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The Yumy Candy Company launches at Loblaws locations Nationwide, including The Great Canadian Superstore

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The Yumy Candy Company Inc.,  will be placing its low-sugar better-for-you Yumy Bear products into Loblaws locations across Canada. Loblaws is Canada’s largest retailer. Loblaws focuses on grocery, pharmacy, health and beauty, apparel, and general merchandise. With more than 2,400 corporate, franchised and associate-owned locations, its franchisees and associate owners employ almost 200,000 full- and part-time employees, making it one of Canada’s largest private sector employers.
“Loblaws is Canada’s number one retailer and being on their shelves is a huge milestone achievement for our Company. There is no other retailer in Canada that can move the needle like Loblaws with over 2,400 locations nationwide and visited by millions of Canadians the exposure and sales our company can achieve with this partnership is second to none,” states Chief Executive Officer, Erica Williams.

Loblaws has held the title of the largest food retailer for over 100 years in Canada and has yet to relinquish the title. The company has made aggressive acquisitions and opened hundreds of locations cementing its position as the largest retailer in Canada. With some of the most recognizable brands in the supermarket industry, servicing Canadians and ethnic tastes alike, the company captures a significant portion of Canadian consumption.

“Our mission to never be satisfied with our growth is a sentiment we share with Loblaws. As we continue our journey to the top of the confectionary world, we continue to be aggressive with getting on shelves and going to new territories. Over the last few months, we have proven to our consumers and investors that some of the largest retailers in the world are interested in what we have to offer and I expect the trend to continue,” states Chief Executive Officer, Erica Williams.

Yumy Candy is an affordable health-conscious low-sugar plant-based confectionery company based in Vancouver, B.C., and it has developed a portfolio of healthier gelatin-free candies made from non-genetically modified organism ingredients with proprietary recipes. All of its products are free of gelatin, soy, gluten, nuts, dairy, eggs, sugar alcohols, artificial sweeteners and genetically modified organisms.

Shoppers Drug Mart strengthens its commitment to sustainable packaging by announcing key beauty launch in collaboration with Oceanworks

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This new sustainable collection includes an assortment of colour cosmetics that were developed in collaboration with Oceanworks®: these products were made with a focus on sustainability, including the use of renewable materials and reclaimed ocean-bound plastic.
“We are committed to finding innovative product and packaging solutions to support our sustainability goals. For example, we’re making it easier for Canadians to create more sustainable beauty routines with our Quo Beauty brand,” says Kelly Jessop, Vice President, Category Management, Shoppers Drug Mart. “Working with Oceanworks on select cosmetic products means that consumers can take an active role in reducing ocean plastic pollution with their beauty purchasing decisions.”

The Big Planet, Big Love collection from Quo Beauty includes colour cosmetics, hair and makeup accessories, nail colour and jewelry. The entire collection is vegan, cruelty-free and PETA-certified with a focus on sustainability. Packaging innovations include the use of Oceanworks reclaimed ocean-bound plastic in eye and face palettes (100%), facial mist bottles (76%) and lip/cheek products (37-45%). Product innovations include the launch of reusable accessories such as swabs and cleansing pads, and the use of bio-sourced materials from renewable vegetal sources in the brand’s plant-based nail colour range.

This is the latest in a long line of announcements related to Loblaw Companies Limited’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) efforts.  Notably, to help fight climate change, Loblaw is committed to ensuring all control brand and in-store plastic packaging will be fully reusable or recyclable by 2025.  The full scope of the Company’s ESG commitments can be found online at loblaw.ca/en/responsibility.

The Quo Beauty Big Planet Big Love collection is now available exclusively at Shoppers Drug Mart and Pharmaprix locations and shoppersdrugmart.ca.

Classaura Announces Labrada Products Class Action Settlement

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A proposed settlement has been reached in the case of Woodard v. Labrada, a class action lawsuit. The proposed settlement establishes a $625,000 settlement fund.

