Working at McDonald's Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Working at McDonald's - Essay Example The apparent reasons that were disclosed by the author included affecting academic performance in a negative manner; apparently imparting skills that are not sufficiently applicable in future endeavors; and reportedly skew the values that are supposed to focus on adherence to ethical, moral and legal standards. Evidently, Etzioni indicated that the nature of the jobs provided in these kinds of establishments is highly uneducational. For one, the tasks and responsibilities were routinary, highly automated, structured, and leaves little grounds for instilling the teen-agers skills to develop creativity and innovativeness in the work setting. Another set of reasons contended by Etzioni that contributes to McDonald’s being bad for one’s kids are that these jobs provide few opportunities for career promotions or for the development of marketable skills, and more importantly, take greater amounts of time that compromise academic attendance and performance. Likewise, without a mple adult supervision, no governance and strategic guidance is provided to teenagers working in McDonald’s; and the apparent remuneration enables these teenagers to gain access to temporary fads and short-term pleasures that do not focus on the development of long-range planning on being financially mature and responsible citizens. Part 2: Critical Response Etzioni’s points of discussion and arguments were effective in terms of the ability of the author in relaying the message in a clear and concise manner. For instance, the subject or thesis statement was revealed at the first line where it was indicated that â€Å"McDonald’s is bad for your kids†¦ (particularly) to the jobs teen-agers undertake† (Etzioni 283). Then, succeeding statements provided the needed support for this main point. To support this main argument, for instance, Etzioni provided the following reasons to justify that McDonald’s is bad for kids in terms of providing employme nt at this particular fast food chain: (1) these jobs were asserted to â€Å"undermine school attendance and involvement, impart few skills that would be useful in later life, and simultaneously skew the values of teen-agers† (Etzioni par. 3); (2) these jobs are highly uneducational; (3) the hours and working days were reported to be too long; (4) supervisory techniques impart wrong lessons in terms of compliance that was described as blind obedience, as well as shared alienation with the boss (Etzioni par. 14), and inappropriate and insufficient (where teens were reported to supervise peer teens); (5) inconsistency in administrative or supervisory governance (too tight or too loose); and (6) pay apparently spent on â€Å"flimsy punk clothes, trinkets, and whatever else is the latest fast-moving teen craze† (Etzioni par. 18). Another reason why one strongly believes that Etzioni presented effective arguments to support his main point is that the author used and cited p revious studies to validate statements that were presented. There were two studies noted and cited as needed: the 1984 study apparently made by Ivan Charper and Bryan Shore Frazer which supposedly relied on responses made by teen-agers from the questionnaires that were designed; and the 1980 study conducted by A.V. Harrell and P.W. Wirtz that aimed to determine the unemployment rate of those who were previously employed at fast food chains as compared to those who stayed in school. In addition, some statistics and figures were cited to support other arguments. The assertion that teen-agers render long days and hours working at fast-food chains cited the Charper and Frazer study which disclosed that more than 30 hours per week were rendered by a third of the employees or approximately 33%; 20%

MSc Planning Practice & Research - Affordable Housing Essay

MSc Planning Practice & Research - Affordable Housing - Essay Example Out-migration may create a considerable multiplier effect – schools may close down for lack of enrolment, employers may have little choice over new employees, and local economies may begin to be threatened by the possible termination of local services, thus, depriving communities of access to critical provisions. Since the 1950s, Wales and England have declared between them ten locations as national parks, which comprise about ten percent of the land area in the United Kingdom (U.K.).Wales alone boasts of three national parks: the Brecon Beacons National Park (BBNP) – the site of this research study – along with the Pembrokeshire Coast and Snowdonia National Parks. Meanwhile, similar programs have been underway in Scotland. National parks are tracts of land allocated for the protection and conservation of the natural environment. While these spaces are generally open to the public, park authorities are mandated to maintain a balance between potentially conflicting "recreational and conservation objectives" (Park, 2001, 545). In addition, The World Conservation Union (1975) or IUCN defined a national park as "a relatively large area where (a) one or several ecosystems are not materially altered by human exploitation and occupation, where plant and animal species, geomorphological sites and habitats are of special scientific, educative and recreational interest or which contain a natural landscape of great beauty (b) the highest competent authority of the country has taken steps to prevent or eliminate as soon as possible exploitation or occupation in the whole area and to enforce effectively the respect of ecological, geomorphological or aesthetic features which have led to its establishment (c) visitor s are allowed to enter under special conditions, for inspirational, cultural and recreative purposes" (Park, 2001). While

Survey on Sanitary Conditions and Hygiene

Survey on Sanitary Conditions and Hygiene ABSTRACT Mauritius is known as a paradise island, attracting thousands of tourists each year. During the last two decades this sector has undergone a rapid development making it one of the most important pillars of our economy. Nowadays our country relies a lot on this industry as it is a source of revenue for foreign currency. Our hotels accommodate the majority of this population. Hotels provide them with basic accommodation such as lodging and food facilities. Therefore any wrong management in this sector can make drastic changes to our economy. The Government did a lot to promote this sector, by amending laws protecting the environment while other authorities are working hard to avoid propagation and controlling communicable diseases. Therefore hotels have an important role in maintaining a good hygienic level and also in the fight of controlling any diseases or infections by reporting them to the authorities concerned. Thus a study was carried out to study the general sanitary practices of medium size hotels of Mauritius. Fifty hotels were selected at random throughout the island. Two survey questionnaires were designed. Questionnaire 1 was designed for my personal view to assess the hygienic conditions of food preparation area, rooms and other facilities available whereas questionnaire 2 was designed to assess the knowledge of the food handlers concerning various issues. After carrying out the surveys, it was found that simple hygienic practices were lacking among the food handlers. Moreover some hotels sanitary conditions were not satisfactory concerning certain issues, thus not complying with the recommended laws. Good sanitary facilities were not provided by the hotels management. