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Tax service turns away gay couple, citing Indiana’s ‘religious freedom’ law

A decision by a tax preparation business not to serve a lesbian couple has created the newest battleground in establishing the line between freedom to practice one’s beliefs and freedom to live without facing illegal discrimination.

Bailey and Samantha Brazzel sought to have their tax work done at Carter Tax Service in Russiaville, Ind., but the proprietor turned them away, based on the business owner’s religious beliefs.

CHRISTIAN GROUP WINS RELIGIOUS FREEDOM CASE AGAINST UNIVERSITY OF IOWA: 'RULING IS A WIN FOR BASIC FAIRNESS'

Nancy Fivecoate, 66, the business owner, claims her views are protected under the state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which former Indiana Gov. Mike Pence signed into law in March 2015. An amendment intended to protect LGBT people from discrimination was added the following month.

The law prohibits the government from interfering with a person’s practice of religious beliefs unless it has a compelling reason to do so. A federal version of the law, introduced by then U.S. Rep. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., was signed by President Bill Clinton in 1993.

The issue of religious freedom versus discrimination was central to the case of Colorado baker Jack Phillips, who won a U.S. Supreme Court case in June after refusing to bake a wedding cake for a same-sex couple.

In Indiana, Fivecoate says she merely turned down the couple’s business and did not seek to draw broader attention to her decision. She claims she was within her legal rights to do so.

"I've never repeated her name to anyone,” Fivecoate told the Indianapolis Star about Bailey Brazzel, who visited her office. “I haven't answered social media. I've done absolutely nothing except (follow) my religious beliefs. I cannot put my name on that return."

MIKE PENCE IS NOT ANTI-GAY -- I'M A GAY MAN WHO KNOWS HE'S BEEN FALSELY ACCUSED

"The LGBT want respect for their beliefs, which I give them,” Fivecoate wrote later, in a statement to WTHR-TV of Indianapolis. “I did not say anything about their lifestyle. That is their choice. It is not my choice. Where is their respect for my beliefs?”

But Brazzel, 25, claims that Fivecoate’s rejection of her business constitutes illegal discrimination.

"I went in there to have my taxes done, not push my beliefs on her,” Brazzel told the Star. "It's not professional to me to turn someone away because they do something differently than you would like.”

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“My taxes don't have anything to do with our marriage," Brazzel continued. "If you are going to run a business, you should be professional enough to do business with people from all types of backgrounds.”

Brazzel said she and her wife ultimately took their business to another company, but decided to go public with their story.

Whether the couple intends to pursue legal action was not clear.

Source: Fox News National

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Slain German woman and son found on Spain’s Tenerife island

Spain's Civil Guard says the bodies of a German woman and her 10-year-old son have been found in a cave in the Canary island of Tenerife and that the boy's father, who was also German, has been arrested.

The search began Tuesday, when residents found a 5-year-old boy near the town of Adeje. The Europa Press news agency reported that, speaking through a translator, the boy said his father had taken the family to a cave and attacked them but he had escaped.

Police arrested the father in his apartment in Adeje but he refused to say where the rest of his family was.

The Civil Guards say the missing mother and son were found Wednesday afternoon.

The volcanic Tenerife island in the Atlantic Ocean is a popular holiday destination.

Source: Fox News World

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Rand Paul Thanks Trump For Stopping Delivery Of Weapons To “Haters of America”

Senator Rand Paul thanked President Trump Tuesday after The Department of Defense announced it is “suspending” deliveries of F-35 fighter jet parts and manuals to Turkey.

“Thank you @realDonaldTrump. No weapons for haters of America!” Paul tweeted, adding that “Weapons and Aid should be contingent on behavior.”

The Senator also noted that the “Same should go for Saudi Arabia!”

Paul has long campaigned for the US to stem sales of arms to regimes at odds with US foreign policy, particularly Saudi Arabia.

Paul has often found himself at odds with Trump over the issue over the past two years.

In an earlier tweet Tuesday, Senator Paul also vowed that he will “continue fighting for an end to U.S. involvement in the war on Yemen,” with a link to an article from the American Conservative concerning the US Saudi military coalition that has been waging war in the country for almost five years.

