Market For Such Products Research Articles

Toward a global perspective on farm animal welfare

During the past half century, the less industrialized countries experienced rapid increases in animal production through both large-scale confinement systems and traditional small-scale systems. These countries now produce the majority of the world's meat. The regulations and other programs designed to safeguard animal welfare in the European and English-speaking countries may prove ineffective in the diverse and burgeoning production systems of the less industrialized nations. However, improvements to animal welfare may still be achieved (1) through the basic economic incentive to reduce losses caused by injury, stress and malnutrition, (2) through disease control programs, as long as these are well conducted, and (3) by international corporations applying their existing animal welfare standards on a more global basis. Moreover, low labour costs in less industrialized countries could allow labour-intensive, non-confinement systems to flourish, especially if there is an international market for such products. Although animal welfare plays no role in the agreements of the World Trade Organization, internationally recognized standards may still be incorporated by mutual agreement in bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, and they may be required in future by international food companies and their customers. There are important opportunities for animal welfare scientists to support animal protection initiatives in the less industrialized countries, especially through technical assistance programs, research and education.

Pilot study on lower nitrosamine smokeless tobacco products compared with medicinal nicotine

Smokeless tobacco (ST) products have the potential to be used as a harm reduction method for cigarette smokers. These products can deliver significantly less toxicants than cigarettes, although they are not toxicant free nor harmless. It is important to examine potential health risks and benefits of these products. These two small pilot studies examined the effects of two different ST products (Exalt and Ariva) compared with medicinal nicotine, another potential harm reduction product. Dependent, healthy adult cigarette smokers, who were motivated to quit smoking, underwent 1 week of baseline smoking measurement. They were then asked to quit smoking and were randomly assigned to use either an ST product or a medicinal nicotine lozenge (MNL, Commit) for 2 weeks, then crossed over to use the other product for 2 weeks. In the last week, following the sampling phase, subjects could choose the product they wished to use. Assessments were made repeatedly during baseline cigarette use and throughout the 5 weeks of treatment. Outcome measures included biomarkers for tobacco exposure and subjective, physiological, and behavioral responses. Tobacco-specific carcinogen uptake was greater from Exalt than from the MNL, and was comparable between the MNL and Ariva. Physiological effects and subjective effects on withdrawal and craving were comparable among Exalt, Ariva, and the MNL. Ariva was preferred over the MNL, which was preferred over Exalt. With the exception of medicinal nicotine products, low-nitrosamine ST products have the greatest potential to result in reduced toxicant exposure compared with other combustible reduced exposure products and have promise for reducing individual risk for disease. However, the population effect of marketing of such products as reduced exposure/reduced risk is unknown. The need for further research in this area and regulation of tobacco products is evident.

Controversies regarding the sensitive skin syndrome

Patients commonly complain about sensitive skin, yet this condition is not fully appreciated or understood by the medical community. While it is broadly associated with discomfort induced by environmental factors, there is no consensus about its definition and classification. By contrast, the cosmetic industry has been well aware of consumers’ perceived need for products suitable for sensitive skins and the resulting lucrative market for such products. Host factors identified as risk factors for the sensitive skin syndrome include young age, female gender and atopy. The variability in clinical manifestations and the lack of clarity regarding a definition of sensitive skin makes it hard to establish a single, reliable, diagnostic procedure. Bioengineering tools are a promising way to evaluate this condition; however, no particular method has been established as a gold standard. Similarly, there is no established treatment regime.

How to recover more value from small pine trees: Essential oils and resins

Abstract In recent years, the young dense forests of northern Arizona have suffered extreme droughts, wildfires, and insect outbreaks. Improving forest health requires reducing forest density by cutting many small-diameter trees with the consequent production of large volumes of residual biomass. To offset the cost of handling this low-value timber, additional marketing options for current operations are urgently needed to recover more value as wood products, energy, and chemicals. Northern Arizona forests are predominantly composed of ponderosa pine ( Pinus ponderosa ) which, besides producing abundant timber, can also yield many useful chemicals such as essential oils and resins. We describe a case study to assess the opportunities, constraints, and information required to integrate recovery of essential oils into forest and mill operations as might be used in northern Arizona. Preliminary results support the proposition there is an available, large supply of biomass with high concentrations of essential oils. The chemistry and process engineering for recovering these essential oils by distillation are well known. The potential output and uses also appear attractive given the substantial United States market for such products. However, less is known of the capability of essential oils extracted from ponderosa pine to compete with products imported from other countries. A more detailed assessment of product uses and further analysis of viable markets and environmental benefits are justified.

Is There a Need for an Industry Standard for Capital Guaranteed Products?

