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Controversial Comic Book Starring Jesus to Debut in July

A controversial comic book starring Jesus Christ has found a new publisher and will roll out starting this summer.

The New York Times reported Second Coming partnered with AHOY Comics after DC Comics dropped it from its lineup. DC Comics received heavy pushback from the Christian community and decided to part ways with the comic in February.

Writer Mark Russell and artist Richard Pace are now working with AHOY to launch the new series. The first run will include at least six issues and will debut July 10.

The comic features Jesus living on Earth with a superhero named Sunstar. The cover of the first issue shows Jesus and Sunstar each holding a villain character armed with a handgun. Sunstar appears to be punching his villain in the face, while Jesus is holding a loaf of bread in the mouth of his.

"It's not as respectful as to what [Christians] actually do. It's not a satire of Christ so much as it is a satire on how his followers of the last 2,000 years have turned his message of forgiveness and empathy into one of power and domination, which is as un-Christlike as one can possibly imagine," Russell told the Times.

Pace said that of all the characters in the comic, Jesus comes out looking the best.

"No one has read the book other than the people who are working on it," he said. "I know full well that the only person coming out of it looking good is Jesus."

In a press release, AHOY Comics editor-in-chief Tom Peyer admitted Second Coming will not be for everyone.

"There are going to be people who don't want to read Second Coming, and that's fine. It's not for everyone," he said. "But I don't think it should be controversial to maintain that the rest of us have every right to enjoy it."

Source: NewsMax America

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Chinese ‘Ivory Queen’ smuggler sentenced to 15 years jail in Tanzania

Chinese businesswoman Yang Feng Glan, dubbed the
Chinese businesswoman Yang Feng Glan, dubbed the "Ivory Queen", sits inside the Kisutu Resident Magistrate's Court in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania February 19, 2019. REUTERS/Emmanuel Herman

February 19, 2019

By Fumbuka Ng’wanakilala

DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) – A prominent Chinese businesswoman dubbed the “Ivory Queen” was sentenced to 15 years in prison by a Tanzanian court on Tuesday for smuggling the tusks of more than 350 elephants, weighing nearly 2 tonnes, to Asia.

Yang Feng Glan had been charged in October 2015 along with two Tanzanian men with smuggling 860 pieces of ivory between 2000 and 2004 worth 13 billion shillings ($5.6 million). All three denied the charges.

Police sources said Yang, 69, had lived in Tanzania since the 1970s and was secretary-general of the Tanzania China-Africa Business Council. A Swahili-speaker, she also owns a popular Chinese restaurant in Dar es Salaam.

Kisutu Court Magistrate Huruma Shaidi sentenced Yang, Salivius Matembo and Manase Philemon, each to 15 years, after they were convicted of leading an organized criminal gang.

Shaidi ordered them to either pay twice the market value of the elephant tusks or face another two years in prison.

In court documents, prosecutors said Yang “intentionally did organize, manage and finance a criminal racket by collecting, transporting or exporting and selling government trophies” weighing a total of 1.889 tonnes.

Conservationists welcomed Yang’s conviction, saying it was proof of the government’s seriousness in the fight against wildlife poaching but criticized the sentence.

“(It) is not punishment enough for the atrocities she committed, by being responsible for the poaching of thousands of elephants in Tanzania,” Amani Ngusaru, WWF country director, told Reuters. “She ran a network that killed thousands of elephants.”

Tanzania’s elephant population shrank from 110,000 in 2009 to little more than 43,000 in 2014, according to a 2015 census, with conservation groups blaming “industrial-scale” poaching.

Demand for ivory from Asian countries such as China and Vietnam, where it is turned into jewels and ornaments, has led to a surge in poaching across Africa.

In March 2016, Tanzania sentenced two Chinese men to 35 years each in jail for ivory smuggling, while in December 2015 another court sentenced four Chinese men to 20 years in jail each after they were convicted of smuggling rhino horns.

Yang was escorted under tight security to the Ukonga prison in Dar es Salaam where she is expected to serve her jail time.

