$5.6bn green fund to buy liquified natural gas-powered vessels for Japan’s shippers
With Japan’s goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, the Tokyo-based Anchor Ship Partners will launch an approximately 600 billion yen ($5.65 billion) vehicle as early as this month in order to aid decarbonization efforts in the shipping sector. The fund will purchase fuel-efficient new liquified natural gas carriers to lease to logistics providers such as Nippon Yusen, Mitsui O.S.K Lines and Kawasaki Kisen.
By bringing more LNG to Japan, Anchor Ship hopes it will encourage power plants and other facilities to switch from more carbon-intensive alternatives such as coal and petroleum. The ships themselves will also run on LNG. The Japanese government is keen to increase the share of renewables in energy production and to cut logistics-sector emissions, as part of its 2050 goal. They are also looking to curb carbon dioxide emissions in maritime shipping by 86%.
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Tech demand drives Asia’s factory revival but China’s activity at slowest pace
Demand for manufactured goods drove extended growth in factories across Europe and Asia in February, but a slowdown in China underscored the challenges that countries are facing as they seek a sustainable recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Manufacturing activity in Japan expanded at the fastest pace in over two years, and South Korea’s exports rose for a fourth straight month, suggesting Asia’s export-reliant economies were benefiting from robust global trade. However, China’s factory activity grew at the slowest pace in nine months after being hit by a domestic flare-up of COVID-19 and soft demand from countries under renewed lockdown measures.
But household consumption, while recovering, has not yet fully reached pre-pandemic levels of growth due to continued labor market pressure. With the global rebound still in its early days, analysts said the outlook was brightening as companies increase output to restock inventory and hope that vaccine rollouts will normalize economic activity.
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Beyond Meat becomes McDonald’s preferred supplier for McPlant
McDonald’s and Yum Brands have announced a strategic 3-year partnership with plant-based meat producer Beyond Meat. As part of McDonald’s partnership, Beyond Meat will serve as its preferred supplier for the patty in the plant-based McPlant burger, which is currently being tested in select markets around the world. Beyond Meat will also explore co-developing other plant-based items such as chicken, pork and egg as part of McDonald’s McPlant platform.
Beyond Meat have said they are prepared for quick-service volumes, and that the company has since expanded its production capabilities in 2020, including the acquisition of a co-packer it had worked with in Pennsylvania, a new manufacturing facility in the Netherlands and the development of facilities in China.
But the availability of plant-based offerings at these two mega chains changes the market, not just from a production and supply chain perspective, but in terms of diner expectation – Customers will start expecting to get the plant-based burger anywhere if McDonald’s offer it at any of their 14,000 US locations. With more restaurants and revenue than any other food chains, McDonald’s and Yum Brands hope to bring plant-based meat into the mainstream menus of millions of people.
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