Bill Gates has made one or two canny investment decisions in his time. So it was interesting to note that the Realtors Land Institute revealed he is now the top private farmland owner in the US, with 242,000 acres of arable and grazing land to his name.
That represents a miniscule proportion of the 894m acres given over to farming in the US, but the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) gives the average price of US farmland at $3,106 (£2,264) an acre, so it still represents a sizeable commitment, even for someone as well-heeled as the Microsoft (US:MSCO) co-founder.
Corporate agribusiness may dominate the landscape, but there are sound financial reasons why private landowners like Gates have been keen to expand their holdings, not least the prospect of attracting government subsidies.
With a sizeable proportion of US farmland organised through tenancies, subsidies are routinely diverted to landowners instead of the actual farmers. It might be a stretch to characterise this as a modern state-sponsored form of feudalism, but the landowners can get paid regardless of how their tenant farmers fare throughout the year.
Subsidies aside, the main point is that the software tycoon recognises that a solid – and improving – investment case exists for a more prosaic area of endeavour: food production. The land purchases are also intertwined with policy areas synonymous with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, namely environmental stewardship and sustainability.
A simple question of demographics
Farming may represent something of a departure from software development, but it is understandable why a tech magnate like Gates senses a long-term opportunity. The United Nations (UN) predicts the world’s population will reach 9.7bn people by 2050 – up from around 7.8bn today – and analysis from McKinsey shows that crop demand for human consumption and animal feed will double over the next 30 years. To achieve this, we will have to drive technological innovation to meet the twin challenge posed by soil degradation and dwindling water resources, to say nothing of a possible rise in global surface temperatures.
By now, everyone should be aware that investment in the global food and agribusiness sector is being spurred not only by population growth but also by increased protein consumption in developing markets, most notably China.
Over the next decade, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) estimates that meat consumption in developing countries will grow five times faster than in their developed counterparts. Overall, the OECD predicts that global meat consumption will rise by 12 per cent between 2020 and 2029, which reflects slowing momentum in developed countries as they reach saturation.
Higher demand for meat will not only benefit suppliers such as Tyson Foods (US:TSN) and UK-listed Cranswick (CWK), but will also create the need for more animal health products for livestock. Zoetis (US:ZTS) – which was spun out of Pfizer (US:PFE) in 2013 – looks particularly well-placed as the world leader for medicine and vaccinations for cattle, and the number two and three player for pigs and poultry, respectively.
While livestock are reared to provide food for humans, they, too, need feeding, underpinning demand for cereal crops such as corn and legumes such as soybean. China has a voracious appetite for these soft commodities. It is the world’s top soybean importer, accounting for around two-thirds of all international purchases, and half of these imports are used to feed the country’s pigs. As China restocks its herds in the wake of ASF, it has been importing corn and soybean in vast quantities. The US Department of Agriculture estimates that China will import 17.5m tonnes of corn in 2021, up from 7.6m tonnes in 2020.
Surging Chinese demand coupled with supply-side pressures have sent prices soaring, with corn hitting $5.49 per bushel earlier this month – its highest level since 2013. Dry weather from La Niña delayed planting in Argentina and Brazil, and heavy rains in some areas are now preventing harvesting. There has also been an impact from protectionist measures to preserve domestic supply and stave off food price inflation. Both Argentina and Ukraine – the world’s third-biggest corn exporter – have introduced caps on their corn exports.
Bumper crop prices should bode well for the companies positioned along the agricultural supply chain as farmers have more money in their pockets to spend on equipment. It also spells good news for large multinationals such as Bunge (US:BG), Cargill Inc and Archer-Daniels-Midland (US:ADM), which are at the forefront of global crop storage, processing and distribution.
For investors looking for more direct exposure to soft commodities prices there is the exchange traded commodity (ETC) route – for example, the WisdomTree Corn ETC (GB00B15KXS04) – or exchange traded funds (ETFs) such as the Invesco Bloomberg Commodity UCITS ETF (IE00BD6FTQ80), which has just under a quarter of its portfolio weighted towards grains.
Mechanisation – a first step
China has been trying to increase mechanisation within its farming sector, partly as a response to a steady decline in the rural population, but also to improve yields and drive down the marginal cost of production. It is worth remembering that the same dynamic played out in western economies as they industrialised, with an increase in yields concomitant with a decline in the share of the population engaged in agriculture.
Western companies have been quick to respond to the challenge. Deere & Co (US:DE) has a long-established presence in China, with production of automated farm equipment taking place across half-a-dozen sites in the country. The company remains a vital cog in China’s rural transformation, even after suffering from the trade war between the world’s largest economies.
China used to be a nation of rural smallholdings, but the exodus to the cities and the gradual swing towards large cooperatives has underpinned demand for heavy-duty farm machinery. The comprehensive mechanisation rate for crops is expected to reach 77 per cent by 2026, although progress in this area is partly dependent on long-term assumptions on grain prices – a long-standing corollary on investment levels.
Jeremie Capron, director of research at robotics investor ROBO Global, agrees. “The farming machine business is very cyclical," he notes. "You have the commodity cycle that impacts the farmers’ income and their ability to invest in machines – that's one driver – the other is just the natural replacement cycle of machines.” At any rate, the agriculture equipment market is worth around $150bn and is projected to grow at an annualised rate of 6 per cent over the next five years.
Digitalisation and the fourth agricultural revolution
Perhaps the most significant way agriculture is likely to change is through digital channels. Artificial intelligence, analytics and connectivity are transforming myriad industries, but their accelerated application has given rise to musings over a fourth agricultural revolution.
Analysts at McKinsey are in no doubt about the scale of the investment opportunity, stating that “if connectivity is implemented successfully in agriculture, the industry could tack on $500bn in additional value to the global gross domestic product by 2030”.
We have already seen an increasing focus on automation and robotics. Meat processing companies, such as Tyson, have stepped up the automation of their operations in the face of the pandemic to maintain production levels, while allowing workers to socially distance. Food supply chains came under pressure due to a series of high-profile outbreaks of Covid-19, not only at abattoirs, but also in the speciality produce sector, forcing some growers to abandon their produce at harvest time.
Yet even prior to the pandemic, Tyson had taken steps to counter a chronic labour shortage in the industry, with a 26,000 square foot facility near its headquarters in Arkansas applying advances in machine learning to meat processing. Typically a highly labour-intensive endeavour compared with other areas of primary production, the aim is to eventually eliminate jobs that can be highly repetitive and at times downright dangerous, and success here should translate into improved margins.
Capron does make the point that the farming industry is something of a laggard in terms of technological adoption, with “the application of the more recent developments around sensing, computer vision and autonomy still in the making”. He believes that at some point we are likely to witness an accelerated take-up in the sector, coming on the heels of logistics and, latterly, healthcare. “Our view is that agriculture is probably the one after healthcare, in terms of the development, penetration and adoption of those technologies,” he adds.
Google and the need for improved connectivity
The farming industry, as a relatively low-margin affair, might not be uppermost in Big Tech’s list of priorities, but that didn’t stop a team from Google's parent company from recently meeting with officials from USDA to discuss the prospect of substantially increasing crop yields and reducing water usage by using advanced sensors, nano-technology and software to optimise how plants are cultivated.
However, the fourth agricultural revolution will only become a reality when adequate infrastructure is put in place – and the signs are generally positive. By 2030, McKinsey expects “advanced connectivity infrastructure of some type to cover roughly 80 per cent of the world’s rural areas" and that the key is to develop more effective "digital tools for the industry and to foster widespread adoption of them”. The advent of superfast 5G mobile networks will be crucial in triggering change across a range of industries, and there is no reason to think that farming will prove an exception.
Nitrate fertilisers and renewable farm inputs
Although the tech or ‘value add’ corner of the food industry holds attractions for both retail and institutional investors, the outlook is mixed across well-established areas such as the fertiliser market. Again, investment here is bound up with commodity cycles, and therefore vulnerable to depressed crop prices.
Essentially, it is a volume trade, dominated by a relatively small number of corporations on a regional basis, the likes of Yara International (NO:YAR), Nutrien (CA:NTR), The Mosaic Company (US:MOS) and CF Industries (US:CF). The Asia-Pacific region now accounts for around 60 per cent of global demand, with that proportion set to increase over the coming years.
The three essential plant nutrients are nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. The production of all three elements is an energy-intensive affair, but environmental campaigners have reserved special ire for nitrogen-based fertilisers, the largest product group by volume.
In the early part of the 20th Century, the German scientists Fritz Haber and Carl Bosch won the Nobel Prize in chemistry after they worked out how to produce ammonia on an industrial scale. The process involves mixing nitrogen from the air with hydrogen from natural gas (essentially methane) at high temperature and pressure to create ammonia. Between 60 and 70 per cent of the natural gas is employed as a feedstock, with the remainder used to power the transformation process. In China, ammonia is primarily produced from coal gasification.
The process has done much to alleviate world hunger, but has never played well with climate change activists, particularly as the industry has flourished in North America because of the abundant supply of feedstock owing to the shale gas boom. That means that some of the main industry players could see their valuations face pressure through institutional mandates linked to environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles.
It’s not easy being green, but two of the world’s biggest fertiliser producers, CF Industries and Yara, have hatched a plan to boost their environmental credentials by reconfiguring ammonia plants in the US and Norway to produce clean energy for the maritime industry – one of the heaviest contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions.
Demand to gradually swing in favour of organic inputs
We should see an increase in this type of imaginative offsetting in response to institutional pressure, along with further technological innovations. But it is the projected growth in bio-based and micronutrient fertilisers that catches the eye. Analysis from Global Market Insights points to a 3.2 per cent annualised growth rate for the global fertiliser market over the next five years, but that pales in comparison with a projected rate of 7.5 per cent for the organic fertiliser market.
Soil degradation is a related issue that doesn’t always attract the coverage it warrants. Relentless tilling, multi-seasonal harvests and overuse of synthesised chemicals have driven yields at the expense of long-term sustainability.
The onus may be on sustainable, biodegradable and renewable farm inputs, but that stands at odds with the increased appetite for animal protein in emerging market economies. Without synthesised fertilisers, it is hard to imagine that intensive farming, or the rearing of livestock, would be feasible, at least on its current scale.
Yet the application of nitrate fertilisers, though successful in a broader sense, is a dreadfully wasteful affair; a high proportion of the nitrates are never absorbed by crops and are simply sluiced out of the soil into waterways or evaporate into the atmosphere in the form of nitrous oxide – a major greenhouse gas. Agriculture accounts for around 70 per cent of all freshwater demand and produces around a third of greenhouse gas emissions. It is not difficult to appreciate the imperative for change, lest we are confronted with some retrograde Malthusian dilemma.
The climate change conundrum
The food and agriculture industry therefore faces a dilemma – how to feed an ever-growing population while doing so in a sustainable manner. Farming is resource-intensive and water and land are finite commodities.
It takes more than 1,800 litres of water to produce a kilogramme (kg) of wheat and more than 15,000 litres of water to produce a kg of beef. From Egypt to California, farmers are feeling the pressure from water scarcity – something that is only likely to get worse. Analysts at Morgan Stanley estimate that climate change could threaten at least 36 per cent of the production of the four largest crops – rice, corn, wheat and soybean – amid the increased risk of droughts, flooding and hurricanes and prevalence of pests.
Meanwhile, agriculture uses almost half of the world’s habitable land, and of that 80 per cent is used for livestock farming. As the world’s population grows, the amount of agricultural land per capita is shrinking – particularly as some farmland is swept up by urbanisation – and climate change is also reducing the viability of farming in certain areas. Expanding farmland typically comes at the expense of natural habitats, most notably the Amazon rainforest.
Prime farmland in optimal climates should therefore be in demand and see their value increase – at least that’s the thinking of real estate investment trusts (Reits) focusing on farmland. This includes Gladstone Land (US:LAND), which buys agricultural land in the US and leases it out to farmers. Having amassed 94,000 acres worth just shy of $1bn, this has proved to be a stable asset base – occupancy rates have never dipped below 99.5 per cent – enabling Gladstone to pay out a monthly dividend.
