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The changes in Colorado’s composting rules are kicking in this weekend after the state’s largest compost manufacturer has struggled to handle the large volume of contaminants that end up in its supply chain.
Starting Saturday, people who participate in composting programs, including Denver’s, should only put food and yard waste in their bins. All packaging, paper, utensils and other products that claim to be compostable or biodegradable — with one exception — must go in the regular garbage.
“When in doubt, throw it out,” said Clinton Sander, marketing manager for A1 Organics. “Don’t put it in the bin.”
A1 Organics is the largest compost manufacturer in Colorado, and earlier this year the company announced it was altering the products it will accept for composting. The company takes material from Denver, Boulder and other large cities along the Front Range as well as from schools such as the University of Colorado Boulder and other large venues and events that compost.
The company found too many contaminants such as glass bottles, greasy pizza boxes and plastics such as trash bags and dinnerware in the material being delivered to its property in Keenesburg, Sander said. Now, it has mounds of compost that it cannot bag and sell to the public because those materials are mixed in with actual organic product.
“That’s the challenge we face when you have a fantastic quality compost with small pieces that look like trash,” Sander said. “No one wants that. We don’t want that.”
A1 is looking for ways to use the compost that it cannot sell because company leaders don’t want to send it to a landfill, he said. The company believes the product could be used in agriculture or as a soil filler in grassland areas because the non-organic pieces are small.
At first, A1 said it would not allow anything in its compost supply except food and yard waste. However, the company recently decided to allow certain compostable-certified garbage bags. They must be 3 gallons or less, approved by the Compost Manufacturers Alliance and can only contain food scraps. A list of approved bags is available on the company’s website at a1organics.com/acceptables.
“We have to reset this stream and we have to bring awareness to what the challenges are when you put the wrong thing in the wrong bin,” he said.
Composting reduces the amount of waste poured into the state’s landfills and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. As it grows in popularity, it’s been challenging to keep the supply chain clean.
Some products such as paper towels, plates, cups and utensils are packaged to look like they are compostable although they are not. Some are labeled “biodegradable,” but that is not the same as compostable, Sander said.
He used brown paper towels as an example. Some are made of plant fiber and break down easily, but others are not. And people start confusing which paper towels are acceptable and toss them all into their compost bins.
“The problem is when you say ‘paper towel,’ people assume every paper towel can go in the bin.”
The company also has found that loads of material coming from Denver’s composting program often have garbage in them. That’s likely because the city’s green bins are not locked or monitored as they sit in alleys, and anyone can toss something inside, Sander said.
“When COVID kicked in, we saw a huge uptick in face masks and sanitation wipes that do not belong in the bin,” he said.
So it’s time to step back and get everyone on the same page of what is acceptable.
“We’re trying to focus on what’s important and make it really simple,” Sander said.
The Dos and Don’ts of Colorado’s new composting rules
What can you put in the bin?
As a general rule, if you can eat it or feed it to an animal, you can put it in your bin.
- Coffee grounds
- Pretzels and chips
- Meat, raw or cooked
- Fruit peels and cores
- Chicken skins and bones
- Old leftovers from the fridge
- Small branches (Check with hauler for maximum size.)
- Grass trimmings and clippings
- Dead house plants
What to leave out?
- Old dirt/soil
- Limbs and branches longer than two feet
- Pizza boxes
- Paper towels
- No packaging even if it says compostable
- Trash bags, except for certain compostable-certified garbage bags
- All plastics
- Fruit and vegetable stickers


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IWSR analyses the potential for South Africa and Brazil to replicate gin's UK success
As Fever-Tree saw its shares plummet in Jan 2020, IWSR explores the future of gin and the challenges and opportunities facing Fever-Tree as it expands outside of the UK.
On behalf of the IWSR, Alexander Smith, Global Drinks Intel editor, looks at Pernod Ricard’s Champagne strategy and its role in helping to drive premiumisation within the category
IWSR research shows volume increases for distilled spirits and ready-to-drink products in the US in 2019; beer continues to slip
IWSR's US Bartender Strategic Study examines trends, most-mentioned brands, and top consumer preferences across the United States
LVMH leaders share how their value-creation strategy is driving growth for their Champagne business
Cocktail innovation: spices and savoury notes are the flavour profiles to watch on both coasts of the US
Cocktails are critical offerings in the on-premise in Los Angeles and New York City, but it’s the sophistication of savoury ingredients that’s gaining traction.
Changing consumer habits and a growing middle class in China presents brands with an opportunity to widen their investments in the Chinese market
Women in South Africa present drinks brands with an opportunity to invest in new markets in the region and expand category offerings.
- Irish Whiskey
- Mixed Drinks
- US Whiskey

domain: news


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Artyom Zorin has announced the availability of the release candidate for Zorin OS 8, a beginner-friendly desktop Linux distribution based on Ubuntu: "To start the new year off, we have unleashed the Zorin OS 8 Core release candidate. This is a pre-release version of the next-generation Zorin OS.....
January 3, 2014
Development Release: Zorin OS 8 RC
Read more at DistroWatch


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ZUG, Switzerland, Sept. 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today DJIB launched the first ever end-to-end encrypted, enterprise grade decentralised data storage drive with embedded multi chain non-fungible token functionality. It enables
September 1, 2022
TripGift® Expands Global Reach With Industry-First 54 Transactional Currencies, Accelerates Global Retail Distribution
More customers can now redeem TripGift travel gift cards for travel anywhere with the addition of 20 new currencies in 38 countries. TripGift Gift card LONDON, Sept. 01, 2022 (GLOBE
Triall to Advance Blockchain Technology in Clinical Trial Data and Study Management With Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic will onboard Triall’s blockchain-integrated eClinical platform to embed verifiable data integrity into a multi-center pulmonary arterial hypertension trial that includes 10 research sites and 500+ patients across the
London, Aug. 31, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The CBI industry is changing, and its players must look to the next generation to see how it will evolve in the future.
Expereo appoints new General Counsel and SVP of Enterprise Sales as part of continued investment strategy
AMSTERDAM, Aug. 31, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The world’s leading provider of managed network solutions, Expereo welcomes Sujata Kukreja, General Counsel and Scott Zarriello, SVP Enterprise Sales into its ranks.
Senior OKX executives and a high-profile sporting ambassador will speak at TOKEN2049 DAS NYC and DAS London will see OKX present on its revamped Web3 Wallet VICTORIA, Seychelles, Aug. 31,
Vietnam’s logistics industry has yet to have its potential fully tapped, and the country needs timely solutions to meet the surging demand for logistics infrastructure.A survey by Savills Vietnam showed
Digital transformation has been essential for the tourism sector in the post-COVID-19 period by optimising operations, cutting expenses, improving efficiency, and attracting more visitors.From 2015 to 2019, online searches for


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Kenya’s world record holder Eliud Kipchoge sold footage taken to the INEOS challenge in Vienna, Austria for 3 million Ksh.
During an auction which closed on Thursday April 8, the the images were sold as a Non-fungible token (NFT).
An NFT is a new form of a collector’s item that is signed with a unique code that serves as a permanent record of its authenticity and that is stored using blockchain technology.
Technology makes it impossible to steal or counterfeit and therefore the winner of the auction will be the only verified owner at the time.
The auction took place on OpenSea, the largest marketplace for NFTs and was supported by Momentible, a platform that gives musicians and athletes the chance to immortalize their legendary moments in the form of an NFT.
In an action that closed on Thursday April 8, Eliud Kipchoge sold his Vienna Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) for Ksh 3 million.
A high-quality, current work of art and a personal video message from Kipchoge will be presented to the winner.
Kipchoge announced that he would sell the highlight of his career as an NFT on April 3 and added that he hoped it would give someone around the world the same positive memories he gave him.
“In my career, I have always been interested in technology and therefore it suits me well to present my special sports memorabilia on the blockchain. I have no doubts that it will help someone in the world to have those positive memories like it did for me, ”Kipchoge said on Momentible.
In October 2019, Kipchoge became the first person in history to run a 42 kilometer marathon in less than 2 hours on a special course in Vienna, Austria.
He is also the world marathon record holder and has held the title since 2018 when he set a record of 2:01:39 in the Berlin Marathon.
Recently, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey sold his first tweet in the form of an NFT “just setting up my twttr” to the highest bidder for a total of Ksh312 million and donated it to charity.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk had earlier announced that he would sell one of his tweets as NFT, but then withdrew the offer even though a bidder had offered to pay Ksh100million.
Kipchoge will join a roster of global celebrities including Jack Dorsey, billionaire and Shark Tank star Mark Cuban, musician Shawn Mendes and NFL star Rob Gronkowski who have sold NFTs.
Eliud Kipchoge posing for GQ in costume


