Party leaders' annual meeting on economic policy ended last Tuesday with word of a strategic shift: from now on, there will be more emphasis on redressing the inequality and social disruption that market reforms have left in their wake.
The most immediate worry for China's leaders is social unrest. Last year, the government documented more than 70,000 demonstrations, attended by some 3m protesters. The government is caught in a bind. It needs the export sector to continue booming, in order to absorb surplus labour from the countryside and moribund state-owned companies. But it is aware that the rapid growth of recent years has opened fractures that could grow even wider.
If China can heal some of those rifts with a greater focus on rescuing those left behind by the new prosperity, this may in turn take some of the pressure off the government to subsidise export workers through currency management. It may also help China to develop domestic demand that can take up the slack when America's appetite for cheap goods falters, as it inevitably must given the paucity of its national savings.
But though details are sketchy, it seems improbable that China's move towards more balanced economic growth will be anything like the kind of radical leap that foreign observers would like. There are some brands of wealth redistribution that would make foreign investors very jittery, such as higher taxes. Hu Jintao, China's president, is still consolidating power; even if he had a radical vision of a China less dependent on the cravings of the American consumer, it would have to wait until his command of the party was firmer. More importantly, it would have to wait until Chinese consumers became sufficiently confident in the social safety-net and the provision of affordable health care and education that they were willing to save less and spend more. But where is the money for pensions and the like going to come from?
And though the rising tide of China's economy undoubtedly has the power to lift all boats, there are worrying rigidities in the system, caused by the under-development of its financial system and the fact that economic reform has not been accompanied by political reform. Officials rightly fret that further economic changes could undermine the stability of the party's rule. Amid all the talk of addressing the wealth gap, the party's plenum reiterated a commitment to rapid growth by restating a goal of raising China's GDP to double its 2000 level by 2010. As long as China's expansion remains export-driven, western politicians may just have to learn to live with a new and unpredictable economic power.


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Kansas City’s only Hugo Boss Brand Outlet, BOSS, Opening at Legends Outlets in time for the Holidays
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (Nov. 6, 2023) – Legends Outlets continues to expand its lineup of luxury designer outlets with the addition of BOSS, the Hugo Boss brand outlet. BOSS will be the only location in the Kansas City area and one of only a few in the country. The new location will occupy 2,460 feet in Suite K-125 at the Legends Outlets. BOSS anticipates an opening date of December 4, just in time for the holidays.
BOSS offers iconic menswear including suits, casual and athleisure collections. BOSS also offers footwear, fragrances and accessories. All of the collections that BOSS will offer at Legends Outlets will announce closer to the opening.
The Mahomes Connection
Patrick Mahomes stars in the Hugo Boss campaign for its Fall/Winter 2023 collections. Check out these commercial spots starring Mahomes, here:


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Stripe launches Tap to Pay for Android devices
- Stripe has become the first company to launch Tap to Pay on Android.
- Last year, it partnered with Apple on the same.
Stripe, a US-based payments services company, has expanded its ‘Tap to Pay’ to Android. This will allow businesses to accept contactless payments on NFC-enabled Android devices via the Stripe Terminal. It will support transactions made with Google Pay, Mastercard, American Express, and Visa credit and debit cards.
Stripe’s Tap to Pay
Stripe was the first payments company to partner with Apple for the ‘Tap to Pay’ system. Stripe is the only payments company to expand its Tap to Pay on Android. However, just as Apple did, Google will likely follow suit in the foreseeable future.
As of now, Tap to Pay is available in six regions namely; Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Singapore, and New Zealand. Indeed, these nations are a good start for Stripe’s product; seeing that they have about 225 million Android users.
With regards to the expansion, the firm’s Terminal business leader, John Affaki stated, “Stripe’s launch of Tap to Pay on Android puts contactless payments hardware into the pockets of millions of businesses around the world. Now any business can set up in-person checkout in minutes”.
Stripe’s path to profitability
Stripe’s move to expand Tap to Pay on Android is in sync with its plan to turn profitable as the year unfolds. Indeed, it is striving to process payments worth $1 trillion. It forecasts that its adjusted EBITDA in 2023 will be $100 million after recording $80 million in 2022.
In January, the firm sought the services of Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan as it explores options for raising finances. It has been weighing a capital raise via a private market and direct listing. It will be interesting to see how Stripe’s efforts perform amid the broader tech industry remain under pressure from the macroeconomic environment.


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It's been three years since the free trade agreement (FTA) was signed with South Korea and New Zealand cheese is making a significant impact on their shelves.
Fonterra is leading the industry in some areas of sustainability, says chief executive Miles Hurrell.
Farmers will have to look at their fundamental farming systems if they are to meet future nitrogen leaching limits.
Lincoln University PhD student Christina Berneheim is inviting farmers to complete an online questionnaire to express their views on the industry.
Agribusiness leader Warren Parker has been appointed the new chairman of state farmer Pāmu Farms (Landcorp).
The dairy sector is on a winning streak, recently collecting a range of coveted awards.
Fifty dairy farmers — mostly Fonterra shareholders – and others met recently in Morrinsville to discuss DIRA’s role in milk production in 2018.
Fonterra is giving farmers the option to fix the price of some of their milk.
It's time for DairyNZ and Beef + Lamb NZ to justify their split of the eradication costs of Mycoplasma bovis.
Alternatives to milk are not necessarily better or cleaner than dairy, says Leon Clement, the new chief executive of Synlait Milk.
A 7,500 signature petition was presented to parliament last week calling for changes to NZ’s immigration laws.
Persistently strong global milk supply forced Fonterra to cut its milk price forecast last week by about 20-25 cents.
With the lowering of the farmgate milk price comes the squeezing of margins.
Economists aren't too excited about last week’s 2.2% overall lift in the Global Dairy Trade price index.
MPI has filed charges against an individual after receiving a video in June this year of a Northland sharemilker hitting cows with a pipe and other objects.
Fonterra will appoint a third “unknown candidate” in the second director election if neither John Nicholls or Jamie Tuuta succeeds, says Fonterra board aspirant John Nicholls.
Tip Top won't be sold without first a fight from Fonterra farmers and Kiwis.
Fonterra farmers and Kiwis are vowing to fight to save Tip Top ice cream from changing hands.
Fonterra has confirmed it is considering selling the nation’s beloved ice cream brand, Tip Top.
Fonterra has dropped its forecast farmgate milk price for the season.
On the eve of Fonterra revising its farmgate milk price, the overnight Global Dairy Trade auction (GDT) offered farmers some good news.
This week Wellington is hosting nearly one-hundred of New Zealand’s most passionate dairy farming leaders.
Westland Milk has secured a $10 million loan from the Government to help build a new plant.
Fonterra has released its second annual Sustainability Report covering how the co-op is progressing towards its environmental, social and economic goals.