Technology can be used to make farming more sustainable, particularly through the use of precision agriculture. Traditionally, farmers make decisions based on whole fields, applying a blanket layer of pesticides and fertilisers. But advances in drones, machine vision systems and data processing are now making it possible to apply these crop chemicals much more selectively. Such an approach saves farmers money on inputs, means there is less run-off of polluting chemicals and can increase yields as land is used more efficiently.
Jeneiv Shah, manager of the Sarasin Food and Agriculture Opportunities Fund (GB00B77DTQ97), says that Deere is “by far and away at the forefront” of farming automation, benefiting from “a tremendous brand, very strong loyalty and an immensely valuable distribution network all across the globe”.
A plant-based revolution?
Environmental concerns are not only changing how we produce food, but are also influencing the type of food we eat amid the rise of plant-based meat and dairy alternatives. Once the preserve of dedicated vegans, these products are now designed to appeal to so-called ‘flexitarians’ who wish to keep eating meat and dairy to some degree, but incorporate more plant-based proteins into their diet to lower their carbon footprint.
Plant-based dairy is not a new phenomenon but as demand has started to take off in developed economies, its share of total milk products has increased to 9 per cent, from 4 per cent in 2007. Plant-based ‘milks’ are still fairly resource-intensive, but they are friendlier to the environment than cow’s milk. According to a 2018 study by Oxford University, producing a litre of cow’s milk emits 3.2kg of carbon emissions and requires 9 square metres of land and 628 litres of water, while a litre of almond milk emits 0.7kg of carbon and uses 0.5 square metre of land and 371 litres of water.
The lower footprints are also a hallmark of the alternative meat market. Impossible Foods says that production of each of its burgers uses 96 per cent less land and 87 per cent less water and is responsible for 89 per cent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than a regular beef burger.
Beyond Meat (US:BYND) is the obvious pureplay investment in this space, although diversified food companies such as Nestlé (CH:NESN) and Unilever (ULVR) are both making a big push into plant-based alternatives.
There are also ingredients and flavourings companies such as Givaudan (CH:GIVN), DSM (NL:DSM) and Kerry (KYGA) ,which are “essentially outsourced R&D engines” according to Mayssa Al Midani, manager of the Pictet Nutrition Fund (LU0448837160). “They really help the plant-based alternatives companies replicate the sensory experience of animal-based products and the benefit of investing in these suppliers is that they have exposure to a large number of products and brands,” she says.
Still, analysts at Morgan Stanley estimate that meat alternatives will only have a 3 per cent share of the wider meat market by 2030. China could be key to unlocking momentum as it is the second-largest consumer of meat after the US.
“I think the reality is, we're unlikely to see a mass, overnight change in consumer behaviour,” says Shah. “I think it will more likely be a complimentary rise, structurally growing to become an increasing percentage of the whole protein industry.”
Indeed, if we are to feed close to 10bn people by 2050, it seems unlikely that this will be a case of either/or when it comes to meat and meat alternatives – we will need diverse food sources to ensure that everyone’s plate is filled.
How to get a taste
From farm machinery to futuristic lab-grown meat, there are many opportunities for investors across the entire global food supply chain. Some are riskier than others and often require a long-term mindset, as agriculture is subject to the vagaries of the climate and geopolitics.
Those looking for broad exposure across the agricultural themes discussed could consider a specialist ETF such as the iShares Agribusiness UCITS ETF (IE00B6R52143). If you fancy a more tailored approached, we have identified 10 companies that are well-positioned to capitalise on the future of food and take a closer look at some of them below.
|Investors' Chronicle Food and Agriculture portfolio|
|Name||Company description||Currency||Market cap (bn)||Price||% change in price vs 1 year ago||Gross margin LTM (%)||Adjusted operating profit margin LTM (%)||Return on equity LTM (%)||Net debt-to-cash profits (Ebitda) ratio||Dividend yield (%)||Free cash flow yield (%)||Forward price-to-earnings ratio||Five-year average P/E ratio|
|Archer-Daniels-Midland (US:ADM)||Food processor and commodities trader||USD||30.3||54.29||19.2||7.0||3.1||10.4||2.4||2.6||0.9||13.8||16.7|
|Cranswick (CWK)||Fresh meat producer||GBP||1.84||35.10||-3.9||13.3||6.4||14.3||0.6||1.9||3.3||18.3||21.3|
|Darling Ingredients (US:DAR)||Food by-products processor||USD||11.2||69.26||145||24.9||13.6||10.7||1.6||0.0||2.9||32.8||22.6|
|Deere & Co (US:DE)||Equipment maker||USD||98.3||309.87||86.4||30.9||13.8||27.0||0.7||1.0||4.1||19.9||20.0|
|DSM (NL:DSM)||Human and animal nutrition specialist||EUR||25.0||145.3||67.4||33.6||11.4||9.4||1.7||1.7||3.0||30.0||33.0|
|Genus (GNS)||Animal genetics specialist||GBP||3.49||53.30||66.3||-||13.7||11.4||0.8||0.6||1.0||48.5||72.2|
|Kerry Group (KYG)||Ingredients and nutrition developer||EUR||20.0||108.00||25.6||44.8||11.0||12.1||1.8||0.8||2.4||27.8||27.8|
|Nestlé (CH:NESN)||Diversified food and beverage maker||CHF||279||100.70||-8.3||49.6||17.9||24.9||1.6||2.7||3.6||22.8||27.3|
|Nutrien (CN:NTR)||Fertilizer producer||CAD||39.9||69.36||22.6||25.9||8.7||4.7||2.6||3.3||5.5||22.9||27.5|
|Zoetis (US:ZTS)||Animal health specialist||USD||76.3||163.07||12.7||70.1||38.3||46.0||1.1||0.5||2.4||38.5||42.1|
Deere & Co – play the tech angle via the most iconic brand
It came as no surprise when market valuations for machinery manufacturers such as Deere improved after details of Joe Biden’s $1.9tn stimulus package emerged. The group produces equipment used in agriculture, construction, forestry and turf care, so it stands to benefit from the delayed roll-out of infrastructure projects in the US now that the Democratic party controls Congress.
Though Deere has had to contend with increased competition in its core markets over the past decade, it is essentially a ‘value-add’ play which competes with industry rivals based on functionality rather than price alone. To this end, it has regularly incorporated advanced technologies to improve its crop management products since its initial foray into the manufacture of Precision Ag machines 25 years ago.
Times have moved on since the self-polishing cast steel plough (an earlier Deere innovation) and the group’s product range now offers a range of cutting-edge technologies, from satellite guidance to hands-free USB and wireless systems. The group’s tech offering received a substantial boost in 2017, when Deere brought Blue River Technologies into the fold via a $305m deal that secured specific expertise in the field of real-time autonomous agricultural robots.
The technologies – including 75 connected software tools – optimise yields and reduce wastage from tillage through to harvesting, by recording what was sprayed, where and the prevailing weather conditions – all critical determinants in crop management. Plants with the exact same genetic make-up can have very different outcomes based on the consistency of depth and spacing across the field in which they have been planted. Weather conditions and the amount of accessible sunlight are also critical. Deere’s tech-driven approach takes a lot of the guesswork out of the equation.
The quest for ever-more precise data to optimise yields means that GPS is standard on all of John Deere’s biggest machines, and we are likely to witness further refinements in this area with the roll-out of 5G technologies.
Deere & Co is already at the forefront of many of the areas in which farming is becoming increasingly intertwined with advanced digital technologies. This means the structural drivers of the investment case are well understood, hence the solid and enduring institutional support.
The stock has outstripped the S&P benchmark in recent years, complete with an annualised Ebitda growth rate of 10.5 per cent, although a recent upwards earnings revision did not go unnoticed, so the price-to-book ratio suggests the market is up to speed.
Nestlé: changing with the times
The name Nestlé might conjure images of KitKat bars and Nescafé instant coffee. But the Swiss consumer goods giant has spent the past few years expanding its portfolio of more than 2,000 brands to include alternative meats and more sustainable ingredients – signalling its willingness to move with the times.
Indeed, the group pointed to “an engaged generation of consumers... driving a new food ideology” in its 2019 annual report, acknowledging "trends toward more natural and organic foods, plant-based proteins and simpler, healthier ingredients”. It added that such consumers “expect brands to provide experiences beyond the product, be authentic and act as a force for good – both socially and environmentally”.
In turn, those changing values have compelled Nestlé to rethink its product development strategy as well as the types of businesses it chooses to acquire. Four years ago, it bought plant-based food company Sweet Earth. It has also launched a meatless ‘Sensational Burger’ in several countries, setting itself up to compete with major pure-play businesses Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat. Such is the level of rivalry between the various companies that Nestlé was forced to change the name of its beef-free patty from ‘Incredible’ after a legal dispute.
At the same time, the group has outlined its commitment to regenerative agriculture. In December, it said it was taking steps to halve its emissions by 2030 and achieve ‘net zero’ status by 2050. Such measures include helping famers and suppliers to move forward with practices to improve soil health and restore diverse ecosystems. Nestlé has offered to purchase their goods at a premium and buy bigger quantities in return.
Nestlé will publish its full-year numbers later this month. But nine-month figures released in October revealed that – in management’s words – the group had “remained resilient in a difficult and volatile environment”. Growth was broad-based across its pet care, dairy and health science divisions, although Nestlé also flagged double-digit growth in vegetarian and plant-based foods – indicating that its recent M&A activities and product debuts are already bearing fruit. Overall sales rose 3.5 per cent to CHF61.9bn.
Nestlé’s increasingly diversified food portfolio, its pledge to invest in a sustainable future and its willingness to adapt to changing consumer behaviours should position it well for continued growth. While the shares trade at a similar earnings multiple to peers Unilever and PepsiCo (US:PEP), they could represent good value for long-term investors.
Cranswick: more than a flash in the pan
Increasing protein consumption around the world should be a boon for FTSE 250 food company Cranswick, which supplies the UK’s top supermarkets, from Tesco (TSCO) to Waitrose, with fresh pork and poultry products. It also sells into the catering industry and boasts a fast-growing export business, with a particular focus on Asian markets.
In the group’s domestic UK market, trading has been buoyed by a shift towards home-cooking during the pandemic. Cranswick raised its full-year guidance in an early February trading update, citing the continuation of strong earnings momentum from the first half into the third quarter.
Meanwhile, the group’s pork products have proved particularly popular in China after the outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF, see above) has increased demand for imports. For the six months ending 26 September 2020, Cranswick’s Far East export revenues were up a quarter and accounted for a tenth of total group sales.
Investors may question how long the good times can last, and whether the boost to trading from virus-induced ‘stay at home’ guidance and ASF could amount to little more than a flash in the pan. Broker Panmure Gordon sees no reason for strong organic growth “to change while the lockdown remains in place, or to reverse sharply thereafter”. Analyst Matthew Webb notes that while Covid has clearly spurred the group’s recent progress, Cranswick has simultaneously benefited from new business wins. Together with continued investment in capacity expansion, these factors suggest that the company "does not expect the changes in demand patterns due to Covid to reverse quickly or fully”.
Indeed, Cranswick has repeatedly ploughed money into its farming and processing operations to scale up its resources, including a new poultry facility in Suffolk and a £20m investment in a new cooked bacon facility in Hull. Such expenditure implies a belief that demand can be sustained – and that extra resources should help the group to meet spikes in grocery shopping activity, virus-induced or otherwise.
At 3,484p, the shares trade at 18 times forecast earnings; lower than their average forward multiple over the past five years and roughly in line with the valuations commanded by peers Associated British Foods (ABF) and Greencore (GNC). Arguably, there could be scope for a rerating on the back of recent upgrades, increasingly diversified revenue streams and recent investments.
Gen-ius livestock enhancement
As farmers balance the rising demand for animal protein with the supply of finite but necessary agricultural resources, the need to efficiently breed herds is acute. Equally, livestock must be as healthy as possible in order to stand out in a highly competitive market.
Little wonder, perhaps, that leading animal health group Genus works with some of the world’s top pork, beef and milk companies, serving more than 50,000 customers in more than 75 countries. The group specialises in genetic improvement, using its scientific technology to enhance the quality of food-producing animals. It does this by breeding its own pigs and cattle with desirable traits such as feed efficiency and disease resistance, before sending these traits to its customers via breeding animals or sperm and embryos.
A strong run in recent months prompted Genus to upgrade its profit expectations for the year to June following good momentum in its porcine and bovine divisions. Genus’s PIC business has benefited particularly from the restocking of China’s pig population in the aftermath of ASF.
Looking ahead to its upcoming interim results, Genus expects to post revenues of £285m-£287m, up from £271m a year earlier, and adjusted pre-tax earnings of £47m-£49m, up from £36.6m.
But the group’s growth is more than temporary. Revenues have risen at a compound annual rate of 9.2 per cent since 2016. Moreover, its barriers to entry look robust. It is the only listed porcine and bovine genetics company globally and its rivals are mostly private companies and regionally based farmer-owned cooperatives. As farms rely increasingly on technology to breed high-yielding animals while focusing ever more on sustainability, Genus’s proprietary genetics should only garner greater popularity.
The group’s shares have risen more than two-thirds over the past year compared with a decline of roughly a tenth for the broader FTSE All-Share index. At 5,360p, they trade at a fat 50 times forecast earnings. However, that valuation should be seen in the context of diversified growth, a progressive dividend payout and an expanding animal health sector which – by one estimate – is valued at $40bn.


