DailyFinance http://www.dailyfinance.com DailyFinance http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.dailyfinance.com/media/feedlogo.gif DailyFinance http://www.dailyfinance.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/It's udderly silly: California's 'happy cow' ads will be filmed in New Zealandhttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/15/its-udderly-silly-californias-happy-cow-ads-will-be-filmed/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/15/its-udderly-silly-californias-happy-cow-ads-will-be-filmed/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/15/its-udderly-silly-californias-happy-cow-ads-will-be-filmed/#commentsFiled under: ,

The "happy cows" advertisements sponsored by the California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB) always have me wondering if the state's agriculture department isn't colluding with the tourism department (those ads where California's famous residents complain about how hard they're working, as they surf and be glamorous and, you know, play governor on TV). Cows are happier in California? I'm sure Vermont's cows would beg to differ!

The New Zealand cows, soon, will have a say in the matter because the CMAB is bringing its production crews to Auckland, New Zealand, to shoot a new series of 10 commercials claiming that California cows are happier. That's right. New Zealand will stand in for California in a series of TV ads arguing that the Golden State's milk is superior.

Continue reading It's udderly silly: California's 'happy cow' ads will be filmed in New Zealand

It's udderly silly: California's 'happy cow' ads will be filmed in New Zealand originally appeared on DailyFinance on Sun, 15 Nov 2009 21:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>californiacalifornia cowsCaliforniaCowscommercialscowsdairyfilmfilm industryFilmIndustryhappy cowsHappyCowsmilknew zealandNewZealandoutsourcingtelevisiontvSarah GilbertSun, 15 Nov 2009 21:45:00 ESTCaribou Coffee aims at Starbucks, misseshttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/14/caribou-coffee-aims-at-starbucks-misses/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/14/caribou-coffee-aims-at-starbucks-misses/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/14/caribou-coffee-aims-at-starbucks-misses/#commentsFiled under: ,

It's popular, among the upstart coffee companies and the media which covers them, to portray anything that happens in the coffee world as an affront to Starbucks. And certainly, little is done in the industry without an ever-present consciousness of every move of the coffee giant. For the country's second-largest chain, Caribou Coffee (CBOU), sadly, its first TV advertisement is a volley lobbed directly at the Seattle-based leader; but misses entirely.

AdAge says of the television commercial launched Thursday, it's "an approach that pokes fun at its biggest rival, Starbucks (SBUX)." But for customers, that's hard to see. The ad shows two marionettes on a bench at the mall, drinking tiny coffee cups with circles on them (so subtly like Starbucks cups, you'd only know if you paused the commercial to stare), chatting about how "super-important" they're pretending to look. They're snobby and insufferable until an enormous cup of Caribou Coffee, topped with whipped cream and chocolate bits, sits down next to them

Continue reading Caribou Coffee aims at Starbucks, misses

Caribou Coffee aims at Starbucks, misses originally appeared on DailyFinance on Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>cariboucariboucoffeecbouin focusInFocussbuxstarbucksSarah GilbertSat, 14 Nov 2009 17:00:00 ESTParent groups have a cow over campaign pushing chocolate milk as 'health food'http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/09/got-chocolate-milk-parent-groups-say-no-amid-effort-pushing-it/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/09/got-chocolate-milk-parent-groups-say-no-amid-effort-pushing-it/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/09/got-chocolate-milk-parent-groups-say-no-amid-effort-pushing-it/#commentsFiled under:

When it comes to comfort foods, chocolate milk ranks right up there with meatloaf and mac n' cheese. But a campaign to market the sweetened milk as a healthy choice for kids is leaving parent groups anything but comforted.

As we know, sugar may be a huge contributor to our obesity crisis and other chronic diseases. The American Heart Association in fact recently recommended children limit their intake of sugar to 16 grams a day. The association might, then, be surprised that pediatricians, dietitians, celebrities and a whole social media campaign are fighting the good fight for chocolate milk, calling it a healthy choice for kids.

How much added sugar, you ask, does eight ounces of chocolate milk contain? Four teaspoons, 16 grams, making one serving the maximum a child should consume every day.