On July 7, 2021, United States District Court for the Central District of California, Judge Jesus G. Bernal, preliminarily approved a settlement of a lawsuit between Labrada and California purchasers of Labrada’s Green Coffee Bean Extract and Labrada Garcinia Cambogia. The class action claims that Labrada violated California’s consumer protection laws with misleading marketing of these products.  The defendant denies this…

The defendant denies this and the Court has made no decision on these issues. Rather than continue litigating the case in court, the two sides have agreed to a class action settlement.
The proposed settlement establishes a $625,000 settlement fund and eligible class members may be eligible for estimated cash payments of up to $5 for each product purchased up to a maximum of ten products if they have proof of purchase, and with a maximum of four products if they have no proof of purchase.

You are a Class Member if you purchased, in California, the Labrada Green Coffee Bean Extract product and/or the Labrada Garcinia Cambogia product, for personal or household use and not for resale, during the time period between February 2, 2012, until July 15, 2022.

You have a choice of whether to stay in the Class and participate in the Settlement or not, and you must decide this now. If you stay in the Class, you will be legally bound by all orders and judgments of the Court, and you will not be able to sue or continue to sue Labrada as part of any other lawsuit involving the same claims that are in this lawsuit. This is true even if you do nothing by not submitting a claim.  You can exclude yourself from the class, in which case you get no settlement payment but keep the right to sue over these claims at your own expense.  You can object to the settlement and tell the judge why you do not want the settlement to be approved.

You can file a claim to receive payment from the settlement fund at LabradaClassAction.com, as well as get more detailed information about this case, the settlement, and your options. If you need help, you can also ask questions by mail by writing to Labrada Products Class Action Settlement, c/o Classaura, 1718 Peachtree St NW #1080, Atlanta, GA 30309 or call 1-800-801-7097

Garden of Life Brings Three Times the Digestive Power With New Triple Action Dr. Formulated Probiotics

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“We learn more every day about the complexity of our gut microbiome and how it affects our overall health,” said Brian Ray, president of Garden of Life. “Our innovative triple-action formula provides the comprehensive gut support that’s so critical to our well-being in order to empower extraordinary health.”

The line of products couldn’t come at a better time as many Americans look to establish more normalcy in life, yet their stomachs may be keeping them from their regular routines. New data1 from Garden of Life reveals nearly all Americans (89%) report digestive issues are keeping them from feeling their best, and for one in three people, the problem is so extreme they say it has a huge impact on their life. But Americans are taking action to improve their digestion, as more than 2 in 5 Americans (44%) report taking supplements over the last 12 months in hopes of improving their gut health.

What’s Inside the Triple-Action Blend
The Garden of Life team worked collaboratively with David Perlmutter, M.D. – the actual doctor behind “Dr. Formulated” products – to create this exclusive triple action blend. As a distinguished fellow of the American College of Nutrition and New York Times best-selling author, Dr. Perlmutter is often referred to as “America’s Brain Health Expert.”

The specially formulated triple-action blend helps build and maintain a healthy gut biome. By combining prebiotics, probiotics and postbiotics, the elements of the triple-action formula work together to help weed out negative bacteria from the gut, add good bacteria, and give nourishment to help the balanced microbiome flourish.

Prebiotic: Built from carbohydrates that humans can’t digest, prebiotic fibre serves as an important food source for our gut bacteria to grow and reproduce. The proprietary PreforPro® prebiotic from Garden of Life is effective and fast-acting in a smaller dose, so it doesn’t cause the gas or bloating that other higher-dose prebiotics can cause.

Probiotic: With up to 18 different strains in each formulation, the probiotics included in the line are clinically studied, highly diverse and highly potent, designed to make an impact and support specific conditions.
Postbiotic: Supernatant can be considered an upcycled byproduct from the probiotic fermentation process. This postbiotic addition to the blend is rich in enzymes, acids, proteins, peptides and vitamins, and preliminary studies confirm it makes probiotics even more powerful.
The Full Triple Action Collection
With six varieties, the Triple Action Dr. Formulated Probiotics line is designed to have an option for everyone. And to promote health for both people and the planet, the line is also Non-GMO Project Verified and certified carbon neutral.

