Can Bio-labels help companies to gain competitive advantage in the organic food market in Germany?

Consumers’ attitudes towards food underwent large changes in Germany. This has resulted in an increase of demand for organic food. However, some analysts claim that the organic food market in Germany might be maturing. Within this context, this paper has two main objectives: first, to explore the attitude of German consumers towards organic food and bio-labels; and second to identify potential areas for improvement to help organic food companies to become more competitive. This study used a quantitative research approach. 627 German consumers completed the survey. The results of this study indicate that there is potential for the organic food market to carry on growing. Findings have also revealed that a large percentage of participants do not trust some bio-labels. Trust and brand recognition are the most important factors that have helped Bioland and Demeter to develop a competitive advantage against other labels

Effects of ionizing radiation on charge-coupled imagers

The effects of ionizing radiation on three different charge coupled imagers have been investigated. Device performance was evaluated as a function of total gamma ray dose. The principal failure mechanisms have been identified for each particular device structure. The clock and bias voltages required for high total dose operation of the devices are presented

Group IV Nociceptors Develop Axonal Chemical Sensitivity During Neuritis And Following Treatment Of The Sciatic Nerve With Vinblastine

We have previously shown that nerve inflammation (neuritis) and transient vinblastine application lead to axonal mechanical sensitivity in nociceptors innervating deep structures. We have also shown that these treatments reduce axonal transport, and proposed that this leads to functional accumulation of mechanically sensitive channels in the affected part of the axons. While informing the etiology of mechanically induced pain, axonal mechanical sensitivity does not address the common report of ongoing radiating pain during neuritis, which could be secondary to the provocation of axonal chemical sensitivity. We proposed that neuritis and vinblastine application would induce sensitivities to noxious chemicals, and that the number of chemo-sensitive channels would be increased at the affected site. In adult female rats, nerves were either untreated, or treated with complete Freund’s adjuvant (to induce neuritis) or vinblastine. After 3-7 days, dorsal root teased fiber recordings were taken from Group IV neurons with axons within the sciatic nerve. Sciatic nerves were injected intraneurally with a combination of noxious inflammatory chemicals. While no normal sciatic axons responded to this stimulus, 80% and 38% of axons responded in the neuritis and vinblastine groups, respectively. In separate experiments, sciatic nerves were partially ligated and treated with complete Freund’s adjuvant or vinblastine (with controls), and after 3-5 days were immunolabeled for the histamine 3 receptor. The results supported that both neuritis and vinblastine treatment reduce transport of the histamine 3 receptor. The finding that nociceptor axons can develop ectopic chemical sensitivity is consistent with ongoing radiating pain due to nerve inflammation

The competitiveness of the Uruguayan rural tourism sector and its potential to attract German tourists

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to assess the competitiveness of the Uruguayan rural tourism sector against its main competitors from Argentina and Brazil, as perceived by Uruguayan stakeholders on the supply side. The paper will also evaluate the potential of Uruguay as a rural tourism destination in attracting German tourists. Design/methodology/approach – Two different questionnaires were administered, one to Uruguayan rural tourism stakeholders and another one to potential German tourists in Germany. Findings – The findings indicate that the main strengths of Uruguayan rural tourism offer, compared to Argentina and Brazil, are the hospitality and friendliness of local people, the natural and cultural attractions and the country’s security and safety. Main weaknesses identified were the poor management of several destination components that are key to create a successful tourism destination and poor management of the “demand conditions” component of Dwyer and Kim’s (2003) integrated model. Originality/value – There is very limited research done on the competitiveness of Uruguay as a rural tourist destination in attracting foreign tourists (Mackinnon et al., 2009). The objective of this study is to partially fill this gap by assessing how competitive Uruguayan rural tourism is and evaluating whether Uruguay represents an attractive market for German tourists looking for agro tourism and farm holiday destinations. The German market was chosen because it is one of the top tourist-generating countries and one of the biggest spenders in international tourism (The World Tourism organization, 2010). Moreover, most tourists – from outside South America – selecting Uruguay as a tourist destination come from Germany, USA and Australia (Peralta, 2012)

An Exploratory Research of the Potential Strategic Benefits of Specialising in Riesling Grape: A Case Study from the Niagara Wine Region

Abstract The main purpose of this paper is to evaluate the current business strategy of the Niagara wine region and to explore the potential of the Niagara wine region to specialise in Riesling grape variety. Questionnaires were administered to a range of different types of experts with a specialty in wine. Quantitative data from the Liquor Control Board of Ontario supplemented the core interviews. The results of this study indicate that differentiation through specialisation is the best strategy to develop the Niagara wine region. However, the structure of the wine industry encourages wineries to produce a vast array of grape varieties to cater to the needs of the domestic market. This has resulted in a loss of identity for the region. Though because Niagara Riesling is differentiable, world class, the most consistently awarded grape and unreproducible elsewhere, it is the prime candidate to become the representative grape for the region. By developing the Niagara style of Riesling and focusing on exporting small amounts of the variety, the region would benefit by developing an identity and increasing consumer confidence and sales. Keyword

Does the Conventional Paradigm help to Analyze the Competitiveness of an Industry?