Continue reading Parent groups have a cow over campaign pushing chocolate milk as 'health food'

Parent groups have a cow over campaign pushing chocolate milk as 'health food' originally appeared on DailyFinance on Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>foodhealthhealthyhealthy eatingHealthyEatingkidssugarSarah GilbertMon, 09 Nov 2009 18:20:00 ESTIlly confronts Starbucks with a low-cost indy strategyhttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/04/illy-confronts-starbucks-with-low-cost-indy-strategy/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/04/illy-confronts-starbucks-with-low-cost-indy-strategy/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/11/04/illy-confronts-starbucks-with-low-cost-indy-strategy/#commentsFiled under: ,

IllyCaffè SpA may not have a company-owned store near you, but it's a good bet you know the company's coffee. Illy's espresso machines and coffee beans are available to purchase online at the company's website, on Amazon.com, and a wide variety of retail outlets. Its art-inspired cups are a favorite of Italiaphiles (a good friend whose husband is Milanese was my introduction to the designer series of tiny espresso cups and saucers). And, after three years of success in Italy, the company has expanded its Artisti del Gusto (Artist of Taste) certification to the U.S., with 28 shops around the country serving Illy coffee, and about 100 more planned by 2012.

In Tuesday's Wall Street Journal, Illy is said to be using this strategy to compete with Starbucks (SBUX) through the "backdoor." It's a bit of a reach -- after all, 128 coffee shops is about 1.1 percent as far-reaching as Starbucks, and far less of a threat to market share than Dunkin' Donuts or McDonald's (MCD), both of which have challenged Starbucks with their low-priced, high-volume and ubiquitous coffee.

Continue reading Illy confronts Starbucks with a low-cost indy strategy

Illy confronts Starbucks with a low-cost indy strategy originally appeared on DailyFinance on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>coffeecoffeeshopillyindependentsbuxstarbucksSarah GilbertWed, 04 Nov 2009 18:30:00 ESTAs Fisker buys GM plant, Big Auto sees its plug-in hybrid futurehttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/28/as-fisker-buys-gm-plant-big-autos-future-lies-in-small-plug-i/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/28/as-fisker-buys-gm-plant-big-autos-future-lies-in-small-plug-i/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/28/as-fisker-buys-gm-plant-big-autos-future-lies-in-small-plug-i/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

When a General Motors plant in Wilmington, Del. shut down this July, it left 550 people out of work. But the city isn't mourning the loss of Big Auto so much anymore because Very Little Electric Auto is taking its place. Fisker, maker of small plug-in hybrid cars, announced Tuesday it was buying the recently-shuttered GM plant in Wilmington, and in 2012 would have 2,000 people working there. By 2014, the plant could be making 100,000 cars a year and employ 2,500 workers.

Far from its roots building Pontiac, Saturn and Opel sports cars for GM, the factory will produce a car code-named "Project NINA," a family-oriented plug-in electric vehicle. The car will be targeted to a very different consumer for Fisker, which has yet to bring a product to market. Its first concept, a gorgeous-but-spendy plug-in sports car called the Karma, received raves for its beauty and shock for its impracticality when the company secured a $528 million Department of Energy loan in September. The company is taking pre-orders for the car, which should be delivered in 2010.

Continue reading As Fisker buys GM plant, Big Auto sees its plug-in hybrid future

As Fisker buys GM plant, Big Auto sees its plug-in hybrid future originally appeared on DailyFinance on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>autoauto manufacturersAutoManufacturerselectricelectric carElectricCarfiskergreen carsGreenCarshybridSarah GilbertWed, 28 Oct 2009 13:20:00 ESTMarijuana critics, and our brilliant plan to save the San Francisco 'Chronic'-lehttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/27/marijuana-critics-and-our-brilliant-plan-to-save-the-san-franci/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/27/marijuana-critics-and-our-brilliant-plan-to-save-the-san-franci/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/27/marijuana-critics-and-our-brilliant-plan-to-save-the-san-franci/#commentsFiled under: ,

The decline in newspaper advertising and an upswing in medical marijuana sales are happening simultaneously. And if viewed together, they present an illuminating opportunity for a few daily papers, should their publishers take advantage of the opportunity.

