Hot and dry summer weather leading to drought conditions across England could increase food prices and cause shortages, according to the British Retail Consortium and agricultural experts.
Drought and extreme heat in the UK are severely impacting crops like lettuce, broccoli, peas, and carrots, leading to halved yields, significant price increases, and increased reliance on imports from Spain and Holland. Supermarkets warn of threats to Britain's food security.
Narelle Labuts, 61, an accountant for the Singh Group's IGA supermarkets in NSW, has been jailed for three and a half years for defrauding $878,000 over four years, primarily for gambling. She will be eligible for parole in July 2028.
Schwarz Group, Germany's retail giant, is investing heavily in digitalization and AI with its new Schwarz Digits Campus in Bad Friedrichshall. Aiming for digital independence for Europe, the company is building data centers and an AI innovation park, challenging US and Chinese tech dominance.
Hundreds queued and scuffles broke out at Lidl stores across France on Thursday during a sale of discounted fans and air conditioners. Police intervened at several locations as demand surged due to an upcoming heatwave.
Hundreds of people besieged Lidl supermarkets in and around Paris on Thursday, with scuffles breaking out as residents scrambled to buy bargain air-cooling units priced as low as €179 before an anticipated heatwave. Police were called to multiple stores due to the massive crowds.
A YouGov survey found nearly half of UK adults find it hard to access emergency contraception on Sundays, and two-thirds after 10 pm. The College of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare advocates reclassifying the 'morning-after pill' for direct sale in shops.
Brexit has severely impacted British farming, with a 47% drop in EU exports, cheaper imports from Australia, and subsidy reforms leading to plummeting incomes for farmers like Liz Webster, who faces a £400 per animal price drop for her beef cattle.
A power outage affecting Worldpay, a major payment processing platform, caused widespread disruption to card payments in UK supermarkets and pubs on Tuesday. Customers reported issues with contactless payments and long queues at ATMs, with some venues only accepting cash.
Lao Gan Ma's chilli crisp, featuring the "old godmother" Tao Huabi, has become a UK supermarket staple and social media sensation. Its spicy, crunchy, umami flavour is inspiring a cottage industry of independent producers in Britain, who are innovating with diverse ingredients and flavours.
Lidl, a German supermarket chain, is rapidly expanding in the UK, opening new stores and investing heavily. It has become the fifth-largest chain, surpassing Morrisons, with a market share of 8.6%. Its sales grew by 8.8% in the year ending February 2025.
Readers discuss the security benefits and drawbacks of passkeys, with some finding them confusing and others championing them as a superior alternative to passwords.
Duck blood is a popular food in China, known for its smooth texture and rich iron content. Despite its affordability, concerns about its authenticity and safety are common. This article clarifies how duck blood is made, explains the difference between smooth and porous textures, and debunks myths about it being "blood waste," capable of "clearing the lungs," or being a cure for anemia.
Japan's food sector is experiencing severe shortages of plastic bags, trays, and gloves due to dwindling naphtha supplies from the Middle East. This has led to price hikes, customer incentives for reusable items, and government pressure.
Global food production faces significant disruption from the Iran war and El Niño, threatening UK food security. Experts warn the UK's reliance on global markets and its vulnerable domestic system require an overhaul to ensure resilience against climate change and geopolitical shocks.
Marks & Spencer CEO Stuart Machin slammed a government proposal for voluntary food price caps as 'preposterous', urging tax and regulatory relief instead. He cited increased costs from new levies and global conflict impacting M&S's profits, which fell nearly 24% last year due to a cyber-attack.
UK government ministers are urging supermarkets to voluntarily freeze prices on essential groceries like eggs, bread, and milk. However, they will not impose mandatory price caps, a proposal met with strong criticism from industry figures who warn of unintended consequences and forced losses.
The UK government is reportedly urging supermarkets to voluntarily limit price rises on key groceries in exchange for eased regulations. Retail industry sources suggest the plan, which the British Retail Consortium calls "1970s style price controls" and warns would force retailers to sell at a loss, aims to help families with costs.
UK supermarkets have rejected a government proposal to freeze prices on essential foodstuffs, citing rising costs and potential negative impacts on shoppers. The Scottish National Party has also proposed price controls on 20-50 items.
A viral TikTok video sparked debate on dogs in public spaces in the UK. While some see increased dog-friendliness as positive, others cite hygiene, safety, and impact on assistance dogs as concerns.
Live facial recognition technology is being used to fight crime, but raises concerns about surveillance and accuracy.
Hong Kong’s smaller grocers are bracing for pressure amid a fresh wave of price cuts by supermarkets and big retail chains, but some economists say their “neighbourhood connection” could help them stay afloat. A lawmaker also said it was unlikely the big local chains would monopolise the market citing strong competition from online shopping platforms. The latest price war erupted ahead of Mother’s Day on Sunday, with CK Hutchison-backed ParknShop and Jardine Matheson’s Wellcome each offering 12...
The group’s latest triumph won over the Department for Business and Trade, now it is eyeing private care providers and supermarketsA paragon of the kind of people-powered progress that feels all the more necessary in divisive times, the Living Wage campaign, is celebrating its25th anniversary this year.Born out of Telco (The East London Citizens’ Organisation), which ultimately became the nationwide group Citizens UK, the campaign has always involved communities working together, to press for social and economic change. Continue reading...
Hongkongers packed the aisles of supermarkets with carts full of daily necessities as the city’s major grocery chains engaged in what some were calling a “price war” ahead of Mother’s Day. Hong Kong’s two major supermarket chains, CK Hutchison Holdings-backed ParknShop and Jardine Matheson’s Wellcome, each offered 12 per cent off everything in their stores for those who bought a certain amount of goods on Saturday. HKTVmall, the city’s popular online shopping platform, entered the fray and...