The focus of this paper is on capital guaranteed products. In general, it can be difficult for investors to understand the complex features of such guaranteed products, and even harder to value them. The product “GuaranteeBonus III,” sold in the Norwegian market during fall 2003, illustrates these problems. By analyzing and valuing the product, the authors find that exotic features embedded in the contract significantly reduce the probability of obtaining a high return, and that the product may well be overpriced. Closely related to these findings is thus the marketing of such products. When GuaranteeBonus III was sold, the product brochure advertised a possible return as high as 45% over a two-year period. However, by adapting correlated geometric Brownian motions to the underlying assets and performing simulations, the authors find that the probability of obtaining such high returns is extremely low. Based on one million simulations, the highest realized return is less than 17%, indicating that returns close to 45% are highly improbable. Another related aspect is that the investors fail to gain from dividends paid on the stocks during the lifetime of the product. To mend the problems related to these products, they offer a discussion of selected suggestions for an industry standard.

Toxicity of green tea extracts and their constituents in rat hepatocytes in primary culture

Recent reports on sporadic cases of liver disorders (acute hepatitis, icterus, hepatocellular necrosis) after ingestion of dietary supplements based on hydro-alcoholic extracts from green tea leaves led to restrictions of the marketing of such products in certain countries of the EU. Since green tea is considered to exert a number of beneficial health effects, and, therefore, green tea products are widely used as dietary supplements, we were interested in the possible mechanism of hepatotoxicity of green tea extracts and in the components involved in such effects. Seven hours after seeding on collagen, rat hepatocytes in primary culture were treated with various hydro-alcoholic green tea extracts (two different native 80% ethanolic dry extracts and an 80% ethanolic dry extract cleared from lipophilic compounds). Cells were washed, and reduction of resazurin, used as a viability parameter monitoring intact mitochondrial function, was determined. It was found that all seven green tea extracts examined enhanced resazurin reduction significantly at a concentration range of 100–500μg/ml medium, while a significant decrease was observed at 1–3mg/ml medium. Decreased levels were concomitant with abundant necrosis as observed by microscopic inspection of the cultures and with increased leakage of lactate dehydrogenase activity from the cells. In a separate series of experiments, the green tea constituents (−)-epicatechin, (−)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate, caffeine and theanine were tested at concentrations reflecting their levels in a typical green tea extract. Synthetic (+)-epigallocatechin (200μM) was used for comparison. Cytotoxicity was found with (−)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate only. The concomitant addition of 0.25mM ascorbate/0.05mM α-tocopherol had no influence on cytotoxicity. In conclusion, our results suggest that high concentrations of green tea extract can exert acute toxicity in rat liver cells. (−)-Epigallocatechin-3-gallate seems to be a key constituent responsible for this effect. The relatively low bioavailability of catechins reported after oral exposure to green tea argues, however, against a causal role of these constituents in the reported liver disorders.

Challenges confronting feline vaccination

Vaccination continues to be a major tool for controlling feline infectious diseases, but numerous factors present both challenges and opportunities for maintaining and expanding the market for veterinary biologicals. Developing novel vaccines is one approach, but in most cases the market for such products will be restricted to niche populations; the comparatively smaller quantity of vaccines sold may be offset somewhat if available from a limited number of manufacturers. A second approach is to produce better formulations of existing vaccines; such products would be applicable to larger populations of cats and have greater sales potential. But veterinarians must be convinced of the improved product's superiority for it to be successful in the marketplace. To ensure that high-quality, useful and necessary vaccines reach the marketplace, communication between veterinarians, the manufacturers of biologicals, and regulatory agencies must be enhanced.

Sensory acceptance of mixed nectar of papaya, passion fruit and acerola

Nectars are beverages formulated with the juice or pulp of one or more fruits, plus water and sugar in concentrations resulting in a "ready-to-drink" product. Recently, the market for such products has greatly expanded. Fruit mixtures present a series of advantages, such as the combination of different aromas and flavors and the sum of their nutritional components. The objective of this work was to develop a nectar based on papaya pulp and passion fruit juice, enriched with the vitamin C present in acerola pulp, optimizing the formulation using sensory consumer tests and a response surface statistical methodology. Eleven formulations were prepared using different concentrations of papaya pulp and passion fruit juice and sucrose, and maintaining the concentration of acerola pulp constant. The sensory tests were carried out with 22 non-trained panelists using a structured 9-point hedonic scale to evaluate overall acceptance. The acceptance means were submitted to regression analysis, by first calculating a polynomial quadratic equation. A predictive model was adjusted considering only those parameters where P < 0.05, and a response surface was generated. The overall acceptance of nectars of different formulations varied from 5 ("neither liked nor disliked") to more than 7 ("liked moderately"), showing that some products can be considered adequate to consumers, like the nectar produced with 37.5% papaya pulp, 7.5% passion fruit juice, and 5.0% acerola pulp, added of 15% sucrose. A quadratic predictive overall acceptance model, with a regression coefficient of 0.97 was obtained. The sensory acceptance of nectars was positively affected by increases in the concentrations of papaya pulp and of sucrose. Thus, some products presented good sensory acceptance suggesting commercial potential.