The two industries are moving in opposite directions. We all know what's happening to newspaper ad sales: The Audit Bureau of Circulations released precipitous circulation figures on Monday, with a shocking average decline of close to 11 percent over the past six months for daily papers. Weed's having better luck. The Justice Department announced last week that it will no longer prosecute medical marijuana users, and instead leave enforcement up to individual states (only 13 of which permit marijuana as legal pain relief).

Continue reading Marijuana critics, and our brilliant plan to save the San Francisco 'Chronic'-le

Marijuana critics, and our brilliant plan to save the San Francisco 'Chronic'-le originally appeared on DailyFinance on Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>alt weeklyalternative weeklyAlternativeWeeklyAltWeeklychroniclecirculationdenverdispensariesin focusInFocusmarijuananewspaperssan franciscosan francisco chronicleSanFranciscoSanFranciscoChroniclewestwordSarah GilbertTue, 27 Oct 2009 12:50:00 ESTSarah Palin is not a Rogue, says Rogue Breweryhttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/22/sarah-palin-is-not-a-rogue-says-rogue-brewery/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/22/sarah-palin-is-not-a-rogue-says-rogue-brewery/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/22/sarah-palin-is-not-a-rogue-says-rogue-brewery/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Sarah Palin titled her forthcoming memoir, Going Rogue, after an indictment by a member of the McCain presidential campaign ("She's begun to go rogue," a senior Republican put it). It's surely the favorite endorsement of the famously quick-triggered former vice-presidential candidate and Alaska governor. But is she really a Rogue, with a capital R?

Brett Joyce, president of the 21-year-old Rogue Brewery in Newport, Oregon, says the jury is out. "We already have an official writer," Joyce says. "He's the quintessential Rogue." That's Richard Marcinko, author of the Rogue Warrior books, including Red Cell, The Real Team, Echo Platoon, Lone Survivor, and Holy Terror. Key characteristics of a real Rogue, says Joyce: "a revolutionary, someone that doesn't follow the status quo." Joyce says he isn't sure Palin fits that description (although I'd certainly give her credit for the second part.)

Continue reading Sarah Palin is not a Rogue, says Rogue Brewery

Sarah Palin is not a Rogue, says Rogue Brewery originally appeared on DailyFinance on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>going rogueGoingRogueharpercollinsin focusInFocusnews corp.NewsCorp.palinroguerogue breweryrogue nationRogueBreweryRogueNationsarah palinSarahPalinSarah GilbertThu, 22 Oct 2009 12:00:00 ESTCanning preserved by new home economistshttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/20/canning-preserved-by-new-home-economists/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/20/canning-preserved-by-new-home-economists/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/20/canning-preserved-by-new-home-economists/#commentsFiled under: ,

An essay in Salon calls the practice of canning "haute," though dismisses it as an inappropriate source of nourishment for people with real day jobs, part of a too-precious do-it-yourself (DIY) craze. The New York Times says we're in the midst of a "canning renaissance" and is more eloquent, loving: "preserving offers primal satisfactions and practical results."

Last week, in The Wall Street Journal, a young reporter signs up for a private canning class with a Slow Food instructor and comes to a wide-eyed combination of the two conclusions: "Although home-canned goods are not exactly a bargain, their taste is dramatically better and, in my view, well worth the labor." Hobby, quasi-political act, the new (more productive!) dinner party, canvolution? How to explain the home-canning craze?

Continue reading Canning preserved by new home economists

Canning preserved by new home economists originally appeared on DailyFinance on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>agriculturecanningfoodfood industryfood safetyFoodIndustryFoodSafetyjardenjarspreservingSarah GilbertTue, 20 Oct 2009 10:00:00 ESTDeflated 'Glee' cast pulled from Macy's Thanksgiving parade by NBChttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/14/deflated-glee-cast-pulled-from-macys-thanksgiving-parade-by-n/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/14/deflated-glee-cast-pulled-from-macys-thanksgiving-parade-by-n/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/14/deflated-glee-cast-pulled-from-macys-thanksgiving-parade-by-n/#commentsFiled under: , ,

The cast of Fox's new sitcom Glee has gotten yanked from the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade by a rival network. And if If nothing else good comes from that news, there's this: how else could the word "dweeby" have hit the lead paragraph in dozens of major papers this week? ("The gang behind Glee, the new Fox series about a dweeby high school glee club, is very sad," Lisa de Moraes wrote in the Washington Post.)

