I was browsing through some Google Hong Kong search results last week (I don't know why as I can't read Chinese) and came across a character called "Ginger the Big" (see right). Apparently, this little fellow is the key brand for Shandong Manhing Food Company who were selected as the exclusive ginger supplier at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. I really must come up with a little character of my own.
Still on a sporting theme, I discovered that GingerLove, a rather nice ginger tea from Belgium, will sponsor the female Belgian beach volleyball team as they prepare for next year's Olympics. Incidentally, you can read our review of GingerLove on the All Things Ginger website.
Manila Standard Today reported on a Philippines government scheme to encourage farmers in the Highlands to switch from illegally growing marijuana to making an honest living from other crops. Farmers in the towns of Kapangan and Kibungan have chosen to grow ginger on a large scale whilst farmers elsewhere have opted for a range of activities from cattle and pig farming to silkworms.
I came across an unusual use for ginger the other day when I read on nebusiness.co.uk about the recent launch of a ginger muscle rub. Natural Hero, a UK start-up in the north east of England, has developed a couple of herbal rubefacient products including one called Hot Ginger Muscle Rub. The company has worked with experts in medicinal plant research and molecular dermatology at Newcastle University to develop the products which contain 98pc natural ingredients. Although these products have been commercially available for a couple of months, they are still being tested by a range of athletes including runners, cyclists and surfers. I gather the ginger rub does not have much of a smell which, for me, is a big plus point.
The Jamaica Observer reported that the Jamaican Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries will be reviewing the number of crops which the country grows commercially. The idea behind this exercise is that the country should be concentrating on those crops which have a competitive and comparative advantage. The minister, Robert Montague, says that the ministry should "put all our resources behind them and, therefore, maximise the earnings from them". It is planned that the current level of 64 crops will be reduced to 20 core crops, one of which will be ginger. This appears to be a case of a government adopting a business practice which has become common in recent years - downsizing and concentrating on core products and values.
Having just said that Jamaica will be putting more resources into ginger, the government must be livid that the ginger industry has just failed to win a J$500 million (US$6m) contract to supply ginger to US-based Reed's Inc, one of the largest naturally brewed ginger soft drinks manufacturers in North America. The Gleaner reported that Chris Reed, the founder and CEO of Reed's, had been unable to find a reliable supplier and also had issues obtaining an export licence. Reed's will now import 1.5 million pounds of ginger a year from South America (which I assume means Brazil). The Jamaican government believes that the country has the potential to supply 170 tons of ginger but is only exporting a mere 15 tons. The Reed's contract could have increased the export market from 170 to 820 tons, a figure which will surely give both the government and the industry itself food for thought.
The Hindu reported that police in the Indian state of Kerala are hoping to reduce night-time accidents by offering drivers ginger coffee. Certain points on the State Highway are known accident black-spots with nearly 300 people killed so far this year. The police are concentrating their resources (and ginger coffee) at these locations, particularly during the Sabarimala season. (Sabarimala is a Hindu pilgrimage centre in Kerala which attracts 45-50 million followers a year).
I knew Crabbie's wouldn't be out of the news for long. Last week Halewood International, who own the alcoholic ginger beer, reported a massive rise in pre-tax profits from £8.8m to £15.8m. Oh, I'm sure that I saw Crabbie's on sale at Tesco yesterday at 3 for £5.
Congratulations to the pupils of Pathways to Technology Magnet High School in Windsor, Connecticut who have just won the Innovative Beverage category in the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship World Series of Innovation competition. They created GinTropic, described by Hartford Business Journal as "a caffeine-free, tropical fruit juice-infused line of ginger ale soft drinks aimed specifically at improving brand recognition and sales of Seagram’s ginger ale by Coca-Cola". The category was sponsored by Coca-Cola.
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