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In an environment of soaring food prices, it makes sense to start looking at stocks in the agricultural sector. As such, insecticide and herbicide manufacturer FMC Corporation (FMC 1.63%) is worth monitoring. While the company won't evade the supply chain issues bedeviling the rest of the economy, its earnings have enough positive momentum to justify buying the stock. Moreover, FMC's strong run in 2022 has legs, and here's why.
The company generates 60% of its sales from insecticides (substances used to control or kill insects that damage crops), with a further 27% from herbicides (substances used to control unwanted plants). The company's revenue is relatively diversified by geography and end-market crop. Latin America (32% of 2021 sales) is traditionally its largest region by sales, followed by Asia (25%), North America (22%), and Europe, Middle East, and Africa, or EMEA (21%). CEO Mark Douglas expects crop protection markets in Latin America, North America, and Asia to be "up mid-single digits" in 2022. However, he forecasted EMEA to be "down low single digits. The war in Ukraine may further reduce market growth in the EMEA region." More on that in a moment.
FMC's largest markets are soybeans (20% of 2021 sales), with fruit and vegetables (19%) and rice/sugar/corn/cereals with 9% apiece in terms of end-market crops. FMC is a play on a general rise in food commodities rather than being overly reliant on any one crop. There may be some upside from a shift in production from corn to soybeans this year as farmers seek to avoid dramatically higher fertilizer prices (corn tends to need more fertilizer than soybeans).
Favorable end markets
FMC's diversified exposure stands it in good stead to overcome the loss of sales to Russia and Ukraine. It also means the company is well positioned to take advantage of the soaring food prices occurring, partly due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. In a sign of the strength of underlying demand, management noted that the 16% year-over-year organic sales growth in the first quarter was partly due to a pull-forward in demand with customers looking to secure supplies in advance.
Moreover, the strength of the company's end markets is illustrated in the fact that FMC was able to command pricing power. Breaking out the organic sales growth figure of 16% in the quarter, 8% came from volume growth and a whopping 8% from pricing. In a nutshell, FMC hiked prices to offset rising costs (not least from the supply chain issues dogging the global economy).
Of course, most companies are looking to offset high costs with price increases, but the question is can they make them stick without eroding demand? In FMC's case, customers are pulling forward orders, and the fact that commodity food prices keep rising is a boon to the company.
Moreover, end-market conditions will likely remain strong in 2022 due to multi-year lows in stocks-to-use ratios across the agricultural sector. For example, the United States Department of Agriculture sees wheat prices moving higher on the back of a projected eight-year low for the stocks-to-use ratio of wheat in 2022/2023.
New product sales
In addition, the company is making significant progress with its strategic plans and market positioning. For example, the new products it introduced in the last five years are now expected to generate over 30% of full-year revenue. Moreover, they increased by 50% in the first quarter. It's a sign of underlying solid growth, and the success of its new product introductions comes at a time of strong demand -- something that augurs well for its market position in the future.
Putting it all together, FMC is well positioned to take advantage of buoyant end markets, as it has the product portfolio and pricing power to offset rising costs. Ultimately, its customers will pay higher prices for herbicides and insecticides to increase the yield for commodity crops that are also rising in price. FMC is in a category of agriculture stocks that represent an excellent way to profit from higher food prices and protect your portfolio from rising inflation.


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Jun 20, 2017 - Micron Technology Inc.'s (MU) shares have added about 4.5% in yesterday's trade, outperforming the market.
Jun 19, 2017 - Cypress and Qualcomm give investors exposure to the IoT market while paying generous dividends.
Jun 19, 2017 - A lazy, unfocused summer is here. Yet that sentiment might be bullish stocks. No new news may be good news -- in this upward trending market -- driven by momentum, mostly.
Jun 19, 2017 - These three chipmakers stand to enjoy nice paydays from Apple's upcoming iPhone sales ramp.
Jun 16, 2017 - As Intel integrates more functionality into its chips, third-party chip vendors risk seeing portions of their businesses destroyed.
Jun 07, 2017 - Ambarella Inc. (AMBA) started fiscal 2018 on a strong note, reporting better-than-expected results for first-quarter fiscal 2018.
Jun 05, 2017 - Broadcom Ltd. (AVGO) reported second quarter EPS of $3.69 after the bell Thursday, up from $2.53 last year. Analysts expected EPS of $3.50.
Jun 05, 2017 - Commentary from this critical Apple supplier suggests that the production ramp-up of the next-generation iPhone will be later this year than it was for last year's model.
Jun 03, 2017 - This successful Apple supplier looks to extend its winning streak by boosting its dollar content inside the next iPhone.
Jun 02, 2017 - The overall market rose modestly, but these stocks' gains well outpaced it. Find out why.


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Union Leader Correspondent
|A long-john wall hanging fashioned from an|
old pair of socks, and a primitive crow head, both
made by local crafters, on display
at Bittersweet Blessings in Chester.
So in June 2010 she made the abrupt but final decision to give up teaching, leaving her with a bittersweet dilemma. “We had a great space here. It wasn’t long before my Michelle and I were thinking about what it would take to turn it into a country store,” said Stein, who along with her daughter-in-law, Michelle Stein, have turned a mutual love for primitive arts and crafts into a thriving niche business venture.
“It was more like our husbands would kill us if we didn’t start selling and stop buying,” said Michelle Stein, going through a box of items just in from another country store that’s going out of business.
Their store, Bittersweet Blessings, is not named not for Stein’s circumstance but rather her penchant for gnarled vines. As you open the door and walk down five steps it’s like entering a subterranean treasure trove just off the beaten path.
“When my sons were younger I used to have them go out hunting for bittersweet vines for me,” said Barbara Stein. The “blessings” part is simply a karmic nod to their shared philosophy of gratitude, for family, friends and the ability to reap what one sows.
“This is all from Crazy Crow in Suncook. They’re sending all their stuff to us, which is great for us and great for the consigners,” says Michelle Stein, pulling a series of remarkably simple-looking fabric-stuffed crow heads with a tiny jinglebell eyes and gauzy accoutrements from the box.
The crows are among a pile of objects handmade by Kim Morin of Loudon, well known in local country craft circles, said Michelle Stein, which means the items will sell on reputation alone.
Frankly, selling isn’t a problem, even for a store selling objets d’art in a down economy.
“We opened in October and broke even by Christmas,” said Michelle Stein, tucking crow heads in crannied nooks while her mother-in-law shifted some more new merchandise from one end of the sales counter to another.
“We’ve heard feedback that our prices are fair. We don’t have to mark up as much as other stores might because we really don’t have any overhead, except electricity,” Barbara Stein explained.
The store is part of Barbara Stein’s home, so there’s no rent. Heat is generated from firewood. Her son Matt takes care of plowing and landscaping. Her husband, Lenny, handles electrical and plumbing needs.
Another secret to their success is the constant turnover of items, with new pieces coming in daily, said Michelle Stein.
“We have some kind of sale weekly, which might take away from what we make a little, but it really helps our crafters who consign,” said Michelle Stein.
“They get 73 percent profit, which is pretty standard in this industry. People interested in country and primitive items normally don’t just go to one store. Usually there is a circuit of stores, and if they’re shopping, they’re hitting more than one.”
Regulars, like Denise Trottier of Chester, look forward to seeing what’s new. Yesterday, Trottier was taken by some hand-painted yellow finch statuettes, which she paired with a birdhouse and a spray of spring flowers.
“I really just like this kind of decor, so I come in every couple of weeks — I’ve been coming ever since they opened,” Trottier said.
Similar spring-like items have been drawing in customers who seek relief from the white-and-gray landscape outside, said Michelle Stein.
Delicate twisted vines featuring forsythia blooms or cherry blossoms set off with twinkle lights seem to be the current trend in home decorating.
“We have another shipment of lit branches coming tomorrow — 70 pounds of branches, because our last batch of spring branches already sold out,” she said.
On the front counter are chocolates made by Heidi O’Connell of Auburn and herbal tinctures and soaps by Jean Marie Belzile of Derry.
Trottier gets a complimentary bag of Too Hot to Handle J.Drizzle Gourmet Popcorn, made by Joe Choquette of Chester. Hanging near a crow head is a tiny patched-up pair of long johns, hung with tiny clothespins on a twig, a whimsical bit of folk art fashioned by Paula Patrikas of Windham, sold under the name Paula’s Prettys.
“When stores close, like Country Cupboards in Derry and Crazy Crow, our consigners lose out because they only sell through stores like ours,” said Michelle Stein.
It’s not for lack of interest or demand in such items, said Stein, noting that despite some stores closing, another new store, Raven’s Nook, just launched in Hampstead.
“I have some customers who come in and spend a couple hundred dollars every week,” she said.
In addition to locally made wares, there are paintings, quilts, textiles, jewelry, candles, wall hangings, a potpourri bar and endless countrified knickknacks made in and around New England and beyond.
“We do carry some of the popular national brands, like Park Designs, a textile manufacturer — that table cloth is Park Designs, for example,” said Michelle Stein, pointing toward an orange-and-gold checkered gingham cloth, typical of the warm hues and comforting designs that add to the peaceful ambiance inside the shop.
“We have people who come in, not to shop, but just to sit for an hour,” said Michelle Stein. “They say, ‘I just needed some quiet time.’ We love that.”
On the Web: www.bittersweet-blessings.com


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Last month, Vinny Troia, the founder of Data Viper and Bob Diachenko, an independent cybersecurity consultant discovered a “wide-open” Elasticsearch server. The server exposed the personal information of about 1.2 billion unique users including their names, email addresses, phone numbers, LinkedIn and Facebook profile information.
The Elasticsearch server did not have any kind of authentication whatsoever and was accessible via a web browser. “No password or authentication of any kind was needed to access or download all of the data,” the report adds.
What the investigation on the Elasticsearch server revealed
Troia and Diachenko came across the Elasticsearch server while looking for exposures on the web scanning services BinaryEdge and Shodan. Upon further investigation, the researchers speculated that the data originated from two different data enrichment companies: People Data Labs and OxyData.io.
Data enrichment, as the name suggests, is a process of enhancing the existing raw data to make it useful for businesses. Data enrichment companies can provide access to large stores of data merged from multiple third-party sources, which enables businesses to gain deeper insights into their current and potential customers.
Elasticsearch stores its data in an index, which is similar to a ‘database’ in a relational database. The researchers found that the majority of the data spanned four separate data indexes, labeled “PDL” and “OXY”. Also, each user record was labeled with a “source” field that matched either PDL or Oxy, respectively.
After the researchers de-duplicated the nearly 3 billion user records with the PDL index, they found roughly 1.2 billion unique people and 650 million unique email addresses. These numbers matched with the statistics provided by the company on their website.
The data within the three PDL indexes included slightly varied information. While some focused on scraped LinkedIn information, email addresses and phone numbers, others included information on individual social media profiles such as a person’s Facebook, Twitter, and Github URLs. After analyzing the data under the OXY index, the researchers found scrape of LinkedIn data, including recruiter information.
What made the case confusing was that the Elasticsearch server was hosted on Google Cloud Services, while People Data Labs appears to be using Amazon Web Services. When contacted about the Elasticsearch server, both the companies denied that the server belonged to them.
In an interview with Wired, PDL co-founder Sean Thorne said, “The owner of this server likely used one of our enrichment products, along with a number of other data-enrichment or licensing services. Once a customer receives data from us, or any other data providers, the data is on their servers and the security is their responsibility. We perform free security audits, consultations, and workshops with the majority of our customers.”
This news sparked a discussion on Hacker News. While some users were stunned by the sheer negligence of leaving the Elasticsearch server wide-open, others were questioning the core business model of these companies.
A user commented, “It has to exist on a private network behind a firewall with ports open to application servers and other es nodes only. Running things on a public IP address is a choice that should not be taken lightly. Clustering over the public internet is not a thing with Elasticsearch (or similar products).”
“It’s a tragedy that all of this data was available to anyone in a public database instead of…. checks notes… available to anyone who was willing to sign up for a free account that allowed them 1,000 queries. It seems like PDL’s core business model is irresponsible regarding their stewardship of the data they’ve harvested,” another user added.
Read the full report on Data Viper’s official website.