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Overview A hotel is an establishment providing paid lodgement on short time basis. It provides basic accommodation consisting of room with bed, toilet and bathroom and water facility. It also provides food for room service daily and has its own restaurant (Wikipedia, 2010). Therefore it must have a high level of hygiene. Hotels accommodate adults, children and old persons. People coming from all parts of the world. These people are strangers with different life styles and different personal hygiene levels. A good degree of hygiene in the hotel establishment is therefore necessary to counteract any hygienic problems that may arise. Therefore hotels must provide services of good quality with trained personnel. The level of hygiene of staffs must be considered as priority. The workers must cope with all sanitary regulations for themselves to be clean and not to be the cause of any infection spread. Hotels are regulated because of cleanliness reason and sanitary practices which help to prevent the spread of diseases and parasites. Inspections are made to ensure they operate safely complying with all regulations such as Public Health Act, Safety and Health Act or the Food Act. (FAQ, 2010). From a research carried out by Environmental Health Division in the United States, inspections carried out by the inspectors were mainly to have a visual examination for overall cleanliness and soundness of building construction. Moreover simple inspections were done concerning proper washing of dishes like cups and glasses, proper laundering of bed and bath linens. Other inspections performed were to look in the maintenance of other room furnishings and for the absence of rodents and insects that are of great importance in preventing diseases. These inspections are effected according to the Tourist Accommodation Regulation (Environmental Health, 2010). Hotels are inspected at least once per year and sometimes much more depending on complaints arising from the public. In United States, Fire Marshal approval is an important factor else no permit is delivered (Environmental Health,2010). . In Mauritius hotels license are issued after approval of an EIA and compliance of all health codes. Food hygiene training is an important factor in hotels. Adopting a safe food handling practice is an important factor for effective management of food safety. A study carried out by the International Journal of Environmental Health Research on food hygiene training practices by interviewing managers and food handlers. It showed that most of the food handlers had undertaken formal food hygiene training courses but many others did not and still were preparing food, including high risk foods. Pre-training support and on-going supervision was absent, thus limiting its effectiveness. It is believed that food handlers are in many cases causes of food contamination (Taylor and Francis, 2008). Researches effected in Wales, showed many that hotels were criticised for a number of failures. Numerous high risk foods were kept past their use by dates. Chopping boards were in a state that could no longer be disinfected properly due to their worn state while mouldy plastic bread containers were also spotted. Other hotels were criticised for inadequate level of food hygiene awareness among its staff while another had a leaking cellar roof (Woodrow, 2009). Other researches reported that in United States, there were cases where rooms were causes of sickness where housekeeping staff was not properly doing their job (Conrad,2008). In New York, during an inspection it was observed that a hotel room was infested by bed bugs, mice and other vermin (Riverside Studio, 2009). Studies carried out in other parts of the world have demonstrated that hotels often lack a good hygiene level. Carelessness of workers lead to food contamination and other infections. However our country is not the best compared to them. This study is being carried out to investigate the level of hygiene in our medium size hotels of Mauritius. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES Aims of the study The aim of the study is to assess the level of hygiene present in medium size hotels of Mauritius. Food handlers are to be assessed concerning food hygiene practices in food processing area. Housekeeping staffs are to be assessed about the importance of hygiene in rooms and also evaluating the level the knowledge of workers concerning communicable diseases. Recommendations were also made for improvements. Objectives of the study The objectives of the study are to: Taking a sample size of at least 50 hotels around Mauritius to have an overview evaluation of the level of hygiene over the whole island. Carry out a survey for my personal view of hygiene in hotels. Carry out a second survey to assess the knowledge of workers about hygienic importance in their working place Compare the sanitary facilities available in these hotels to the law requirements. Analyse the data and to make propose recommendations for improving the level of hygiene and the sanitary facilities available. CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW Hygiene Hygiene is described as the science of preserving health in connection to cleanliness. It compromises all those measures necessary to detect and prevent infection and intoxication which may be harmful to health. The aim of a good hygiene is to provide consumers with both a good service and safe food. It involves all measures directed to ensure a safe and good quality product and service. Hygiene is an important factor in a business as it helps to protect and also promote ones reputation. In order to have all these, it is a must to comply with all Acts Regulations made in the law (schurmann,2008). Food poisoning Food poisoning is one result of poor hygienic practices. We are surrounded by tiny living organisms that cannot be seen without a microscope. These organisms are called microorganisms. Some are harmless whereas those which are harmful are called pathogens. They are found everywhere. An example is Staphylococcus aureus living on the skin as a normal flora. The same bacteria if in contact with food, can cause food poisoning. This is one of the most common food poisoning bacteria. Another example is E.Coli living naturally in our intestines for breaking down of food, but when in the urinary tract, it causes serious infections (Frazier W, 1995). Contamination can be made by different bacteria such as Bacillus cereus, Clostridium perfringens and Clostridium botulinum. The symptoms arising when consuming food harboring these harmful bacteria are familiar to most people. They are namely vomiting, headache, abdominal pain and diarrhea. There is loss of fluid through vomiting and diarrhea in most severe cases. Those who are more prone to such risk are youngs and elderly or already ill people. Therefore sanitary conditions play an important role in preventing such disease to happen. Necessary precautions must be taken at all stages in food preparation and most important when this concerns bulk production of food as in hotels (JFraser,Microbiology Book). To prevent food poisoning there are three main things that can be done: stop the bacteria from multiplying by : Bacteria reproduce very if they get suitable conditions: moisture, food, warmth, and time Therefore it is important to prevent such conditions by using proper storage. stop bacteria getting onto the food Keeping food covered Handling food as little as possible Keeping raw and cooked foods separate Keeping animals and pests out of the kitchen Disposing of rubbish in covered bins destroy the bacteria in the food only a few bacteria are able to survive temperatures higher than 70o C. This is why it is important to cook food thoroughly. Food such as meat and vegetables should be chopped into small pieces to ensure cooking. Food that is reheated, should be used only once. The left overs should be discarded. Frozen food should be well defrosted before cooking as it may happen that inner part