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Fabrizio Giansanti, Matteo Ramazzotti, Matteo Giuntoli, Gianni Virgili, Lorenzo Vannozzi, Donatella Degl'Innocenti, Ugo Menchini; Intravitreal Infliximab Clearance in a Rabbit Model: Different Sampling Methods and Assay Techniques. Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. 2009;50(11):5328-5335. doi: https://doi.org/10.1167/iovs.09-3569.
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To investigate the clearance of intravitreal infliximab with the use of different sampling techniques and immunoassay methods in rabbits.
Infliximab (1.6 mg) was intravitreally injected into both eyes of 47 rabbits. Two approaches were used to collect the vitreous: the classic method and a microsampling technique. Whereas the classic method consists of collection of the whole vitreous after enucleation, the microsampling technique consisted of the aspiration of small (10–15 μL) samples with a 200-μL syringe. Samples were taken from 30 minutes to 40 days using both methods and were then compared. Infliximab concentration was estimated with competitive ELISA, dot blot analysis, and Western blot analysis.
The vitreous half-life of infliximab was estimated to be 6.5 ± 0.6 days. The data indicated monoexponential decay reaching its conclusion after approximately 40 days. This decay was preceded by 4-day-long diffusion in the vitreous. Microsampling proved to be effective in the vitreous collection, giving statistically comparable signals (± 4%, P = 0.68) with respect to the classic procedure. ELISA proved to be the best analytical technique—especially if coupled with microsamplings—because of its lower detection limit, precision, and reduced amount of sample needed. No differences were observed between half-life values obtained by ELISA and dot blot analysis (P = 0.081) and Western blot analysis (P = 0.614).
The findings of this study added to the knowledge of infliximab clearance in the vitreous and confirmed the validity of a microsampling technique that was compared with the classic one. ELISA was found to be the best analytical technique when using microsampling.
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The energy markets have seen several major upsets during the 21st century yet one can state fairly confidently that the market slump of 2020-2021 has triggered the most damage of them all. This is also true for international licensing where dozens of rounds were delayed, either to 2021 or indeterminately, for fear of not generating enough interest amidst drastic CAPEX cuts and massive divestment schemes. The end result is that 2020 was the weakest year in terms of total acreage awarded to oil and gas companies since 2002 (0.35 million km2), roughly a third of what it was in 2019. The price rebound of February-March 2021 will provide a suitable springboard for new licensing round – it is this momentum that Egypt will try to capitalize on with its latest licensing round. Egypt’s last licensing round was held in 2019, then the Red Sea auctioning saw 3 blocks allocated between Chevron (Block 1), Royal Dutch Shell (Blocks 3 and 4) and Mubadala Petroleum (Block 4). Although a much-needed step to tap into a freshly opened-up area – Egypt and Saudi Arabia demarcated their Red Sea territories only in 2017 – Cairo failed to market all the 10 blocks that were on offer. Then came another licensing round that focused on the Western Mediterranean in early 2020, the state-owned Egyptian Natural Gas Holding (EGAS) was supposed to offer 11 blocks. This endeavor never really materialized, instead Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources awarded 7 blocks via direct negotiations to Western majors that supposedly were financially, technologically and organizationally ready to develop offshore projects in the Mediterranean.
Related: The Future Of U.S. LNG Hangs In The Balance
The new licensing round comprises 9 offshore blocks in the Mediterranean and 3 blocks in the Gulf of Suez, as well as 12 onshore blocks managed by the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) in Egypt’s main oil-producing region, the Western Desert, with bidding set to conclude on August 01, 2021. There are many reasons to be excited about new Eastern Mediterranean acreage being offered, especially blocks that are so close to the supergiant Zohr field and might potentially utilize the infrastructure already in place, however, it needs to be said that Egyptian authorities have done their utmost to promote investment into heretofore untapped frontiers. Having demarcated the Saudi-Egyptian maritime border, Egypt has signed a delimitation covenant with Greece in October 2020 and sorted out most of maritime disputes with Israel.
As attractive as the prospect of new Mediterranean acreage would seem, there is a geopolitical catch in Egypt’s current licensing round, namely the overlapping of several offshore blocks with disputed maritime borders:
- Block MED-W11 overlaps with Libya’s claimed maritime borders
- Blocks MED-E4, MED-E5 and MED-E6 overlap with assumed maritime borders of Gaza (potentially Israel)
Whilst Cairo has the political clout to settle any future issues with Gaza, i.e. creating a joint scheme of developing any prospective fields by tying-in offshore output into the Egyptian LNG system, it can hardly do anything with Libya. First and foremost, there is no way of concluding a comprehensive agreement with Libya whilst it has two competing governments. Second, even if there were a unified Libya there is no guarantee Tripoli would want to conclude a covenant that it might perceive as being deleterious to its national interests.
In addition to all the above-mentioned factors, there is also one country, taking a most active part in the Libyan conflict and generally seeking to exert its influence in the Mediterranean, a country that is almost certain to react to Egypt’s offshore licensing, Turkey. All three blocks that are up for grabs in the westernmost part of Egypt’s territorial waters (MED-W11/W17/W18) are delineated according to the bilateral agreement between Egypt and Greece, a covenant whose legitimacy Turkey fully dismisses as being “worthless” (in the words of President Erdogan) on the grounds that there should be no maritime border between the two countries. Such claims are part of a long-standing standoff whereby Ankara has argued that Greece’s islands should not be taken into account when demarcating Libya’s Mediterranean frontier. The last weeks have seen a flurry of Turkish media reports stating that Ankara is on the brink of settling Turkish-Egyptian maritime border, indicating that Turkish authorities would seek a diplomatic solution to solidify their further claims.
Blocks MED-E1/MED-E2/MED-E3, to the north of Zohr, respect the 2003 Delimitation Agreement between Cyprus and Egypt. The Turkish-run Republic of Northern Cyprus, however, is almost certain to claim almost all of Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone. Unless prospective plays extend across the maritime border, the frontline of the Egyptian EEZ is demarcated well enough so as not to trigger any immediate reaction, though even here future drillers might opt for the “Total scenario”, i.e. drilling in diplomatically fireproof parts of the licensed territory (as it was the case with the French major in Lebanese waters). Perhaps ironically, the Israeli-Egyptian maritime cooperation is the most robust amongst all members of the Eastern Mediterranean drilling quintet.
Simultaneously, the long-term future of onshore production in the Western Desert remains an open question. The thing is that whilst offshore acreage in the Mediterranean is expected to generate ample interest, Western majors seem to be intent on divesting Western Desert assets. For instance, Shell has sold its upstream assets (29 blocks overall) in the Western Desert to Cairn Energy and Cheiron Petroleum for $646 million in early March 2021. Before COVID hit, the Anglo-Dutch major expected to generate $1 billion from this transaction, indicating that it was ready to settle for less given the circumstances. Concurrently to the above, the US-based Apache is planning to spud almost two dozens of wildcats in the Western Desert, thus there remains hope of maintaining Western Desert production over the longer term.
By Viktor Katona for Oilprice.com
More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
- Oil Demand Boosted By Highest Number Of Flights Since COVID Started
- Is Russia About To Invade Ukraine?
- Oil Rallies As OPEC+ Signals Confidence In Demand Recovery