(Reporting by Fumbuka Ng’wanakilala; Writing by George Obulutsa; Editing by Angus MacSwan and Alison Williams)

Source: OANN

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Amnesty says impunity emboldens Mideast rights violations

Amnesty International says the world community's "chilling complacency toward wide-scale human rights violations" in the Middle and North Africa emboldened governments to commit "appalling" violations last year.

The group's annual survey of the human rights situation in the region, released in Beirut on Tuesday, says ongoing crackdowns on dissent and civil society "intensified significantly" in Egypt, Iran and Saudi Arabia.

It also cited the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents in Istanbul, saying it "has not been followed by concrete action to ensure those responsible are brought to justice."

Amnesty called on all countries to immediately suspend the sale or transfer of arms to Israel and the warring sides in Yemen "until there is no longer substantial risk that such equipment could be used to commit" violations.

Source: Fox News World

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Bernie Sanders Finds Himself in a New Role as Front-Runner

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders is quieting critics who questioned whether he could recapture the energy of his upstart 2016 campaign, surpassing his rivals in early fundraising and establishing himself as an indisputable front-runner for the Democrat presidential nomination.

Less than two months into his second White House bid , no other declared candidate in the crowded Democratic field currently has amassed so many advantages: a $28 million war chest, a loyal and enthusiastic voter base and a set of clearly defined policy objectives.

That puts Sanders on markedly different footing than during his first White House run, creating new challenges for a candidate whose supporters relish his role as an underdog and an outsider. He now carries the weight of high expectations and will face heightened scrutiny over everything from the cost and feasibility of his government-funded policy proposals to his tax returns, which he has not yet released. He initially blamed "mechanical issues" for the delay, and his campaign now says he wants to wait until after the April 15 tax filing deadline to fulfill his promise to release a decade worth of returns .

Sanders has largely embraced his new front-runner status. More than any other candidate, he draws explicit comparisons with President Donald Trump in his campaign remarks, previewing his approach to a general election faceoff with the incumbent Republican. Behind the scenes, Sanders is also building out a larger, more diverse campaign operation, responding to criticism that his 2016 organization skewed too heavily white and male. Campaign officials say the 2020 campaign staff — roughly 100 people and growing — is majority female and 40 percent people of color.

Still, Sanders' message and style hasn't changed from 2016, when he stunned many Democrats by mounting a formidable challenge to Hillary Clinton and besting her in more than 20 primary contests.

After briefly acquiescing to his advisers' suggestions that he reveal more about his upbringing and personal history, Sanders has returned to his comfort zone: delivering lengthy campaign speeches chockablock with the same policy prescriptions he campaigned on during the 2016 campaign. In Davenport, Iowa, on Friday night, Sanders spent 63 minutes outlining his views on health care, criminal justice reform and economic inequality.

"With your help, we are going to complete what we started here," Sanders told the 1,200-person crowd, referring to his virtual tie with Clinton in the 2016 Iowa caucuses.

Sanders' approach underscores his belief that his success in 2016 was not a fluke or simply a function of being the next best alternative to Clinton. His advisers argue the populist economic message Sanders has espoused for years, often in obscurity, has now been embraced not only by a slew of his Democratic rivals, but also Trump.

"Donald Trump campaigned on economic terms as faux Bernie Sanders. It was taking his language and selling it to the American people," said Faiz Shakir, Sanders' campaign manager. "And now how do you defeat faux Bernie Sanders? You defeat him with real Bernie Sanders."

Sanders owes some of his fast start to the fact that he never really stopped running for president after the 2016 campaign. Our Revolution, the political group Sanders launched after the campaign, has collected information on voters and held events in early voting states since the last election. Sanders was also active in the 2018 midterms, throwing his support behind progressive Democratic candidates across the country, though many were defeated.

"He spent 2018 lifting up progressives all over the country," said Rebecca Katz, a progressive Democratic consultant. "Even though many of them did not win, it was appreciated, it was movement building and it was a different calculation than most politicians make."

Despite his strong launch, Sanders' current standing atop the Democratic field is not entirely enviable. Presidential primaries are long and turbulent, and past elections underscore how many early front-runners have been tossed aside before the first votes are cast. Former Vice President Joe Biden has signaled his expected presidential campaign would serve as a centrist check on Sanders' brand of progressive politics.