remain uncooked. Food borne diseases Food-borne disease arises when contaminated food is ingested containing a pathogen. This pathogen causes problems only because of the fact that it reproduces inside the human body which provides all necessary factors for its development. Poor food handling and bad sanitation practices are commonly the cause of food-borne diseases in food establishments. One example is the gut bacteria Escherichia coli causing food-borne disease. It may be present through faecal or other source of contamination. E.coli caused 20 deaths and 200 other cases in Lanarkshire, Scotland in 1996 which needed to be treated during the outbreak. This bacteria is particularly dangerous because few bacterial cells, possibly 20 minimum need be ingested by a person to cause severe symptoms( Maff, 2000). A study carried out in Mekelle Town in Ethiopia to determine the sanitary conditions in 420 establishments including small hotels showed that latrines, hand washing basins, proper type of solid waste disposal and tap water were available at 96.9% , 57.1 % , 39.2% and 93.6% respectively. Proper dish washing and food storage practices were observed at 46% and 52% respectively. But poor personal hygiene among the workers and food handlers were observed. Staphylococcus aureus and E.Coli were found in utensils at a high level which can only result from poor hygienic practices of the workers. (Ethiop.J.Health Dev. 2007). It was observed that sanitary conditions were maintained but however there were conditions where there was non adherence in workers. Our country is not an exception to such food-borne outbreaks. The sanitary inspectors of the Ministry of Health are here to give support to avoid such problems. Water borne diseases Water contamination is common worldwide. The category affected is mainly young people and elders having a poor immune system. A study was carried out in India about the water hygiene behaviours in hotels and restaurants few years ago. It showed that contamination in drinking water is made by man and usually due to improper storage, handling and serving which leads to serious water borne diseases. It has been noticed that in a drinking water sample of 340, 69.1% were non-potable water and 73.2 % had presence of E.Coli due to human faecal matter. Causes to this outbreak were poor hygiene behaviours, storage and handling practices which was known to deteriorate the water quality. This could have been improved by educating the workers and food handlers in these hotels and restaurants. This can result to illness of mainly diarrhoea and vomiting, whereas other symptoms include fever, abdominal pain, headache and giddiness (Pubmed,2003). General sanitary requirements in hotels People normally visit a hotel for short-term basis. There is a continuous flow of incoming and outgoing people. Different people from different countries stay in same room. Therefore rooms must be well sanitized and disinfected after each visit. Aeration and ventilation is important. Cleanliness and sanitary practices play an important role in maintaining this balance. It helps to prevent the spread of diseases and parasites not only to tourists but also our general population. Hotels are therefore inspected to make sure that it copes with the law and that they operate safely following the Health Codes (Lockyer,2003). Points that are inspected and controlled for aiming a good cleanliness and soundness of building facility are : Absence of pests such as rodents and insects Proper handling and storage of trash Proper laundering of bed linens and bed Proper washing of utensils such as plates ,cups and glasses No hazards due to infrastructure of building facility Cloakroom accommodation for staffs Proper services such as power, heat, water General maintainance of area to eliminate potential breeding places for mosquitoes or other vectors No domestic animals in area Fire safety and emergency exits Good hygiene rules Consumer satisfaction is prior to all. Thus a good service and hygienic food and water are important. Rooms should be well maintained. Housekeeping department plays an important role. It is the backbone of any good hotel. Employees of housekeeping department are made responsible for maintenance, as they have to visit each room every day to set the room for same the guest or the next guest. During their routine visit, they check all the possible electric point, water points, gadgets, while replacing linen, soap, shampoo, towel, etc other important factors are listed below. Sanitary design premises should be assessed and designed in such a way to reduce health hazards. Personal Hygiene and Food handlers One must be educated about hygiene and to start oneself should be hygienic in all aspects and should possess a food handlers certificate. Cleanliness Working environment should be maintained clean. There should be a high standard of cleanliness, most important for those handling food stuffs. Awareness knowledge of hygiene practices in work place, communicable diseases awareness. Hands Skin Hand is the main route for contamination. Therefore to avoid food poisoning bacteria to get in contact with food, water and soap must be used for washing time to time. Mouth, nose ear it is the route for staphylococcus bacteria to enter food through coughing, sneezing and scratching. Therefore necessary precautions should be taken be avoid these during food preparation. Sanitary conditions in restaurants A good hygiene is required in food premises to make sure food is safe. It prevents food poisoning and prevent spreading of any communicable diseases resulting from careless personnel or caterers handling food stuffs. Rules such as Cleanliness, Cooking, Chilling and Cross Contamination should be well observed while handling food. Food safety and hygiene practice using Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) is recommended by WHO and FAO to maintain a good quality of food and services (Silva, 2001). Trained personnel should preferably be employed. Facilities such as proper dustbins, wash hand basins and toilets should be made available for the workers. Points that should be observed in aiming a good and safe food hygiene are: ood handlers Certificate Floors (smooth clean) Ceilings / Walls maintained properly Utensils properly washed sterilized Proper sanitary design of kitchen Fly proof and rodent proof Storage accommodation of foods Disposal of waste (Solid and Liquid) Drainage system Wash hand easily available Good aeration / temperature /Humidity Work area spacious enough for workers Showers facility for workers(Working Day / Night) Hygiene in kitchen All employees working in food premises either in the task of preparation, handling or serving food should possess a food handler certificate after having followed a medical inspection by a doctor. They should have a satisfactory knowledge of hygiene and cleanliness and be aware of possible problems caused of improper food handling. Health education plays an important role in promoting food and personal hygiene. All staffs should be given appropriate training. Health inspectors have an important work in providing health education by promoting awareness of dangers of food poisoning and poor hygiene practices Medical certificate The law states that every food handler involved in food business should be in possession of a valid medical certificate. This food handler certificate is issued by a G.M.O and is valid for only 3 years and has to be renewed each year. This certifies that its owner is in good health and is not suffering from any communicable diseases (Food Regulation, 1999) (refer to Appendix 2). Obtention of medical certificate The person has to call at the Health Office of the Ministry Of Health of his region with his national identity card and with two photo passport. An