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Company-wide restructure will slim staff numbers but not affect Model 3 production rates, says founder Elon Musk
Electric car giant Tesla is letting go of nine per cent of its workforce, in a major restructuring designed to get the firm on track to become "sustainably profitable". Announcing the plans this week,...
New Liberal Democrat leader uses final conference address to promise 'bold' climate action and the pursuit of a 2045 net zero target
'Data for benefits': Corporates experiment with farmer incentives to help build traceable supply chain
Sainsbury's, BNP Paribas, Unilever, and Barclays are working with the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership to pioneer blockchain-based supply chain system
Around 5GW of subsidy-free solar could come online by 2030 in the UK, much of which could be bolstered by battery storage, according to Aurora Energy Research
Environmental Audit Committee predicts nearly a fifth of the UK's fruit and vegetables come from countries exposed to severe climate risks, as new study makes case for more plant-based diets


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NewswireToday - /newswire/ -
Los Angeles, CA, United States, 2012/10/17 - Verle Sutton, editor of The Reel Time Report, addressed an audience of more than 125 professionals in an Industry Intelligence, Inc. i2live webinar and said the Nova Scotia mill is not expected to exert a long-term influence on publication papers.
Industry Intelligence, Inc., a market intelligence and information management company serving the forest products, packaging, and food and beverage industries, today announced the highlights of its Verle Sutton i2live webinar on Oct. 3. Verle Sutton, editor of The Reel Time Report, spoke to a webinar audience of more than 125 paper and publishing industry professionals. Sutton’s presentation focused on the outlook for widely used publication paper grades, coated free-sheet and coated groundwood.
During the webinar, Sutton highlighted the market implications of the recently restarted Port Hawkesbury Paper supercalendered mill in Point Tupper, Nova Scotia. Sutton noted the restart isn’t expected to have a long-term influence on publication papers, though the effect could be dramatic in the short-to-medium term.
Port Hawkesbury started operating the supercalendered machine on Oct. 3 and is expected to produce 400,000 tonnes per year. Sutton pointed out that the North American capacity for supercalendered is 1 million tonnes per year and he called the sudden boost to the grade’s capacity “historic.” However, Sutton noted that this capacity boost was a 2013 event, and he did not expect the impact to spill forward. “I don’t think it will go on impacting 2014 and 2015,” he said.
In referencing the newsprint market, Sutton said,“So, when we look forward into next year, I don't think there's any other forecast that we could make other than publishing will continue to decline. Let’s assume maybe at today's rates of 7% or so. So, we will see continued fallout in newsprint next year.”
The Oct. 3 webinar was sponsored by Industry Intelligence, Inc. as part of its ongoing series of market-relevant, value-added accessible content. The presentation was sponsored by the National Paper Trade Association (NPTA), the association for the paper distribution channel, and Two Sides, an initiative by companies from the graphic communications supply chain aimed at increasing people’s knowledge about why print and paper constitute a versatile and sustainable communications medium.
The Reel Time Report is a 12-page, monthly analytical report that provides a comprehensive and independent analysis of the publication-grade paper markets, i.e., newsprint, value-added groundwood grades and coated grades. Each report includes a focus on pricing, analysis and market forecast; and is considered a must-read by producers, paper buyers, merchants, paper analysts, and investors.
About Industry Intelligence, Inc.
Industry Intelligence, Inc. (industryintel.com) has provided market intelligence to more than 600 companies worldwide from independent startups to Fortune 500 companies since it began as Forestweb in 1999. Over the years, Industry Intelligence has grown to cover the forest products, packaging and food and beverage industries. Its coverage ranges from a high-level industry view to in-depth data. Clients use Industry Intelligence market intelligence to prepare for meetings, generate sales reports, produce competitive analysis and create other business documents. Industry Intelligence innovation comes from industry experts using patented technology to deliver the market intelligence that companies use to compete, make informed decisions and succeed.
i2live (i2live.net) is the events unit of Industry Intelligence, Inc. i2live brings together business leaders to address issues that cut across industries and market sectors especially forest products, packaging and food and beverage. Through online events and interactive conference programming, i2live helps businesses make sense of industry trends and capitalize on emerging opportunities.


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Kerala Isis links: Suspects to be booked under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act; NIA to probe the matter
'We don't even want to see his dead body,' says father of missing Kerala youth feared to have joined Isis
Eid 2016: Turkey, Russia celebrate Eid al-Fitr on Tuesday; why UAE, India celebrating on later dates?
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US meat major Tyson Foods has voluntarily recalled about 8.5 million pounds of frozen cooked chicken products over fears of contamination from the bacteria listeria monocytogenes.
In a statement on Saturday (3 July), Tyson said the recall had been conducted “out of an abundance of caution” for the ready-to-eat chicken products manufactured at its plant in Dexter, Missouri, between 26 December 2020 and 13 April 2021.
The products were sold to retail and foodservice customers across the US and also exported to Puerto Rico, Tyson said, adding that there “is no conclusive evidence that the products were contaminated at the time of shipment”.
Listeria monocytogenes is a harmful bacteria that causes the infection listeriosis, which is generally caught through exposure to contaminated foods and in serious cases can result in death.
Tyson said it had been working closely with the US Department of Agriculture over the recall. In a separate statement, the Department’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) said it had identified cases of listeriosis linked to Tyson’s Dexter plant and one death.
“We’re committed to providing safe, healthy food that people rely on every day,” Scott Brooks, the senior vice president for food safety and quality assurance at Tyson, said in the statement. “We are taking this precautionary step out of an abundance of caution and in keeping with our commitment to safety.”
Meanwhile, the FSIS said: “On June 9, 2021, FSIS was notified of two persons ill with listeriosis. Working in conjunction with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state public health partners, FSIS determined there is evidence linking the listeria monocytogenes illnesses to pre-cooked chicken produced at Tyson Foods Inc.”
It continued: “The epidemiologic investigation identified three listeriosis illnesses, including one death, between April 6, 2021 and June 5, 2021. During routine sample collection, FSIS collected two pre-cooked chicken samples from two establishments that are closely related genetically to listeria monocytogenes from ill people. One of the samples was collected at Tyson Foods Inc. FSIS is continuing to work with federal and state public health partners to determine if there are additional illnesses linked to these products.”
Tyson explained that the recall includes branded and private-label frozen, fully cooked chicken products. It added: “No other Tyson products are impacted by the recall, including but not limited to any Tyson brand fresh chicken; frozen, raw chicken products or chicken nuggets”.
The CDC added the recall includes frozen, cooked chicken strips, diced chicken, chicken wing sections and fully cooked pizza with chicken, shipped to customers that also included hospitals, nursing facilities, schools and Department of Defense locations. The impacted brands include Tyson, Jet’s Pizza, Casey’s General Store, Marco’s Pizza, and Little Caesars.