The Trump administration’s decision to stop supplying military parts to Turkey, a NATO member, comes following the Middle Eastern country’s decision to purchase a Russian air defense system.

“The United States has been clear that Turkey’s acquisition of the S-400 is unacceptable,” said acting Pentagon spokesman Charles Summers Jr.

“[U]ntil they forgo delivery of the S-400, the United States has suspended deliveries and activities associated with the stand-up of Turkey’s F-35 operational capability.  Should Turkey procure the S-400, their continued participation in the F-35 program is at risk.” Summers added.

Turkey’s government has defended the country’s right to purchase Russian made, military equipment, with foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu arguing that “it is contrary to international laws for a third country to oppose an agreement between two countries.”

President Trump also met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg Tuesday to discuss funding for the body, with Trump adamant that some countries don’t contribute enough to mutual defense.

Source: InfoWars

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Trump blasts ‘Da Nang Dick’ Blumenthal ahead of Hanoi Summit

President Donald Trump attacked Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., on Twitter early Wednesday during his visit to Vietnam, referring to him as “Da Nang Dick”—a nickname mocking the senator’s false claim of having fought in the Vietnam War.

Trump had been touring Vietnam and meeting with the country’s leaders ahead of his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Hanoi when the president excoriated the Democratic senator.

TRUMP, KIM JONG UN'S SUMMIT IN VIETNAM: WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE LEADERS' SECOND SUMMIT

“I have now spent more time in Vietnam than Da Nang Dick Blumenthal, the third rate Senator from Connecticut (how is Connecticut doing?)” Trump wrote. “His war stories of his heroism in Vietnam were a total fraud - he was never even there. We talked about it today with Vietnamese leaders!”

Blumenthal, who was elected to the Senate in 2010, regularly referenced his supposed Vietnam service in the 2000s, when he was Connecticut attorney general.

“I served during the Vietnam era,” Blumenthal reportedly said at a Vietnam War memorial in 2008. “I remember the taunts, the insults, sometimes even the physical abuse.”

TRUMP SLAMS 'DA NANG DICK' BLUMENTHAL, QUESTIONS WHY HE'S ON SENATE JUDICIARY AFTER VIETNAM SCANDAL

Blumenthal reportedly obtained at least five military deferments between 1965 and 1970. He eventually served in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, but did not deploy to Vietnam.

In 2010, Blumenthal admitted that he had regrettably "misspoken" about his service, and takes "full responsibility."

Blumenthal is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and supported legislation last year to protect Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s job.

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Trump told the New York Times in 2016 that he had his draft deferred after a doctor wrote “a very strong letter” about the bone spurs in his heals.

Meanwhile, Trump and Vietnamese President Nguyen Phu Trong presided over the signings of several commercial trade deals affecting the airline industries of their two countries.

Trump is expected to meet with Kim later Wednesday to discuss the Hermit Kingdom’s denuclearization. The two leaders previously met last June in Singapore.

Fox News’ Samuel Chamberlain and Dom Calicchio contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Lori Loughlin's daughter Olivia Jade was aboard USC official's yacht in Bahamas when mom was charged: reports

Lori Loughlin's daughter Olivia Jade was spending spring break on a University of Southern California official's yacht when her mother was accused Tuesday of involvement in a college admissions scheme, reports said.

Jade, 19, was on Rick Caruso's luxury yacht Invictus in the Bahamas, a report said. Caruso is chairman of USC's Board of Trustees.

Jade, who currently attends USC, was with Caruso's daughter Gianna and several other friends, the outlet reported.

"My daughter and a group of students left for spring break prior to the government's announcement yesterday," Caruso told TMZ. "Once we became aware of the investigation, the young woman decided it would be in her best interests to return home."

"Once we became aware of the investigation, the young woman decided it would be in her best interests to return home."

— Rick Caruso, chairman of USC's Board of Trustees

USC TO 'REVIEW' STUDENTS, GRADS WHO MAY BE LINKED TO COLLEGE ADMISSIONS CHEATING SCANDAL

Loughlin's daughter has since returned to Los Angeles to face the allegations that could result in her getting expelled from USC, the Daily Mail reported.

