Several news outlets have reported that due to poor harvests of vanilla beans, currently in high demand as a natural flavouring, prices on common desserts such as ice cream will increase. Vanilla is often used in health foods as it is one of the few all-natural flavourings we prefer.

Bloomberg reported the price of vanilla beans has more than tripled, according to their data cited from the Cook Flavoring Company and other sources. Cook stated that high-end vanilla now sells for $250 a kilogram versus $80 just a year ago and that some manufacturers are looking for substitutes to the more expensive vanilla.

The Guardian also reported on the price increase having a serious impact on ice cream manufacturers, noting that vanilla is already the second most expensive flavouring after saffron. According to industry insiders, vanilla beans harvested in Madagascar produce the best tasting vanilla but the island nation’s growers harvested too early in 2015 before the pods were fully ripe amid fears of theft. Vanilla beans are targeted by local criminals due to their high value.

Lovers of vanilla flavoured ice cream, yogurt and other health foods may have to pay a higher price for their favourite dietary sin this summer, or switch to another flavour until the price comes back down within a year as some have forecast.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals, the manufacturer of Cold-FX is not the only company beleaguered by lawsuits. In just one week cosmeticsdesign.com has reported on three other large corporations now required to defend themselves in court.

Procter & Gamble’s Old Spice deodorant brand has been hit with a lawsuit seeking compensation of up to $25 million for consumers who claim an allergic skin reaction to the deodorant. Due to the media attention, it is expected that this could grow into a very large class action suit.

In 2014, Unilever faced several lawsuits over their Suave brand Keratin Infusion 30 Day Smoothing Kit. Recalled in 2012 due to some consumers reporting the product dissolved hair and burned the scalp, just last week a circuit court upheld the original settlement compensating injured parties to the tune of $10,250,000.

It was widely reported last week that Johnson & Johnson and their talcum powder supplier Imerys Talc America are now subject to over 1000 lawsuits for not disclosing health risks that could cause cancer. Last month, the family of a woman who lost her life due to ovarian cancer was awarded $72 million and next week other court cases will begin.

The correct answer may be “which version?” Also known as mobile money or a mobile money transfer, a mobile wallet is basically any payment service conducted via mobile device and through a financial regulating authority. The usual methods of mobile payments currently available include SMS (Short Message Service), WAP (Wireless Application Protocol), NFC (Near Field Communication) and direct mobile payments.

SMS is commonly used for purchasing digital products such as music or ringtones. MMS versions may also be used to deliver QR codes or barcodes that can be scanned and used as a ticket to see a film or other event. WAP is similar to making a payment on your desktop. Additional web pages or applications may be downloaded to the device to facilitate payment (think eBay) but commonly one would also use PayPal or a debit/credit card to provide payment.

Direct mobile payments are most popular in Asia where most of the digital content is paid for using this method. An e-commerce site merely has to provide a mobile billing option, a two-factor authentication process (often a PIN and a one-time password or OTP) and the consumer’s mobile account is charged without the need for banks, credit card or alternate payments such as PayPal.

NFC appears to be the most favoured by banks and businesses due to the speed and ease of processing payments, especially at POS. Similar to the microchip-embedded credit card “tap,” NFC allows two devices to communicate wirelessly through radio waves. NFC-enabled devices have three different capabilities, which is probably why this method is being increasingly embraced: NFC can behave like a “smart card” and process payments and ticket transactions; NFC can be peer-to-peer, allowing two NFC-enabled devices to communicate freely; and it acts as a reader/writer program whereby NFC devices can read (and occasionally rewrite) information stored on NFC tags. NFC tags may contain nearly any kind of information including credit/debit card information, loyalty program data and PINs.

Mobile wallets have certain advantages for retailers: they may help reduce fraud as mobile wallets are more difficult to steal or duplicate than cards or cash; payments are faster (perfect during busy store hours) and lower processing fees may be offered by financial institutions. One of the best advantages is the ability to encourage better customer loyalty through sales promotions and incentives sent directly to customers’ smartphones.

As the millennial and Gen X generations grow into being the leading demographic, natural health retailers need to be open to accepting payments however their customers would prefer to pay.

Some Whole Food Stores in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut will soon be powered by the sun. The natural health mega-retailer recently announced their partnership with San Mateo, CA based SolarCity, a leader in providing solar powered energy services.

According to their press release, “The plan aims to increase the production of solar power and offset some need for traditional grid power while helping Whole Foods Market (WFM) save money.” Installations in some stores are expected to be ready by spring with up to 100 stores planned for retrofit by SolarCity. Each store will have its own custom designed rooftop solar panels and system for harnessing power.