appointment is given for a session of talk on hygienic practices and after due accomplishment, the latter is examined by a Regional Public Health Superintendent (RPHS). Thereafter if the person is observed to be in good health, the certificate is obtained(Food Regulation,1999) Working environment The standard of cleanliness of factory and its workers is a reflection of the standard of efficiency of management and the morale of the working population. Provision has been made in the Occupational Safety and Health Act 2005 concerning welfare of workers and overcrowding in place of work. It says that a place of work shall not be overcrowded as it can cause risks of health injury of the employees. It is mentioned that the space allowed shall not be less than 11 cubic metres per workers (OSHA, 2005, Appendix 3). Kitchen is an example where there is often overcrowding of workers in hotels. Smoking The personnel should be well educated and trained about hygiene in a workplace. Employees should not smoke during work, mainly during preparation of food or while handling any food stuffs or utensils. Smoking is prohibited by law in any public places and moreover smoking in a food preparation area can pass diseases from an individual to another. Customers also can be contaminated. Smokers can transfer harmful bacteria from their mouth to food and thereafter, consumers of these foods may ingest these bacteria in turn. These bacteria can be harmless on the carrier but harmful to another person. Communicable diseases Any person suffering from a communicable disease, boils, sores, acute respiratory infection or bleeding wounds should not be allowed to work in any food premises. A list of these diseases is listed in (Appendix 4). All communicable diseases should also be reported to the Health Offices for treatment. Therefore all employees should possess their food handler certificate and renew it every year by a doctor to ensure that safe food and services are provided to customers. The law has made provisions concerning infectious or communicable diseases. It is said that the occupier of any premises in which a patient resides shall give notice to Sanitary Authority or if visited by a medical practitioner and it is confirmed that the patient is suffering from an infectious disease, health inspector of the region shall made aware of the existence of the disease , name of the patient, the situation of the premises and name of the occupier. (Public Health Act,Appendix 5). Preventing food contamination We should not forget the motto PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE . Prevention of food contaminations is a must. Appropriate preventive measures should be taken. Employees should give attention to personal hygiene and the working habits in a hotel kitchen. Body should be kept clean by washing and bathing. Hands should be washed at least on every occasion when entering food preparation zone. Hands and arms should he washed thoroughly using soap and water after each visit to the toilet. Avoid use of common towel (use paper that are disposable). Wear clean and washable overall preferably white Keep hands away from mouth, nose ,hair ,ear while working Do not eat while handling food/ preparation Do not wipe hands on overall Use spoons, forks , tongs instead of hands in preparation Avoid useless blabbering while working Smoking, spitting should e avoided in working area Obey food safety signs Keep work area clean Staff facilities maintained in good hygienic conditions A research carried out in 2004 in a popular hotel of Egypt after a major outbreak of Hepatitis A where 351 tourists was contaminated showed that there was poor sanitation, no proper health education and medical examination. An infected worker with imperfect hand hygiene and who was in contact with sewage-contaminated water was the source of this huge outbreak. (Eurosurveillance, 2006) Concerning food safety, the WHO has initiatives for surveillance programme with objectives of a development of an international food safety network, application of HACCP and development of a safety information system. (WHO, 2004). Storage of food Food storage is important industrially. Hotels prepare food for hundreds of persons daily. Therefore a good storage system is necessary. Area should be pest proof, warm, clean and not humid. There are three main categories of food requiring different storage methods. Dry food should be kept in a warm place and not humid to avoid spoilage by microorganisms growth. Chilled food should be stored at an appropriate low temperature, and precautions should be taken in case of electricity cut. Canned food should be verified before using. Stock rotation is important concerning canned products. It is important that you rotate and use your food storage (Caldwell M, 2006). Storage of water An ample supply of water should be provided with adequate facilities for its storage and adequate protection against contamination. Water is used both in food preparation and rooms for toilets and bathrooms. Many aquatic microorganisms can survive and flourish in water with minimal nutrients and can be transferred to people with poor immune system. A study conducted in United States described how gastroenteritis is a common outbreak in hotels. Unsteady state flow and stagnation in distribution systems affect the biological stability of drinking water which promotes bacterial accumulation (Dippold L et al, 2000). Therefore it is important that tanks are fitted tightly with lids and that they are regularly cleaned and sampled for chemical and bacteriological analysis. Cleaning frequency is an important factor. The tanks should be verified in case of rusting of any parts and dates should be noted at each cleaning done. (Logan G, 2008). Tanks should be cleaned at least once every trimester for proper maintainance to avoid microorganism proliferation. Waste disposal A hotel can be considered as a microcosm in itself having the potential of producing all kinds of waste that is hazardous. Hazardous waste comes in many different shapes and forms: it can be liquid, solid, gas or sludge, and more often it is poured down sinks directly or discharged to regular waste stream (Patel A, 2008). The types of waste generated in hotels and their sources are listed below. However there are two main types of hotel waste, solid(dry),known to be non-biodegradable and liquid(wet),biodegradable wastes. The risk and problem that arises are odour, unaesthetic and it acts as breeding place for vector of diseases (flies, rats, rodents), thus a nuisance to health (Wagh V, 2005). Solid waste Solid waste is described as materials of no longer value and which is not meant to be discharged through pipe. These dry wastes comprise of plastic bottles, papers, plastic wrappers, HDPE bags etc. These wastes should not be mixed with the wet waste which may produce bad odor and dirty look. They should be disposed in dry places for storage until collection is done (Wagh V, 2005). Liquid waste Liquid waste is simply discharged in sinks. Wet waste comprises of food and vegetable. Most hotels kitchen sinks are fitted with a garbage disposer (garburator) which is a device installed under the kitchen sink between drain and pipe which shred waste into pieces enough to pass them through plumbing. Grease traps are also fitted to prevent drains to be blocked from fats, oil and grease. Some hotels also provide septic tanks to avoid potential problems that may occur in case there is blockage of main sewage pipes provided by the Government. Elimination of mosquito breeding places The hotels management does the necessary to avoid spreading of diseases. Potential breeding places for vectors are eliminated by draining all roofs water accumulation at least twice a week and insecticides are sprayed. All ponds and garden