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It looks like everyone can’t wait for the upcoming MWC event that manufacturers are either announcing some of their devices or teasing their lineup ahead of the event.
One of those companies is Huawei, which teased some of it’s lineup for the MWC in a YouTube video. The video showed two of the companies new tablets, the MediaPad X1 which is powered by an in-house quad-core Hisilicon 910 Kirin processor clocked at 4.6GHz, 2GB of … Continue reading
1,995 total views
While getting ready for MWC 2014, LG made a small pre-MWC announcement, regarding the lilliputian LG G2 mini, its new mini flagship.
The device packs a 4.7 inch IPS LCD display (qHD 960×540 pixels), Snapdragon 400 or Tegra 4i SoC, 1GB of RAM, two cameras (8 and 1.3MPixels), 8GB of storage with microSD slot and it will run on Android KitKat 4.4! It supports Guest Mode to give it to friends in order to play with it, dual SIM support and … Continue reading
2,595 total views
According to a new report coming from ZDNet, Samsung is set to unveil it’s new Galaxy Tab 4 series and the Galaxy Gear 2 at the upcoming Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.
The new Galaxy Tab 4 series is rumored to have the usual, 3G, LTE, and WiFi only variants. The Galaxy Tab 4 8.0 will feature an 8-inch LCD display with 1280 × 800 resolution, powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 1GB … Continue reading
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Samsung just announced that it will be holding an “Unpacked 5” event at where else, the Mobile World Congress 2014 in Barcelona, February 24th.
Samsung just told us to mark our calendars, and no further details were stated. But now that they’ve announced their Galaxy Note Pro and Tab Pro line of tablets back at CES, the Galaxy Note 3 Neo and Neo LTE+ last week, what else will they ‘unpack’ this coming … Continue reading
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The rumored Oppo Find 7, the Find 5’s successor, has been one of the hottest topic as of late when it comes to 2014 flagship smartphones. And according to Chinese site cnbeta, the device is finally going to be introduced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, next month.
And according to the same source, the Oppo Find 7 will run on Color OS and will feature a 5.5-inch display with a crisp resolution of 2560 … Continue reading
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A mystery smartphone from Sony was recently unveiled (unofficially) in XDA Developers from member iRimas. It’s called Sony D6503 and packs a 5.2 inch display, with smaller bezels than Xperia Z1 and an improved UI running on Android 4.3.
We have a lot of photos of the device as you can see, but from its code name we guess that it’s probably a Xperia ZL successor and not a new flagship model. Nevertheless it seems to pack a 20.7 MPixels … Continue reading
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Polkadot (DOT) Holders Love Pushd (PUSHD) as Solana (SOL) Investors Liken Platform to a
Polkadot (DOT) enthusiasts, alongside Solana (SOL) investors, are increasingly gravitating towards Pushd (PUSHD), attracted by its promise to revolutionize the e-commerce space akin to what Amazon has achieved in the traditional retail sector. This comparison to Amazon is not made lightly; it stems from Pushd’s ambitious vision to create a decentralized platform that offers scalability, security and an enhanced user experience. The potential for 20x gains has further solidified Pushd’s appeal, positioning it as a must-watch project in the evolving crypto landscape.
Polkadot (DOT) Community’s Growing Interest
The Polkadot (DOT) community, characterized by its enthusiasm for interoperability and scalable multi-chain ecosystems, has shown a growing interest in Pushd (PUSHD). Recognizing the potential for Pushd (PUSHD) to create a decentralized marketplace that could rival traditional online retailers, Polkadot (DOT) holders are increasingly drawn to the project’s presale. Despite its innovative technology, Polkadot’s price has fallen significantly from its all-time high. This decline, along with broader market downturns is leading to investor skepticism and reduced interest in the currency.
Solana (SOL) Investors Draw Parallels to Amazon
Investors from the Solana (SOL) camp, attracted by the project’s high throughput and efficient blockchain infrastructure, are likening Pushd (PUSHD) to a ‘Crypto Amazon’. They see the platform’s potential to disrupt the e-commerce industry by providing a decentralized alternative that could offer a broader range of products, better security, and a more equitable system for sellers and buyers alike.
Pushd’s E-commerce Revolution
Pushd (PUSHD) elevates the user experience in e-commerce by seamlessly blending the convenience of online shopping with the benefits of blockchain technology. By providing reassuring security measures like a successfully completed audit, and user-friendly moves like no tedious KYC checks, Pushd (PUSHD) offers a shopping experience that is not only efficient but also highly rewarding, setting a new benchmark for customer satisfaction in digital marketplaces.
The comparison of Pushd (PUSHD) to Amazon by Solana (SOL) investors highlights the project’s ambitious vision to transform online shopping through blockchain technology.
With features designed to improve upon the current e-commerce model, Solana (SOL) is set to offer a new way of conducting online transactions that promises greater efficiency, reduced fees and enhanced user control, making it an attractive investment for Polkadot (DOT) and Solana (SOL) holders looking for groundbreaking opportunities in the crypto space.
The current price of Pushd (PUSHD) token is only $0.094 in its fifth stage of the presale, and investors are rushing in to get their hands on these coins as experts have projected a 20x hike is expected in Pushd’s price by September 2024.
Find out more about the Pushd presale at their official website.


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A 97-year-old former janitor from New Jersey who died in March left his relatives swinging for the fences with a treasure trove of vintage baseball memorabilia that is expected to fetch millions at auction, according to a report.
James Micioni had amassed hundreds of collectibles — including a signed Babe Ruth card from 1933 that could go for over $100,000 – in what experts say is one of the most remarkable private collections in the history of the hobby, NJ.com reported.
Uncle Jimmy, as he was known around his hometown of Boonton, actually owned six cards signed by The Sultan of Swat himself, as well as signed Lou Gehrig and Jimmie Foxx cards from the same Goudey collectibles set, the news outlet reported.
The collection, which has been authenticated and graded by Professional Sports Authenticator, will be auctioned off as 2,000 separate lots.
The first 650 lots will go under the hammer beginning Sunday as part of a four-week online auction hosted by Wheatland Auction Services in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, NJ.com reported.
Wheatland owner Chuck Whisman told the outlet the entire collection came out of left field.
“Maybe once a decade something like this comes around,” Whisman said. “The cool thing is, nobody knew of his collection. He just collected his whole life. He didn’t show it off to anyone.”
Also included in the auction will be a 1969 Topps Super Rookie Reggie Jackson card, graded PSA Gem-Mint 10; a 1949 Bowman #50 Jackie Robinson card graded Near Mint-Mint 8 and a Topps #207 Pete Rose card from 1965 graded Mint 9.
Micioni acquired each of the four versions of “The Bambino” cards that Goudey released in 1933, as well as two duplicates. Only one of them will be part of the auction Sunday, but the rest will be included in online auctions hosted by Wheatland over the next few months.
“Jimmy went to games that Babe Ruth played in and hit home runs,” Whisman told NJ.com. “He had pins from when he went to games and was a supporter of Jackie Robinson. He was there for Willie Mays’ first home run.”
The so-called Uncle Jimmy Collection is notable not only for its rare cards and autographs, but also for the almost immaculate condition of the sheer number of the rare items.
“You’re not just talking about an enormous amassment of unsigned cards that have been preserved,” Joe Orlando, CEO of Collectors Universe, PSA’s parent company, told NJ.com.
“You’re talking about cards that needed to be handled and sent to the players and autographed and then returned and then preserved. Overall, the preservation is terrific,” he said.
“Because Uncle Jimmy preserved them so well, the colors retain their freshness and their brightness, so the eye appeal of the cards is tremendous because he took the time to preserve them the right way,” Orlando added.
Micioni never paid for autographs, according to his relatives, who said he would send lengthy letters and return envelopes to teams and players – including his favorite Yankees — requesting them.
The former janitor at Boonton High School never had children, but shared his passion for card collecting with many nieces and nephews, as well as his great-nieces and great-nephews.
“No one in the family was as knowledgeable about the baseball card industry as Uncle Jimmy,” one of the nephews, Peter Micioni, 59, told NJ.com. “So we really didn’t know a good card from a not-so-good card.”
He said Uncle Jimmy handed over part of his collection to his relatives when they visited him over the past 15 years.
“‘You’ll figure it out when I’m gone,’” Peter quoted his uncle as saying in response to their questions about his grand slam collection.


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CMY Cubes has designed a magnificent sensory toy that is taking the public by storm.
— Gabi Saper
SYDNEY, NSW, AUSTRALIA, November 22, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ — CMY Cubes has designed a magnificent sensory toy that is taking the public by storm with its many designs, styles and sizes. These seemingly magical colour-defying cubes, tetrahedrons, icosahedrons and more are captivating the world. The product’s immediate success is the result of creating a unique, visually-appealing product combined with an innovative digital marketing strategy. Shortly after its launch, CMY Cubes went viral on Reddit and TikTok.
This rise in popularity led to a 1200% increase in growth during the first six months of 2021.
CMY Cubes uses electromagnetically subtractive materials that appear cyan, magenta or yellow. As the cube is turned or twisted, it creates an all-new colour combination. They can be made into an array of shapes to fit the user’s desire. Educators can use the CMY cubes to help teach their students about light refraction, colour mixing, angles, geometry and more.
Co-founder Gabi Saper elaborates further, “As with many people, COVID put us in an extremely difficult financial situation with work drying up for Lorenzo during the peak of lockdown. This gave him a little more time on his hands to find a new way to make ends meet.”
Saper went on to say Lorenzo is a bit of a science nerd, and they both have always loved experimenting and making new things. The pair came up with the idea for making CMY Cubes. They didn’t realise is that it would be as big of a hit all around the world.
“We love knowing that we created something that people not only wanted but needed,” she said.
CMY Cubes will soon launch more than six products in the first part of 2022, giving the interested public an additional 25 curiously designed shapes and sizes. The company is currently working on more designs and is partnering with a popular science kit by YouTuber, VSauce, set for a tentative release date in March. A portion of its profits is going to support a non-profit organisation and further STEM fields.
The original and the newest CMY Cubes can be purchased at www.cmycubes.com.au. Prices start at $28, with the original CMY Cube offered for $40.
About CMY Cubes
After the COVID-19 pandemic took hold of the world, engineer Lorenzo Gonzalez and marketer Gabi Saper decided to think outside the box and develop a bold idea that would spur the founding and growth of CMY Cubes. The pair continued to foster other ideas to ensure the company’s original CMY Cube was not the only product they would offer.
Today, the company offers an array of styles, designs and sizes that will please and entertain the customer.
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The CMY Cube explained.
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July 02, 2013 AT 10:06 AM
Home prices racked up their biggest annual gain in more than seven years in May, with more increases expected through the summer months as the sector continues to mend. Prices rose 2.6 percent from April and were up 12.2 percent compared to May last year, the biggest year-over-year increase since February 2006.