Land seismic crews and instrumentation: past, present and future

Bob Heath describes the somewhat volatile history of land seismic survey technology and operations and how UK company Vibtech is developing a new approach to some age-old problems. We should start by making what some would think is an unnecessary statement, namely that the majority of end-users of geophysical data are oil companies! This may seem rather obvious but the problems faced by the land acquisition industry indicate that it may not be obvious enough. If we accept this statement, we might also agree that the end-users of geophysical instrumentation, in some important sense, are also the oil companies. Any acquisition system which ignores the market generated by oil-company requirements is just asking for difficulties. The recent history of this market, which has not witnessed the growth of other high-tech businesses, seems to demonstrate that the real needs of the data end-users are too often ignored. This may explain why some agree with one bank which stated that parts of the industry demonstrate an unsustainable business model (or words to that effect). For decades, instrumentation manufacturers used contemporary electronics technology to produce systems fitting the perceived needs of end-users. The market for such products depended on how well their functionality suited the type of survey required by the oil companies. In the seventies, the limitations of the technology forced the electronics to be confined to the central system. This required data to flow along miles of twisted pair conductors in analogue spread cables. The weight and susceptibility of the equipment to various problems meant we could not easily record more than a hundred channels - as a ballpark figure. However, the technology met the need for relatively simple 2D surveys, and prices charged to acquire such data were not generally seen as excessive. The end-users supported a market of more than 1000 crews worldwide or about 100 000 channels.

Ion-graphy implanter with stencil mask

Recently, the demand for semiconductor devices has been greatest in the consumer market for such products as video games, cellular phones, and DVD players. In order to satisfy these demands, semiconductor manufacturers are now designing new production lines, such as mini fabs, to decrease the processing time for various types of semiconductor devices. Over the past few decades, the availability and throughput of ion implanters have improved dramatically. However, the implantation process itself has, except for a slight change, remained basically the same. A recent article (Ref. 1) describes the basic concept of an ion-implantation process that does not require use of a photoresist mask. This article reports the experimental data and the basic functions of a type of ion implanter currently being developed. This implanter implants ions in one chip at a time through a stencil mask without the use of a photoresist mask. This ion-implantation technology, called stencil mask ion implantation technology, and the ion implanter, called a stencil mask lithographic ion implanter, will be exceptionally suitable for future semiconductor manufacturing processes.

Misplaced marketing Imagine the television commercial: “No stems, no seeds that you don’t need, Baja Gold’s a real smooth weed”

Discusses issues around marketing and the debate on legality of drugs. Notes that, while there has been a consideration of ways in which drug restrictions could be loosened, there is an underlying fear of the effects of marketing of such products. Looks also at issues surrounding the marketing of such legal products as cigarettes and alcohol, considering the popular “wisdom” that marketing activities cause people to act in a fashion contrary to their own self interets.

Functional Foods

The potential for enhancing foods with ingredients that can prevent disease is enormous. But some functional foods fail to provide genuine health benefits and some may even pose safety problems. New product lines make misleading claims and many of these products contain herbal medicines, which the U. S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not consider to be safe for use in foods. There is no regulatory category for “functional foods” under U. S. law, and the marketing of such products has presented the FDA with a multitude of controversial regulatory issues. The FDA should address these problems by first prohibiting the addition of medicinal herbs to foods. In addition, the FDA should close a variety of loopholes in the law that manufacturers use to justify the marketing of questionable products. The FDA should e. g. issue new regulations requiring that structure/function claims for foods be based on universally recognized factual statements concerning known effects of a substance on the structure or functioning of the body. The FDA must also work more closely with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) which regulates claims in advertising. It is crucial that functional foods are sold on the basis of regulatory initiatives developed by government health authorities, not marketing strategies generated by companies hoping to capitalize on the latest health fad. Otherwise, functional foods will fail to realize their public health potential and amount to little more than 21st century quackery.