water are regularly checked and all bottles or containers are removed and bushes like the grass are well maintained. The Ministry Of Health also provide services for spraying insecticides on a regular basis (MOH, 2009 Health surveillance of tourists Tourist can be responsible for spreading of diseases. One recent case notified was in 2009 where the first case of H1N1 flu virus was detected in a French tourist. The Ministry Of Health has provided officers for this specific duty. Health surveillance Officers are responsible to contact every incoming passengers in order to know their health condition on arrival to Mauritius. The hotel management plays an important role as they need to report any kind of communicable diseases occuring in their residence (MOH Health, 2009). The Ministry Of Health has a list of infectious and communicable diseases that are controlled closely as shown in (Appendix 4). CHAPTER 3 : METHODOLOGY Methodology A survey was carried out and two questionnaires were designed where one was for personal view and opinion about the working place and food handlers and the second, to assess the workers and their knowledge to food hygiene.50 hotel in all were chosen throughout Mauritius. Random selection will give a broader view of hygiene in hotels around the island. List of hotel was obtained from the Tourism Authority at Port-Louis and some details obtained at the Municipality and Health offices. The Questionnaires Questionnaire for Personal View of Foodhandlers, Checklist for Kitchen and environment (room, garden, Swimming pool). (Appendix 6) Questionnaire for personal hygiene for the workers (Appendix 7) The questionnaire (Appendix 6) is a checklist concerning the number of workers, personal hygiene at sight, state of preparation area and toilet in the hotel kitchen. The workers who were pointed were mainly cooks, waiters and maids who work in hotel restaurant. A walkthrough was done where access was granted by the management in the kitchen to assess the level of hygiene of the workers and to inspect if they practice personal hygiene. The toilets were also seen and mess rooms. The second part of the questionnaire was dedicated for rooms and the environment such as garden. Points that were observed during the walkthrough inspection were: No of Personnel Sanitary conditions Water availability Lighting Ventilation Refuse disposal Toilets and bathrooms The second questionnaire was designed for food handlers to assess their knowledge about hygienic practices and food poisoning. CHAPTER 4: RESULTS Results and Findings Possession of food handlers certificate among workers General personal hygiene among workers The below bar chart shows the general personal hygiene maintained among workers at work and it can be concluded that 98% of them keep their hands clean, 94% keep their fingernails clean, 75% have their hair covered, 100% keep their body clean. But it could also be observed that only 25% of them keep their overall clean and 13% of them had nail varnish. Wall conditions of kitchens The wall conditions of the kitchens were surveyed and was found to have the following structures ; 82% of them are waterproof, 88% can be observed to be clean, 93% are washable, 82% are without crevices, 94% are painted white and 86% of them are tiled up to 2 meters from floor. Ventilation From figure 6, it can be seen that 83% of the hotels had adopted a good ventilation system using air conditioner for ease of workers while 17% of them did not have appropriate ventilation system. Lighting Figure 7 describes the lighting condition in the preparation area. 78% of the hotels were seen to provide a good lighting system for the workers and 22% had lighting system not satisfactory. Provision for refuse disposal Refuse disposal availability was surveyed and was found that 50% had foot operated pedal bins,70% of the garbage bins were cleaned and disinfected regularly,75% had their bins covered while 95% removed them daily. Room management Room conditions were observed to be at 72% satisfactory. 28% was seen to have a bad room management. Frequency of changing Blanket on bed From Fig 10. it can be observed that 80% of hotels changes bed blanket regularly,5% on a weekly basis and 15% when it seems necessary to do so that is when seen dirty. Bathroom and toilets sanitary conditions From the result obtained during the survey, it has been found that toilets and bathrooms in rooms are at 70% and 75% clean respectively. . Detergents Distribution The figure below gives detail of the type of detergents commonly used in hotels for sanitizing and cleaning purposes and their percentage used. Knowledge of food poisoning During the survey it was observed that only 40% of workers interviewed had a satisfactory knowledge of food poisoning and answered yes to the question whereas the other part could not give explanation food poisoning. Validity of food handlers certificate Professional training by employer From the survey carried out among workers, it was found that among the 70% of workers who were in possession of a food handlers certificate, only 55% of them were valid while 15% of them were

The Dutch in Japan Essay -- History

â€Å"The Red Haired Barbarians:† The Dutch in Japan The success of Dutch merchants in Japan illustrates the uniqueness of the Dutch Republic amongst the 17th century European countries. Not only would the Dutch come to dominate trade in Asia, in Japan they would demonstrate a practicality that would enable them to be the singular Western force present in a country that would severely isolate itself from any foreign intrusion. The V.O.C. could indeed be a ruthless cartel in securing trade from its competition and in dealing with indigenous populations around the world, as in the case of slavery where human beings were reduced to mere commodities to be bought and sold. Yet, the relationship between early Dutch traders, the V.O.C., and the Japanese people delineates an entrepreneurial and cultural adeptness that was beyond that of their European contemporaries and competitors in the 17th century. It was the Portuguese, rather than the Dutch, were the first Europeans to begin a relationship with the people of Japan. The Portuguese arrived in 1543 when Japan was a war torn country divided by different warlords. Along with trade, the Portuguese brought Jesuit missionaries who successfully proselytized Christianity if not to a large-scale, which would nonetheless be significant to future Japanese rulers. During their time in Japan, the Portuguese would see the rise of the three great shogunal unifiers. The first of these was Oda Nobunaga, who actually supported Christian efforts in order to counter 2 the militant Buddhist domains that resisted his rule. The second unifier, Toyotomi Hideyoshi was much less tolerant of the Jesuit and Franciscan missionaries, and subsequently vacillated between policies of tolerance and b... ...to a greatly different culture. That the idea of tolerance was not prevalent for17th century Europeans is demonstrated by the Portuguese experience in Japan, yet somehow the Dutch managed a cultural acumen that was remarkable for this time period. Works Cited â€Å"Dutch and Japanese Relations†. Consulat-General van het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden: http://www.oranda-cg.or.jp/english/relations.html, Retrieved 23 July 2007. Sayle, Murray. â€Å"Japan Goes Dutch†. London Review of Books. Vol. 23 No. 7 (5 April 2001). Retrieved 22 July 2007. Totman, Conrad. Tokugawa Ieyasu Shogun: A Biography, Tokyo: Heian International Incorporated. 1983. Yonemura, Ann. â€Å"Yokohama – Prints from Nineteenth Century Japan†. Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Smithsonian Institution. Washington, D.C. artelino.com/. Articles/dutch.Nagasaki. Retrieved 23 July 2007. NIAS_User Page 8 10/3/07.

