"My grandfather was growing produce 70 or 80 years ago," Riel Malan, a fruit farmer from South Africa, tells me. "He used to take it to the market every week and sell it there. People knew him, they trusted him; they knew where the food was coming from. But over the ensuing 50 years or so, that connection was lost. Now, we're able to bring it back with the help of technology."
Malan has joined forces with Dr Kristian Moeller, chief executive of GlobalGAP, and Freda Molamphy, technical and compliance manager at Spinneys, to unveil a new labelling system at the supermarket chain. Developed in partnership with GlobalGAP (those three initials stand for Good Agricultural Practice), which is a leading agricultural assurance organisation, the system is a revolutionary way for customers to be able to trace the source of their food, all the way back to the farm, orchard or plantation where it was grown.
The system is being trialled with fruit from a handful of small-scale farms in South Africa. All produce sourced from these GlobalGAP-approved sources will come with a special GGN label. "We want to give our customers something more than just, say, a peach," Molamphy explains. "We want to prove the quality of it, show exactly where it was grown and explain how it was sustainably produced.
"It's about trustworthiness," she adds, "because this isn't what we [Spinneys] are telling people about our products. It's all verified by an independent source, which is GlobalGAP. We're doing this trial on produce for now, but that's not to say that, in due course, we won't roll it out for meat as well. We do have full traceability for our meat products, but that's not visible through labelling yet. We have it through our auditing and other processes."
Malan says that, as a supplier, he likes the idea of full traceability because it gives him and others like him a distinct edge in offering produce that customers will keep coming back for.
It's true to say that there's a chasm that disconnects consumers from farmers, particularly for city dwellers. There's a great deal of ignorance surrounding what we feed ourselves, and that has allowed factory farming, which is almost entirely unsustainable, to thrive. The use of pesticides, growth hormones and antibiotics has become prevalent, resulting in food that's cheap to produce and cheap to buy. All the while, it's all too easy to fill our bodies with toxins that might not be present in produce from the family farms and small businesses that work with GlobalGAP.
“Many of these businesses have been run by generations of the same families,” remarks Moeller, “and it’s vital for them to be treated fairly, to allow them to prosper.
“The food they produce is both safe and sustainable, and what we’re doing now is more than window dressing. We have the systems in place to prove to consumers that these traditional, family-run farms are growing the things they’re buying.”
He says that there are moves being made, with the cooperation of farmers and growers, to reduce food waste and better manage supply chains, so they become much more efficient. “These families – who have been running their farms for decades – they do it with enormous pride and we’ve forgotten about that. They want to do the best they possibly can, and we are helping them.”
Moeller gets out his smartphone to show me how the GGN labelling system works. It's an exercise in brilliant simplicity: once you scan the QR matrix code on the product's display board, you're taken to a microsite that's unique to the farm (or group of farms) responsible for growing the very fruit you're looking at. There are links to their websites and social-media accounts. GlobalGAP has visited all these premises to confirm that these really are representative of the on-ground reality.
“Through this tech,” chips in Malan, “families like mine are able to tell their stories and show how they’ve gone about their business for many decades. You can see photos and watch videos that accurately show the reality.”
And there's even more to it than that, adds Moeller. "By linking to the growers' social-media pages, we're opening up the ability to exchange dialogue, to get conversations going with the actual people producing this beautiful food. There is
full transparency."
For more information, visit www.ggn.org/spinneys
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Read more
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It will require concerted effort to achieve a sustainable future
Slicing into the organic food debate – is expensive always better?