domain: geography


Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the Congress had tried to tarnish the image of thousands of years of Hindu culture. 'They cannot cleanse themselves of this sin,' he added.
Wardha/New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday shifted the goalpost of the 2019 Lok Sabha election when he stung the Congress for having coined the term “Hindu terror” and insulting the entire “peace-loving community”.
Quite symbolically, he was speaking at Wardha, the land of Mahatma Gandhi, where the Congress Working Committee (CWC) had met in 2018. It was the launch of the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance’s campaign for the 2019 general elections in Maharashtra.
“For the sake of vote-bank politics, the Congress, NCP and their allies can stoop to any level. The Congress had made a lowly attempt to stigmatise crores of Indians with the term ‘Hindu terror’. Now with the verdict of the courts, the conspiracy and the reality of the Congress have been exposed in front of the people,” PM Modi said.
PM Modi said the Congress had tried to tarnish the image of thousands of years of Hindu culture. “The Congress and its friends conspired to tarnish our culture of over 5,000 years. The Congress has committed this sin against the nation and its people. Howsoever they might run, they cannot cleanse themselves of this sin,” he added.
The prime minister said that the people of the country had made up their minds to punish the Congress. This was why they were “turning towards such seats where the majority is in minority”, he said.
“When the entire world is standing with India in its response to terrorism, the Congress and its allies are speaking in Pakistan’s language. The people of the nation must tell whether they want ‘saboot’ (proof of 2016 surgical strikes and Indian Air Force’s strike at Balakot) or ‘sapoot’ (an able son of the soil)? Do we want Indian heroes or Pakistani? Those asking for the proof of the bravery of Indian sons must be taught a lesson,” the PM said.
The PM said that the ‘mahamilawat’ (hyper-adulteration) of the Congress and NCP were trying to belittle the bravery and sacrifice of soldiers.
“Our brave soldiers crossed the border and hit terrorists inside their houses and these people are asking for proof!” PM Modi said.
Taking a dig at the NCP, PM Modi reminded the huge crowd at the rally of the Azad Maidan riots of 2012. “The people of Maharashtra must not forget that Congress and NCP had given a free hand to mobs and violence at Azad Maidan when the memorial of martyrs was desecrated,” PM Modi said, also reminding the people that it was Sushil Kumar Shinde who had coined the term of “Hindu terror” when the former cop was the Union home minister.
Read Exclusive COVID-19 Coronavirus News updates, at MyNation.
Last Updated Apr 2, 2019, 10:45 AM IST


text:
Published: February 23, 2011
Somali NOC President Supervises Athletics Coaches
By Shafi'i Mohyaddin Abokar
The president of Somali National Olympic committee Aden Hajji Yeberow on Wednesday visited 15 Somali Athletics coaches who were attending a week-long IAAF level training course in Djibouti, as kind of presidential encouragement.
"As president I am very happy to tell you that I am jubilant at how responsibly you are undergoing your course. I am more confident that you will be able to make big changes in developing athletics in Somalia," the visiting president told the coaches.
He said that for the past two years Somali NOC has achieved more towards developing sports in the lawless country. "We have accomplished more than can be done in such chaotic country and that is because of the great cooperation between Somali NOC and its members," the president said.
He said that the course was due to be held in Somalia. But was transferred to the neighboring Djibouti because of the recent violence in Somalia where international instructors cannot be invited. "I am very grateful to the lecturers who came here to share their knowledge to us," he said while shaking hands with IAAF lecturer Severe Joel.
The president was accompanied by Somali NOC secretary General Abdullahi Ahmed Tarabi, NOC executive office manager Mohamed Abdo Hajji, Somali Athletics acting President Khadija Aden Dahir and Secretary General Farah Ali Moalim.
He praised former Athlete and current instructor Abdulkadir Arale Omar who has been assisting the coaches as translator. The course is the first of its kind where Somali Athletics coaches were trained. It is due to close on Thursday.
Shafi'i Mohyaddin Abokar is the NewsBlaze Somalia reporter. Contact him through NewsBlaze.
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Kashmir, known for its natural beauty, is a sad place, the largest militarized zone in the world where people carry terrible injuries for life.
Breakthrough and Door Opening for Dolev Homes that assists adolescent girls between the ages of 11 and 23 who have suffered extreme hardship and turmoil.
A car bomb explosion followed by fierce gunfire targeted at the back of Maka Al-Mukarama hotel in Mogadishu left ten people dead and many more injured.
The neighboring Kenyan government is planning to set up a new wall on its border along Somalia for security reasons.
The US has included in the budget of $2 billion for recovery funding and support of displaced Iraqis. The funding will be essential to move resources quickly to the liberated areas most in need.
The update is scheduled to roll out this summer, which gives Microsoft plenty of time to clarify its position on offering a free upgrade to pirated copies of Windows 7 and 8.1.

