business

For Sam Calagione, a founder of the craft brewery Dogfish Head, his company’s efforts to get healthier had a selfish origin. “I started to notice that I was getting an everything bagel on my midriff,” said Mr. Calagione, attributing the weight gain to the multiple beers he drinks daily for work. “So I was like, well, I’m not going to slow down drinking, so I better start innovating some lower-calorie but super flavorful beers.” In 2016, the brewery, which is based in Delaware, began producing its 140-calorie sour, SeaQuench Ale, which it promoted as “the most thirst-quenching beer Dogfish Head has ever brewed.” Now, Mr. Calagione forecasts that of the 300,000-plus barrels of beer the brewery will produce this year, more than a quarter will cater to the demands of consumers more concerned with maintaining active lifestyles than they are with hops or high alcohol content. One beer is a new I.P.A. with fewer calories than a Bud Light. The … [Read more...] about Craft Brewers Lighten Up and Take Aim at the ‘Sweaty Consumer’

Minnesotans have much to be proud of, including the third-highest labor-force participation rate in the country and an unemployment rate below the national average for 10 years running. Even so, a shortage of skilled workers is impeding Minnesota's economic growth. By 2024, projections show a gap of 400,000 workers needed to fill middle-skill jobs — those requiring education beyond high school but not a four-year degree. My organization, ECMC Group, recently hosted several experts to discuss the biggest issues facing the education, training and workforce industries as part of the annual MN Cup competition. Panelists emphasized that the rising cost of traditional four-year college is an opportunity to spur changes to our outdated workforce training model. Every year, high school students say the same thing: They are enrolling in college — particularly four-year institutions — to find a job. Yet only 27% of four-year degree holders are working in a job directly related … [Read more...] about Minnesota can lead the way in bridging the skills gap

By Jesper Starn, Bloomberg News From watching pulp cook for hours on end and tracking parasite bugs on satellite photos to handling lengthy legal documents, Swedish forest companies are creating new jobs they would never ask a human to do. Packaging maker BillerudKorsnas has been an early adopter of artificial intelligence by using the technology to analyze thousands of diagrams to determine just how long it needs to cook its wood chips before they turn into pulp. While that process could be done manually, it says it would be difficult to find any human who’d be willing to spend all day just looking at such charts. “A machine can review large data quantities and find patterns in ways we humans just find too boring,” Olle Steffner, director of intellectual property management, said. “Tasks such as monitoring processes or analyzing diagrams will hardly be missed by anybody. Our staff is needed for other things.” Sweden’s forest companies are the … [Read more...] about Robots thrive in the forest on jobs that humans find too boring

Harsh winter weather and a mild flu season took a frosty bite out of financial results at some of Minnesota’s largest operators of hospitals and clinics in the first three months of the year. Health sys­tems say a quiet season for respiratory illnesses depressed the volume of patients receiving hospital care dur­ing the first quarter compared with last year. Out­pa­tient and elec­tive vis­its took a hit, as well, with the arctic plunge in late January and the snows of Feb­rua­ry resulting in missed appointments and closed clinics. “It was an unusual first quarter,” said Ric Magnuson, the chief financial officer at Minneapolis-based Allina Health System. “The fact that there was the weather, the fact there was a light flu season and then the third part — that traditionally this is our weakest or lightest quarter from a volume perspective — you put all those together and that’s what caused the erosion in … [Read more...] about Winter saw chilly demand for health care

When is a loan not a loan? When it's a "nonrecourse cash advance." Why it matters: By advancing money while calling the interest a "fee" or a "tip," companies like Earnin and Wagestream can skirt regulations that cap interest rates. What's happening: Earnin is an app that fronts users as much as $100 per day. When you sign up, you hand over your bank account information and tell Earnin when you get paid. Earnin automatically debits your bank account for the amount it lent (they would say "advanced"). This week, the company said it would start helping users negotiate down their health care bills. Earnin users can leave an optional tip for its services. As the New York Post reported, and Axios confirmed, the recommended tip can work out to an interest rate of 469%. If a loan charged that much, it would be illegal in many states, including New York. U.K.-based Wagestream, which closed a $51 million funding round this week, works on a similar model, but with a flat fee of about $2 for … [Read more...] about Don’t call them payday lenders