• Probiotics 30 Billion: Designed to be a probiotic that fits most people’s needs, this small-capsule probiotic is built for everyday wellness.
• Probiotics 100 Billion: This extra-strength formula is designed for those who may need a bit of extra support, whether they’ve had a poor diet recently or are seasoned probiotic users.
• Probiotics Immune†: With 14 probiotic strains, zinc and vitamin D3, this formula is designed to help support both the immune system and digestive health.
Probiotics Women’s pH: Formulated with vaginal health in mind, this probiotic includes specific strains that have been shown to support a healthy vaginal pH and promote yeast and bacterial balance.†
• Probiotics Gas & Bloating†: Designed for those whose digestive system may need a bit more attention, the probiotic strains and pre- and post-biotic blends all work together to effectively promote regularity and support digestive comfort.
• Probiotics Calm†: Evidence suggests that the microbiome influences the molecules our brain releases, hinting at the direct connection between the gut and the brain. This formula includes probiotic strains aimed at supporting mood and relaxation, with the added benefit of organic ashwagandha, which clinical studies show improves stress responses.

Also Introducing: Dr. Formulated Pre + Probiotic Gummies
In addition to the Triple Action line, Garden of Life is also introducing two new gummy Dr. Formulated Probiotics options for both children and adults. Formulated with prebiotics, probiotics and D3, these gummies balance great taste with high potency, offering multiple probiotic strains and a high CFU count at 10 billion for adults and 5 billion for children.

Affron® Saffron for Better, More Enjoyable Athletic Performance

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Pharmactive Biotech Products, S.L.U., moves into the sports nutrition sector following the results of the latest research[1] on its affron® natural saffron ingredient. The clinical study demonstrates two important findings: Affron improved enjoyment in sport active adults, and, in males, it can help increase the resilience to stress and anxiety by increasing the cardiac parasympathetic response that regulates post-exercise heart rate.
“While most consumers agree to exercise and physical activity are vital, especially after so many have spent too much of the past three years in lockdown, for most people routine exercise three times a week is hard and often is boring,” explains Jean-Marie Raymond, CEO for Pharmactive. “But if it’s possible to better enjoy the activity, it can create positive feedback that encourages doing more and maintaining a routine much longer.”

Although previous research demonstrated the pure, clean-label saffron ingredient can help promote better sleep and boost recovery for athletes, results of a new clinical study in Australia revealed that affron supplementation in recreationally active males was associated with increases in self-reported exercise enjoyment and positive Heart Rate Variability (HRV).

The six-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial included healthy, nonprofessional participants, aged 18 to 65 years, who performed moderate-to-intense aerobic exercise more than three times per week. Activities included such exercises as cycling, running, swimming, tennis, aerobics, and/or boxing. Study subjects were chosen using strict exclusion criteria. 62 volunteers participated in the study, and 59 completed it. Each subject took 14 mg of affron, two times per day.

The researchers provided participants with a standard sports wearable to measure HRV, allowing the subjects to engage with their watch and see results daily and in real-time. At the end of the trial, the male participants taking affron demonstrated statistically significant changes compared to the placebo group in heart rate variability (HRV), measured during bedtime. The HRV is an indicator of recovery as previously revealed in studies on adults with occasional stress and/or burnout, who exhibit decreased HRV.

“We decided to use a sports watch in the study model during sleep-time as it offers a very easy-to-use means of measuring heart rate. Using the sports watch, consumers can see for themselves the impact of affron in real-time and in the long term,” notes Raymond. To measure how much the volunteers enjoyed their workouts, the research team employed the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PAES). Results revealed a statistically significant increase in PAES score over time in the affron group, with no such increase in the placebo group. This suggests an improvement in enjoyment and mood with a daily intake of affron.