domain: news


text:
35 Min South of Lansing
You sent a message to this owner.
- Minimum stay:Contact owner
- Pets considered:Yes
- Wheel chair accessible:No
Jackson cottage description
This cottage is located in a quiet neighborhood in Napoleon, Michigan and is accessible by M-50, I-94 and US-127. It has an open kitchen/ livingroom, knotty pine walls & cabinets. You have all the modern amenities of home, all your towels, bedding and cookware are included. Don't worry about steps down to the lake here, the lawn slopes gently to the lake making it enjoyable for all.
The use of two kayaks and one canoe are provided free and a pontoon boat is also availabe for rent. Or, You have your own dock so bring your boat. There is a firepit facing the lake and firewood in the garage for a nominal fee.
If you like to fish you will love Olcott, Little Wolf and Michigan Center Lakes where bass, pike and bluegill are an everyday occurrence and they stock walleye in big wolf lake just one lake over plus the gills bed right in front of the cottage in early June.
If its water sports you're after, then the 400 acre sandy bottom Wolf Lake is for you. Ski, tube, board, sail or just sit back and watch on the sand bar. Or if its total relaxation you're after, take a backwoods cruise over to Price Lake. It is truly one of the most beautiful lakes I have ever seen.
No matter what your pleasure this 1500 acre chain of lakes has something for everyone.
- Vacation Rental
- Pets Considered
- Children Welcome
- Minimum Age Limit For Renters
- Non Smoking Only
Bedrooms: 2 Bedrooms, Sleeps 6, Beds for 4-6
- Queen size Beds (1), Double Beds (1), Sleep Sofa or Futons (1)
Bathrooms: 1 Bathroom
Kitchen & Dining
- Cooking Utensils
- Air Conditioning
- Clothes Dryer
- Washing Machine
- Linens Provided
- CD Player
- Video Game Console
- Satellite / Cable
- Video Games
- DVD Player
- Wireless Internet
- Deck / Patio
- Outdoor Grill
Location & View
- Hunting Small Game
- Freshwater Fishing
- Massage Therapist
- Fitness Center
- Medical Services
- Jet Skiing
- Water Skiing
- Hot Air Ballooning
- Winery Tours
- Botanical Garden
- Sight Seeing
- Live Theater
- Wildlife Viewing
- Scenic Drives
- Gambling Casinos
- Bird Watching
ReviewsWrite a review
Cozy cottage on the lake
Cozy cottage on the lake
Wonderful cozy cottage right on the lake and we enjoyed the lake view and the area surrounding the cottage. The owner was very responsive, especially when we had some hiccups with the shower and internet service. One disappointment was that the coffee pot quit on us about halfway through our stay but we managed to still make coffee on the stove. The location was definitely out in the country but we enjoyed our stay and having family from nearby areas to visit us for the day. We even had a bit of successful fishing and used the fire pit with wood generously supplied by one of our neighbors. We enjoyed the use of the BBQ and the ability to cook most of our meals with a good stock of kitchen utensils, etc. The bed was very comfortable and the BR was uniquely cozy but worked well for us and our dog, Shorty.
- Guest Jean R W.
- Date of stay 09/16/12
- Review Submitted 10/11/12
Recommended for: Families with young children, pet owners, age 55+, girls getaway.
Nice location, easy to get to. Really nice access to the water. Nice view of the lake from the kitchen and living room. Everything we needed was in the cottage. Bathroom was nicely remodeled but an alert for older folks regarding climbing up into the shower would be nice. Could have used a comfortable recliner or easy chair in the living room. Had issues with the boat running; owner was accomodating. Really, really great fishing.
- Guest Us (Lansing)
- Date of stay 07/07/12
- Review Submitted 07/17/12
Recommended for: Families with young children, romantic getaway, girls getaway.
We had a great time as a family staying here. Mike made everything so comfortable and we would not hesitate to come back again. The weather was beautiful while we were there. Everything was clean and amenities were great. My grandchildren played the video games and the adults enjoyed Euchre. All in all a great place to stay and we definitly would recommend it to anyone who would like to rent the cottage.
- Guest Gail and Darrell (Spokane, WA)
- Date of stay 06/12/11
- Review Submitted 06/23/11
Recommended for: Families with young children, pet owners, families with teenagers, age 55+.
MAY 26-JUNE 4 .. $650/wk. JUNE 4-Sep 10 .. $850/wk. Sep 08-OCT 06 .. $650/wk. OCT 06-MAY 25 .. $450/wk .. $800/mo. four month minimum $250 security deposit on wkly rentals. Boat rental is available .. $375 per week. must give 30 day notice from check in for any cancellation to receive full refund one dog only under 40 lbs permitted upon approval. Sorry no cats allowed.
Note: Until confirmed, rates are subject to change without notice.
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Sorry this information is not available. Please contact the owner for more information.
Year Purchased: 1995
About the owner: Hello my name is Mike and this is my daughter Kaily. She is the reason I own this cottage. Her great great grandfather built this cottage back in the 1930s and it has been passed down through the years and generations to me to hold and maintain until she is ready for home ownership. I own a home improvement company so it is very important to me that when you arrive you find an impecably maintained property. It is also important to me that when you stay with us you are able to enjoy the lake as much as possible. This is why we have two kayaks and a canoe free of charge and the option of a pontoon boat rental. We have also taken the time and expense to furnish the cottage with quality linens, just because youre at a cottage doesnt mean you shouldn't feel like your on vacation. I have tried to think of everything you might need or forget like coolers, fishing poles and tackle, yard games, board games, books, video games, portable awnings, party tents, two gas grills, coozies, dozens of life preservers in mscelaneous sizes, extra blakets, throws and pillows and more. But if you do seem to mis something please let me know so I can have it there for the next person. This has been a fun way to hold onto a house this long in hopes Kaily will appriciate what those before her have worked so hard to provide for her. I'm not sure when she will be ready but I sure will mis all the friends we have made over the years.
- Primary: (517) 812-7434 (Michigan, USA)
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domain: travel


A new Australian engineering standard released for zero-carbon cement has removed one of the key barriers to wider market acceptance of Earth Friendly Concrete (EFC®), touted by construction and materials group Wagners as a solution for hard-to-abate emissions embodied in concrete.
It’s taken six years for a joint project by Wagners and the University of New South Wales (UNSW) to gain technical recognition in Australia for EFC®, despite the world’s enormous decarbonisation challenge and traditional concrete accounting for eight per cent of annual global emissions.
European technical approval, which has so far taken seven-years, is expected shortly.
Michael Kemp, a 20-year Wagners veteran and chief executive of its EFC® division since April 2022, said most concrete producers have a low-carbon product.
“But the challenge as I see it is that they are still using cement and a significant amount of it,” Mr Kemp said.
“Our approach has been to eliminate cement and instead use waste-streams – slag, the waste product from steel manufacturing, and ash, the waste product from coal-fired power stations – and a concentrated alkaline solution to make it go grey and hard.
“We’ve been able to make the product the same strength as concrete for a decade or more.”
Cement – the binding substance that sets, hardens and adheres to other materials – is the biggest contributor to embodied carbon in concrete.
According to Wagners, EFC® or geopolymer concrete is much more sustainable, slashing carbon by about 70 per cent and saving 250kg of CO2 per cubic metre poured.
For a large infrastructure project requiring 50,000 cubic metres of concrete, the product is estimated to save more than 12,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions – equivalent to taking 4500 cars off the road for a year, or 814 trees in a typical carbon offset program.
In addition to EFC®’s lack of recognition in global construction industry codes, the product has encountered other challenges.
Price has also been a barrier, with EFC® commanding a premium to concrete using conventional Portland blends, although costs vary according to a number of factors.
In an aircraft pavement project for Boeing at the Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport, which is owned by the Wagner family, the premium has effectively been compressed to zero.
Mr Kemp said the reason for the cost competitiveness is EFC®’s superior properties, enabling the thickness of the pavement to be reduced from 435mm to about 380mm.
“So not only do we have a concrete that emits less CO2, but in applications like this we’re also going to use less of it,” he said.
“EFC® per cubic metre today costs more than ordinary concrete per cubic metre, and the industry is accustomed to considering concrete as a commodity.
“Once a construction contract is issued to a contractor, it’s a case of lowest cost wins. “
So far, Wagners has poured about 80,000 cubic metres of EFC®.
While it’s a respectable total, Mr Kemp said it was a very small amount in the context of an Australian market for concrete of 29mcubic metres.
It’s a circular argument, with price competitiveness the key to volume, and volume the key to price competitiveness.
Also, Mr Kemp said very few customers are willing to pay a premium for EFC to help address the climate challenge.
The industry dynamics, however, are fluid and likely to move in EFC®’s favour, particularly in Europe where the market’s evolution is about five years ahead of Australia.
Recognising this, Wagners spent 2.5m pounds Sterling on an EFC® prototype plant in London, with Australia so far limited to a Brisbane pilot plant.
The London plant’s first job was a 700 cubic metre pour into a tunnel project, demonstrating its capability to deliver at scale and in accordance with a code which relied on German technical approval.
“We’re also seeing the EU taxonomy (the classification system and criteria for a green economy) come into play, so the number of offset credits for big emitters will start to reduce from next year,” Mr Kemp said.
“It’s why we’re seeing $100m investments to capture carbon emissions from clinker kilns, and then there’s the issue of what you do with the carbon you capture, like pumping it into the depleted oil and gas reservoirs of the North Sea.”
“My approach and that of Wagners is that the cheapest way to clean up a mess is not to make it in the first place.
“We have a compliant concrete which we can supply, and it might cost more today but the price of cement is going to see a significant uplift in price after they start accounting for carbon capture and the price of credits.”
Furthermore, there are few restrictions on the addressable market for EFC®, since the product can be substituted in almost any application of traditional concrete.
That includes high-rise construction, in-ground footings, aircraft and road-pavement; even house slabs.
Queensland, on its own, plans to build 2600 wind turbines, each of which will have a 700 cubic metre concrete foundation.
“So just in that, there’s an opportunity to reduce thousands of tonnes of emissions, let alone the next commercial building or mum and dad’s house,” Mr Kemp said.
“We even have a couple of home builders in Toowoomba using it so it’s coming; we just have to break through into normal supply.”
Wagners is thinking globally, not just locally in Australia, where it had to obtain sign-offs on a project-by-project basis pending the arrival of last month’s technical approval.
The interim process produced projects such as the five-storey Global Change Institute building at the University of Queensland’s St Lucia campus, and a cargo ship wharf in Brisbane.
In London, the prototype facility has the capacity to deliver up to eight per cent of the city’s annual concrete appetite.
For a similar price, the company could build similar facilities in other cities like Manchester, Birmingham and Glasgow, and establish US beachheads in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Austin in Texas.
The key requirement is a drive to decarbonise, so the expansion net could probably extend to the Netherlands and Germany.
Mr Kemp even canvassed the prospect of the Ukraine, given there is a likely to a significant rebuild once peace breaks out.
Wagners, he said, is looking at alternative expansion models, including partnerships and investment in the business.
“At the moment in Australia, we’re very much set up around Brisbane and I’m working right now on how we get into other capital cities,” the EFC® chief said.
“We’re in talks but it requires people to want to get involved – we’ve pushed this wheelbarrow for a long time and now we’re looking for support from the market to give EFC® a go.
“After 20 years at Wagners bringing new generation building materials to market, bringing EFC® forward is definitely the biggest challenge, but also the biggest opportunity we have.’ ”
The information contained in this article is based upon sources believed to be reliable but which have not been independently verified. Opinions or ideas expressed may not necessarily be those of National Australia Bank Limited (“NAB”) nor may they necessarily reflect NAB’s views or endorsement. This article is for informational purposes only.