And though Sanders' $18 million first-quarter fundraising haul far outpaced the rest of the Democratic field, some rival campaigns breathed a sigh of relief, having anticipated the Vermont senator would clear $20 million or more.

"He did very well. He could have done better," said Mo Elleithee, who advised Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign and now runs the Georgetown University Institute of Politics and Public Service.

Sanders also still has to prove that he can overcome some of the same vulnerabilities that contributed to his defeat in 2016.

Chief among them will be bolstering his standing with black voters, one of the most important constituencies in Democratic politics. Black voters overwhelmingly sided with Clinton in 2016, halting Sanders' momentum when the contest moved into more diverse states. He lost the South Carolina primary by a staggering 48 points.

Some of Sanders' top advisers dismiss the notion that he'll face similar problems in 2020, noting that he has spent time building relationships with black leaders in South Carolina and other Southern states. He's also sharpened his campaign message on criminal justice issues and racial inequality.

"I understand that a lot of people took a lot of things out of the South Carolina results," Shakir said. "We are going to continue to court and address these issues directly, but we are operating with a great deal of confidence that this is going to be a particular demographic that supports Bernie Sanders at the end of the day."

Perhaps Sanders' biggest challenge is overcoming skepticism among voters who may be partial to his focus on economic inequality but fear that nominating a 77-year-old self-described democratic socialist would put Democrats in a weak position against Trump in the general election.

"That's a thing that scares me about him," said Gwen Hobson, a 70-year-old Democratic voter, who attended Sanders' rally on Friday in Davenport.

Yet some of Sanders' longtime supporters say their enthusiasm for him is unshakable. In Davenport on Friday, several voters donned faded t-shirts from Sanders' 2016 campaign. Melita Tunnicliff, 57, wore a button she bought during that campaign with Sanders' photo and the phrase "Not For Sale."

Asked if she was open to other Democratic candidates this time around, Tunnicliff shook her head no.

Source: NewsMax Politics

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Belarus’ Lukashenko: presidential election will take place in 2020

Belarus' President Lukashenko speaks during
Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko speaks during "Big Talk" news conference in Minsk, Belarus March 1, 2019. Nikolay Petrov/BelTA/Pool via REUTERS

April 19, 2019

MINSK (Reuters) – Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Friday that the country’s presidential elections would be held in 2020 as planned.

Speaking at his state-of-the-nation address, Lukashenko said parliamentary elections would be held later this year.

(Reporting by Andrei Makhovsky; Writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by Maria Kiselyova)

Source: OANN

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The Latest: Judge: Threatening phone calls over Noor case

The Latest on the trial of a Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot an unarmed Australian woman in 2017 (all times local):

12:25 p.m.

The judge hearing the trial of a Minneapolis police officer charged in the shooting death of an unarmed Australian woman says threatening phone calls have been made to her chambers.

Mohamed Noor is going on trial this week in the July 2017 death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond. Noor shot her when she approached his squad car just minutes after she called 911 to report a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her home.

Judge Kathryn Quaintance says the threatening phone calls came after she made rulings on what evidence may be presented at trial. Quaintance cited passionate public opinion about the case Monday in explaining why jurors won't be identified in court.

Jury selection began Monday for Noor. He was fired from the force after being charged with murder and manslaughter.

___

9:40 a.m.

A former Minneapolis police officer going to trial in the fatal 2017 shooting of an unarmed Australian woman had nothing to say to reporters as he entered a Minneapolis courthouse.

Mohamed Noor said nothing as reporters asked him whether he would testify at his trial, which began Monday with jury selection.

Noor faces murder and manslaughter charges in the death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond. She had called 911 in July 2017 to report a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her home. Noor and another officer responded. Noor shot Damond after she approached the officers' squad car.

Noor was fired after he was charged in Damond's death. The judge has set aside several weeks for his trial.

___

Midnight

Jury selection is scheduled to begin in the trial of a former Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot an unarmed Australian woman after she called 911 to report a possible sexual assault behind her home.