Financial Analysis for Ford Motor Corporation

Ford Motor Company was registered as a full company in 1919 and it manages operations in the international automobile industry. Ford is responsible for the manufacture and supply of vehicles in six major continents in the world and its automobile products are Ford and Lincoln. The Lincoln brand sells lavish cars while the Ford brand sells commercial vehicles and automobiles.The company also manufactures automobile spare parts, heavy trucks and tractors. Ford holds minor stakes in the U.K’s Aston Martin and Japan’s Mazda brands. Furthermore, the company is listed in the New York Stocks Exchange (NYSE); with the Ford family has minority ownership. In addition, the company’s automobile sector is composed of Ford Asia Pacific Africa Regions, Ford Europe, Ford South and North America. In the financial year 2012, the company recorded more than five million sales in units at whole sale globally. The company’s spare parts, automobiles, and other accessories are su pplies through retail traders in North America and via other global retail stores that are separately owned.Ford Asia Pacific division is focused on selling and distributing in twelve key market regions through wholesales and tracking every market in the region. Some of the regions tracked by the company include South Africa, China, Australia, India and Association of South East Nations (ASEAN). Ford Europe is involved in distribution and tracking of Ford’s wholesale brands in Russia and Turkey and it has affiliates with Ford Sollers and Ford Otosan. The Ford South and North America divisions are involved in the wholesale of both Lincoln and Ford brands.The market region is the U.S, Mexico and Canada. Motor Company competes with other global players, which include Toyota Motor Corporation, Honda Motor Company, Fiat-Chrysler, Suzuki Motor Corporation, PSA Peugeot  Citroen, General Motors Company, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, BMW, Hyundai-KIA Automotive group and Renault Nissan B.V. Horizontal AnalysisThe horizontal analysis for Ford Motor Corporation will enable to exhibit the changes of amounts in the corresponding financial statement items from 2010 to 2012. This is important in depicting and analyzing the trend in these financial years. The earliest period between two financial years is used as the base year, that is, 2010 is the base year for the horizontal analysis between 2010 and 2012, while 2011 is the base year for the horizontal analysis between 2011 and 2012.The horizontal analysis is important for the following reasons; enables to assess the general performance of the Ford Motor Company. In addition, it will help in evaluating the increases and decreases of items in the financial statements. Horizontal analysis assists in examining if the management is realizing the set goals and objectives (Williams, 2008). Finally, the horizontal analysis will disclose the trends of items in the balance sheet and the income statement.Horizontal Analysis of the In come Statement for Ford Motor Corporation (In $ Millions)ItemDec 2012 Dec 2011 Change % Change Revenues 126, 567 128, 168 -1601 -1.25% ExpensesCost of Sales 112,578 113, 345 -767 -0.67% Selling, Administrative and other Expenses 9,006 9060 -54 -0.60% Total Expenses 121, 584 122,405 -821 -0.67%Interest Expense 713 817 -104 -12.73% Interest Income and Other Income 1185 825 360 43.64% Equity in Net Income 555 479 76 15.87% Income before Income Taxes 6010 6250 -240 -3.84%Horizontal Analysis of the Income Statement for Ford Motor Corporation (In $ Millions)Item Dec 2011 Dec 2010 Change % Change Revenues 128, 168 119,280 8,888 7.45% ExpensesCost of Sales 113, 345 104,451 8,894 8.51% Selling, Administrative and other Expenses 9060 9040 20 0.22%Total Expenses 122,405 113, 491 8914 7.85% Interest Expense 817 1807 -990 -54.79%Interest Income and Other Income 825 -362 1187 -327.9% Equity in Net Income 479 526 -47 -8.94% Income before Income Taxes 6250 4146 2104 50.75%Negative and Positive Tren ds in Ford Corporation From the Income Statement horizontal analysis between 2012 and 2011, the company exhibits negative trends in the total expenses, revenues, cost of sales, selling administrative and other expenses, interest expense and income before taxes. The positive trends in 2012/2011 include equity in net income and in interest income and other income. From the income statement horizontal analysis between 2011and 2010, the company exhibits positive trends in the total expenses, cost of sales, selling and administrative expenses and income before income taxes. The negative trends in the 2011/2010 include; interest expenses, interest income and other income and equity in net income.2012/2011 Horizontal Analysis of the Consolidated Balance Sheet for Ford Motor Company (In $ Millions) Item Dec2012 Dec2011 Change % Change ASSETSCash and Cash Equivalents 15,659 17,148 -1,489 -8.68% Marketable Securities 20,284 18,618 1,666 8.95% Finance Receivables 71,510 69,976 1534 2.19% Other Receivables 10,828 8,565 2263 26.42% Net Investments in Operating Leases 16,451 12,838 3613 28.14% Inventories 7,362 5,901 1,461 24.76% Equity in Net Assets 3,246 2,936 310 10.56%Deferred income taxes 15,185 15,125 60 0.4% Other Assets 5,000 4,770 230 4.82% Total Current Assets 165,525 155,877 9,648 6.18% Net intangible Assets 87 100 -13 -13%Net Property 24,942 22,371 2,571 11.49% Total Assets 190,554 178,348 12,206 6.84%LIABILITIESPayables 19,308 17,724 1,584 8.94% Accrued Liabilities 49,407 45,369 1,038 2.29% Short Term Debt 1386 1033 353 34.17%Deferred Income taxes 470 696 -226 -32.47 Total Current Liabilities 70,571 64,822 5,749 8.87% Long Term Debt 103,672 98,455 5,217 5.3% Total Liabilities 174,243 163,277 11,966 7.33%Redeemable noncontrolling Interest 322 _ _ _EQUITYCapital StockCommon Stock, par value $0.01 per share 39 37 2 5.41% Class B Stock, par value $0.01 per share 1 1 _ _ Capital in Excess of par value of stock 20,976 20,905 71 0.34% Retained Earnings 18,077 12,985 5 ,092 39.21 