Inflation data and euro zone seen as catalysts for a turnPUBLISHED: 23 Jul 2012 16:19:00 | UPDATED: 27 Jul 2012 14:42:52PUBLISHED: 24 Jul 2012 PRINT EDITION: 24 Jul 2012
Wasiliev | The midweek release of inflation numbers is expected to be the driving force for traders this week.
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‘Hansel and Gretel’ goes traditional at Opera Theatre of Montclair
Hansel and Gretel
By Engelbert Humperdinck (sung in English)
Presented by Opera Theatre of Montclair
Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 22, 23, 29, 30, 4 p.m.
Central Presbyterian Church, 46 Park St.
By GWEN OREL
One witch has a green wig and a creepy air.
The other is jolly, with lipstick not quite on his lips (this witch is played by a man in drag), a happy grandma everybody loves, except that when she’s hungry, she might eat you.
Each actor in Opera Theatre of Montclair’s (OTM) production of “Hansel and Gretel” has been encouraged to find their inner witch.
Both portrayals are consistent with the story, said Stage Director Stacey Canterbury,
who also plays The Gingerbread Witch with green hair in Cast A.
Tai Collins plays The Gingerbread Witch in Cast B.
Humperdinck’s opera is not a children’s story per se — adults play the major roles — but children will enjoy it, said OTM’s General Director Mia Riker-Norrie.
“We had a table in a sidewalk sale and people ask, ‘Are there adult singers?’
“Yes, this is a fully professional production, with kids in it. It’s very sophisticated music, but because of the theme, it’s appropriate to bring children to it,” said Riker-Norrie.
Actually, there are quite a few children in the production, more than 20, who play Gingerbread Children the witch has enchanted to make up the walls of her house, and who dance in the ballet. Christine Rauschenbach-Nevill, who plays The Sandman in Cast B, is one of the child wranglers.
At one point Riker-Norrie considered having the production allude to current events, with children in cages on the border and a witch with a blonde combover, but in the end decided to allow the audience to draw its own parallels.
This production, with its vivid colors and magical moments, is a “relief and a release” from the news, she said.
Being separated from a parent is a primal fear, and many fairy tales draw on it, Riker-Norrie said.
The production came together with just a few weeks of rehearsal. Central Presbyterian Church is used by Bnai Keshet for the high holidays, so OTM has had to work around that as well.
As is usual for opera, there are two casts, so that singers can rest their voices in between productions.
Though most people know the story of Hansel and Gretel and the witch, the opera adds a few touches specific to Humperdinck: the mother doesn’t kick out the children because they are starving, but loses her temper and immediately feels remorseful. She and the father go to look for them. The imprisoned children, as well as a corps de ballet of children-angels who watch over Hansel and Gretel, are new. So are The Sandman, who puts the siblings to sleep, and the Dew Fairy, who wakes them up.
Humperdinck wrote a lot of the staging into the score, even some of the specific steps of the witch’s dance, Climie said.
Allyson Carvajal, the mother in Cast B, said the music itself has a lot of German traditions. “I hear a lot of influences, some Mahler,” she said.
Collins agreed that the music is tricky. While his approach to the witch is comical, he decided to eschew vulgar rewritings of the lyrics to keep his witch a lovable ghoul. Having the witch played by a man has been common for about 40 years, he said.
In some productions, there are parallels between the mother and the witch, sometimes even played by the same performer.
But, Carvajal said, there is a scene with the mother praying desperately. If you take the parallel too far, “it loses the humanity that comes in that aria,” she said.
“The kids are happy when they see their mother and father at the end of the show, not going ‘I might want to stay in the woods,’” Climie said with a laugh.
If losing family is a primal fear, finding them again will bring about a sense of wonder and relief, Riker-Norrie said.
The score is beautiful, with harp, tympani and brass; there will be a 22-piece orchestra accompanying OTM.
“It’s uplifting,” she said. “When you see the angels watching over these children, who are abandoned in the wood, holy cow! It just hits you.
“We’re going traditional, and it’s just beautiful.”


text:
Last year, Duncan Mighty was easily one of the most essential Nigerian artists in the game, making a lot of good songs even better — from Starboy's "Fake Love" to Tiwa Savage's "Lova Lova". He continues that trend with Iyanya’s latest single, "Halle".
On the fantastic track, which has the potential to be 2019’s definitive hustler anthem, both stars sing about how satisfying it is to work hard for your money. "Who no dey work no go see chop oh", Iyanya warns on his opening verse.
These days, Iyanya tends to be pretty hit or miss with his releases, but the Yung Alpha-produced "Halle" certainly falls squarely in the former category, thanks in no small part to his undeniable synergy with Duncan Mighty.
Serving as the singer's first official single of the year, as well as a taste of what we can expect from his upcoming EP, Rebirth, the fantastic "Halle" has us more than a little hopeful that 2019 could be the year Iyanya finally gets his groove back.
Listen to the track below:

domain: artistic


text:
Five For Fighting Hunger -- The Boston Bruins will face off against hunger with their first-ever “Five For Fighting Hunger Can & Cash Drive” during their home game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on January 17th.
The Boston Bruins and the Greater Boston Food Bank will be collecting non-perishable food items to fill the vintage Boston Garden penalty box. Fans who donate five non-perishable food items or $5 in cash will be entered in a contest to win Boston Bruins autographed merchandise.
Fans are encouraged to bring donations of canned tuna fish, peanut butter, canned fruits and vegetables, red and brown beans, and juice boxes. All cash and food collected will be donated to The Greater Boston Food Bank, which serves more than 83,000 people every week through its network of more than 600 hunger-relief agencies in eastern Massachusetts.

domain: food


Five small satellites, including one built by high school students in Southern California, are awaiting launch Friday from New Zealand aboard the first commercial flight of Rocket Lab’s Electron booster.
The U.S.-New Zealand launch company plans liftoff of the two-stage rocket during a four-hour window opening at 8:30 p.m. EDT Friday (0030 GMT; 12:30 p.m. New Zealand time Saturday).
“We’re currently green all around the board,” said Peter Beck, Rocket Lab’s founder and CEO. “We’re looking good for weather.”
The satellites stowed atop the 55-foot-tall (17-meter) rocket will gather weather data, track maritime traffic, test a drag sail device for de-orbiting space junk, and embark on a mission of education.
Sized to haul up to 330 pounds (150 kilograms) into a 310-mile-high (500-kilometer) polar orbit, the privately-developed Electron rocket was conceived to provide dedicated rides to space for lightweight payloads which currently must ride piggyback on bigger rockets, often forcing satellite owners to make compromises on orbital parameters and schedule.
With a launch base on New Zealand’s North Island, a control center and manufacturing base in Auckland, and corporate headquarters and engine factory in Huntington Beach, California, Rocket Lab says it can offer customers a dedicated launch for as little as $4.9 million, a fraction of the price of larger, oversized boosters currently flying.
Rocket Lab is one of several companies competing in the light launch market. Virgin Orbit, Firefly Aerospace, and other launcher developers are still designing and testing their vehicles, making Rocket Lab the first of the group to announce the start of commercial operations.
“It’s a really important launch for us, but also for the industry,” Beck said in an interview Thursday. “It symbolizes the beginning of this long-awaited commercial regular service to orbit for spacecraft.
“There’s a lot of excitement and talk about it, but it’s nice to really have it beginning to be done,” he told Spaceflight Now. “There’s so many spacecraft on the shelf, and with this mission, we’re at the beginning of where we can now provide a service to all these spacecraft that have been getting stuck, from here on.”
The upcoming launch will be the third flight of Rocket Lab’s Electron booster, following two test flights in May 2017 and in January.
The May 2017 mission, which Rocket Lab christened “It’s a Test,” reached space but fell short of the velocity needed to reach orbit when range safety officials terminated the mission due to a ground tracking error. On Jan. 20 (U.S. time), the second Electron mission — dubbed “Still Testing” — placed a package of small satellites into orbit.
The success in January prompted Rocket Lab officials to proceed with the start of commercial service with the third Electron launch, named “It’s Business Time.”
One of the payloads aboard the Electron launch in January was a geodesic sphere built and owned by Rocket Lab. Designed for to reflect sunlight to make it visible from the ground, the 3-foot (1-meter) sphere — resembling a disco ball and named Humanity Star — re-entered Earth’s atmosphere after about two months.
Rocket Lab did not announce the presence of the Humanity Star satellite on the January launch until after it was deployed in orbit. With the start of commercial service, no such surprises are expected on the next mission.
“It seems like we’ve developed a reputation for new things and surprises, but there are no particular surprises on this launch,” Beck said. “We’re running the kick stage once again for this particular flight, but the vehicle is basically identical to the last flight.”
The Curie kick stage also debuted on the January mission and went unannounced until after the successful demonstration. The kick stage burns a non-toxic “green” monopropellant. A company spokesperson said earlier this year that details about the make-up of the propellant are “commercially sensitive.”
The lower two stages of the Electron rocket consume a mix of kerosene and liquid oxygen propellants.
Rocket Lab says the kick stage allows Electron flights to place multiple satellites into different orbits, using the Curie engine’s reignition capability to adjust inclination and altitude. That will benefit customers flying different types of payloads on the same Electron mission, with the kick stage maneuvering to different orbits to drop off each satellite group.
The first commercial Electron flight was supposed to occur in late April, but managers grounded the launcher after the ground team noticed “unusual behavior” in a DC motor controller driving turbopumps on the rocket’s first stage.
“We’re abundantly cautious around here, so we saw that behavior, and we didn’t want to fly until we really understood what that was,” Beck said. “It turned out to not be a hardware issue. It was completely a process issue with production.
“We took our time to really drill down and make sure we fully understood the cause because from here on out, we’re looking at a very high clip of manufacturing and launch for the rest of the year,” he said. “The last thing we want to do is interrupt our manufacturing and launch flow with any kind of unresolved issue.”
By the end of the year, Rocket Lab aims to achieve a launch cadence of one flight per month.
Rocket Lab took advantage of the two-month delay to add two more payloads to the mission.
One of the new satellite passengers is Irvine01, a educational CubeSat built by California high school students. Irvine01 is part of the Irvine CubeSat STEM Program, comprising members from six high schools in Irvine, California.
The other payload added to the next Electron launch is a drag sail technology demonstrator named NABEO. Developed by High Performance Space Structure Systems in Germany, the NABEO small satellite mission will test a deployable 27-square-foot (2.5-square-meter) membrane using aerodynamic drag to slow down and de-orbit, a capability that could reduce space junk in low Earth orbit.
Rocket Lab said Ecliptic Enterprises and Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems assisted with accommodating the Irvine01 and NABEO payloads on the Electron mission.
The Irvine01 and NABEO satellites joined two CubeSats for Spire Global, and one nanosatellite for GeoOptics that were already booked on the Electron launch. The Spire and GeoOptics payloads will measure GPS satellite navigation signals passed through Earth’s atmosphere to derive information about weather and climate.
According to Beck, automated analysis tools and faster turnarounds in licensing and regulatory approvals made the late accommodation of Irvine01 and NABEO nanosatellites possible.
“Rocket Lab is a third about the rocket, a third about regulatory, and a third about infrastructure,” Beck said. “While the rocket is always the exciting bit that everybody gravitates to, actually the other two pieces here are equally important if we really want to move the needle on the space industry.”
“Usually, you talk about launch minus so many months to manifest a payload,” he said. “We’ve been working very closely with the regulatory authorities to put in place mechanisms where we can do these kinds of things in a very quick way that satisfies all the regulatory constraints, but also developing tools for the launch vehicle for doing coupled loads analysis for adding new spacecraft
“So (we’ve been) automating some of those processes and building the tools so that we can really turn these payload quickly. That’s the whole point of what we’re trying to achieve — regular and reliable service to orbit. Unfortunately, it’s nowhwere near as exciting as the rocket, but actually it’s incredibly critical.”
— Tinh Tran (@tinhtranUNITE) January 20, 2018
Because of its U.S. headquarters, Rocket Lab operates under U.S. regulatory authority, with the Federal Aviation Administration responsible for licensing the companies launch operations, despite the launch site’s location in New Zealand. Other U.S. regulatory agencies, such as the Federal Communications Commission, grant approvals for U.S.-owned satellites.
“We had a very short window,” Beck said. “We had an opportunity to fly these two important payloads. We reached out to the regulators and said, ‘Hey, look, we think these are important. Let’s work together to get them on.’ And the answer was, ‘Yes, let’s do that.'”
On Friday’s mission, the Electron rocket will launch to the south from Rocket Lab’s Launch Complex 1, located on Mahia Peninsula on the east coast of New Zealand’s North Island.
Roaring into the sky with more than 41,000 pounds of thrust from nine Rutherford main engines, the all-black launcher will fire its first stage for around two-and-a-half minutes, then ignite its single-engine upper stage for a roughly six-and-a-half minute burn. The Electron will reach a preliminary orbit stretching between 155 miles and 310 miles (250-500 kilometers) above Earth, with an inclination of 85 degrees to the equator.
The Curie upper stage will separate and coast halfway around the planet before circularizing the orbit and releasing the mission’s five payloads. Here is an overview of the launch sequence:
- T+plus 00:00: Liftoff
- T+plus 02:42: First stage engine cutoff
- T+plus 02:45: First stage separation
- T+plus 02:48: Second stage ignition
- T+plus 03:06: Payload fairing separation
- T+plus 09:12: Electron reaches orbit
- T+plus 09:15: Second stage engine cutoff
- T+plus 09:20: Curie kick stage separation
- T+plus 51:01: Curie kick stage ignition
- T+plus 52:07: Curie kick stage engine cutoff
- T+plus 54:10: End of payload separation sequence
Email the author.
Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.


