The UK government has rejected a proposal to introduce a 'latte levy' on disposable coffee cups with the aim of reducing waste. The measure was proposed at the start of January by the environmental audit committee, which recommended that a 25p levy be placed on disposable cups, with collected funds being used to improve recycling facilities across the country. Meanwhile, the Irish government has proposed a 15-cent levy on most disposable coffee cups to encourage the use of reusable cups.
French cosmetics company L'Oréal has announced the acquisition of ModiFace, a Canadian supplier of augmented reality and artificial intelligence solutions to the beauty industry. Founded 11 years ago in Toronto, ModiFace enables 3D virtual make-up and colour and skin diagnosis services, using proprietary know-how which track facial features and colour.
French retail giant Carrefour is investing in the meal-kit industry by buying a majority stake in French startup Quitoque. The meal-kit company was created in 2014, and is now the market leader in France, delivering nearly three million meals last year. It works on a subscription service, that delivers local, organic and seasonal products to customers each week, with 'varied and healthy' recipes that they can prepare at home.
The American e-commerce race to catch Amazon saw unexpected turn last week when a former director of Walmart alleged in a whistle-blower lawsuit that the company had issued misleading e-commerce results and fired an executive who complained the company was breaking the law. Tri Huynh, a former director of business development at Walmart, claims he was terminated “under false pretences” after repeatedly raising concerns about the company’s “overly aggressive push to show meteoric growth in its e-commerce business by any means possible -- even, illegitimate ones.”
China’s largest food company is open to partnering with its competitors as it seeks to meet its biggest challenge: feeding the world’s most-populous country. “We will make sure we have a strong global supply chain to serve our goal in the China market and food security in China,” Cofco President Patrick Yu said in a Bloomberg Television interview at the state-run firm’s headquarters in Beijing. “Our strength is in China. We have to keep strongly in mind that we’re a Chinese company, we know China’s markets.”
© 2018 - Checkout Magazine by Kevin Duggan