An Addendum and a Short Comment on the Paper

In January 1997, Winterthur Insurance, together with Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB), issued the first listed CAT bond. The annual “WINCAT0 coupons of this three-year convertible bond are knocked out if any single storm event damages more than 6,000 vehicles insured by Winterthur Insurance in Switzerland.This was a completely new way of securing insurance risks. The main intention was to test the Swiss capital market for such products and to make investors acquainted with them. Thereby Winterthur, together with CSFB, set new standards in product transparency, fairness of pricing and investor education by making the historical data available via internet and by publishing a special brochure (CSFB (1997)), where the pricing and the mathematical modelling are described in detail. This is also a prerequisite to enable a scientific discussion on pricing aspects of such new financial products. The developers of the bond are therefore grateful to Mr. Schmock for this valuable scientific contribution which can be seen as a thorough and profound statistical analysis on the knock-out probability for the purpose of quantifying the model uncertainty.In Section 2 we briefly summarize the whole pricing of the bond at the issue date and show that there were several risk premium elements in this pricing where the conservative estimation of the knock-out probability was just one of them. In Section 3 we consider the modelling of low frequency risks from a practitioner's standpoint and formulate some requirements from practice. In Section 4 we make some further comments on the modelling of the Wincat data. Section 5 is a short summary.

Women's Interest in Vaginal Microbicides

Each year, an estimated 15 million new cases of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including HIV, occur in the United States. Women are not only at a disadvantage because of their biological and social susceptibility, but also because of the methods that are available for prevention. A nationally representative sample of 1,000 women aged 18-44 in the continental United States who had had sex with a man in the last 12 months were interviewed by telephone. Analyses identified levels and predictors of women's worry about STDs and interest in vaginal microbicides, as well as their preferences regarding method characteristics. Numbers of potential U.S. microbicide users were estimated. An estimated 21.3 million U.S. women have some potential current interest in using a microbicidal product. Depending upon product specifications and cost, as many as 6.0 million women who are worried about getting an STD would be very interested in current use of a microbicide. These women are most likely to be unmarried and not cohabiting, of low income and less education, and black or Hispanic. They also are more likely to have visited a doctor for STD symptoms or to have reduced their sexual activity because of STDs, to have a partner who had had other partners in the past year, to have no steady partner or to have ever used condoms for STD prevention. A significant minority of women in the United States are worried about STDs and think they would use vaginal microbicides. The development, testing and marketing of such products should be expedited.

Peppermint oil for irritable bowel syndrome: a critical review and metaanalysis

Objective: Peppermint oil is the major constituent of several over-the-counter remedies for symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). As the etiology of IBS is not known and treatment is symptomatic, there is a ready market for such products. However, evidence to support their use is sparse. The aim of this study was to review the clinical trials of extracts of peppermint ( Mentha X piperita L.) as a symptomatic treatment for IBS. Methods: Computerized literature searches were performed to identify all randomized controlled trials of peppermint oil for IBS. Databases included Medline, Embase, Biosis, CISCOM, and the Cochrane Library. There were no restrictions on the language of publication. Data were extracted in a standardized, predefined fashion, independently by both authors. Five double blind, randomized, controlled trials were entered into a metaanalysis. Results: Eight randomized, controlled trials were located. Collectively they indicate that peppermint oil could be efficacious for symptom relief in IBS. A metaanalysis of five placebo-controlled, double blind trials seems to support this notion. In view of the methodological flaws associated with most studies, no definitive judgment about efficacy can be given. Conclusion: The role of peppermint oil in the symptomatic treatment of IBS has so far not been established beyond reasonable doubt. Well designed and carefully executed studies are needed to clarify the issue.

Peppermint oil for irritable bowel syndrome: a critical review and metaanalysis.

Peppermint oil is the major constituent of several over-the-counter remedies for symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). As the etiology of IBS is not known and treatment is symptomatic, there is a ready market for such products. However, evidence to support their use is sparse. The aim of this study was to review the clinical trials of extracts of peppermint (Mentha X piperita L.) as a symptomatic treatment for IBS. Computerized literature searches were performed to identify all randomized controlled trials of peppermint oil for IBS. Databases included Medline, Embase, Biosis, CISCOM, and the Cochrane Library. There were no restrictions on the language of publication. Data were extracted in a standardized, predefined fashion, independently by both authors. Five double blind, randomized, controlled trials were entered into a metaanalysis. Eight randomized, controlled trials were located. Collectively they indicate that peppermint oil could be efficacious for symptom relief in IBS. A metaanalysis of five placebo-controlled, double blind trials seems to support this notion. In view of the methodological flaws associated with most studies, no definitive judgment about efficacy can be given. The role of peppermint oil in the symptomatic treatment of IBS has so far not been established beyond reasonable doubt. Well designed and carefully executed studies are needed to clarify the issue.