Sustainable practices could generate $637 billion in value by 2030 for Mena businesses
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PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Watford v Leicester City (3.30pm)
Brighton v Arsenal (6pm)
West Ham v Wolves (8.30pm)
Bournemouth v Crystal Palace (10.45pm)
Sunday
Newcastle United v Sheffield United (5pm)
Aston Villa v Chelsea (7.15pm)
Everton v Liverpool (10pm)
Monday
Manchester City v Burnley (11pm)
The specs: 2018 Maserati GranTurismo/GranCabrio
Price, base Dh485,000 (GranTurismo) and Dh575,000 (GranCabrio)
Engine 4.7L V8
Transmission Six-speed automatic
Power 460hp @ 7,000rpm
Torque 520Nm @ 4,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 14.3L (GranTurismo) and 14.5L (GranCabrio) / 100km
IPL 2018 FINAL
Sunrisers Hyderabad 178-6 (20 ovs)
Chennai Super Kings 181-2 (18.3 ovs)
Chennai win by eight wickets
Walls
Louis Tomlinson
3 out of 5 stars
(Syco Music/Arista Records)
Results
1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 1hr 32mins 03.897sec
2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull-Honda) at 0.745s
3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) 37.383s
4. Lando Norris (McLaren) 46.466s
5.Sergio Perez (Red Bull-Honda) 52.047s
6. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 59.090s
7. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) 1:06.004
8. Carlos Sainz Jr (Ferrari) 1:07.100
9. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri-Honda) 1:25.692
10. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin-Mercedes) 1:26.713,
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
MATCH INFO
Borussia Dortmund 0
Bayern Munich 1 (Kimmich 43')
Man of the match: Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich)
Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, Group C
Liverpool v Red Star Belgrade
Anfield, Liverpool
Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
if you go
The flights
Emirates flies to Delhi with fares starting from around Dh760 return, while Etihad fares cost about Dh783 return. From Delhi, there are connecting flights to Lucknow.
Where to stay
It is advisable to stay in Lucknow and make a day trip to Kannauj. A stay at the Lebua Lucknow hotel, a traditional Lucknowi mansion, is recommended. Prices start from Dh300 per night (excluding taxes).
Oppenheimer
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EChristopher%20Nolan%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ECillian%20Murphy%2C%20Emily%20Blunt%2C%20Robert%20Downey%20Jr%2C%20Florence%20Pugh%2C%20Matt%20Damon%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E5%2F5%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
How to keep control of your emotions
If your investment decisions are being dictated by emotions such as fear, greed, hope, frustration and boredom, it is time for a rethink, Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading platform IG, says.
Greed
Greedy investors trade beyond their means, open more positions than usual or hold on to positions too long to chase an even greater gain. “All too often, they incur a heavy loss and may even wipe out the profit already made.
Tip: Ignore the short-term hype, noise and froth and invest for the long-term plan, based on sound fundamentals.
Fear
The risk of making a loss can cloud decision-making. “This can cause you to close out a position too early, or miss out on a profit by being too afraid to open a trade,” he says.
Tip: Start with a plan, and stick to it. For added security, consider placing stops to reduce any losses and limits to lock in profits.
Hope
While all traders need hope to start trading, excessive optimism can backfire. Too many traders hold on to a losing trade because they believe that it will reverse its trend and become profitable.
Tip: Set realistic goals. Be happy with what you have earned, rather than frustrated by what you could have earned.
Frustration
Traders can get annoyed when the markets have behaved in unexpected ways and generates losses or fails to deliver anticipated gains.
Tip: Accept in advance that asset price movements are completely unpredictable and you will suffer losses at some point. These can be managed, say, by attaching stops and limits to your trades.
Boredom
Too many investors buy and sell because they want something to do. They are trading as entertainment, rather than in the hope of making money. As well as making bad decisions, the extra dealing charges eat into returns.
Tip: Open an online demo account and get your thrills without risking real money.
Race card:
6.30pm: Maiden; Dh165,000; 2,000m
7.05pm: Handicap; Dh165,000; 2,200m
7.40pm: Conditions; Dh240,000; 1,600m
8.15pm: Handicap; Dh190,000; 2,000m
8.50pm: The Garhoud Sprint Listed; Dh265,000; 1,200m
9.25pm: Handicap; Dh170,000; 1,600m
10pm: Handicap; Dh190,000; 1,400m
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDirect%20Debit%20System%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sept%202017%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20with%20a%20subsidiary%20in%20the%20UK%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Undisclosed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Elaine%20Jones%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%208%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
The specs: 2018 Audi Q5/SQ5
Price, base: Dh183,900 / Dh249,000
Engine: 2.0L, turbocharged in-line four-cylinder / 3.0L, turbocharged V6
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic / Eight-speed automatic
Power: 252hp @ 5,000rpm / 354hp @ 5,400rpm
Torque: 370Nm @ 1,600rpm / 500Nm @ 1,370rpm
Fuel economy: combined 7.2L / 100km / 8.3L / 100km