USC's Board of Trustees will not decide the status of Jade and the other students involved in the case, but rather, the university's president will make the decisions, according to TMZ.

Lori Loughlin and daughter Olivia Jade Giannulli attend Women's Cancer Research Fund's An Unforgettable Evening Benefit Gala at the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons Hotel on Feb. 27, 2018, in Beverly Hills, California.

Lori Loughlin and daughter Olivia Jade Giannulli attend Women's Cancer Research Fund's An Unforgettable Evening Benefit Gala at the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons Hotel on Feb. 27, 2018, in Beverly Hills, California. (Getty)

Loughlin's rep had no comment, People reported.

Business deals in jeopardy?

Jade is a YouTube beauty vlogger and social media star, but in the midst of her mother's charges, she may lose the lucrative brand-sponsorship deals she has landed over the years, Variety reported.

HP, having cut ties with Jade, said in a statement, “HP worked with Lori Loughlin and Olivia Jade in 2017 for a one-time product campaign. HP has removed the content from its properties.”

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Jade also cut brand deals with partners including Amazon, Dolce & Gabbana, Lulus, Marc Jacobs Beauty, Sephora, Smashbox Beauty Cosmetics, Smile Direct Club, Too Faced Cosmetics, Boohoo, and Unilever’s TRESemmé, the report said.

Jade's rep declined to comment, Variety reported. Estée Lauder Companies, which owns Smashbox and Too Faced, also declined to comment, while the other brands or companies the magazine reached out to did not immediately respond to their requests for comment.

Source: Fox News National

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Carrefour eyes 1,229 job cuts in French hypermarkets: union

The logo of Carrefour is seen on shopping trolleys at a Carrefour Hypermarket store in Toulouse
The logo of Carrefour is seen on shopping trolleys at a Carrefour Hypermarket store in Toulouse, France, March 20, 2019. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau

March 28, 2019

PARIS (Reuters) – Carrefour plans to cut 1,229 jobs as it downsizes its large hypermarket stores in France under a plan to boost sales and profits at Europe’s largest retailer, the Force Ouvriere union told Reuters.

The plan, which is being discussed with the FO, CFDT and CFE-CGC unions, entails departures via a conventional collective bargaining agreement, said FO union representative Michel Enguelz.

Carrefour had earlier confirmed to Reuters that it was in talks over a conventional collective bargaining agreement, but the company did not specify any figures over possible job losses.

The likely cuts and downsizing will result from the removal of jewelry corners in hypermarkets, cuts among managers and automation of petrol stations.

Last month Carrefour, which has made reviving sales at its French hypermarket stores where it employs 60,000 people a priority, raised its savings goal to 2.8 billion euros ($3.2 billion) by 2020 from 2 billion previously.

In January 2018, Carrefour launched a five-year plan a year ago to cut costs, boost E-commerce investment and seek a partnership in China with tech giant Tencent.

The plan notably includes expanding into convenience stores to reduce exposure to large hypermarket stores and having a greater focus on organic products and private labels.

Carrefour achieved savings of 1.05 billion euros in 2018, the first year of the plan.

(Reporting by Pascale Denis and Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)

Source: OANN

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Tokyo court denies Ghosn’s request to attend Nissan board meeting: NHK

FILE PHOTO: Former Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn sits inside a car as he leaves his lawyer's office after being released on bail from Tokyo Detention House, in Tokyo
FILE PHOTO: Former Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn sits inside a car as he leaves his lawyer's office after being released on bail from Tokyo Detention House, in Tokyo, Japan, March 6, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato/File Photo

March 11, 2019

TOKYO (Reuters) – A Tokyo court denied former Nissan Motor boss Carlos Ghosn’s request to attend the automaker’s board meeting this week, days after he was released from detention on a $9 million bail, national broadcaster NHK reported on Monday.

Ghosn, who was detained for more than 100 days, applied to the Tokyo District Court for permission to attend Tuesday’s board meeting, as required under bail conditions, his lawyer Junichiro Hironaka told reporters.

He faces charges of under-reporting his salary by about $82 million over nearly a decade – charges he has called “meritless”.

(Reporting by Tokyo Newsroom; 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.”

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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)

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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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