The culprit: NBC, which broadcasts the annual parade at significant cost to the network. "NBC told [Macy's] it did not want the Fox series... getting a big fat plug on NBC's parade broadcast," De Moraes writes. Winners from Fox's smash American Idol have been featured in past parades, although never the star of the current season's programming.

Continue reading Deflated 'Glee' cast pulled from Macy's Thanksgiving parade by NBC

Deflated 'Glee' cast pulled from Macy's Thanksgiving parade by NBC originally appeared on DailyFinance on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 18:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>foxgegleenbcparadethanksgivingthanksgiving daythanksgiving paradeThanksgivingDayThanksgivingParadeSarah GilbertWed, 14 Oct 2009 18:15:00 ESTSmile, everyone: Polaroid employees bring back the instant camerahttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/13/smile-everyone-polaroid-employees-bring-back-the-instant-camer/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/13/smile-everyone-polaroid-employees-bring-back-the-instant-camer/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/13/smile-everyone-polaroid-employees-bring-back-the-instant-camer/#commentsFiled under: , ,

The eight-track tape never got a second chance. But things are looking up for instant film, which last year seemed destined to follow the sound-recording technology into the history books. A Polaroid licensee, the Summit Global Group, said Tuesday it would be re-launching Polaroid brand instant cameras. That proves The Impossible Project (that group of Polaroid employees who leased the Polaroid factory and purchased the company's equipment in the Netherlands) is now entirely achievable.

The licensee did not give a time frame for the relaunch. But The Impossible Project still says it is being commissioned to develop and launch a limited edition of Polaroid-branded film in mid-2010. "Large-scale production and worldwide sale of The Impossible Project's new integral film materials under its own brand will already start in the beginning of 2010 -- with a brand new and astonishing black and white Instant Film and the first color films to follow in the course of the year," says the press release.

Continue reading Smile, everyone: Polaroid employees bring back the instant camera

Smile, everyone: Polaroid employees bring back the instant camera originally appeared on DailyFinance on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 19:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>cameraimpossible projectImpossibleProjectIn FocusInFocusinstantinstant cameraInstantCameraphotographypolaroidpolaroid instant cameraPolaroidInstantCameraSarah GilbertTue, 13 Oct 2009 19:40:00 ESTNobel in economics goes to American expert on sustainable agriculturehttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/12/nobel-in-economics-goes-to-american-expert-on-sustainable-agricu/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/12/nobel-in-economics-goes-to-american-expert-on-sustainable-agricu/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/12/nobel-in-economics-goes-to-american-expert-on-sustainable-agricu/#commentsFiled under: ,

On Monday, Elinor Ostrom became the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in economics, along with fellow American Oliver Williamson. In addition to being a surprise winner, Ostrom's research had a surprising inspiration: her mother's tomatoes and carrots. "My mother had a victory garden during the war," Ostrom notes in her National Institutes of Health profile, "so I learned all about growing vegetables and preserving them by canning."

Describing how others in her hometown of Los Angeles -- as well as other communities in the U.S. and Britain -- worked together during World War II to grow food, Ostrom used her research to demonstrate how government bodies, neighborhoods, even schools of fish can act together for the common good when they face a shortage of resources.

Continue reading Nobel in economics goes to American expert on sustainable agriculture

Nobel in economics goes to American expert on sustainable agriculture originally appeared on DailyFinance on Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>2009economicseconomistselinorostromnobelnobel prizenobel prize in economicsNobelPrizeNobelPrizeInEconomicsoliverwilliamsonostromwillamsonSarah GilbertMon, 12 Oct 2009 15:50:00 ESTTwitter and the bloggers killed Gourmet, one editor says. We beg to differhttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/09/twitter-and-the-bloggers-killed-gourmet-one-editor-says-we-beg/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/09/twitter-and-the-bloggers-killed-gourmet-one-editor-says-we-beg/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/09/twitter-and-the-bloggers-killed-gourmet-one-editor-says-we-beg/#commentsFiled under:

Christopher Kimball, the bow-tied founder, editor and publisher of Cook's Illustrated magazine and its related media empire, has an opinion about why Gourmet will fold this month after 68 glorious years at the top of America's food-magazine newsstand. Amanda Hesser, a food writer who in 2008 accepted a buyout from the New York Times, where she had been food editor of the Sunday magazine, agrees.