“Affron’s positive effect on heart rate and workout enjoyment could be attributed to various physiological mechanisms at play,” adds Alberto Espinel, Head of Strategic R&D in Active and Functional Natural Ingredients for Pharmactive. “Previous animal studies have endorsed it role in reducing stress hormones such as cortisol while raising the “happy hormones” serotonin and dopamine. The botanical also demonstrated a relaxant effect on smooth muscles and blood vessels. Studies suggest it may even positively interact with the gut flora, which affects the nervous system. Moreover, saffron is touted as a potent anti-oxidant anti-inflammatory.”

Pharmactive’s affron is naturally extracted from saffron with full control by the company from farm to shelf. It is water-soluble and versatile across multiple applications, including supplements, powders, and shots. The recommended amount of affron is 28 mg per day, either enjoyed in a single dose or split into two 14 mg doses per day.

RBC envisions Canada steering toward a recession in 2023

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According to Bloomberg, the Royal Bank of Canada is anticipating this country will likely endure a “moderate and short-lived” recession next year as the economy succumbs to the pressure brought on by stubborn inflation, higher rates, and constraints in the labour market.

“This recession will be moderate and short-lived by historical standards—and can be reversed once inflation settles enough for central banks to lower rates,” economists Nathan Janzen and Claire Fan wrote in their latest report.

RBC’s outlook includes back-to-back annualized contractions of half a percentage point in the middle quarters of next year, before returning to growth of 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Nonetheless, Janzen and Fan warned the Bank of Canada can’t afford to take its foot off the gas in the fight against inflation.

“Though higher rates will technically push Canada toward a contraction, the Bank of Canada now has little choice but to act. … A scenario in which Canadians believe inflation will run well past the bank’s target range of one to three percent could upend almost three decades of exceptionally effective inflation targeting policy. It could also require much larger and more damaging interest rate hikes to re-anchor prices,” they wrote.

The Bank of Canada is widely expected to hike its target for the overnight interest rate to 2.25 percent from 1.5 percent at its policy meeting next week. That would be the fourth time the rate has gone up this year as the central bank attempts to wrestle down inflation that is sitting at close to a 40-year high of 7.7 percent. RBC is expecting the consumer price index will rise at least 5.0 percent through the first quarter of 2023, and will eventually slide back into the Bank of Canada’s target range of one to three percent in the third quarter of next year, but without quite reaching the goal of 2.0 percent.

While a recession appears to be in the offing, RBC’s economists said they expect the unemployment rate will only rise modestly compared to past downturns as businesses are already struggling amid a “historic labour squeeze.

That squeeze was evident earlier this week in the Bank of Canada’s latest Business Outlook Survey, which showed four out of every ten respondents said their company was facing a labour shortage, and 68 percent said the tight labour conditions were worse than a year earlier. Those dynamics are compelling employers to pay up more for talent: 73 percent of respondents said they’re expecting to pay higher wages over the next year, with an average pay hike of 5.8 percent.

With unemployment sitting at a record low of 5.1 percent as of May, RBC is estimating the rate will rise to 6.6 percent next year as the economic downturn plays out. That rise of one-and-a-half percentage points would be small by historical standards: RBC looked at past recessions and found the unemployment rate rose from as little as 0.6 percent (in 1951-53) to as much as a seven-point surge in 2019-20).

Source: Bloomberg

Good Natured Products Inc. Announces the Closing of its Acquisition of Houston-based FormTex Plastics

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The company announced that, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, it has closed the acquisition of all the business and operating assets of Houston-based FormTex Plastics Corporation (“FormTex”) for cash consideration of approximately USD $4.8 million (the “Acquisition”). The Acquisition will be funded in cash from the Company’s treasury.