Thirty-three-year-old Mohamed Noor is charged in the July 2017 death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond. Noor is charged with murder and manslaughter.

Potential jurors will gather Monday morning to receive instructions as the selection process begins.

Prosecutors must prove Noor acted unreasonably when he shot Damond. The defense plans to argue that he used reasonable force in the situation and acted in self-defense.

Noor refused to speak to investigators about what happened. His attorneys haven't said whether he'll testify at the trial, which is expected to last weeks.

Source: Fox News National

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Foxconn says Gou will remain chairman, to withdraw from daily operations

FILE PHOTO: Gou, founder and chairman of Taiwan's Foxconn Technology, attends a session of the second annual World Internet Conference in Wuzhen town
FILE PHOTO: Terry Gou, founder and chairman of Taiwan's Foxconn Technology, attends a session of the second annual World Internet Conference in Wuzhen town of Jinxing, Zhejiang province, China, December 16, 2015. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo

April 16, 2019

(Reuters) – Taiwan’s Foxconn, an assembler of Apple Inc’s iPhones, said Terry Gou will remain chairman of the world’s largest contract manufacturer, although he plans to withdraw from daily operations.

Foxconn’s statement came after Reuters reported that Gou said he planned to step down in the coming months to pave the way for younger talent to move up the company’s ranks.

“His wish is to withdraw from daily operations after having developed and mentored a new generation of talent to carry on Foxconn’s mission. As chairman, Mr Gou will continue to provide strategic direction and guidance,” Foxconn said.

(Reporting by Yimou Lee; Writing by Anne Marie Roantree; Editing by Christopher Cushing)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO - A worker sits on a ship carrying containers at Mundra Port in the western Indian state of Gujarat
FILE PHOTO: A worker sits on a ship carrying containers at Mundra Port in the western Indian state of Gujarat April 1, 2014. REUTERS/Amit Dave/File Photo

April 26, 2019

(Reuters) – India has once again delayed the implementation of higher tariffs on some goods imported from the United States to May 15, a government official said on Friday.

The new tariff structure was to come into force from May 2, the spokeswoman said without citing reasons for the delay.

Angered by Washington’s refusal to exempt it from new steel and aluminum tariffs, New Delhi decided in June last year to raise the import tax from Aug. 4 on some U.S. products including almonds, walnuts and apples.

But since then, New Delhi has repeatedly delayed the implementation of the new tariff.

Trade friction between India and the U.S. has escalated after U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans earlier this year to end preferential trade treatment for India that allows duty-free entry for up to $5.6 billion worth of its exports to the United States.

In a further blow, U.S. on Monday demanded buyers of Iranian oil stop purchases by May or face sanctions, ending six months of waivers which allowed Iran’s eight biggest buyers including India to continue importing limited volumes.

(Reporting by Manoj Kumar in New Delhi and Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva and Raissa Kasolowsky)

Source: OANN

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One of Joe Biden’s newly-hired senior advisers has seemingly had a very recent change of heart.

Symone Sanders, a prominent Democratic strategist and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., staffer in 2016, was announced as one of the big-name members of Team Biden on Thursday.

But Sanders, who has also served as a CNN contributor, is seen in resurfaced footage from November 2016 expressing her opposition to a white person leading her party after Donald Trump’s election.

“In my opinion, we don’t need white people leading the Democratic party right now,” Sanders told host Brianna Keilar during a discussion on Howard Dean potentially becoming DNC chairman.

BIDEN HIRES FORMER BERNIE SANDERS’ SPOKESPERSON AS SENIOR ADVISER

“The Democratic party is diverse, and it should be reflected as so in leadership and throughout the staff, at the highest levels. From the vice chairs to the secretaries all the way down to the people working in the offices at the DNC,” she said.

Sanders wrapped up her remarks by saying: “I want to hear more from everybody. I want to hear from the millennials and the brown folks.”

Footage of the interview was resurfaced by RealClearPolitics.

After news of her hiring broke on Thursday, Sanders backed her new boss on Twitter.

