Before long consumers will expect the entire food supply chain to be fully transparent in real-time
QR codes have been in our lives for a long time. Before the pandemic, we used them a few times a year on average. Now, most Canadians will use a QR code almost every week and, in some cases, daily. Implications for the food industry could be significant. Once deemed a clever tool used occasionally,…
But the industry will do everything it can so you don’t notice
Coffee is one of the most traded commodities in the world. In Canada, we don’t grow coffee – yet – but we love our daily cup of java. Over 90 per cent of Canadians are coffee drinkers. But coffee is getting ridiculously expensive. In 2020, Canada was ranked fifth highest in the world based on…
There has been a 73 per cent increase in calls to Alberta Poison and Drug Information Service in 2020
Our obsession with killing germs during the COVID-19 pandemic has had an unintended and dangerous consequence, according to the University of Alberta’s Injury Prevention Centre: a sharp increase in unintentional poisonings due to hand sanitizers, disinfectants and household cleaners. Calls to Alberta’s Poison and Drug Information Service (PADIS) related to these products have increased by 73 per cent…
The goal is less about the interests of consumers and more about funnelling money to special interest groups
Were the consequences not so serious, Canada’s chaotic venture into the regulation of content on the Web might be consigned to the realm of thigh-slapping farce. The government’s goal, it was learned last week, will be to focus programming funding on the needs of ethnic, racial, language and sexual identities in a fashion so ill-defined…
Price controls undermine investment, remove incentive for innovation and backfire for consumers
There’s a pervasive belief in Canada that wireless phone service prices are a ripoff. To suggest otherwise is heresy. Countless commentaries provide fodder for this belief, and every few years a politician takes on the purported problem. In the mid-2010s, for example, Industry Minister James Moore supported the entry of Verizon, although the U.S.-based prospective…
U of A experts offer tips on how to handle your money during the pandemic – including decontaminating bills and coins
Many businesses worried about COVID-19 contamination are touchy about taking cash, but the greater risk may be in overusing our plastic. Shoppers using credit or debit cards for every purchase instead of cash and coins will have to watch their spending habits, said Mike Maier, a financial expert with the Alberta School of Business at the University…
Regardless of your age, abilities or lifestyle, you can benefit from a low-cardio seated elliptical workout
It’s always smart to inject a little more physical activity into our lives, regardless of where we are on our fitness journey. But sometimes we lack the time or energy for that much-needed workout. The good news is the solution, Cubii Jr., can sit right under your feet. Cubii Jr. is a compact elliptical trainer…
It has a compact design and works super-fast, plus it has adapters for use in 200 countries so is great for travel
A one-size-fits-all travel-sized multi-port charger for the majority of our gadgets may seem impossible. But Zendure seems to think its new Passport II Pro will do the trick. So do their followers. In fact, the company’s recent Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign was fully funded in just two hours. Sixty-one watts of power The new-generation Zendure Passport…Study of fashion blogger’s account of wearing the same dress every day for a year shows how much we depend on possessions
When you exclaim “I love that!” about a favourite possession, do you really mean it? A University of Alberta study based on a fashion blog is asking people to think more deeply about what they own – and whether they really need to buy more. A year of reflections in Frock Around the Clock, a blog about…
An accounting expert offers a wealth of advice – starting with not letting your net worth define your self-worth
People struggling to pay their debts in a crippled COVID-19 economy can’t avoid tough choices but shouldn’t let it crush them, says a University of Alberta financial expert. Feelings of fear, frustration or shame can overwhelm the clear-headed thinking needed to tackle tough times, but try not to internalize it, advised Mike Maier, an accounting…