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Tech tool allows owners to fetch pets
July 5, 2011
By Jessica Johansson
Pets become part of a family and whether it’s a cat or dog, owners like to make sure their pets are safe and cared for. PetHub is making that possible through a little tag that can be put on a pet’s collar.
PetHub, based in Issaquah, sells pet ID tags that use special coding to reconnect lost pets with their owners, with two-dimensional barcodes engraved on them. Through the use of a smart phone, the barcode can be scanned and linked to the pet’s webpage on PetHub.com. Pet owners create profiles for their animals and modify what they want to be seen if their pet’s tag is scanned.
The company is approaching 10,000 tags out the door in just over two months of being launched, with most being sold, some donated and some given away for testing purposes.
The latter provided some good feedback for the company.
Most customers have been in the Seattle area, and PetHub is now expanding nationwide. The tags are $9, plus a $3 shipping fee.
“We even had a woman find two dogs running on the freeway that she picked up — one had our tag on it, and that’s what helped her get the animal back home. It was a great story to hear,” said Tom Arnold, president and founder of PetHub.
The ID tag has a human-readable web address on it as well as the scannable barcode, so people without smart phones can use the Internet to find out to whom the lost animal belongs.
“I just got my tag in the mail and decided to try it out. We scanned it with my husband’s phone and my Princess’ information came right up,” a customer wrote on PetHub.com’s feedback page. “It was amazing and so easy to use. God forbid she ever gets loose, but if she did, I feel better knowing how easy it was for me to get her information, and hopefully somebody else, as well. Thanks, PetHub!”
Having the tag allows people to skip the process of taking an animal to a shelter or a veterinarian’s office, and makes the owners’ information available much more quickly. A pet’s profile can be updated online, with information such as the pet’s medications, current vaccinations, licenses and important past medical information. PetHub also allows the user to control how people contact them when a pet goes missing, and it’s all easily done on the Internet.
“Our message about our goal of getting pets home faster is resonating with people. We humans have the technology to make it easier to re-unite lost animals with their owners and PetHub.com is determined to finish the job,” Arnold said.
“It’s been really awesome to see people’s reactions when I show them the tags and to know that we are using cool, new technology to help them and their animals,” said Lorien Clemens, PetHub’s manager of customer support and outreach.
PetHub was a sponsor of the Seattle Animal Shelter’s “Furry 5k” on June 12. The company gave away 1,500 tags at the event. Also in June, the MTV Film Awards were held and PetHub was asked to provide 75 celebrities with tags for their “goodie bags.” Some businesses have expressed interest in partnering with PetHub, including pet insurance companies and dog collar manufacturers.
“I’m excited about some of the programs we’re launching. We’re reaching out nationwide to pet shelters to offer them our tags at cost in some cases, and in other cases completely for free,” Arnold said. “The common feedback we get from shelters is that they like that they can enter data about their adoptable animals, and then transfer that digital record to the new pet owner so that they have a solid start with all of the details about those animals.”
There are many advantages to the pet tag, including the “Contact Pet Owner” button option. This protects privacy while allowing the pet owner to be directly notified. Everything goes through PetHub.com so that the pet owner’s email address is protected, but the owner is easily reached when their lost pet is found.
“To place the scannable pet ID tag on the animals to ensure their safety is simply icing on the cake,” Arnold said. “We’re also going to be reaching out to people who act as foster parents for animals so that as an animal is cared for they have the records from the shelter and even previous foster homes that they reference and add to.
“The whole goal is to make it easy for everyone to contribute to an animal’s ‘digital pawprint.’”
Jessica Johansson is a student in the University of Washington Department of Communication News Laboratory. Comment at www.issaquahpress.com.


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The move toward electrification is in full steam at General Motors with nearly every brand showing off at least one battery-electric vehicle based on the Ultium suite. However, we haven’t heard a peep from Buick regarding electrification for markets outside of China…until now. The brand, today, provided us a quick glimpse of what appears to be a near-production concept car. It came with a caption stating: “We’re fans of all GM EVs, but this summer we will show you our dreams of a groovy electric future.” It is then followed by a lightning bolt emoji before stating that they’re sure “a mastermind who makes his own quasi-futuristic clothes will be impressed” before ending it with a mind-blown emoji.
Buick released a single teaser shot of the headlight on Twitter, which appears to be a single curved unit. There doesn’t appear to be a second cluster for the projector nearby unless it’s been mounted lower down to create the tiered setup that’s become so common in crossovers these days. It also looks like there’s a black trim piece just below the LED strip that may span the entire front fascia. This teaser alone hints that Buick’s first BEV will continue the evolution of the brand’s current design language, which first appeared on the Avenir and Avista concept cars. The latest version is found in the latest Envision and refreshed Enclave, and this concept appears to be an evolution of that.
Last year, Mary Barra, Chair and CEO of General Motors revealed that more vehicles will move the Ultium suite. This follows the GMC Hummer EV, Cadillac Lyriq, Chevrolet Silverado EV, and the upcoming GMC Sierra EV. Barra also noted that a $30,000 crossover will use the Ultium suite, which was revealed this year as the Chevrolet Equinox EV. It will be followed shortly by the Blazer EV. During last year’s announcement, Barra mentioned that Buick will also have a lineup of crossover on the Ultium suite. However, there was no mention regarding which segments they will be in.
If we were to take an educated stab at it, we think Buick will enter a BEV in two of the most competitive classes: the compact and mid-size crossover. One will likely be similar in size to the Envision while the other could essentially be an all-electric Enclave. These SUVs will likely be positioned between their Chevrolet and Cadillac counterparts, which should make them more affordable than the latter but more premium than the former.
In addition to a platform dedicated to BEVs, the Ultium suite also includes batteries codeveloped with LG Energy Solutions and electric motors developed in-house by General Motors. The batteries are capable of charging at rates of over 300 kW, allowing them to go from 0 to 80 percent in less than an hour depending on the size. GM’s three Ultium electric motors are quite powerful with the most potent developing 342 hp on its own. There’s also a 241 hp unit that’ll likely be used on more affordable vehicles. The third motor is specifically for the front axle to enable AWD and only has 83 hp. All three are designed with minimal use of heavy rare earth metals, which should also bring down the cost of the vehicles.


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Apple and Alphabet subsidiary Google aren’t doing enough to comply with South Korea’s law barring dominant app store operators from making app developers use only their proprietary payment systems, a lawmaker who spearheaded the amendment told Reuters.
South Korea, the first country to impose legislation curbing the tech companies’ payment policies, is expected to make public the initial details of what it takes to comply with the law on Wednesday, an official at the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) said.
Apple had told the South Korean government that it was already complying and did not need to change its app store policy, while Google said it plans to allow third-party payment systems in South Korea, but will only reduce its service fee charge to developers by 4 percentage points when users choose an alternative billing system.
“Frankly, we are not satisfied,” lawmaker Jo Seoung-lae who spearheaded the amendment said. “Excessive fees take away developers’ chances for innovation…parliament is to be closely informed as the government drafts detailed regulations to make sure there is accountability,” Jo said.
The KCC is drafting “finely woven” regulatory details for the ordinance that will be reported to a parliamentary committee on Wednesday and put into practice by March next year, KCC Vice Chairman Kim Hyun told a conference on app ecosystem fairness on Tuesday. However, it is not clear how compliance will be enforced nor what the penalties will be if the rules are breached.
MacDailyNews Take: First of all, some excruciatingly basic logic: If there are no details as to what it take to comply, Apple cannot claim to be complying.
Once the thing is codified and put into practice “next March,” we’re sure Apple will take measures in response to this law. Perpetual Apple follower Google will, of course, simply do whatever Apple does, as usual.
Please help support MacDailyNews. Click or tap here to support our independent tech blog. Thank you!


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It's no secret that OnePlus is working on a new affordable mid-range smartphone, the OnePlus Nord. The device has been teased extensively over the past few days, and now ahead of its launch, key specifications of the upcoming device have leaked online.
The leak comes courtesy of noted tipster, Evan Blass, who reveals not only the camera details but also other important information about the smartphone. The leak appears to be from the virtual Nord training presentation, which also reveals the colour options of the phone as well -- Blue Marble, Grey Ash, and Grey Onyx.
The leak claims the OnePlus Nord could come with a 6.44-inch AMOLED panel running at a refresh rate of 90Hz. The display is rated to provide 408ppi pixel density and 20:9 aspect ratio. Under the hood, the phone is expected to be made available in two variants, with either 8GB or 12GB of RAM and storage of 128GB or 256GB. Keeping the lights on could be a 4115 mAh rechargeable battery with support for fast 30-watt recharge via the USB Type-C port.
For cameras, the leak reveals that the phone could come with a quad-camera set-up that houses a 48-megapixel Sony IMX 586 sensor with an f/1.75 lens and Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) + Electronic Image Stabilisation (EIS) support. This will be sat next to an 8-megapixel ultrawide lens with 119 field-of-view (FOV), a 5-megapixel macro lens with an f/2.4 aperture, and 2-megapixel depth sensor unit.
Apart from this, leaked images in the past have also revealed the complete design of the upcoming OnePlus Nord. As per the leaked images, the OnePlus Nord could flaunt a display with a pill-shaped hole on the top-left corner for the dual-camera setup. This punch-hole as per the latest specifications leak would comprise of dual cameras with a 32-megapixel wide and 8-megapixel ultrawide angle cameras completing the set-up.
Apart from this, the images of the OnePlus Nord show the phone to sport quad cameras at the back that are aligned vertically in the upper-left corner. The leaked photos also show the phone's volume rocker on the left and the power button and alert slider on the right.
More on the device will be known in the coming days as we get close to the Nord's July 21 launch date. The launch event will begin at 7:30 pm IST. The company has also revealed that OnePlus Nord pre-orders in India will begin on July 15 on Amazon India and customers will have to pay a deposit amount of Rs 500 for pre-booking their phones.
Copyright©2021 Living Media India Limited. For reprint rights: Syndications Today


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Out of all of the biggest winners and biggest casualties of the business world in the previous decade, the iGaming industry sits comfortably within the former category. Globally, the sector has seen massive growth over since 2010.
iGaming in the Last 10 Years
The adoption of remote work as more of a standard across the last decade has seen people freed up from sometimes hours-long commutes and a lot more time to pursue other activities. Millions of people have discovered the world of iGaming in that time with many becoming fans.
Those who were used to playing cards in-person realised that major sites like Paddy Power offered the option to play blackjack online with a wider range of people. But it’s not just the range of people that has broadened: as you can see, the site offers a vast number of blackjack games to flesh out the standard version. There has been a general awakening to the fact that gambling isn’t what it used to be.
At the time of writing, the global industry is valued at roughly $70 billion after several years of rapid growth, with $10 billion of that in the US alone.
What comes next for iGaming?
While the past few years do seem to have jumpstarted the major growth, the fact is that the growth doesn’t look to be slowing down any time soon. Estimates are placing the global numbers at over $110 billion by 2025, and purely on the US side of things, market analysts predict anything up to an 11.7% growth rate through to 2030.
It appears that the situation is much more complex than people simply having too much time to use up.
The inclusion of a mobile version of iGaming site and slots has rapidly become a standard instead of a rarity. The number of sites and providers that don’t offer mobile-optimized versions is quickly dropping to zero.
Once that’s paired with cheaper mobile devices in developing countries such as in Latin America and India, you get the industry suddenly opened up to massive new markets with huge populations built it.
On top of the ease of access for players, these same regions are opening up to online gambling, meaning that casinos and providers are rushing in to fill the market.
It isn’t just developing regions, however. The U.S. and Canada have been gradually opening up across various states. Depending on where you live within the U.S. you may have seen a much greater presence of iGaming in recent years.
Are there any signs of growth slowing down?
As we mentioned earlier, every industry expert around the world is extremely optimistic about where iGaming is headed. There’s so much innovation being put into the player experience that new players are easily going to be drawn in.
Between the integration of VR and the adoption of crypto, developers and platforms are keen to work in any and all new technology, and this is certain to keep a whole new generation of gamblers on board for years to come.
Disclaimer: This article contains sponsored marketing content. It is intended for promotional purposes and should not be considered as an endorsement or recommendation by our website. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research and exercise their own judgment before making any decisions based on the information provided in this article.


