Category Archives: Global Contexts

Panasonic’s plans to move production back to Japan

An article in the Financial Times (http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/b22e772a-e1a2-11e3-9999-00144feabdc0.html?siteedition=intl#axzz32YPzdZCV) titled “Panasonic considers bringing production back to Japan) describes the weak Japanese yen (which has fallen 20% since 2012 against other currencies) improving the economics of production of rice cookers, washing machines and … Continue reading

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Nike’s water footprint across the supply chain and reduction efforts

Nike’s Materials Sustainability Index discussion (http://www.nikeresponsibility.com/report/content/chapter/water) focuses on the 217 billion gallons of water consumed across its supply chain, with 7% generated by raw material production and cotton accounting for 87% of that use. A focus on reducing the absolute … Continue reading

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Coffee fed cows producing milk for Starbucks in Japan

An article in Sustainable Brands (http://www.sustainablebrands.com/news_and_views/chemistry_materials/jennifer_elks/closed-loop_upcycling_its_finest_starbucks_sourcing?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=innovation&utm_campaign=may14&mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRoku6XMZKXonjHpfsX56eotX6SwlMI%2F0ER3fOvrPUfGjI4DRcFqI%2BSLDwEYGJlv6SgFTrTBMbVxyLgOXxk%3D) titled “Closed Loop Recycling at its Best”, describes the fermentation of used coffee grounds to create a cattle feed, with the milk from the cattle being used at Starbucks stores in Japan. The concentration … Continue reading

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The impact of a US bill requiring 75% of US food aid to be shipped on American vessels

An article in the New York Times (April 24, 2014) titled “Provision could limit US Food Aid” describes a Coast Guard spending bill that requires “75% of US food aid to be shipped on US owned vessels”. The impact is … Continue reading

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The “click and collect” grocery model in the UK

An article in the Financial Times (April 21, 2014) titled “WalMart’s English Experiment”, describes “click and collect”, an approach where WalMart owned Asda’s customers in the UK order their grocery online, it is delivered to temperature controlled lockers close to … Continue reading

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Indian firm Tata building the Land Rover in a joint venture in China

An article in the Financial Times (April 20, 2014) titled “JLR China chief says Changshu factory will rival UK for quality”, describes a new plant in China, owned by China automaker Chery and the Indian Tata group that owns Jaguar … Continue reading

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Are the simple European Union conflict materials laws too weak ?

An article in The Guardian (March 26, 2014) titled “Conflict minerals: new EU rules simpler alternative to US regulation” describes draft legislation that is voluntary, requires the manufacturer to determine areas that are conflict afflicted and just requires use of … Continue reading

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Why are lime prices rising in the US ?

An article in the New York Times (March 30, 2014) titled “Is the Lime an Endangered Species” describes many reasons for the rise in lime prices in the US from $25 per 40 pound carton in February to over $100 … Continue reading

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Ullmart’s three tier ecommerce distribution in Russia

An article in Bloombergbusinessweek (March 10,2014) titled “In Russia, call it You-Commerce”, describes the company Ullmart, that sells 55,000 fast moving items through a three tier distribution system. The company buys from manufacturers to three warehouses that supply 30 urban … Continue reading

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Penalties for Canadian railways that do not ship enough grain

An article in the Wall Street Journal (March 7,2014) titled “Canada sets Minimum Grain Shipment Targets for Railways”, describes penalties of up to $90,000 if shipments by railways fall below 5,500 railcars a week. This target is significantly greater than … Continue reading

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