Accumulated other comprehensive inc. (22,854) (18,734) -4,120 22% Treasury Stock (292) (166) -126 75.9% Total equity to Ford Motor Company 15,947 15,028 919 6.12%Equitable to noncontrolling interests 42 43 -1 2.32% Total Equity 15,989 15,071 918 6.09% Total Liabilities and Equity 190,554 178,348 12,206 6.85%2011/2010 Horizontal Analysis of the Consolidated Balance Sheet for Ford Motor Company (In $ Millions) ItemDec2011 Dec 2010 Change % Change ASSETSCash and Cash Equivalents 17,148 14,805 2,343 15.83% Marketable Securities 18,618 20,765 -2,147 -10.34%Finance Receivables 69,976 70,070 -94 -0.13% Other Receivables 8,565 7,388 1,177 15.93%Net Investments in Operating Leases 12,838 11,675 1,163 9.96% Inventories 5,901 5,917 -16 -0.27% Equity in Net Assets 2,936 2,569 367 14.29Deferred income taxes 15,125 2,003 13,122 655% Other Assets 4,770 6,214 -1,444 -23.24Total Current Assets 155,877 141,406 14,471 10.23% Net intangible Assets 100 102 -2 -1.96% Net Property 22,371 23,179 -808 -3.49% Total Assets 178,348 164,687 13,661 8.29%LIABILITIESPayables 17,724 16,362 1,362 8.34% Accrued Liabilities 45,369 43,844 1,525 3.48% Short Term Debt 1033 2049 -1,016 -49.59% Deferred Income taxes 696 1,135 -439 -38.68% Total Current Liabilities 64,822 63,390 1,432 2.24% Long Term Debt 98,455 101,939 -3,484 -3.42% Total Liabilities 163,277 165,329 -2,052 -1.24%Redeemable noncontrolling Interest _ _ _ _EQUITYCapital StockCommon Stock, par value $0.01 per share 37 37 _ _ Class B Stock, par value $0.01 per share 1 1 _ _ Capital in Excess of par value of stock 20,905 20,803 102 0.05% Retained Earnings 12,985 (7,038) 20,023 -284.5%Accumulated other comprehensive inc. (18,734) (14,313) -4,421 30.89% Treasury Stock (166) (163) -3 1.84% Total equity to Ford Motor Company 15,028 (673) 15,701 -2332.99%Equitable to noncontrolling interests 43 31 18 38.71% Total Equity 15,071 (642) 15,713 -2,447.5% Total Liabilities and Equity 178,348 164,687 13,661 8.29%Negative and Positive Trends in Ford Corporation From the balance sheet horizontal analysis between 2012 and 2011, the company exhibits positive trends in the total current assets, total assets, total current liabilities, total liabilities, total equity and total liabilities and equity. From the balance sheet horizontal analysis between 2011and 2010, the company exhibits positive trends in the total current assets, total assets, total current liabilities, and total liabilities and equity. The company however depicts negative trends in the total liabilities and total equity.Ratio Analysis Current Ratio: This financial ratio is derived from the balance sheet financial and is used to measures of a company’s liquidity performance .This ratio assists in determining whether the current assets are readily available in order to pay off the current liabilities (Bodie, 2004). The current liabilities are cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivables, inventory and marketable securities. The current liabilities i nclude accrued expenses, accounts payables, short term debt, taxes and notes payables (Groppelli, 2000). The 2:1 ratio is the typically suitable current ratio. It is evaluated by dividing the current assets by the current liabilities: Current Ratio = Current Assets/Current Liabilities Current Ratio 2012 =(15,659+20,284+71,150+10,828+16,451+7362+3,246+15,185+5,000) / (19,308+ 49,407+1,386+470) = (162,525)/ (70,571) = 2.3 The 2012 current ratio for Ford Motor Corporation is commendable since it is slightly more than the conventional 2:1 ratio. Current Ratio 2011 = (17,148+18,618+69,976+8565+12,838+5901+2936+15125+4770) / (17,724+45,369+1,033+696) = (155,877)/ (64,822) = 2.4The 2011 current ratio for Ford Motor Corporation is recommendable since it is slightly more than the conventional 2:1 ratio. This means that Ford’s current assets are readily available in paying off current liabilities. Quick Ratio: This is a rather enhanced method to evaluate for liquidity since it does not include inventories from current assets. This is due to the reason inventories may be obsolete, harmed and at times stolen. This ratio reveals the ability of a firm is able to meet its short-term goals from its liquid assets (Groppelli, 2000). The suggested target for the quick-ratio is 1:1 and it is evaluated as: Quick Ratio = (Current Assets – Inventories or Stocks)/ Current Liabilities QuickRatio2012 = (15,659+20,284+71,150+10,828+16,451+3,246+15,185+5,000) / (19,308+ 49,407+1,386+470) = (165,525 – 7,362)/ 70,571= 2.24Quick R atio2011 = (17,148+18,618+69,976+8565+12,838+2936+15125+4770) / (17,724+45,369+1,033+696) = (155,877 – 5,901)/ 64,822= 2.31The 2011and 2012 Quick ratios for Ford Motor Corporation are commendable since they exceed the conventional 1:1 ratio. This therefore means that Ford Motor Corporation is able to meet its short-term objectives. Cash Ratio: This ratio assists in determining the company's liquidity by further refining the current ratio and the quick ratio (Bodie,2004). This ratio is evaluated by calculating the quantity of cash and cash equivalents or invested funds that are in the current assets to cover current liabilities (Groppelli, 2000). It is calculated using the following formula; Cash Ratio= (Cash+ Cash Equivalents+ Invested Funds)/ Current Liabilities CashRatio2012= (15,659+20,284+71,150+10,828+16,451) / (19,308+ 49,407+1,386+470) = (134,372)/ 70,571= 1.9Cash Ratio2011 = (17,148+18,618+69,976+8565+12,838) / (17,724+45,369+1,033+696) = (127,415)/ (64,822)=1.96The a bove Cash Ratio results for 2012 and 2011 reveal that Ford Corporation is able to settle its current liabilities by use of its Cash and Cash equivalents only.Recommendation Any investor willing to invest in Ford Motor Corporation should move ahead and invest in the company. The company’s financial strength as depicted by the financial ratios reveals that the company is able to meet its shot term obligations. This is because the liquidity ratios reveal that the company’s current assets are able to pay off the current liabilities.

