1. Home
  2. Articles posted by: Rona Fried (Page 1645)

SunOpta Partners with Germany's Mikro-Technik

SunOpta, Inc. (Nasdaq:STKL; TSX:SOY) has entered into an exclusive licensing arrangement with Mikro-Technik GmbH & Co. KG of Burgstadt, Germany (Mikro-Technik) for the sales, marketing and distribution of Mikro-Technik’s wheat and bamboo fibers, and its powdered cellulose products in North America. These products, which are complementary to the current fiber portfolio of the SunOpta Ingredients Group, will be marketed under the SunOpta brand name. Art McEvily, President of SunOpta Ingredients commented that “The agreement between SunOpta Ingredients and Mikro-Technik is a strong step forward in meeting two important strategic goals: the diversification of our fiber portfolio, with varieties other than oat; and increasing the Company’s presence in the international arena. We look forward to working closely with Mikro-Technik to drive sales of these unique, functional fibers in the North American food industry.” Christian Bumm, Managing Director of Mikro-Technik commented: “We are pleased to have established this commercial relationship with SunOpta Ingredients. The collaborative effort will enable Mikro-Technik to expand in the food market while allowing us to remain focused on our core fiber development and manufacturing competencies.” The SunOpta Ingredients Group, an operating unit within the SunOpta Food Group, is a supplier of value-added, healthful ingredients to the global food […]

Read More

A New Wrinkle in Hybrids Does Away With Batteries

By Matthew L. Wald, June 25, 2006 BY now, hybrid vehicles are familiar enough that buyers find nothing peculiar about a car’s gasoline engine getting help from an electric motor. But just as drivers have grown comfortable with concepts like regenerative braking and issues like battery life expectancy, new types of hybrids are emerging ? including one that uses no electricity at all. For instance, a United Parcel Service delivery truck the government rolled out in Washington last week was equipped with a prototype hybrid system using hydraulic fluid and a high-pressure pump instead of electrical current and a generator. In this design, energy is stored in a series of pressurized tanks, rather than in nickel-metal hydride or lithium-ion batteries; the energy moves not as high voltage current in copper wires but as hydraulic fluid pressurized to thousands of pounds per square inch. Standing next to the truck painted with U.P.S.’s signature color, Stephen L. Johnson, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, said: “Brown is the new green.” The Army is testing a truck with similar technology and FedEx is watching with interest. The E.P.A., which holds some patents on the technology, has visions of full-size sedans that will go […]

Read More

Secondhand Smoke Hazards 'Indisputable'

By John O’Neil The evidence is now “indisputable” that secondhand smoke is an “alarming” public health hazard, responsible for tens of thousands of premature deaths among nonsmokers each year, Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona said yesterday. Dr. Carmona warned that measures like no-smoking sections did not provide adequate protection, adding, “Smoke-free environments are the only approach that protects nonsmokers from the dangers of secondhand smoke.” He did not call for a federal ban on smoking in workplaces, bars or restaurants, a step that has been taken by a growing number of cities and states over the objections of business owners and of groups skeptical about the dangers of secondhand smoke. He said he saw his role as providing the public and Congress with definitive information on the subject. “I am here to say the debate is over: the science is clear,” Dr. Carmona said at a televised news conference, where he released a report updating the original surgeon general’s study of secondhand smoke in 1986. Since then, hundreds of studies have indicated that the harm caused by secondhand smoke is far greater than earlier believed, he said. The report includes these findings: – There is no safe level of secondhand […]

Read More