Both say: It was the internet whodunnit. But that's where their agreement ends.

Continue reading Twitter and the bloggers killed Gourmet, one editor says. We beg to differ

Twitter and the bloggers killed Gourmet, one editor says. We beg to differ originally appeared on DailyFinance on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>amanda hesserAmandaHesserchristopher kimballChristopherKimballcooks illustratedCooksIllustratedfoodfood magazinesFoodMagazinesgourmethesserkimballmagazinesSarah GilbertFri, 09 Oct 2009 18:30:00 ESTMcDonald's at the Louvre? Critics complain, but the French can't say nohttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/07/mcdonalds-at-the-louvre-critics-complain-but-the-french-cant/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/07/mcdonalds-at-the-louvre-critics-complain-but-the-french-cant/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/07/mcdonalds-at-the-louvre-critics-complain-but-the-french-cant/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Sacre bleu! It's news that could turn the Mona Lisa's smile to a frown: McDonald's (MCD) says it will open an outlet in the food court in the basement of the Louvre. To understand how Paris, a city that personifies cultural snobbery and culinary elitism, could let Mickey D's flip burgers beneath one of its most hallowed institutions, it helps to know how France, somehow, became McDonald's second-biggest market.

Slate credits the Royale Deluxe -- best known for its cameo role as "Royale with cheese" in Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction -- with writer Mike Steinberger arguing that that sandwich is all about the mustard. Steinberger, a wine writer and author of a book about the decline of French food, suggests that McDonald's "conquered France," savvily, by giving the people what they desired: French food. Sort of. It's really McDonald's food -- hamburgers and french fries -- marketed as food sourced in France. But worst of all, he sniffs, is that the French are doing the marketing: "It's an inside job."

Continue reading McDonald's at the Louvre? Critics complain, but the French can't say no

McDonald's at the Louvre? Critics complain, but the French can't say no originally appeared on DailyFinance on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>artcarrousel de louvreCarrouselDeLouvreculturefast foodFastFoodfrancefrenchlouvremcdmcdonaldsstarbucksSarah GilbertWed, 07 Oct 2009 14:05:00 ESTBeef industry gets a closer look as story of paralyzed woman hits the presshttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/05/beef-industry-gets-a-closer-look-as-story-of-paralyzed-woman-hit/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/05/beef-industry-gets-a-closer-look-as-story-of-paralyzed-woman-hit/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/10/05/beef-industry-gets-a-closer-look-as-story-of-paralyzed-woman-hit/#commentsFiled under: ,

Food safety expert Dr. Jeffrey Bender says mildly, "ground beef is not a completely safe product." The understatement is not lost on The New York Times, whose hugely popular, endlessly retweeted and emailed article on ground beef safety Sunday points out the "restrained" enforcement of safety procedures by the USDA.

The article tells the story of children's dance instructor Stephanie Smith, who was paralyzed after eating tainted beef at a Sunday dinner with her family in September 2007. Smith, 22, was taken to the hospital five days after the family dinner, "in excruciating pain" that a doctor described as worse than childbirth. (Smith wouldn't know; she hadn't yet started a family of her own.)

Continue reading Beef industry gets a closer look as story of paralyzed woman hits the press

Beef industry gets a closer look as story of paralyzed woman hits the press originally appeared on DailyFinance on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>beefe coliEColifoodfood safetyFoodSafetyground beefGroundBeefhamburgerin focusInFocusstephanie smithStephanieSmithusdaSarah GilbertMon, 05 Oct 2009 18:30:00 ESTAudi's new TV commercial takes a pointless shot at environmentalistshttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/30/audis-new-tv-commercial-takes-a-pointless-shot-at-environmental/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/30/audis-new-tv-commercial-takes-a-pointless-shot-at-environmental/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/30/audis-new-tv-commercial-takes-a-pointless-shot-at-environmental/#commentsFiled under: , ,

In the slog toward greener transportation, cars may be headed in the (approximately, generally) right direction. But even efficient cars still pollute, in the same way that cigarettes with filters and low tar are still carcinogenic. They're better, but not a clean slate by any means. What do you do when your product category is vastly more expensive, and inherently more destructive to the environment, than the alternatives?

