Supermodel backs Bubs vitamins
Specialist goat milk formula company Bubs Australia is expanding its product horizon into children's vitamins.
Bubs has signed a sales contract with Chemist Warehouse for its new Vita Bubs range, and also signed up international supermodel Jennifer Hawkins (pictured) in a three year deal to become the company's brand ambassador.
Chief executive officer, Kristy Carr said the vitamin and mineral supplements category provided the infant formula company with the chance to leverage its position as a children's nutrition specialist with a complementary brand extension
The new range involves formulations tailored for newborns through to 12-year-olds, made from premium ingredients including Australian goat milk lactoferrin and colostrum and probiotics to address youth immunity bone development and digest health concerns in children.
Ms Carr said former Miss Universe winner Jennifer Hawkins, also a new mother herself, was a perfect role model to represent the brand to new parents worldwide.
Nuchev goat formula offer
Recently-listed goat milk formula company Nuchev is conducting a $15 million capital raising to help it ride the uncertain business conditions caused by coronavirus.
Nuchev, which sells the Oli6 infant formula brand, is offering one share for every 8.7 held by shareholders, priced at $2.33 - or a 14 per cent discount to the company's recent five day average trading price.
Its shares listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in December for $2.60.
The company sells much of its product to China and locally through Coles supermarkets and Chemist Warehouse, which is also a minority shareholder.
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Beston's sale approved
Beston Global Food Company has had the $40.4 million sale of its dairy farms at Mount Gambier, South Australia approved by the Foreign Investment Review Board and settlement is expected by late August.
The sale to deal to Victorian farming conglomerate Aurora Dairies, involves retaining a 17 million litre a year milk supply from the farms for 10 years, plus a further 24m litres from Aurora's other farms in the SA-Victoria border region.
Aurora is part-owned by the Canadian Public Sector Pension Fund and required foreign investment regulatory approval for the purchase.
Beston has also completed a $1.1 equity raising from shareholders and will issue a further 13.6m shares valued at 0.85 cents each - the same price as a $10m institutional share offer completed last month.
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Rural Funds buys cane land
RURAL Funds Management has paid $81 million to buy 5400 hectares of cane farmland in Queensland from Thai-owned MSF Sugar to convert to macadamia nuts production.
RFM's purchase of the land, plant and equipment and 8060 megalitres of water at Maryborough is expected to be settled in October.
"RFM intends to progressively convert the farms to approximately 2200ha of macadamia orchards, with a substantial portion of the remaining area able to be used for cropping," the company said.
It was in discussions with several potential lessees to take over the properties and was also considering an option to buy additional water rights.
The deal puts pressure on the Maryborough sugar mill and its 90 farmer supplies as a significant amount of land in the district will no longer produce cane.
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Dairy farmer to organic board
Organic dairy farmer Jane Campbell has joined the Australian Organic board of directors, replacing Leo Watling.
She currently divides her time between operations she runs with her husband Ian - Barambah Organics, near Goondiwindi, Queensland, and East Coast Sustainable Dairy in Raleigh on the NSW Mid North Coast - and also oversees production facilities in Darra, Brisbane.
Ms Campbell has more than 20 years' organic dairy farming experience.
"We're thrilled to welcome Jane as she brings with her a level of dairy industry experience we have not previously had at board level," said Australian Organic chief executive officer.
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Rex returns to Grafton
Regional Express is to reinstate air services to the NSW Clarence Valley region on August 17 after previously quitting flights to Grafton because of a tiff with the local council.
Last month Rex abandoned the Grafton leg of its triangulated service between Sydney and the Far North Coast when a local councillor was verbally hostile about the airline's request for a $9000 credit note from airport operator Clarence Valley Council.
Rex halted the service on July 3 despite the council sending a letter to the airline regretting the "colloquial" language used by Councillor Debrah Novak.
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Regional grants on offer
The Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal's flagship grants program is inviting applications for grants of up to $10,000 through its "Small & Vital" stream, and up to $25,000 through the program's new "Bushfire Recovery" stream.
Thanks to generous support from FRRR's donor partners, the Small & Vital stream has $615,000 available to fund projects supporting initiatives which directly benefit rural, regional and remote communities across Australia.
A further $650,000 is available to support the recovery of communities hit by last summer's bushfires.
FRRR chief executive officer Natalie Egleton said rural communities played a vital role in Australia's prosperity, and with the impacts and ongoing uncertainty around COVID-19 it was more important than ever to keep funds flowing into regional areas.
The grants were offered as part of its Strengthening Rural Communities program.
"We know from our experience in the past 20 years that those affected by the bushfires have a long road ahead of them, and what is needed for their recovery will be different in every place," said Ms Egleton.
"That's why we have created the Bushfire Recovery stream within the SRC program," said Ms Egleton.
- Applications must be submitted by August 25. More details are available at www.frrr.org.au
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Beekeeper biosecurity course
The Biosecurity for Beekeepers online course is now being offered free for all beekeepers to help protect the honey bee industry from pests and diseases.
The course was previously only free for commercial beekeepers who had 50 or more hives.
Australian Honey Bee Industry Council chairman Trevor Weatherhead said AHBIC funding would enable courses to be accessed at no cost after financial help was provided by state and territory governments.
"This is a great step towards improving bee biosecurity standards across Australia which will help ensure the industry's sustainability into the future," he said.
Completing an approved pest and disease management course is an industry requirement for all beekeepers with more than 50 hives.
The course, which takes about 90 minutes to work through, has also been refreshed to ensure it remains current and relevant.
It covers topics such as checking hives for pests and diseases; identifying exotic and established pests of honey bees, and how to minimise the impact of pests and diseases on hives.
- To register visit beeaware.org.au/training