Nestl launches food line targeting Ozempic, other weight-loss drug users

Published

1 month ago

May 22, 2024

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Nestl is launching a line of food products tailored to people using weight-loss medication in an effort to capitalize on a market expected to reach $30 billion in the next six years.

Under its new Vital Pursuit brand, the global food giant plans to launch 12 products ranging from frozen protein pasta, sandwich melts and pizzas, all of which are made with a higher amount of protein and essential nutrients like iron, vitamin A and potassium. They are also “portion-aligned to a weight loss medication users appetite,” the company said.

It’s the first time the company, known for brands like DiGiorno pizza and Nesquik, created a food brand that’s specifically intended for glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) users.

GLP-1 agonists are a class of Type 2 diabetes drugs that improves blood sugar control but may also lead to weight loss. Semaglutide, which is the active ingredient in Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Ozempic, as well as tirzepatide, which is the active ingredient in Eli Lily’s Mounjaro and Zepbound, are considered GLP-1 drugs.

They have surged in popularity in recent years as people touted the drugs’ weight-loss effects. In turn, food executives are noticing some shoppers’ habits are changing.

For instance, Walmart U.S. CEO John Furner said during an earnings call in November that while it was still too early to tell how this will affect customers and the business, the company has seen “some shifts in categories.”

Before that, Furner acknowledged in an interview with Bloomberg that the company sees “a slight pullback in overall basket.”

“Just less units, slightly less calories,” he said.

At the same time, Nestl sees an opportunity to be at the “forefront” of what it says is a “growing market opportunity.”

Earlier this month, Novo Nordisk told FOX Business that at least 25,000 Americans are beginning treatment with Wegovy each week and that figure is growing.

The Danish pharmaceutical giant, which has been ramping up production capacity to meet demand, said that there are currently “four times” the number of U.S. patients starting the medication compared with December 2023.

In 2023, one in 60 adults were prescribed a GLP-1 medication, according to the American Pharmacists Association.

By 2030, the number of GLP-1 users in the U.S. could reach 30 million, or around 9% of the overall population, according to JPMorgan. The market is projected to exceed $100 billion by that same year, “driven equally by diabetes and obesity usage,” the firm noted.

“As the use of medications to support weight loss continues to rise, we see an opportunity to serve those consumers,” Nestl North America CEO Steve Presley said. “Were leveraging our deep understanding of consumers and nutritional science to stay ahead of the trends that are shaping consumer behaviors, and innovating across our portfolio to deliver products people will love.”

Nestl said it plans to sell the products for less than $5, but that prices may vary by retailer.

They will hit stores in the fourth quarter of 2024.

Entertainment

Sabrina Carpenter: US singer breaks Ariana Grande’s UK chart record

Published

2 hours ago

June 21, 2024

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Sabrina Carpenter: US singer breaks Ariana Grande's UK chart record

Sabrina Carpenter has set a new UK chart record by becoming the youngest female artist to take the top two singles spots in the same week.

The US singer reached number one on the Official Charts Company rundown with Please Please Please, pushing Espresso, which had been at the top for five weeks, down to number two.

Please Please Please totalled 9.8 million combined streams, while Espresso came in second with 8.1 million streams.

At the age of 25 years, one month and 10 days, Carpenter overtakes Ariana Grande, the previous youngest holder of the record, by around six months.

Grande achieved the same two-spot hold in the same week when she was 25 years, seven months and 20 days old in February 2019 with 7 Rings at number one and Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored at number two.

Eminem is at number three this week with Houdini, while Billie Eilish’s Birds Of A Feather is at number four, followed by Shaboozey’s A Bar Song (Tipsy).

Taylor Swift doesn’t make the top five, but sets a new personal best in the albums chart with a seventh week at the top.

The Tortured Poets Department earns a seventh non-consecutive week at number one, surpassing 2022’s Midnights which spent five weeks at the summit.

Swift is in the UK for her Eras Tour, and will take to the stage in London’s Wembley Stadium on Friday evening.

At number two is US singer-songwriter Eilish’s latest record Hit Me Hard And Soft, while British singer Charli XCX’s Brat came in at number three.

In fourth spot is Canadian musician The Weeknd’s greatest hits collection The Highlights.

British rock group Sea Girls also celebrate a hat-trick of top five albums as their third studio collection Midnight Butterflies makes its debut at number five.

The group previously saw success with 2020’s Open Up Your Head and 2022 LP Homesick, which both reached number three.