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Compatibility: Automatic Stall Waterer


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October 29, 2023 | by Barry Weisleder
Well over 5,000 people (the corporate media estimate) rallied for justice for the Palestinian people on October 29, beginning outside the U.S. Consulate in Toronto. The crowd gained in size, dimension and sound volume as it marched up University Avenue, east on College Street, south on Bay, east to Yonge, and further downtown to Queen Street. It was the third or fourth large action in a trio of days to mark the escalating horror of the Zionist state onslaught against the residents of Gaza, along with a growing incidence of Israeli settler pogroms in towns and cities of the bifurcated West Bank.
While 30 MPs, including 23 Liberals and several New Democrats, submitted a petition asking the federal minority Liberal government to call for an immediate ceasefire in the conflict, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau still can’t bring himself to say the word. Instead he pleads only for a “pause” in the onslaught, now in its fourth week, currently being waged by soldiers in Israeli tanks and bombers.
On October 30 a coalition of Muslim and Jewish activists occupied the offices of 17 Liberal MPs from Burnaby, to Scarborough to Montreal, as opposition to the Israel ground incursion of Gaza heats up. Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly were among the politicians who had some unscheduled visitors demanding that they end their complicity in genocide, in real time.


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but lately it seems as though author Michael Wallace is getting tired of his characters.
Why do I say that? Because Wallace has decided that, as though the chauvinistic, polygamous community of Blister Creek is not bad enough already, that the community must now be part of a post-apocalyptic world. After a huge volcanic eruption, the entire world is suffering from crop failures, etc. When reluctant "prophet, seer and revelator" Jacob Christianson decides to go to Las Vegas in a desperate bid to obtain needed medications for his community, there are attempted coups in the community, problems on the road -- you name it.
I will be the first to admit that part of my previous enjoyment was a certain sense of schadenfreude as the author so ably demonstrated the dark side of conservative, patriarchal religion and its impact on *everyone* affected by it. Now, it seems like he just wants to kill off the entire population of Blister Creek and be done with them. That's not to say that the book is poorly written -- it's a well-told tale, and the characters are still interesting. It's just that the plot is becoming less believable.

domain: literature


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Blog Tour: Review of The C Word : For some lockdown has been murder by various authors
Chuffed to bits to have been invited by Zooloo's Book Tours to this tour for the NHS charities short story anthology The C Word, published by Spellbound Books.
So, what do writers do during Lockdown? They create murder, mystery, death and destruction of course!
The C Word is a collection of short stories collated during the COVID-19 pandemic to raise money for NHS Charities Together. A plethora of wonderful stories created by a wide variety of writers, each with their own unique style. Some you will know already and some we’ve yet to introduce you to. However, we’re sure you’ll want to hear from each & every one of them again as we leave 2020 behind us.
With contributions from Steve Mosby, Sophie Hannah, Elly Griffiths, Sarah Hilary , Rob Scragg , Trevor Wood and many more
A stellar cast of familiar (and some new to me) authors have penned a range of lockdown inspired tales. As an author myself, I find short stories the hardest to write and am always in awe of other authors skills in that department. This anthology was a delight to read. I found myself dipping into it at odd moments to get my fiction rush. The range of content is delightful from the uncanny to the straight forward thrill read and from the edgy and tense to the softer more cosy read.
This is the sort of read you can lose yourself in and although I don't read many short stories myself, I found myself rereading a couple of the most enchanting ones. I was introduced to authors i'd never read before and now my TBR pile is in danger of tottering over.
This anthology has something for everyone and just to tempt you even more, isn't it great that 100% of the royalties will go straight to NHS Charities.


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Just a couple of weeks ago, Scarlett Johannsson stepped down from her role in “Rub and Tug” because she realized her playing a trans man was in poor taste (not unlike when she played an Asian woman, but I digress). I wasn’t surprised that Scarlett got cast in the first place, because, let’s be real, actual trans people are heavily under-represented in the film industry and often don’t even get casted to play actual trans people.
However, we’re starting to see that change. At San Diego’s Comic-Con this past weekend, it was confirmed that 21-year-old trans activist and actress, Nicole Maines, would be joining the fourth season of CW’s Supergirl.
Maines will be playing Nia Nal aka Dreamer, a superhero I’ve never heard of, but that’s far from the point.
Maines is a trans actress playing a trans character, but was quick to point out that being trans isn’t what the character is all about. She said:
[Nia is] a trans character whose storyline doesn’t revolve around her being trans, [emphasizing] that trans people have lives beyond their gender identity. Nia is so much more than ‘the trans superhero’. She is a reporter. She is hopeful. She is good. She is powerful. She is wise. She’s caring. She’s such a good friend. And I want Nia to be so many things before she’s trans.
Even with shows like Orange is the New Black, which features a trans actress playing a trans woman, the idea of being trans typically plays a crucial role to the character’s storyline (sometimes it needs to, of course), but it’s not often we get to see a trans character just be a regular character…who happens to be trans, so I think this is pretty cool! I mean, it’s not cool enough to make me start watching Supergirl, but it’s cool all the same.

domain: sociology


What is a oscillation in physics?
Oscillation is defined as the process of repeating variations of any quantity or measure about its equilibrium value in time. Oscillation can also be defined as a periodic variation of a matter between two values or about its central value.
What is one oscillation short answer?
When the to and fro motion of the bob starts from one end and comes back to the same position, it is known as one oscillation of a pendulum.
What is an oscillation Class 7?
Oscillation is going back and forth repeatedly between two positions or states. An oscillation can be a periodic motion that repeats itself in a regular cycle, such as the side-to-side swing of a pendulum, or the up-and-down motion of a spring with a weight.
What is oscillation in simple word?
Oscillation is the process of moving back and forth regularly, like the oscillation of a fan that cools off the whole room, or the oscillation of a movie plot that makes you laugh and cry. Oscillation is from the Latin word oscillare for to swing, so oscillation is when something is swinging back and forth.
What is oscillations class 11?
Here, the object moves to and fro about a mean position. The pendulum of a wall clock executes a similar motion. Examples of such periodic to and fro motion abound: a boat tossing up and down in a river, the piston in a steam engine going back and forth, etc. Such a motion is termed as oscillatory motion.
What is oscillation in physics class 10?
Oscillation is the repetitive or periodic variation, typically in time, of some measure about a central value (often a point of equilibrium) or between two or more different states.
What is oscillation formula?
The simplest type of oscillations are related to systems that can be described by Hooke’s law, F = −kx, where F is the restoring force, x is the displacement from equilibrium or deformation, and k is the force constant of the system.
What is oscillation and its types?
There are 3 main types of Oscillation – Free, damped, and forced oscillation. Free oscillation. When a body vibrates with its own frequency, it is called a free oscillation. The free oscillation has a constant amplitude and period without any external force to set the oscillation.
What is oscillation motion class 9?
Oscillatory motion is defined as the to and fro motion of the body about its fixed position. Oscillatory motion is a type of periodic motion. Examples of oscillatory motion are vibrating strings, swinging of the swing etc.
What is oscillation Class 8 sound?
The change in density (or pressure) from maximum value to the maximum value is called an oscillation in the context of sound.
What is free oscillation?
1. : the oscillation of a body or system with its own natural frequency and under no external influence other than the impulse that initiated the motion. called also free vibration.
What is oscillatory class 6?
(b) Oscillatory motion: The type of motion in which the object moves to and fro repeatedly about a mean or a fixed position is known as oscillatory motion. For example: The movement of pendulum of a clock.