Literature on strategic management has been recently criticised for not being able to explain the success of a number of companies. Within this context, this paper has two main objectives: first, to assess whether one of the most comprehensive strategy models, Porter’s diamond (1990) remains valuable to analyse the competitiveness of the Zimbabwean aquaculture industry; and second to produce recommendations to improve the competitiveness of the Zimbabwean tilapia industry. This study uses an intensive research approach, by means of in-depth personal interviews with stakeholders from the selected industry. The results of this study indicate that 26 years after its development, Porter’s diamond remains a valuable tool to analyse the competitiveness of the Zimbabwean aquaculture industry. Findings have revealed that the main strengths of the Zimbabwean tilapia industry are the availability of natural resources and labour costs. Main weaknesses identified through Porter’s framework are: lack of access to capital; lack of access to technology; lack of skilled workers and lack of adequate infrastructure. The findings of this research make a contribution to the existing literature by extending the discussion on the suitability of conventional theory to explain firm competitiveness. To date no other research has been carried out in relation to the development of tilapia aquaculture in Zimbabwe

Late harvest as factor affecting esca and Botryosphaeria dieback prevalence of vineyards in the Alsace region of France

The decline of grapevines due to esca and Botryosphaeria dieback (Bot. dieback) is a serious problem in the Alsace region of France. A survey of 82 vineyards over 8 years showed that among a set of agronomical and cultural variables, esca and Bot. dieback prevalence correlated to the harvest dates, especially late harvest dates for the production of sweet wines. The interpretation of this finding that points to the carbon balance of the vine and its reserves status as possible causation is discussed. Under this hypothesis the data also point to climatic variables as factors in the disease epidemiology, with a lag phase of about one year.

Osteocondroma intra-raquideo con afectación neurológica

Se presenta el caso de un varón de 16 años con lumbalgia consecutiva a traumatismo vertebral, sin hallazgo s radiológicos, que no mejoraba con tratamient o conservador, y que a las 5 semanas desarrolló un cuadro de paraparesia e incontinencia de esfínteres indicativo de afectación del cono medular. En el estudio mielográfico se objetivó bloqueo completo a nivel de Ll. La tomografía axial mostró una imagen sugestiva de osteocondroma intraraquídeo, que s e confirmó quirúrgicamente . Dos año s tras la intervención, se logró la total recuperación neurológica. Se destaca la rareza de la lesión, la dificultad diagnóstica, y la probable etiología traumática de la tumoración.A 16-year-old man with no improvement of low back pain after vertebral trauma conservatively treated and without radiological findings is presented. Five weeks after trauma, the patient developed paraparesia and fecal and urinary incontinence indicating compression of the medullary conus. A complet e stop of the contrast at Ll level wa s found in the myelographi c study. The CT-Scan showed an image suggesting osteochondroma whic h wa s confirmed a r surgery. Complet e neurogical recover y w a s achieved 2 year s after surgical treatment. The rare character of the lesion, the dificulty for diagnosis and the probable traumatic etiology of this tumor is discussed

Enhanced nicotinic receptor mediated relaxations in gastroesophageal muscle fibers from Barrett\u27s esophagus patients

BACKGROUND: Increased nicotinic receptor mediated relaxation in the gastroesophageal antireflux barrier may be involved in the pathophysiology of reflux. This study is designed to determine whether the defects we previously identified in GERD patients in-vivo are due to abnormalities of the gastric sling, gastric clasp or lower esophageal circular (LEC) muscle fibers. METHODS: Muscle strips from whole stomachs and esophagi were obtained from 16 normal donors and 15 donors with histologically proven Barrett's esophagus. Contractile and relaxant responses of gastric sling, gastric clasp or LEC fibers were determined to increasing concentrations of carbachol and to nicotine after inducing maximal contraction to bethanechol. Muscarinic receptor density was measured using subtype selective immunoprecipitation. KEY RESULTS: Barrett's esophagus gastric sling and LEC fibers have decreased carbachol induced contractions. Barrett's esophagus sling fibers have decreased M(2) muscarinic receptors and LEC fibers have decreased M(3) receptors. Relaxations of all 3 fiber types are greater in Barrett's esophagus specimens to both high carbachol concentrations and to nicotine following bethanechol pre-contraction. The maximal response to bethanechol is greater in Barrett esophagus sling and LEC fibers. CONCLUSIONS & INFERENCES: The increased contractile response to bethanechol in Barrett's specimens indicates that the defect is likely not due to the smooth muscle itself. The enhanced nicotinic receptor mediated response may be involved in greater relaxation of the muscles within the high pressure zone of the gastroesophageal junction during transient lower esophageal sphincter relaxations and during deglutitive inhibition and may be involved in the pathophysiology of gastro esophageal reflux disease

High-pressure batch reverse osmosis (RO) for zero liquid discharge (ZLD) in a Cr(III) electroplating process

A batch RO system was designed and built for high-pressure (120 bar) operation. The system was developed for a ZLD application involving treatment of metal plating wastewater from a Cr(III) electroplating process at a major industrial plant. Hybrid semi-batch/batch operation enabled a compact design to be achieved. To maximize water recovery without exceeding a set peak pressure, a method for controlling the switch point between semi-batch and batch phases was developed. The system was tested with feed representative of rinse water from the electroplating process. A range of feed concentrations (at 10–20× dilution of the plating bath), feed flows (0.21–0.46 m3/h), water fluxes (6–14 LMH) and water recoveries (87–95.7 %) were investigated. The system successfully recovered Cr(III) and restored its concentration to that of the electrolyte bath, thus meeting the requirements for reuse in the electroplating process. Rejection of most species was >99.8 %, sufficient for reuse of the permeate as rinse. However, rejection of boric acid was only 69–80 % such that a second RO pass may be needed to remove boric acid. Specific Energy Consumption was <2.25 kWh per m3 of treated rinse water, representing a 50-fold saving compared to the current method of treatment and disposal at the industrial plant