Sports

Kansas gov. signs effort to entice Chiefs, Royals

Published

2 hours ago

June 21, 2024

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Kansas gov. signs effort to entice Chiefs, Royals

Associated Press

Jun 21, 2024, 01:31 PM ET

TOPEKA, Kan. — Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly signed legislation Friday enabling the state to lure the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs and Major League Baseball’s Royals away from neighboring Missouri by helping the teams pay for new stadiums.

Kelly’s action came three days after the Republican-led Legislature approved the measure with bipartisan supermajorities — an unusually quick turnaround that signals how urgently Kansas officials consider making the offers.

Missouri officials have argued that discussions about building new stadiums are still in the early stages. They said construction of a new one typically takes about three years and pointed out that the lease on the existing complex that includes the teams’ side-by-side stadiums doesn’t end until January 2031.

The measure Kelly signed takes effect July 1 and will allow bonds to cover 70% of a new stadium’s cost. Kansas would have 30 years to pay them off with revenues from sports betting, state lottery ticket sales, and new sales and alcohol taxes generated in the area around each proposed stadium.

The Kansas-Missouri border splits the 2.3 million-resident Kansas City area, with about 60% of the people living on the Missouri side.

Kansas officials began working on the legislation after voters on the Missouri side of the metropolitan area refused in April to continue a sales tax used to keep up the existing stadium complex. The Royals outlined a plan in February to build a $2 billion-plus ballpark in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, that would be ready for the start of the 2028 season while the Chiefs were planning an $800 million renovation of their existing home.

Attorneys for the teams told Kansas legislators that they needed to make decisions about the future soon for new stadiums to be ready on time. Some critics suggested the teams are pitting the two states against each other for the biggest government subsidies possible.

“The Chiefs and the Royals are pretty much using us,” said state Rep. Susan Ruiz, a Democrat from the Kansas City, Kansas, area who voted against the bill.

Supporters of bringing the teams to Kansas warned that if neither state acts quickly enough, one or both teams could leave for another community entirely. Several economists who have studied professional sports were skeptical that a move would make financial sense for either a team or a new host city, and both the NFL and MLB require a supermajority of owners to approve franchise moves.

The plan had support from throughout Kansas, including about half of the lawmakers from western Kansas, 200 miles away from any new stadium.

Kansas lawmakers approved the stadium financing plan during a single-day special session Tuesday. Although the financing law doesn’t specifically name the Chiefs or Royals, it is limited to stadiums for NFL and MLB teams “in any state adjacent to Kansas.”

“It’s fairly clearly about how you poach,” Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas said during a news conference after Kansas lawmakers approved the measure. He added that his city would “lay out a good offer” to keep both teams in town and that the teams “are in an exceptional leverage position.”

Politics

Labour Party raises 15 times more than Tories in donations during second week of campaign

Published

2 hours ago

June 21, 2024

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Labour Party raises 15 times more than Tories in donations during second week of campaign

The Labour Party raised almost £4.4m in the second full week of the general election campaign – close to 15 times the amount brought in by the Tories.

Rishi Sunak’s party took in just under £300,000 between 6 and 12 June.

Reform UK raised more than double this figure, with £742,000 taken. However, £500,000 of this money was handed over by Britain Means Business, a company run by Reform’s deputy leader Richard Tice.

The Liberal Democrats also took in more than the Conservatives, raising £335,000.

The Green Party raised £20,000.

Labour raised £4,383,400 – and its partner the Co-operative Party raised £60,000.

Follow live: More bad news for Tory campaign

The Conservatives raised £292,500, according to Electoral Commission figures.

The Tory figure is also roughly half of what they raised in the first full week of the campaign.

Between 30 May and 5 June, the Conservatives took in £574,918, compared to Labour’s £926,908.

However, looking at the 2019 election, the Conservative Party raised 10 times this figure in the first week of the campaign – raising £5.7m between 6 and 12 November 2019.

Labour took in £218,500 at this time.

Who gave the parties the most money?

Digging into the breakdown from the Electoral Commission, we can see a bit more about who gave the different parties the most money.

As mentioned, Reform’s biggest donor is a company run by their deputy leader.

A man called David Lilley also gave the party £100,000, and another notable contributor was Holly Vukadinovic – the maiden name of model Holly Valance – who gave £50,000.

For Labour, the biggest donor was Lord Sainsbury, who gave £2.5m, followed by Autoglass boss Gary Lubner, who handed over £900,000.

Their largest union donation came from train driver body Aslef, which donated £100,000.

For the Lib Dems, they received £150,000 from Adam Management Holdings, and another £100,000 from the late John Faulkner, a former party member who has left money to the party.

The Conservatives registered a £50,000 donation from “The Spring Lunch” – which is the name of one of their fundraising events – as well as £50,000 from Bestway Wholesale, a company which has a Tory peer named as a director.