For German carmaker Audi, the answer is clear: recast the conversation. Instead of contrasting Audi against bicycling, public transportation, and (ridiculously) the Segway in terms of cost and environmental impact, Audi contrasts them based on fun.

Continue reading Audi's new TV commercial takes a pointless shot at environmentalists

Audi's new TV commercial takes a pointless shot at environmentalists originally appeared on DailyFinance on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>audiaudi a3AudiA3bicyclebicycle commutingBicycleCommutingbicyclinggreensegwaytransportationvegetable oilVegetableOilSarah GilbertWed, 30 Sep 2009 15:40:00 ESTStarbucks' new Via instant coffee: Don't believe the hypehttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/29/starbucks-via-instant-coffee-wont-caffeinate-starbucks-in-an-in/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/29/starbucks-via-instant-coffee-wont-caffeinate-starbucks-in-an-in/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/29/starbucks-via-instant-coffee-wont-caffeinate-starbucks-in-an-in/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

I took my little boys to Starbucks (SBUX) this morning to witness the hype about its new instant coffee, Via, and we had plenty to see.

A near-life size silhouette of a woman holding a packet of the company's new instant coffee greeted me on the door. A large, three-dimensional display took up most of the space opposite the counter where new products are usually placed, packed to the gills with Via packs, three for $2.95 or 12 for $9.95. The display featured more silhouettes, a man and a woman, both showing off their hipness and their Via (and yes, the figures are very evocative of iPod ads). The woman was holding Starbucks' new Via to go mug; it has plastic compartments for six packets of the instant coffee around the perimeter of the coffee cup, and a screw-off bottom. There was another display of three-pack Via envelopes to the right of the register, and still another display above the Starbucks cards in front of the register. A cardboard sign listed all the places where I could drink Via -- the "usage occasions," says Starbucks Director of Digital Media, Alex Wheeler -- picnic lunch, at the game, in the backyard, on a train, redeye flight, on the mountain, business trip, at the library (really? the library?).

Continue reading Starbucks' new Via instant coffee: Don't believe the hype

Starbucks' new Via instant coffee: Don't believe the hype originally appeared on DailyFinance on Tue, 29 Sep 2009 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>facebookflickrinstant coffeeInstantCoffeesbuxsocial mediaSocialMediastarbucksstarbucks viastarbucksviatwitterviayoutubeSarah GilbertTue, 29 Sep 2009 19:00:00 ESTStarbucks chooses a cheap social-media campaign to push Via instant coffeehttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/24/starbucks-chooses-a-cheap-social-media-campaign-to-push-via-inst/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/24/starbucks-chooses-a-cheap-social-media-campaign-to-push-via-inst/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/24/starbucks-chooses-a-cheap-social-media-campaign-to-push-via-inst/#commentsFiled under: , ,

In February, Starbucks (SBUX) invited AOL to taste a secret new product. In my capacity as a coffee and Starbucks expert, I got a few samples of the product, Via, and uploaded photographs to Flickr before giving my verdict.

I'd almost forgotten that Via's national launch was coming up -- next Tuesday -- until I received an email from Starbucks's Via "moderator," thanking me for posting such a great photo, and offering me both free instant-coffee packets and instant fame in the product's launch. All it would take, online community manager Anali Orr told me, was my permission (pdf link) to give Starbucks "a perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive fully-paid up and royalty free license" "without restrictions of any kind and without any payment or other consideration of any kind" -- other than, of course, three months' worth of free coffee packets.

Continue reading Starbucks chooses a cheap social-media campaign to push Via instant coffee

Starbucks chooses a cheap social-media campaign to push Via instant coffee originally appeared on DailyFinance on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>flickrinstant coffeeInstantCoffeeintellectual propertyIntellectualPropertyipphotographysbuxsocial mediaSocialMediastarbucksstarbucks viaStarbucksViaviaSarah GilbertThu, 24 Sep 2009 17:20:00 ESTStevia shakes up the sweetener warshttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/21/stevia-shakes-up-the-sweetener-wars/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/21/stevia-shakes-up-the-sweetener-wars/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/21/stevia-shakes-up-the-sweetener-wars/#commentsFiled under: , ,

If the new TV commercials for Truvia and PureVia are any indication, stevia has made a sudden and astonishing leapfrog from hippie sprinkle to bonafide challenger to the decades-long dominance of the blue (Equal), pink (Sweet and Low), and yellow (Splenda) packets on the tables of diners and coffee shops everywhere. Is its use in mainstream soda brands far behind? Hard to say, but one thing is pretty clear: the days of chemical-derived sweeteners are waning as consumers become more suspicious of foodstuffs which, as the food writer Michael Pollan says, can't be imagined growing in nature.