Problems of creating metals exchanges as joint-stock companies and prospects for their growth

The tumultuous process of creating exchanges in the ongoing transition to a market economy is necessarily affecting sectors which produce a commodity typically traded on exchanges metal. In Moscow alone, three large special metal exchanges have recently begun operation the "Metals Exchange" (June 1991), the "Moscow Nonferrous Metals Exchange" (July 1991), and "Russian Metal" (RTSB November 1991). Specialized metal exchanges have been formed in the Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and other nations of the CIS, and nearly all of the large exchanges have set up special sections for metal products. There is already a trading market for such products, and a keen competition is developing between the different exchanges. The lead in this market will be taken by the exchange that can offer its stockholders and members the best prospects for growth and provide its brokers with the best opportunities for gain. It should be noted that that our leading metal exchanges bear little resemblance to classic international metal exchanges such as the London Metals Exchange (LME). The latter is a typical exchange and is one of the largest commodity trading centers in the world. Thus, the founders and managers of the exchanges in our country are very interested in the mechanism and organizational principles of its operation. The London Metals Exchange was organized in 1882 as the company "Metal Market and Exchange Company, Ltd." The exchange is a wholesale market for goods where deals are made for metal of a certain quantity at market prices. The exchange is a unique barometer of prices on the world nonferrous metals market. It is used to judge and establish the quality of metal and sets forth standard conditions for exchange contracts. The stock capital is 20,000 pounds sterling and is divided into 1000 ordinary shares costing 20 pounds each. The shareholders are all members of the exchange and must own at least two shares to enjoy the full rights of membership. The members of the exchange (about 100 companies) are divided into two categories: individual (principal) members, who have the right to conclude deals in their name; member-representatives (plenipotentiaries), who can make deals in the name of companies or corporations they represent. There is a small group of individual members who are in a priviledged position by virtue of the ability to conclude deals in the trading pit on their personal accounts and, for a fee, execute orders from non-priviledged members and third parties. The commissions thus earned range from 0.1 to 0.5% of the sale price in the case of copper and from 0.25 to 1% of the same in the case of lead and zinc. Non-priviledged members of the exchange generally pay lower brokerage fees than third parties. Shareholders and members of the exchange must be natives and residents of England. Individual members must be at least 21 years of age, as must the member-representatives and directors of the shareholding companies. All company shareholders must be English citizens, while at least 2/3 of the directors must also be citizens and residents of the country. The members of the exchange are chosen by the board of the exchange company by simple majority vote with at least 3/4 of the board present. New members are chosen by open ballot, but a secret ballot can be requested by any member of the board. The features of operation of our exchange stand in sharp contrast to the LME. First of all, a very limited number of metals is traded on the London exchange, and all of them are nonferrous metals. Our metal exchanges as most present domestic exchanges are of a universal character. Not only are all types of metal products traded, but so are many other goods. The exchanges are in essence large trade centers. And although most of the largest domestic exchanges began to specialize after prices were freed and a new law governing exchanges was enacted, they remain more diverse than the LME. This is due first of all to the lack of other channels for the sale of large quantities of metal products at market prices. In addition, the worsening shortage of all of the most important groups of commodities (at least for the short term) makes it almost mandatory that deals be concluded by barter which in turn requires broadening of the range of goods that can be traded.

End user training for CD‐ROM Medline: a survey of UK medical school libraries

CD‐ROM is an increasingly successful consumer product. The market is at present going through an experimental period with new openings being sought for specialised products, particularly in the business and financial sectors. The development of CD‐ROM products will undoubtedly be market led, becoming integrated into an end user's working environment rather than being set aside as a separate resource. Consideration of how to train end users to perform successful searches on CD‐ROM databases will become increasingly important as the market for such products grows.

Evaluation of new in vitro diagnostic test procedures in clinical microbiology.

In vitro diagnostic products (IVDs) for infectious diseases are becoming available commercially at an ever-increasing rate. Aggressive marketing of such products often creates pressure on the laboratory to use IVDs, sometimes even before independent evaluations can be published in peer-reviewed scientific journals.IVDs potentially offer simplicity and speed, particularly in detecting microorganisms that have fastidious growth requirements or that are simply not cultivable with currently available methodology. In some instances, IVDs may obviate the need for culture of more common microorganisms and may thereby allow testing to be done in physicians' offices and perhaps ultimately in the home.

Succeeding in the IBM-compatible market

PC-compatibles are the major competitor to the IBM PC. Companies which have been successful in selling PC-compatibles have quite different profiles and marketing tactics. The market for such products could be on the wane.