“We are very pleased to complete this Acquisition and welcome everyone at FormTex to the good natured® family,” said Paul Antoniadis, CEO of good natured®. “The addition of FormTex expands the scope and reach of our packaging business, in line with the strategic direction we’ve communicated, and we believe there is material upside potential for revenue and profitability through capacity expansion, supply chain improvements and cost synergies previously disclosed.”

“We believe partnering with good natured® is a win-win scenario for our valued employees and customers,” said Mark Anselmo, co-owner of FormTex. “It is a very strong strategic fit, and we see the same path to much larger and more profitable operations leveraging greater access to capital and good natured®’s internally produced extruded roll stock capacity. This in turn will enable us to have a more significant positive environmental impact by producing more sustainable packaging solutions that the market is demanding.”

Founded in 1989, FormTex produces custom plastic packaging for the medical, food, electronic, industrial, and retail end markets. FormTex is ISO 9001:2015 certified in the design and manufacture of thermoplastic molded components and operates seven different thermoforming machines in a leased 51,000 square foot facility on 1.9 acres of land in Houston, Texas.

Key Highlights of the Acquisition:

• FormTex generated unaudited revenue of approximately USD $4.9 million and adjusted EBITDA1 of approximately USD $0.6 million in the calendar year ended December 2021 (or “FY2021”).
• FormTex generated unaudited revenue of USD $5.1 million for the trailing twelve months ended February 28, 2022.
• FormTex generated an unaudited gross margin rate of approximately 42% in FY2021.
• The Acquisition includes a minimum of USD $650,000 of net working capital as part of the purchase price.
• The Acquisition adds 30 business-to-business (“B2B”) accounts to the Company’s active B2B customer base.
• The current management team operating FormTex will be joining the good-natured® team.
• Highly strategic and synergistic acquisition that is expected to be immediately accretive to shareholders on an adjusted EBITDA1 basis.
• Expected to provide cost synergies of approximately USD $0.2 to $0.3 million in the twelve months following the close of the Acquisition.

Key Strategic Highlights:

• Strategic access to Texas and the Southern US. Texas is the world’s 9th largest and the United States’ 2nd largest economy by GDP.2

• Good natured® is expected to supply FormTex’s extruded rollstock sheet requirements from its Ex-Tech facility, which is expected to result in material positive financial synergies.
• Significant potential to increase FormTex’s current capacity utilization rate of 40% through higher production uptime and add new capacity with additional thermoforming machines in the current facility footprint, and utilization of additional warehousing space.
• FormTex’s proximity to one of the 10 largest outbound shipping endpoints in North America will significantly reduce shipping costs to the Company’s customers in the southern United States.
• FormTex’s location provides direct access to the 6th largest U.S. container port, creating a highly efficient port of entry for raw materials coming from Europe and South America.
good natured® will be able to leverage Houston-based manufacturing, importing, warehousing, and logistics to service the southeastern U.S. market, which includes Florida (the 4th largest state by GDP), Georgia (the 9th largest state by GDP), and North Carolina (the 11th largest state by GDP).
• All FormTex customers are net new customers not currently being serviced by the • Company, creating cross-selling opportunities for other good natured® products and services.
• The Acquisition was an arm’s length transaction and is subject to customary post-closing adjustments.

Modern Plant-Based Foods increased production of modern meat products to meet upcoming demand

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The company has secured an additional Canadian copacker for its plant-based meats under the company’s subsidiary Modern Meat Inc., (“Modern Meat”). The Modern Meat portfolio currently includes the Modern Crab Cakes, Modern Burger, Modern Mini Burger, Modern Crumble, Modern Meatballs and Modern Gyoza. The food processing centre is a leader in food production hosting roughly 40,000 square feet of processing space and experience working with Fortune 500 companies.
The co-packing facility currently produces plant-based products and has worked with high moisture meat analogues (HMMA) for over a decade. The facility has received its certifications for CFIA, Halal, Organic, and HACCP. They currently offer incubation suites for scalability, product development and innovation suites for developing new products, ingredient innovation suites for processing proteins and various starches required for the products. The board of directors for the facility includes industry professionals with diverse expertise in food processing, ingredient sourcing and business operations providing the company access to a new network within the Canadian food market. The facility allows access to additional services including nutritional labelling, packaging evaluation, shelf-life testing, and product formulation.