Stevia has been used by natives of South and Central America for centuries, and has long been highly-regarded for its intense sweetness, 30 times as sweet as sugar. It similarity to sugar is legendary: as Time magazine says of its key component, rebaudioside A, it has a "profile very similar to sugar with respect to onset, intensity and duration of sweetness."

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Stevia shakes up the sweetener wars originally appeared on DailyFinance on Mon, 21 Sep 2009 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>artificial sweetenerArtificialSweetenercargillchemicalscoca-colafoodkopeppepsicopureviasteviasweetenertruviaSarah GilbertMon, 21 Sep 2009 18:30:00 ESTCoke CEO attacks soda tax as a Commie tactichttp://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/15/coke-ceo-attacks-soda-tax-as-a-commie-tactic/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/15/coke-ceo-attacks-soda-tax-as-a-commie-tactic/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/15/coke-ceo-attacks-soda-tax-as-a-commie-tactic/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

A careful observer of the history of taxation might remind Coca-Cola Co. (KO) chairman and CEO Muhtar Kent that taxes have been used for centuries to create incentives for desired behavior. At a Rotary Club meeting in Atlanta on Monday, Kent employed the alarmist rhetoric reminiscent of Whole Foods CEO John Mackey and professional rabblerouser Sarah Palin, calling President Obama's suggestion of a federal tax on soft drinks "outrageous," saying, "I have never seen it work where a government tells people what to eat and what to drink. If it worked, the Soviet Union would still be around."

But it does work, and the United States is still around. Tariffs (which create incentives to buy U.S.-made goods), "sin taxes" on cigarettes and alcohol, bottle deposits to encourage recycling -- the U.S. is no stranger to this incentive system. We have tax incentives to make charitable donations and to buy a home. It's a rare pundit who would insist that consuming sugary sodas is a good thing for any entity other than a soda company and its shareholders (and perhaps pharmaceutical companies that sell drugs and devices to treat diabetes, heart disease, and other obesity-related conditions.)

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Coke CEO attacks soda tax as a Commie tactic originally appeared on DailyFinance on Tue, 15 Sep 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>coca-colacokekoobamapeppepsisodasoda taxSodaTaxtaxtaxationSarah GilbertTue, 15 Sep 2009 17:00:00 ESTKim Clijsters scores Grand Slam win for working moms in her 'second career' http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/14/kim-clijsters-scores-grand-slam-win-for-working-moms-in-her-sec/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/14/kim-clijsters-scores-grand-slam-win-for-working-moms-in-her-sec/http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/09/14/kim-clijsters-scores-grand-slam-win-for-working-moms-in-her-sec/#commentsFiled under:

Kim Clijsters may only be 26, but the Belgian tennis player says she has had two careers, each with astonishing success. It is in her "second career," however, that she has achieved the greater accomplishment: winning the US Open as a wild card with her 18-month-old daughter, Jada, in the player-guest box. She is the first mother in 29 years to win a Grand Slam title; the last was Australia's Evonne Goolagong, who won the Venus Rosewater Dish at the 1980 Wimbledon Championships.

Her first career -- that is, pre-baby -- was a good one; she won the U.S. Open in 2005. But at the time, she was seeded and in her athletic prime. She took two years off to get married and become a mama; this is only her third tournament of career number two -- the working mother years.

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Kim Clijsters scores Grand Slam win for working moms in her 'second career' originally appeared on DailyFinance on Mon, 14 Sep 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>clijstersgrand slamGrandSlamkim clijstersKimClijsterssportstennisus openUsOpenworking momWorkingMomSarah GilbertMon, 14 Sep 2009 13:00:00 EST