Although this is welcome news by anyone friendly to the environment and the quickly growing renewable energy sector, the move is smart business on Whole Food’s part. The solar energy retrofit will diminish their need for more expensive traditional power sources as they will purchase energy from SolarCity at a reduced cost.

Interest in plant-based sources of protein and other nutrients is on the rise. Just in time for spring, a new association to support manufacturers of alternatives to meat and animal by-products has sprouted. With offices in Washington and San Francisco, PlantBasedFoods.org was created by several leading company executives of manufacturers of plant-based foods.

Sales of plant-based varieties of meat and dairy (milk, yogurt, cheese and cream) has grown more than 8.7 per cent over the last two years according to data released by SPINS, a retail sales data company for the natural and specialty products industry. In this same period, general food and beverage sector growth was just 3.7 per cent with plant-based milks in particular showing 14.4 per cent growth.

According to a press release from the new association, plant-based foods are a 3.5 billion dollar industry and the first executive director of the trade association Michele Simon noted, “Every other sector of the food industry—from sugar to organics—is represented in the policy arena. The time has come for the plant-based food industry to also have a collective voice.”

As the association has pointed out, the power held by other food industry associations such as the various dairy or meat marketing boards outweighs alternative food companies. With this new association, these companies believe they will have better representation at government board tables.

In their Health Product InfoWatch for March, Health Canada provided an updated review of melatonin and its potential for adverse reactions in children and teenagers. In the article Health Canada states, “Recent international reports of neurological adverse reactions (e.g., anxiety, panic reactions, visual hallucinations and seizures) suspected of being associated with the use of melatonin in children and adolescents have been brought to Health Canada’s attention by foreign regulators.”

Over 500 products containing melatonin have already been issued an NPN for sale to adults and children in Canada. Before any retailers or consumers panic, the review also states, “Based on current evidence, a relationship between the pediatric use of melatonin and the occurrence of neurological adverse reactions such as seizures could not be established.”

Health Canada’s own safety review conducted in December 2015 decided there was limited or conflicting data available leading them to issue only a warning “encouraging parents and caregivers to consult a healthcare professional before giving any natural health products containing melatonin to this age group [under age 18], especially if they have serious medical conditions like hormonal, brain, heart, liver, or kidney diseases.”

Health Canada reports they will continue to monitor melatonin for safety information related to its use in the general pediatric population.

In a recent interview with Adweek Magazine, Norman de Greve, senior vice president and CMO of CVS Health, noted the company’s wide ban on tobacco sales in 2014 was just part of their decade-long plan to shift from being the proverbial “drugstore on the corner” to a “multifaceted healthcare company.”

Their acquisition of several other health businesses in as many years has led to their being not just the 2^nd largest pharmaceutical retailer behind Walgreens, but the 12^th largest company in the world, according to Fortune 500. Through over 1000 MinuteClinics and Diabetes Care Centers, usually located within a CVS Store, the company provides primary health care in addition to the sale of prescription medications and drug store merchandise through their CVS Pharmacy and other drug retail brands in store and online.

One of their latest initiatives has been the recent launch of their “Be the First” campaign, a five-year, $50 million effort to derail tobacco addiction and encourage the next generation to be tobacco-free. They expect to achieve their goal by “working with the nation’s leading anti-tobacco and youth organizations to support comprehensive education, advocacy, tobacco control and healthy behaviour programming to help those who smoke quit and ensure those who don’t never start,” according to their web site.

The Body Shop, British retail giant of natural health, skin care and beauty products celebrated their 40^th anniversary with a bold pledge to help sustain Mother Earth. As one of the leading companies that consistently use social and environmental campaigns to promote their business one shouldn’t be surprised by the “ethical beauty” retailer’s announcement.

Chairman and CEO Jeremy Schwartz explains, “The Body Shop’s 40th anniversary is the perfect time to reassert our aim for leadership in ethical business; for us, being truly sustainable means shaping our business to work in line with the planet’s natural systems so they can replenish and restore themselves.”

Working in tandem with the Future Fit Foundation, the company has established an impressive list of objectives it hopes to achieve by 2020. Chris Davis, The Body Shop’s International CSR and Campaigns Director, says, “We have set ourselves ambitious, inspiring and measurable targets for our commitment. We are developing new practices to enrich the planet in which we operate whilst helping our company grow and prosper. Our new commitment combines all the experience and knowledge of our expert people with new advances in science and technology.”

The list includes enhancements to their existing Community Trade program, ensuring all products are 100 per cent sustainably sourced, continued reduction of “their environmental footprint” on the planet, and powering all of their stores with renewable energy.