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Online recruiting startup EnticeLabs has raised $2 million in a round of funding, we have confirmed with the company. Investors include First Advantage, the risk mitigation company, which also has an online recruitment advertising arm, along with Omniture (NSDQ: OMTR) co-founders Josh Hames and John Pestana, according to TechCrunch, which first reported the funding.
The company is among a number of startups targeting ‘passive’ job candidates, including Jobvite, which raised $8.2 million in a second round of funding earlier this month. Companies use EnticeLabs’ TalentSeekr platform to submit job profile information. TalentSeekr then draws up ads and distributes them across the web, automatically adjusting the ad budget to sites where the ads are performing the best. Ads can also be geo-targeted.


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The 51st Annual Holiday Bazaar & Expo sponsored by the GFWC of Tennessee Greeneville Woman’s Club, held at Hal Henard Elementary School, is now in the books.
If one word could be used to describe it, that word would be “great,” according to club president Kendra Hopson.
“The attendance of 2,000 on Saturday greatly exceeded our expectations, due to the Tennessee ballgame and such beautiful weather,” said Hopson. “But many people shopped early wearing their orange and white, stating they were going home to watch the game.”
By 10:30 a.m. all 600 of the large shopping bags, sponsored by Broyles General Store, had been handed out. By noon, it was clear that attendance was up significantly from last year’s event, according to organizers. For the two-day event, there were a total of 3,500 people.
“It was a lot of work but it was very rewarding to see how excited the vendors were about such good sales and how pleased they were about the friendliness of the customers. I can’t even tell you how many of the vendors said they had the best year ever. And we certainly appreciate the custodians at the school who helped us keep things clean and neat for our customers,” co-chairman Rhonda Humbert said.
Items sold at the event included custom T-shirts; flower arrangements of every kind, from cemetery arrangements to table arrangements; sugar scrubs; snowmen; jewelry; pottery; stained glass; wooden items of all types; Christmas trees and wreaths; tote bags; scarf clips; scarves; and essential oils.
Brandi Glassock of Buddy’s Emporium had her first-time booth outside in front of the school selling clothing and accessories and said her sales were “fantastic.” Two Roots Alpacas & Fiber Mill had a booth this year and they said, “It was amazing. Our sales were phenomenal.”
Most all of the vendors remarked about how friendly the customers were and how much they were buying.
SnoBiz’s Janet Cox said that chicken and dumplings, chicken croissants, lemonade and hot fudge cake were the most popular food items inside the bazaar, although their beans and cornbread and homemade desserts weren’t far behind. John Price, of Top Dog Hot Dog, said his variety of sausages were very popular, as well as his Nathan hot dogs outside. He livened up the outside area by playing Christmas music.
Tammy Kinser, co-chairman of the event said, “Santa Claus made an appearance from 11 to 1 on Saturday and was as popular with adults as with the children. Everyone around was smiling.”
Club members personalized all of their annual ornaments, which featured a snow scene, and Daisy Carroll, a vendor from Kingsport, sold some very popular hand-painted ornaments as well as did Teresa Honeycutt of Elizabethton.
According to Kathy Knight, publicity chairman, “It was really fun to see so many old friends and former club members as they came out this year. We had lots of requests for booths next year, with 65 vendors completing their applications for next year. We also had several vendors and customers ask us how to join the woman’s club.”
Winners of the door prizes included: Linda Hipshire of Grainger County, who won the $250 gift certificate from Broyles General Store; Lewayne Stahl of Erwin, who won $150 gift certificate from The GreeneHouse, Tusculum Boulevard; and Kim Hamlin of Greeneville who won the $75 gift certificate from Food City.
All monies raised from the two-day event go right back into the community in the areas of Arts & Culture; Civic Engagement & Outreach; Education and Libraries; Environment; and Health & Wellness.
The Greeneville Woman’s Club meets the second Thursday night of each month, 6 p.m. in the fellowship hall of Reformation Lutheran Church.


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Selling 300,000 yuan (S$58,000) worth of durian products in 10 minutes was beyond the wildest dreams of Leron Yee Poh Soon, co-founder of Malaysian durian producer DKing. But that dream materialized last week, thanks to Chinese internet celebrities.
As marketing via livestreaming becomes the "new normal" in China's e-commerce playfield, influencers, better known as "Key Opinion Leaders" in Chinese, are extending tentacles to promote overseas merchandise through heartfelt engagements with social media followers.
"They (KOLs) are professional and … have such trustworthy appearances that you are more than willing to allow them to promote products on your behalf," said Yee, who exports A-level Musang King durians to China. "Such staggering speed is only possible in China."
Data from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, owner of the nation's top online shopping site, echoed Yee's sentiment. During a weeklong campaign promoting Malaysian local produce that ended on Sunday, eight top-tier influencers, who regularly host livestreaming shows via Alibaba's Taobao platform, helped facilitate goods sales of 1 million yuan in just three seconds and helped one merchant sell 80,000 bottles of bird's nest in just five minutes, among other incredible feats.
Boosted by online word-of-mouth, Chinese shoppers are buying three times as much of Malaysian products like cookies, white coffee, durian fruits and snacks, as well as teh tarik-a local beverage, Alibaba said. Meanwhile, procurement from Chinese businesses last week saw an eleven-fold growth from earlier, though no details were disclosed.
Darell Leiking, minister of international trade and industry of Malaysia, said Malaysia Week has ridden the global marketing wave of influencers and e-commerce, with small and medium-sized enterprises and the tourism industry reaping the benefits.
"I would like to extend my particular gratitude to the team at … Taobao Livestream," Leiking said. "These KOLs are able to guide our consumers on the know-how of the products sold during Malaysia Week 2019 … This approach proves to be beneficial to consumers."
The campaign is the fruit of an initiative proposed by Alibaba called electronic World Trade Platform. It sank its first roots in Malaysia, where a string of commercial facilities, from e-commerce infrastructure, logistics, financial technology to cloud computing, are being upgraded and even revolutionized.
"Livestreaming is a medium that puts fans and products directly in touch, making for more genuine experiences," said a Taobao host named Wei Ya, who has over 6 million followers and is seen as a topnotch internet influencer in the lifestyle sector.
"I myself and my team normally spend at least one month carefully sorting and doing research on the products to promote to my followers," she said. "A number of factors like the authenticity of the experience, the trust we have built up through our professional work and the urge for instant gratification among younger consumers have helped boost sales."
Taobao is taking one step further by bridging Malaysian online influencers with their Chinese peers and seeing how that mixture plays out.
Malaysian online influencer Jia Ling, who is known under the avatar "Southeast Asian Darling" on Taobao, debuted in a 100-minute broadcast last week with her Chinese counterpart, "Pink Grandpa", for promoting nine Malaysian local products.
"I think it plays out quite well-the Chinese host is so eloquent and knows how to pamper the audience," said the 23-year-old host, who works full-time as an event manager in Malaysia. "As audiences search for more intimacy from brands, live content has an authenticity that can't be duplicated."


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GamerFitnation - "Many fitness trackers that are available today cost more than most are willing to spend. A new device, Movo Wave, is setting out to be very affordable." - Jen Galik
This is a good value.
Sure you can get a load of fitness apps for your phone now that's affordable.
Apps vs wearables are two different pieces to the puzzle though
TechSpy is a community of awesome people posting and discussing the latest tech news. It’s part of NewsBoiler, a network of social news sites covering today’s pop culture.


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Samsung will invest 133 trillion won (£89bn) in its logic chip business over the next decade as it looks to counteract a decline in memory chip prices and take on rivals.
The South Korean tech giant today said it will invest roughly 11 trillion won per year until 2030 in its divisions that manufacture logic chips, which are used as core processors in computers.
Read more: Samsung warns of 60 per cent drop in profits
The move marks an active effort by Samsung to diversify its revenue away from memory chips amid ailing performance in its business division that manufactures parts for smartphones.
Earlier this month the firm warned its first-quarter profits are likely to drop 60 per cent on last year, driven by a fall in memory chip and display panel prices.
“The investment plan is expected to help the company to reach its goal of becoming the world leader in not only memory semiconductors but also logic chips by 2030,” Samsung said in a statement.
The company will be hoping to compete with larger rivals in the memory chip market, such as Taiwan-based TSMC and US giant Qualcomm. The investment will create 15,000 new jobs in research and development, Samsung said.
Demand for powerful memory chips is expected to surge in the coming years as 5G and AI-driven products become more commonplace.