TRUMP ASSESSES 2020 DEMS; TAKES SWIPES AT BIDEN, SANDERS; DISMISSES HARRIS, O’ROURKE; SAYS HE’S ROOTING FOR BUTTIGIEG

“@JoeBiden & @DrBiden are a class act. Over the course of this campaign, Vice President Biden is going to make his case to the American ppl. He won’t always be perfect, but I believe he will get it right,” she wrote.

The hiring of Sanders has been viewed as another indication of the expected tough fight that Biden and Sanders are in for as the two frontrunners battle a deep Democratic field.

While Sanders himself didn’t torch Biden as he jumped into the race, it’s clear that many of his progressive supporters view the former vice president as a threat.

Biden’s entry into the race – at least in the early going – sets up a battle between himself and Sanders, who thanks to his fierce fight with eventual nominee Hillary Clinton for the 2016 Democratic nomination, enjoys name ID on the level of the former vice president.

BIDEN VOWS THAT ‘AMERICA IS COMING BACK,’ SPARKING ‘MAGA’ COMPARISONS

Justice Democrats — who also called Biden “out-of-touch” – is an increasingly influential group among the left of the party. They’ve championed progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York as well as Sanders. The group was founded by members of Sanders 2016 presidential campaign.

Biden has pushed back against the perception that he’s a moderate in a party that’s increasingly moving to the left. Earlier this month he described himself as an “Obama-Biden Democrat.”

And Biden said he’d stack his record against “anybody who has run or who is running now or who will run.”

Former Democratic National Committee chair Donna Brazile – a Fox News contributor – highlighted that “Joe Biden can occupy his own lane in large part because he’s earned it. He’s earned the right to call himself whatever.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

But she emphasized that “elections are not about the past, they’re about the future…I do believe he has the right ingredients. The question is can he find enough people to help him stir the pot.”

Fox News Andrew O’Reilly contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh, who is facing increased calls for her immediate resignation, remains in poor health and is not “lucid” enough to decide whether to step down, her attorney told reporters late Thursday.

Steve Silverman, speaking outside one of Pugh’s residences which was raided by the FBI and IRS earlier in the day, said the embattled city leader could make a decision as early as next week.

“She is leaning toward making the best decision in the best interest in the citizens of Baltimore City,” he said, adding that Pugh has “several options” to consider.

“She just needs to be physically and mentally sound and lucid enough to make appropriate decisions.”

BALTIMORE MAYOR CATHERINE PUGH, ON LEAVE AMID BOOK PROBE, HAS HOMES AND CITY HALL OFFICE RAIDED BY FEDS

Silverman said Pugh met with a doctor at home Thursday and plans to do so again Friday, the Baltimore Sun reported.

In the latest image-tarnishing scandal for struggling Baltimore, the first-term Democratic mayor faces accusations that she used children’s book deals to cover up kickbacks for favorable treatment as a state lawmaker and city leader that earned her roughly $800,000 over several years.

BALTIMORE’S ACTING MAYOR SAYS HE ‘WOULD HATE TO SEE’ EMBATTLED MAYOR RETURN AFTER BOOK SCANDALS

As a state senator, 69-year-old Pugh sold $500,000 worth of her self-published “Healthy Holly” illustrated paperbacks to the University of Maryland Medical System, a major state employer whose board she sat on for nearly 20 years.

Baltimore police officers stand outside the house of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Pugh and also in City Hall. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Baltimore police officers stand outside the house of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Pugh and also in City Hall. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

UMMS reportedly paid Pugh for 100,000 copies of her books between 2011 and 2018 with the stated intention of distributing the books to schools and day care centers. But some 50,000 copies remain unaccounted for and officials are probing if they were even printed.

Pugh also made $300,000 in bulk sales to other customers including health carriers that did business with the city of Baltimore.

BALTIMORE CITY COUNCIL CALLS ON EMBATTLED MAYOR CATHERINE PUGH TO RESIGN IMMEDIATELY

The politically isolated Pugh slipped out of sight on April 1 after a hastily organized press conference where she called her no-contract book deals a “regrettable mistake.” That same day, Maryland’s governor called on the state prosecutor to investigate allegations of “self-dealing.”

Pugh took an indefinite leave of absence, citing her health deteriorating intensely after a bout with pneumonia.