“As demand continues to grow for our Modern Meat products, we have been working to find a suitable additional copacker for our plant-based meats. With the unique specifications and high standard of food safe compliance we maintain, it has a been long arduous search to find a partner that can deal with our potential scale and as well maintain the high-quality Modern Meat is known for.” States CEO Avtar Dhaliwal. “We feel confident in our sales funnel and ongoing conversation with vendors and by securing this copacker we will be able to keep up with production to meet our potential demand.”

Modern Meat currently sells and distributes its product in both food service and retail formats to maximize sales revenue opportunities as the world more widely accepts and creates demand for plant-based products.

The Very Good Food Company announces eastern U.S. retail expansion with the giant company

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The Very Good Food Company Inc has increased its U.S. retail presence via a new agreement with The Giant Company (“Giant”). With Giant’s presence throughout Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia as well as online shopping and delivery to New Jersey, this retail distribution significantly expands VERY GOOD’S product availability on the U.S. Eastern Seaboard.

Giant has made the strategic decision to increase its assortment of plant-based foods as it strengthens its emphasis on healthy eating, and the retailer believes VERY GOOD’s product offering will attract a wide range of shoppers, from those avoiding animal products to others trying flexitarian or vegetarian diets.  VERY GOOD’S Butcher’s Select line including Mmm Meatballs, Cajun, and Bratwurst Sausages, along with The Stuffed Beast from Very Good Butchers’ original line of products, will be placed within the Healthy, Natural, Organic (HNO) section of Giant stores.

VERY GOOD’s CEO, Parimal Rana, commented on the Company’s new distribution with Giant. “This is yet another win for our team in line with our refocused strategy of expanding our retail footprint Giant is known as a forward-thinking company and has a history of successfully introducing innovative brands to consumers. Their inclusion of our Meatballs, Cajun & Bratwurst sausages, and The Stuffed Beast products is yet another opportunity for us to gain new customer adoption. With our natural and clean plant-based ingredients, we are confident in our products’ ability to perform well within Giant’s HNO venue”.

Bon Natural Life Limited Announces Change to Board Composition

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The company announced the appointment of Jeffrey Guzy, as a new independent Director to its Board of Directors and as Chair of the Audit Committee.
Mr. Christopher Constable resigned as a director of the Company for personal reasons and stepped down as a member and chairman of the audit committee of the Board. The resignation of Mr. Constable did.
The resignation of Mr. Constable did not result from any dispute or disagreement with the Company or the Board on any matter relating to the Company’s operations, policies or practices.
Mr. Jeffrey Guzy has had key executive positions at several large international companies, including Loral Space, Sprint International, Verizon and IBM.  Mr. Guzy is a private investor and advisor to Aprize Satellite and to several other hi-tech companies. Mr. Guzy has an MBA in Strategic Planning and Management from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, an M.S. in Systems Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania; a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Penn State University; and a Certificate in Theology from Georgetown University. Mr. Guzy’s extensive business and financial oversight experience led to the conclusion that he should serve as a director and qualify as an audit committee financial expert.Mr. Yongwei Hu, CEO and Chairman of BON stated, “We thank Chris for his service to us as our board member and wish him all the best in his future endeavours. At the same time, we are excited to welcome Jeffrey as a new independent director to BON’s Board. Jeffrey’s experience will complement our existing directors’ skills and experiences, and he will provide critical insight and direction as we continue to expand our operations. We look forward to Jeffrey’s contributions and expect to leverage his financial and governance experience in furtherance of our growth in the coming years.”

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