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In the middle of December, the management of the Swedish electrical company Electrolux announced the closure of a factory steeped in history—the AEG works in Nuremberg. Workers responded to the announcement with strikes and protest actions. There are 1,750 jobs directly threatened by the closure of the factory, with many more jobs endangered in ancillary production processes.
The workers’ protests included stopping production lines and working to rule. During work time, factory information meetings were held, at which workers demanded more radical measures, such as an unlimited strike, to combat the closure. For their part, representatives of the factory council and the IG Metall trade union loudly denounced management’s decision, but at the same time called for talks.
The workers won broad support from the local population. One week after the planned closure was announced, 6,000 people demonstrated to keep the works open and defend jobs. After a demonstration, the participants formed a candlelight chain in the suburb of Muggenhof in Nuremberg. Workers carried banners and placards opposing management’s plans and accusing the company of “social indifference” and “abusing corporate power.”
Staff protests had initially taken place in July and October of last year following repeated threats by the AEG board to close down the works.
As protests were stepped up in the days leading up to Christmas, the works council tried to forestall a spontaneous occupation of the factory and negotiated a confidential agreement with management up to January 4. Employees were forced to work their accumulated overtime hours or take vacation. While the company suffered hardly any financial damage, the works council and trade union used the time to prepare for negotiations over redundancies. These negotiations are currently taking place in Munich.
The Swedish Electrolux company, which during recent years has emerged as a market leader in the manufacture of household appliances, justified the closure decision by declaring that the production of washing machines, dishwashers and dryers in the Nuremberg works was no longer competitive on an international scale. Company chairman Johan Bygge bluntly explained that every appliance produced in Nuremberg diminished the company’s profits. Every dishwasher and washing machine made in Germany represented a loss for the enterprise of €45 and €60 respectively, he claimed. At the same time, he announced a shift of production—mainly to neighboring Poland.
The transfer of production had been in the planning stages over a long period of time, and is now to be implemented at all costs and against all opposition. For several years, the Swedish company has been establishing production plants in Eastern Europe, which are now to be activated. Already at the beginning of the year, the Electrolux executives announced massive job cuts in “high-wage countries.”
AEG had already been dissolved as an independent enterprise 10 years ago, but its name and logo were retained as was production in selected ranges. The closure of the Nuremberg works is regarded by many workers as the end of an electrical company steeped in tradition, and which had played a large role in shaping Germany’s industrial development over the last century.
Following his acquisition of the Edison patents, Emil Rathenau created the German Edison company in 1883, which he renamed the General Electricity Company (AEG) in 1897. At the beginning of the twentieth century, AEG developed into one of the largest companies in the world. In 1922, the factory was opened in Nuremberg. At the end of the 1940s, the enterprise employed over 200,000 workers. In the 1950s and 1960s, new plants were set up all over West Germany and, after fusing with Telefunken, the company was the twelfth biggest in the world.
The world economic crisis in the 1970s worsened AEG’s situation. For the first time, some parts of the company were subcontracted or sold off. The decline really began following the takeover of a majority of shares by Daimler Benz in 1985. Its strategy of forming a global technology company did not last long. In the following years. the enterprise was fundamentally restructured. Profitable parts were separated off or sold at a profit. Nevertheless, at the beginning of the 1980s the factory in Nuremberg still had 6,000 workers. In 1994, the Swedish Electrolux concern took over AEG, which had its headquarters in Nuremberg.
Just three years later, the management in Sweden announced dismissals at its German plants. Four hundred jobs went at the Rothenburg ob der Tauber works, and factories in Kassel and Herborn-Burg were closed. According to press reports, the company plans to close 13 of its 20 plants in Western Europe and switch production to Poland.
The situation at AEG is similar to that confronting a number of other companies in the Nuremberg region, which now has one of the highest rates of unemployment in Bavaria. In 1989, a total of 89,000 persons were employed in the state’s industries, today this figure stands at 52,000. Well known firms such as Grundig, Phillips and Triumph-Adler, which each employed several thousand workers, have all disappeared. The fate of the rail-mounted vehicle manufacturer Adtranz is typical. The enterprise was systematically cannibalized by AEG, Daimler Benz and MAN, and last year the last of the company’s former 1,000-strong workforce joined Germany’s unemployment queues.
The decision by Electrolux to close down the AEG works coincides with a host of planned or already executed closures and mass redundancies in Germany. German Telekom plans 32,000 dismissals, and the auto manufacturers Volkswagen and DaimlerChrysler each plan 8,000. A similar number of jobs are due to go at Siemens. The Karstadt-Quelle company has announced 5,700 job losses, and the HypoVereinsbank 2,400. Every week witnesses new announcements of mass redundancies.
The conflict surrounding the AEG works in Nuremberg demonstrates in microcosm the fundamental problems currently confronting workers everywhere.
The same work councils and union officials who currently complain on protest demonstrations about the “contemptuous behavior” of the Swedish management have for years occupied seats on the supervisory boards of the companies they criticize, and have dutifully backed management’s policies. AEG works council chairman Harald Dix and his deputy Roland Weiß both sit on the company’s board, together with the local IG Metall vice-chairman Jürgen Wechsler, who as the responsible trade union secretary is behind both the official protests and the redundancy plan negotiations.
As unionized co-managers, they responded last autumn to the planned works closure by undertaking their own appraisal of the factory. They called upon the Institute for Organizational Development and Managerial Policy (INFO), under the direction of Heinz Bierbaum at the University of Saarbrücken, to assess the company’s prospects. Bierbaum was formerly a full-time employee of the IG Metall trade union (initially in the economic department of the union’s executive committee and afterwards as head of the union’s administration office in Frankfurt/Main).
As expected, the appraisal concluded that 70 percent of the appliances manufactured in Nuremberg were made for export and that the losses spoken of by Electrolux from its operations in Germany business were “more than compensated.” The enterprise works profitably and the figures specified as grounds for the closure were “not comprehensible.”
After the management chose to ignore the trade union assessment, the works council in cooperation with the local IG Metall group submitted its own “future concept” in November. In exchange for keeping the factory open for another four years, the works council and trade union offered extensive concessions. They declared they were ready to agree to the elimination of 700 out of the 1,750 jobs and accept wage cuts of up to 16 percent for the remaining workers.
In an appeal for a protest demonstration before Christmas, the trade union groveled: “The decision by the company was made although the staff were ready to accept substantial losses in income in order to reduce the company’s production costs. The workers are well aware of their responsibility. They are ready for far-reaching cuts. Then the works in Nuremberg can very probably exist in competition with other West European production plants. But obviously the managers in Stockholm have not seriously examined such an option.”
This cowardly readiness to compromise, which sabotages any serious struggle for the defense of jobs, was met with rejection and anger by the employees themselves. At the same time, the works council and trade union had made clear to the company that they were prepared to cooperate in the destruction of jobs—a move which only served to strengthen and encourage the hardliners in the management—with disastrous consequences for the AEG workforce.


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Borrowers are behind in their auto loan payments in numbers not seen since delinquencies peaked at the end of 2010, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The number of delinquent loans follows a trend of steady increases since 2011 and has risen to the highest level in the 19-year history of the bank’s loan origination data.
More than 7 million Americans were 90 or more days behind on their car loans at the end of last year, 1 million more than eight years ago, according to a report from the bank. That’s a potential sign of trouble for the auto industry and perhaps the broader economy.
The New York Fed reported that auto loan delinquency rates slowly have been worsening, even though borrowers with prime credit make up an increasing percentage of the loans. The 90-day delinquency rate at the end of 2018 was 2.4%, up from a low of 1.5% in 2012, the bank reported. Also, delinquencies by people under 30 are rising sharply, the report said.
But economists and auto industry analysts say they aren’t sounding an alarm yet. The number is higher largely because there are far more auto loans out there as sales grew since the financial crisis, peaking at 17.5 million in 2016. The $584 billion borrowed to buy new autos last year was the highest in the 19-year history of loan and lease origination data, according to the report.
Other signs still point to a strong economy and auto sales that will continue to hover just under 17 million per year for the near term.
“I think it’s a little too soon to say that the sky is falling, but it’s time to look up and double check to make sure nothing is about to hit you on the head,” said Charlie Chesbrough, senior economist for Cox Automotive.
U.S. consumers have about $1.27 trillion worth of auto debt, which is less than 10% of the total consumer borrowing tracked by the New York Fed. Mortgages and student loans are both larger categories than auto debt.
The jump in unpaid auto loans is a worrying sign for low-income Americans, though not necessarily a sign that an economic downturn is near. “The substantial and growing number of distressed borrowers suggests that not all Americans have benefited from the strong labor market and warrants continued monitoring and analysis of this sector,” researchers at the New York Fed concluded in a blog post.


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Microsoft has released an update to Paint 3D that includes some interest design tweaks and improvements. It pushes the version number to 4.1805.15037.0 and appears to be available on Windows 10 versions past the Creators Update.
The primary change comes to the ribbon, which displays its icons differently. Rather than a choice between labels or icons, it integrates both, displaying the tool name when you hover. It’s a small touch but shows how Microsoft’s Fluent Design system is evolving.
There have also been a number of bug fixes and performance increases, combining with the design tweaks to create a more fluid experience.
Paint 3D March Updates
These minor improvements build on a more significant update from March. Early in the month, Microsoft bought a more intuitive 3D view to the app, letting users see a 360-degree view of their creations.
Previously, users had to switch constantly between 3D and 2D views to edit their creations. Thanks to the improvements, you can now edit and orbit at the same time. Like the ribbon, it’s arguably a feature that should have been there since the start, but it’s appreciated nonetheless.
However, that’s not that say the renewed attention is without motive. Also in March, it became clear that Paint 3D will get Windows 10 Photos integration. Microsoft is also bringing 3D to SharePoint with HoloLens support, so it’s clear it the application will only become more important.
As a result, it’s clear Paint 3D will continue to get big improvements, but these minor ones will help to make it more desirable. You can grab the latest version from the Microsoft Store.