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This is the most fun I’ve had reading Miller in years. I can definitely see his love of Superman and of the hope he represents. Not to mention the beautiful art by John Romita Jr. However, if he wanted to see the rest of the world then couldn’t he simply fly around it rather than join the NAVY?
I really liked it! The art work was great, the story had a timeless feel to it and was just overall well written. It didnt seem like just another origin story just for the sake of telling a origin story. As for your Clark seeing the world question I think he’s looking for a sense of purpose not just a jaunt around the world, so I guess he thinks serving the country will give him that purpose.


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Sheybogan Municipal Airport - SBM Sheybogan
Sheybogan Municipal Airport with SBM code is located in Sheboygan, WI. It is a public airport with no tower about 6km from the city center of Sheboygan county. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the airport is classified as a general aviation facility in a regional municipality. The said airport is also the home of the county’s observation station. Currently, there are airplanes that are owned by companies are based at the airport like Kohler Company and Richardson Bros. Last 2010, an expansion project for the airport was completed. The airport is also the gateway to some local attractions like Major Road America.
Best Time to Visit
Sheboygan Municipal Airport is covering an area of about 737 acres and it is found at the elevation of 230 meters above sea level. The facility has two runways. One is made from concrete and the other as asphalt. The fixed-based operator is a privately owned airport called Burrows Aviation. Greenfield and Hales Corners are two cities that surround the airport.
What to Do & Area Attractions
Sheboygan Municipal Airport has numerous accommodations that are near the facility. The American Club is located around 4 miles from the airport with 3 restaurants within its proximity. Guests can take advantage of the cafe in the lobby. For those looking for a nightcap, there is a bar ready to serve drinks. The Grandstay Hotel & Suites Hotel-Sheboygan is located in the city center and about 7 miles from the airport. The hotel is about 8 minutes away from the North Side Municipal Beach. It also features a pool, hot tub, and fitness center.
On this page it is easy to search for Sheboygan, WI airport hotels, we have listed hotels, airport motels,
resorts, inns in order of proximity, closest airport lodging options are listed first. Sheboygan, WI, United States (SBM-Sheboygan County Memorial) airport
area map also gives you guidance on the distance of these hotels from the SBM airport.
Most of these SBM
hotels are designed to serve frequent travelers. If you are on business trip or family vacation or if your flight is delayed
and you need an overnight stay near the airport. Some of these Sheboygan, WI
motels have passenger pick up or free airport shuttle service which you can take advantage of.
Some of the main attractions in the area around the SBM airport are Milwaukee Brewing Co., Anderson Arts Center, and Mayfair Mall.
Map of Sheboygan, WI Hotels
View all Sheboygan, WI, United States (SBM-Sheboygan County Memorial) hotels, motels, lodging and attractions on Sheboygan, WI, United States (SBM-Sheboygan County Memorial) location map.
Weather Forecast for Sheboygan, WI, United States (SBM-Sheboygan County Memorial)
If you planning to travel to Sheboygan, WI, United States (SBM-Sheboygan County Memorial), here is your 6-day travel weather forecast to make sure you have all the essentials needed during your stay.
Start your day when the sunrises at 11:04 AM.
The temperature feels like 54.6 with a humidity level of 83 so dress accordingly.
Cloud coverage is 79 percent with visibility at 9 percent.
Today’s UV index is 4, don’t forget the sunscreen if you need it!
Today’s winds are traveling south-southwest at a speed of 19 MPH. At the end of the day don’t miss the sunset at 12:39 AM.
Fahrenheit / Celsius
Light shower rain
What are the most common amenities for Sheboygan, WI SBM airport hotels?
Airport hotels have useful amenities for frequent travelers like free SBM airport shuttle service, 24 hour in-room dinning,
late check-in and check-out and free breakfast. For business traveler amenities like
free wifi and meeting rooms are helpful. Most common amenities are Vending Machines, Complimentary Breakfast
and Complimentary Breakfast.
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Find which airports to fly into and book Sheboygan, WI airport hotels.
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Explore unique neighborhoods around Sheboygan, WI (SBM-Sheboygan County Memorial)
Venture off the beaten path around Sheboygan, WI to explore hipster, arts, dining and shopping districts.
Sheboygan, WI Surrounding cities
Best suburbs, counties and towns near Sheboygan, WI (SBM-Sheboygan County Memorial).


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This paper explores how increasing agricultural productivity through agricultural intensification may influence farmland expansion decisions of smallholder farmers in Ethiopia, Ghana, and Zambia. Six pairs of farmers at each site (72 in total) from different wealth groups were involved in serious games sessions that simulated different institutional, economic, and governance contexts, with players choosing their resource allocation accordingly. The approach was used to explore with farmers, in a ‘safe space’, whether an increase in agricultural productivity and profitability via intensification would reduce or end farmland expansion into natural habitats. The results show that, under certain conditions (such as poor forest governance and lack of alternative income-generating and investment opportunities), agricultural intensification can lead to more agricultural expansion at the expense of natural habitats, such as forests and grasslands. This suggests that intensification strategies to promote increased productivity may need companion strategies to protect forest ecosystems from expansion at the agricultural frontier.
Bibliographical noteFunding Information:
This research was funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) through the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) programme for ‘Growing research capability to meet the challenges faced by developing countries’ (‘GROW’), grant reference ES/P011306/1, and the Stichting IKEA Foundation, grant reference G-2102-01729.
© 2023 by the authors.


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A true American.
Evan Williams was a true American pioneer and one of the first distillers in the USA who started exploiting corn. He was known as a jack-of-all-trades, a master in one – making corn into damn fine Bourbon. Sure the distillery (Heaven Hill) producing this Whiskey has nothing to do with the original distillery made by Evan, but the respect for the man and his trade made them carry his name, and they’re certainly proud of that.
The Evan Williams Single Barrel Vintage is bottled solely from one barrel, selected by Master Distillers Parker and Craig Beam. It is vintage dated, meaning each bottle is marked with the vintage date it was put into oak and the year it was bottled. Depending on which month the Whiskey was bottled in, it is either nine or 10-year-old.
Appearance / Color
Nose / Aroma / Smell
The battle of sweet and spicy, where no one wins. Vanilla, cinnamon and oak are omnipresent.
Flavor / Taste / Palate
The combination of soft and dry with some smoke to it.
Big, with heat on the finish that just tells you that the story doesn’t end with one glass…
The Flavor Spiral™ shows the most common flavors that you'll taste in Evan Williams Single Barrel Bourbon and gives you a chance to have a taste of it before actually tasting it.
We invented Flavor Spiral™ here at Flaviar to get all your senses involved in tasting drinks and, frankly, because we think that classic tasting notes are boring.

domain: hobby


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text: The comparison with Tuchin's Mayan Treasure reported in the last issue of the Bulletin on p. 557(J-189) is inevitable, for both make use of the Latin American background and the same dilemma-- that of the Indians emerging into the 20th Century with the drawstrings of superstition holding them back. Here we have Indito, a half Indian Mexican boy. His family are peons and his younger sister was born blind. When he stumbles on a fabled buried treasure of lost gold in the foot hills where he gathered wood, his fear of the gold and the snake that seems to be guarding it goes to war with his knowledge of his family's need, and the battle against superstition that the young priest, Father Luis, has been carrying on. Tuchin is much the better book because it is much less crowded with people and motives. Here one gets a little lost as the family, their landlord, the Church and the whole community are unsuccessfully introduced into what started so well as a story about a young boy.

domain: library


The Capital FM DJ and presenter says the 26-year-old singer/songwriter was ''smart'' getting the global superstar to feature on another version of the song, as he thinks it's going to nab the top spot this year.
However, he also thinks 'X Factor' favourites Rak-Su have a chance with their single 'Dimelo'.
Speaking exclusively to BANG Showbiz at Capital's Jingle Bell Ball with Coca-Cola at London's The O2 arena, Marvin said: ''For me there are two contenders for Christmas number one.
''For me, it's going to be either Rak-Su with 'Dimelo', obviously 'X Factor' winners and they are super hot right now. ''Then obviously Ed Sheeran and Beyonce's 'Perfect'.
''I think the song is doing well anyway, but Ed, the smart guy that he is put Beyonce on it, and the streaming numbers have just gone through the rough.
''If I had to put money on it, I'd say Ed and Beyonce. It's the cliché, perfect song for this time of year. It's going to be played at a lot of Christmas parties for sure.''
'Shape of You' hitmaker Ed recently hinted he's dropping a new song in a bid to top the chart.
He said: ''I do have one more trick up my sleeve. It's not like a Beyonce trick, but it's quite a cool trick.''
And it looks like he's collaborated with a big star from the past.
He added: ''This next one, no-one's expecting.
''It's more for my dad's generation. It'll be out next week. You'll see then.''
Ed still hasn't released his 'Despacito' style remix of 'Perfect', so it could be that.
Describing it previously, he said: ''The vibe is that it's a remix to 'Perfect'. I'm just basically going to 'Despacito' 'Perfect.'''
Who are bassist Kyle Bann's biggest influences?
He's just dropped his latest single The Games Room.
On the South-East coast O'Hooley And Tidow treated the people of Deal to an evening of fabulous folk music.
Joep Beving's latest album 'Henosis' is an epic affair of more than twenty tracks and follows his 2018 release 'Conatus'.
Stronger Than Pride was released on this day (April 5) in 1988.
Everything you need to know about goth rock band Hana Piranha.