Federal agents arrive at the Maryland Center for Adult Training in Baltimore. MD, Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall, as well as the office of her lawyer and the home of a top aide.

Federal agents arrive at the Maryland Center for Adult Training in Baltimore. MD, Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall, as well as the office of her lawyer and the home of a top aide. (Loyd Fox/Baltimore Sun via AP)

On Thursday morning, agents with the FBI and IRS searched her two Baltimore homes, her City Hall offices, and a nonprofit organization she once led. The home of at least one of Pugh’s aides was also scoured.

Silverman said federal agents also served a subpoena at his law firm, retrieving Pugh’s original financial records. They did not seek any attorney-client privileged communications, he said.

Pugh’s attorney said she was “emotionally extremely distraught” following the searches by FBI and IRS agents.

“There was nothing incriminating that came out of her home,” Silverman said.

UMMS spokesman Michael Schwartzberg told reporters that the medical system received a grand jury witness subpoena seeking documents and information related to Pugh.

Other probes against Pugh include a review by the city ethics board and the Maryland Insurance Administration.

BALTIMORE MAYOR’S $500G DEAL FOR ‘HEALTHY HOLLY’ CHILDREN’S BOOKS DRAWS SCRUTINY

In recent weeks, the calls for Pugh’s resignation have intensified with the strongest voice coming from Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, who did not mince words after Thursday’s early morning raids.

“Now more than ever, Baltimore City needs strong and responsible leadership. Mayor Pugh has lost the public trust,” he said. “She is clearly not fit to lead. For the good of the city, Mayor Pugh must resign.”

Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Internal Revenue Service agents search the home of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall.

Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Internal Revenue Service agents search the home of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall. (Jerry Jackson/Baltimore Sun via AP)

Many of her fellow Democrats, including those on Baltimore’s demoralized City Council and state lawmakers, are also insisting that Pugh put the citizens’ interests above any attempt to preserve her political career.

City Council member Brandon Scott called the Thursday raids “an embarrassment to the city.”

However, only a conviction can trigger a mayor’s removal from office, according to the city solicitor. Baltimore’s mayor-friendly City Charter currently provides no options for ousting its executive.

Six of Pugh’s staffers joined her on paid leave earlier this month; three of them were fired this week by the acting mayor.

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Pugh came to office in late 2016 after edging out ex-Mayor Sheila Dixon, who had spent much of her tenure fighting corruption charges before being forced to depart office in 2010 as part of a plea deal connected to the misappropriation of about $500 in gift cards meant for needy families.

She would certainly face a bruising 2020 Democratic primary if she were to return and run for reelection. Veteran City Council leader Bernard “Jack” Young, who is serving as acting mayor, said as she went on leave that he would merely be a placeholder. But this week, before the raids, he said “it could be devastating for her” if she tried to return.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News National

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FILE PHOTO: Cases of Pepsi are shown for sale at a store in Carlsbad
FILE PHOTO: Cases of Pepsi are shown for sale at a store in Carlsbad, California, U.S., April 22, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By Amit Dave and Mayank Bhardwaj

AHMEDABAD/NEW DELHI (Reuters) – PepsiCo Inc has sued four Indian farmers for cultivating a potato variety that the snack food and drinks maker claims infringes its patent, the company and the growers said on Friday.

Pepsi has sued the farmers for cultivating the FC5 potato variety, exclusively grown for its popular Lay’s potato chips. The FC5 variety has a lower moisture content required to make snacks such as potato chips.

PepsiCo is seeking more than 10 million rupees ($142,840.82) each for alleged patent infringement.

The farmers grow potatoes in the western state of Gujarat, a leading producer of India’s most consumed vegetable.

“We have been growing potatoes for a long time and we didn’t face this problem ever, as we’ve mostly been using the seeds saved from one harvest to plant the next year’s crop,” said Bipin Patel, one of the four farmers sued by Pepsi.

Patel did not say how he came by the PepsiCo variety.

A court in Ahmedabad, the business hub of Gujarat, on Friday agreed to hear the case on June 12, said Anand Yagnik, the lawyer for the farmers.