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Autosport International returns to Birmingham’s NEC on 12th - 15th January 2023
Motorsport Network, the leading independent media, interactive entertainment and e-commerce company focused on the motorsport and automotive industries, has announced new dates for the 31st edition of Autosport International.
The show will run from Thursday 12 to Sunday 15 January 2023. The first two days will be trade-focused, featuring the Autosport Engineering show and the Motorsport Business Leaders Forum. The full four-day show will have a fresh look and feel, reinventing the event for a new generation of visitors. For trade, industry, competitors and fans alike, the 2023 show promises a greater variety of content than ever before. A comprehensive activity plan will be revealed soon but the core areas such as the trade networking opportunities, Autosport Engineering Show, Performance and Tuning Car Show and Live Action Arena will be reinvigorated and be a core part of the relaunch.
The show will be held at its traditional home at the National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham, benefiting from outstanding rail and motorway links with the rest of the UK, as well as being linked to the adjacent international airport with flights from over 70 destinations around the world.
Tickets for both trade and public days will go on sale this Summer.


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Lafayette Square Mall to close three months for planned renovations; here's what to expect
Real estate developer Sojos Capital announced plans to close the former Lafayette Square Mall for three months in an effort to efficiently complete short-term renovations at the site.
The closure will take place Monday, Aug. 29, through Monday, Nov. 21. The interior will be inaccessible to the public during that time but will reopen for the holiday shopping season.
In a press release, Sojos Capital said it plans to use the three-month period to complete improvements to the mall's roof, HVAC installation, exterior and interior painting as well as the installation of a new skylight. The building also will undergo electrical work and new flooring will be installed.
More:Lafayette Square Mall to undergo $200 million redevelopment
In November, the company announced that it would embark on the $200 million redevelopment of the Lafayette Square Mall and surrounding properties into a mixed-use development called Window to the World, a destination focused on dining, music, art, shopping, housing, office, sports, entertainment and more.
The redevelopment will take place in phases. It will include a $20 million renovation of the mall, the addition of apartments, a boutique hotel, office and event space, and stores.
The first phases of the project will include a new police station, the conversion of the mall's indoor corridors into outdoor street scenes with programming throughout the year, upgrades to the mall's exterior, public trails, and the installation of murals.
Located in a section of the city called the International Marketplace due to its diverse population and vibrant culinary scene, Sojos Capital purchased Lafayette Square Mall in December 2020.
Retail News:Launched with confetti and fireworks in '95, Circle Centre eyes grim future without change
Sojos Capital said since it obtained ownership of the property, it has completed upgrades and improvements such as replacing the roof; changing heating, ventilation and air conditioning units; interior and exterior painting and adding security enhancements.
Sojos Capital said it will continue to support to existing tenants who have signed letters of intent to return as part of the Window to the World. The support includes six months of free rent, partnership opportunities to sell products online and professional and business development assistance, among others.
A grand opening celebration will be held in April 2023.
Future phases of the project include rental townhomes; apartments and age-restricted senior apartments, a bike shop, new retail and restaurant tenants, a veterinarian office, pet boarding and dog park.
Sojos Capital is based in Indianapolis and acquires, manages and maintains properties through its subsidiaries including Sojos Realty, Weston Property Management, Stanford Management and Georgetown Property Management.
Contact IndyStar reporter Alexandria Burris at email@example.com or call 317-617-2690. Follow her on Twitter: @allyburris.


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The Southern Hemisphere Association of Fresh Fruit Exporters (Shaffe) has founded an ad-hoc sustainability taskforce to identify common challenges and develop strategic recommendations on what a sustainable produce industry could look like by 2030.
Sustainability has become a recurring theme in the general business and public domain and is already having a significant impact on southern hemisphere produce industry exporters and growers, in terms of measuring and complying to sustainable practices.
In this context, the Shaffe sustainability taskforce has the primary objective of identifying common challenges and outlining specific recommendations on the issue for members and industry related private and public stakeholders.
The taskforce has until September 2021 to develop the first draft of a white paper that will outline key policy recommendations and future strategy and actions for the organisation.
According to Charif Christian Carvajal, Shaffe president and director of marketing for Europe and Asia of Asoex, “We are pleased that members have been very motivated to participate in this important initiative and that the group is composed of experienced industry professionals that come from a diverse array of member countries and which will undoubtedly enrich the exchange of information and applicability of the recommendations to be formulated by the taskforce”.
Gabriel Wassermann from the Argentine Blueberry Committee will chair the group which will be made up of Jorge de Souza from Abrafrutas, Ricardo Adonis from Asoex, Gary Jones from New Zealand Apple and Pears, Paul Hardman from South Africa’s Citrus Growers Association and Marta Bentancur from Upefruy.
The taskforce will meet over the coming weeks, guided by a roadmap, which includes an initial kick-off meeting together with external experts to set the scene and define the current state of the art of sustainability in the produce industry.


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California-based luxury car maker Karma Automotive has begun billing digital currency in its online store at Newport Beach.
Poles put online, the service is in the test period. Through 2014, the Chinese group Wanxiang bought the fortunes of the Karma Automotive Company for $ 149.2 million, but did not win the name. This is how the "Fisker Automotive" appeared, baptized in the most popular model of "Fisker".
Two years later the flagship model "Revero" was introduced – a plugin hybrid at a price of 135 hp. dollar.
This is a common occurrence, where cryptocurrencies lend themselves to luxury goods. During September last year, the Swiss watch brand "Hublot" launched an exclusive Big Bang Blockchain model, which can only be bought at Bitcoin.
Another maker of watches, Frank Müller, has begun to accept cryptocurrencies for its models, priced between $ 9800 and $ 50 600.
Currently tests are planned to be completed in the USA with Ford, BMW, General Motors, Renault and Honda.


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Dryers move beyond desiccant
Dryer manufacturers seem to agree that plastics processors consider dryers to be, at best, a necessary evil. "If customers could not dry at all they would be very happy not to," Mark Haynie, dryer pro...
Dryer manufacturers seem to agree that plastics processors consider dryers to be, at best, a necessary evil. “If customers could not dry at all they would be very happy not to,” Mark Haynie, dryer product sales manager at Baltimore, Md.-based Novatec Inc., said.
Like it or not, however, the industry can’t do without dryers, but the good news is that dryer manufactures are eager to make the process as easy as possible by giving their customers the most up-to-date features — and what the majority of processors want right now is energy savings. “With the cost of energy today, it has become more critical than ever to dry efficiently,” B. Patrick Smith, vice president of marketing and sales at Aston Pa.-based Maguire Products Inc., said.
And two areas in which progress has been made are vacuum dryers and desiccant wheel dryers.
DRYING IN A VACUUM
Traditional desiccant dryers use electric heaters and blowers to obtain the temperature and humidity-free air that is required to dry plastics. The technology, which has been in use for decades, has certainly been tested and found to work. “The problem is that desiccant drying is not energy efficient,” said Maguire’s Smith.
One alternative drying method that has met with some success recently is vacuum drying, during which resin is heated and then vacuum applied to draw out the moisture.
“Because a vacuum dryer doesn’t have desiccant that has to be regenerated, it uses up to 80 per cent less electricity than a traditional desiccant dryer,” Smith said. “It’s a huge energy savings, and we have customers that are experiencing paybacks in as little as 12 months.”
Santa Ana, Calif.-based thermoplastic processor Southern California Plastics Inc. (SCP), for example, recently began a large-scale changeover from conventional desiccant dryers to Maguire’s LPD vacuum resin dryers, and the company has already reported energy savings that, on an annualized basis, amounted to US$28,000, including an energy rebate from the state. “It’s just incredible. We have 10 more LPD dryers on order, and with subsequent rebates for energy savings, I expect to be able to recover 40 per cent of the investment cost,” D.E. Rodriguez, SCP’s president, said.
A new entry to the market is Novatec’s Nova Vac II vacuum dryer, which requires only 20 per cent of the energy of comparable desiccant dryers, the company said.
DESICCANT WHEELS KEEP TURNING
There are drawbacks to the vacuum dryers, however. Until recently, vacuum dryers were limited to a maximum throughput of between only 100 to 200 lbs. per hour, and throughput levels remain a problem today. Dryer manufacturers are attempting, however, to make vacuum throughput levels competitive with those of desiccant; in 2005, for example, Maguire commercialized its LPD-1000, for rates up to 1000 lbs. per hour, and the company plans a dryer targeting 2000 lbs. per hour.
But perhaps the biggest drawback of the vacuum system that dryer manufacturers have identified is its very newness. “It’s a departure from the normal way of drying,” Novatec’s Haynie said. “In vacuum drying you don’t circulate air, so you have to change the mindset in the industry towards drying air and using that dry air to dry resin.”
Fortunately, plastics processors who are reluctant to part entirely with the idea of desiccant have a way to save energy costs nonetheless by using a newer version of the process called desiccant wheel drying.
By using a lighter, honeycombed desiccant, the wheel system allows the dryers’ weight to be reduced, according to Pete Stoughton, commercial product manager, dehumidifying dryers, at Pittsburgh, Pa.-based Conair. “Previously, a 200 lbs. per hour Conair Carousel dryer had a desiccant weight of over 300 lbs.,” he said. “With the desiccant honeycombed wheel, that entire assembly for the same sized dryer has a desiccant weight of only 40 lbs., allowing you to reduce the thermal load that you have to heat up for regeneration, thereby saving a tremendous amount of energy.”
According to Joe Corturillo, product manager, material handling/drying at Markham, Ont.-based Nucon Wittmann, other advantages of the desiccant wheeled dryers include the proven performance of desiccant technology; a stable, adjustable temperature; and the ability to regenerate the desiccant wheel continuously, preventing temperature spikes. Nucon Wittmann’s CDD (continuous desiccant dryer) line has a desiccant wheel that creates regeneration airflow temperature of less than 350 Fahrenheit (F), allowing for reduced energy usage and longer regeneration heater life.
“The dryer uses less energy because it only needs to heat up the air to achieve the desired dewpoint level, based on ambient and material conditions,” Corturillo said.
Novatec’s Haynie suggested that the desiccant wheel is a good solution for those processors who want to break away from traditional twin tower desiccant systems but are wary of vacuum drying. “The desiccant wheel allows customers to think about desiccant in a different way. There are better mousetraps out there.”