“In this instance, we took judicial recourse against people who were illegally dealing in our registered variety,” A PepsiCo India spokesman said. “This was done to protect our rights and safeguard the larger interest of farmers that are engaged with us and who are using and benefiting from seeds of our registered variety.”

PepsiCo, which set up its first potato chips plant in India in 1989, supplies the FC5 potato variety to a group of farmers who in turn sell their produce to the company at a fixed price.

The All India Kisan Sabha, or All India Farmers’ Forum, has asked the Indian government to protect the farmers.

The farmers’ forum has also called for a boycott of PepsiCo’s Lay’s chips and the company’s other products.

The Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

PepsiCo is the second major U.S. company in India to face issues over patent infringement.

Stung by a long-standing intellectual property dispute, seed maker Monsanto, which is now owned by German drugmaker Bayer AG, withdrew from some businesses in India over a cotton-seed dispute with farmers, Reuters reported in 2017. (reut.rs/2ncBknn)

(Reporting by Amit Dave in AHMEDABAD and Mayank Bhardwaj in NEW DELHI; Editing by Martin Howell and Louise Heavens)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO: The Archer Daniels Midland Co (ADM) logo is displayed on a screen on the floor of the NYSE in New York
FILE PHOTO: The Archer Daniels Midland Co (ADM) logo is displayed on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., May 3, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By P.J. Huffstutter and Shradha Singh

CHICAGO/BENGALURU (Reuters) – Archer Daniels Midland Co said on Friday it was considering spinning off its ethanol business after slim biofuel margins and Midwestern floods slammed the U.S. grains merchant’s profit, which tumbled 41 percent in the first quarter.

ADM said it was creating an ethanol subsidiary, which will include dry mills in Columbus, Nebraska; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; and Peoria, Illinois.

The ethanol subsidiary will report as an independent segment, the company said, allowing options “which may include, but are not limited to, a potential spin-off of the business to existing ADM shareholders.”

Results were hit by the “bomb cyclone” blizzards that devastated the Midwest and Great Plains this year, causing massive flooding across Nebraska, Iowa and Missouri, washing out rail lines and wreaking havoc in the moving and processing of corn, soybeans and wheat. One-sixth of U.S. ethanol production was halted.

In March, ADM warned Wall Street that flooding and severe winter weather in the U.S. Midwest would reduce its first-quarter operating profit by $50 million to $60 million.

“The first quarter proved more challenging than initially expected,” said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Juan Luciano, with earnings down in its starches, sweeteners and bioproducts unit. Luciano said impacts of the severe weather ultimately “were on the high side of our initial estimates”.

Ongoing problems in the ethanol industry added to the problems and “limited margins and opportunities” for ADM, Luciano said.

The ethanol industry has been in the midst of a historic downswing due to the U.S.-China trade war, excess domestic supply and weak margins.

ADM, which had been an ethanol pioneer, signaled to Wall Street in 2016 that it was hunting for options and considering sales of its U.S. dry ethanol mills. Luciano told Reuters this year that offers ADM had received for the mills were too low.

In addition, ADM said it planned to repurpose its corn wet mill in Marshall, Minnesota, to produce higher volumes of food and industrial-grade starches.

Other major traders are alsy trying to distance themselves from struggling ethanol businesses. Louis Dreyfus Company BV spun off its Brazilian sugar and ethanol business Biosev in 2013. Rival Bunge sold its sugar book and has sought a buyer for its Brazilian mills since 2013.

ADM, which makes money trading, processing and transporting crops, such as corn, soybeans and wheat, has been looking to strengthen its core business. Last month it said it would seek voluntary early retirements of some North American employees and cut jobs as part of a restructuring effort.

The company expects to lower 2019 capital spending by 10 percent to between $800 million and $900 million.

Net earnings attributable to the company fell to $233 million, or 41 cents per share, in the three months ended March 31, from $393 million, or 70 cents per share, a year earlier.

Revenue fell to $15.30 billion from $15.53 billion. On an adjusted basis, the company earned 46 cents per share, while analysts on average had estimated 60 cents, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

(Reporting by Shradha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta, Chizu Nomiyama and David Gregorio)

Source: OANN

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