Powerade marketing Essay

SWOT ANALYSIS Strength: Widely Distributed Loyal Customers Drink Technology Helps Distinguish Powerade Athletic Endorsements Strong Brand Name – Powerade Weaknesses: Online Marketing and Presence of Powerade. Opportunities: Product and Market Expansion. Flavor and Drink Innovation. Threats: Potential price wars could hurt the athletic drink market. Powerade is in fierce competition with Gatorade. External analysis Competition analysis The main competitor of powerade is Gatorade. The combined market share of all Gatorade products is 84.7% of the sports drink market. These Gatorade products include traditional Gatorade, Gatorade Frost, Gatorade Fierce, Gatorade X Factor Gatorade All Star, Gatorade Ice, Gatorade Extreme, and Gatorade Endurance Formula. The combined sales for these Gatorade products were $2.1 billion for the 52 weeks ending June 12, 2005. In this time period Gatorade has seen a 0.1% increase in its market share. Gatorade has sponsorship deals with the National Football League National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer. It also has a long history, being the first sports drink on the market when it was introduced in1965. More recently Gatorade has extended their product line to include Propel Fitness Water, which competes with Powerade option.  Both Gatorade and Powerade come in a wide variety of flavors and the two brand share comparable in price. Also, both are primarily sold in plastic bottles, but also offer a powder form. See Appendix A for a side-by-side comparison of the nutritional features of Powerade and Gatorade. Other competitors of powerade include all sport, Protein Ice and various other sports drinks. These products only make up 1% of the market. Various bottled water brands pose competition to powerade Option. The bottled water industry was a $9.1 billion dollar industry (domestic) in 2004 – a substantially larger market than sports drinks. Client Analysis The sports drinks market has been expanding in recent years. Ten years ago, sports drinks were typically consumed by serious athletes and body builders. The target market now includes people ranging in age from their teenage years to the 40s who have an interest in sports. Note that these people do not necessarily play sports regularly. There are three common occasions for consumption of sports drinks: after sports activity, for breakfast, and â€Å"on-the-go.† As a result, companies are reducing their focus on sports in order to accommodate these consumption patterns Sports drinks are generally viewed as a masculine product. The male to female ratio of the market is 4 to 1. Clearly males are targeted over females in this market, but data show that females also purchase the product regularly. Objectives: In recent years, powerade has lost revenue. Not because of fierce competition against Gatorade in the sports drink industry, but against enhanced water products like Vitamin Water, Smartwater. So powerade would like to gain consumers focus by reinvigorating the brand and generating buzz. Strategy: Reach more customers by broadening its demographics from athletes to any active consumer. Tactic: Refreshing and contemporizing the brand by renaming and repackaging its drinks. So bottles are now featuring a bigger size with the name powerade appearing almost in fine print. And powerade is embarking the boat of enhanced beverages. Strategies and Positioning Introduction Powerade is an energetic drink made by the Coca-Cola company. Its market is focused mainly in the sport world, because of the energy and mineral salts that it gives to supply the expensed ones during the exercise. Powerade entered the market in 1992. A market dominated mainly by Gatorade because of the lack of competitors in the market. As it is well known Coca-cola and Pepsi are main competitors in their market; well Powerade anda Gatorade are their sport products respectively. Because of the lack of competitors in this market, and the total dominance of Gatorade, Coca-cola Co. Decided to enter de market although they were in clear disadvantage. The first year that Powerade was in the market, it made a good hit to Gatorade, at least 10% of the sales, and this was because Pepsi Co was seeing Gatorade as a drink to have at home, just a beberage. Powerade entered as a sports man drink, that’s why it commenced to fight in this market. With a new competitor in the market, well, the only competitor in the market at the moment, and it wasn ´t no other that the worst enemy o Pepsi Co. , Coca-cola, the companay decided to commence a battle in marketing that still today is having place in our markets. Innovations and New Products The Gatorade commenced its battle by projecting its product in every place relationed with the product, as gyms, football fields, etc. But it was Coke Co. The one who took the initiative in this place, by entering the market after convincing various figures of sport to promote Powerade. Pepsi got new ideas! It had to get to a wider market an no only as a healthy drink that moms could give to their children. It decided to enter more strongly in the sport market, then it launched a series of products to improve in the sport, like energy bars, more energetic drink, even a gel, that Olympic sportsmen use. Anyway it wasn’t new to Coke Co these strategies and they had new ways of enter this market and fight for the triumph too. Powerade also got energy bars, or drinks, and even gels, like Gatorade did, but Coke Co had a new product to fight the competence; Powerade zero, a drink with zero calories and zero sugars, made as a diet drink, so it entered no only the market of sport more deeply with this product; it also opened a great market to whit no fat drinks! And there are a lot of people that want to lose weight with few or no sport; this drink definitively would be perfect for those users. Gatorade counter attacked making publicity and saying that an energy drinks, needs calories to supply the ones that you burn during exercise. Coke co was ready for that, and they argued that what you really needed during sport was just a drink to supply the mineral salts that you need, and with a good flavors; they got the help of some science studies to support their argument, and it just made Powerade to gain more sales, and then steel them from Gatorade. But battle wasn’t won yet, and Powerade knows that. So they commenced a marketing campaign with famous basket and football stars to publicities its product, also they launched new flavors. And in a battle that it seems that everything its worthy, Coca Cola Co had just hired the ex-executive manager of science and sports of Gatorade. Obviously a great heat to Pepsi Co and even more if Coke co hired him in the R+D department, what would make a great amount of sales for Powerade and lot less for Gatorade. And the impact was visible early. In 2010 Powerade’s sales raised to a 32% of the market in the third trimester, having in account that in 1990 the drink was launched at it got less than a 10%. Great hit to Gatorade, but it was owning the market yet. With more than 60% of the sales Gatorade is clearly the leader, but more and more, year by  year, Powerade gets more buyers than Gatorade. Conclusion Coca-Cola co entered a market where it has clear disadvantage, sport world drinks, with Powerade, and they had no more than a 10% of the sales in the market that was clearly governed by Coke’s main rival; Pepsi Co and its Gatorade with at least 80% of the sales in the market of energy drinks. But Powerade had a great future and they where ready to open at. After Powerade got the dominium of some great and famous athletes both competitors began a marketing battle by promoting their products in sport places. And Gatorade seeing the danger of this new competitor soon opened more strategies like new products. But Powerade strategies weren’t over yet and they launched new products to the market and opened a making it wider like the same products of even a diet drink. It is obvious that both companies have great marketing strategies, but in my opinion Powerade has the lead in that way, because year by year they are getting more sales and users from Gatorade. Not going too far, I began consuming Gatorade, but now a days when I do some sport, I use Powerade. Its benefits feel better than Gatorade ones. Product Powerade is an isotonic beverage/sports drink manufactured by â€Å"The Coca-Cola Company†; it was first introduced to the market in the year 1988 and later released nationally on the United States on the year 1992. Powerade’s primary competitor is Gatorade, which is manufactured by PepsiCo’s (Coca-Cola’s main competitor). By June 2007, Powerade reached a 13.4% of the market in its category, Gatorade being the leader of the market with an 84.2%. Ingredients Powerade is composed by water, high fructose corn syrup, salt, potassium citrate, phenylalanine, sucralose, sodium citrate, malic acid, potassium phosphate, vitamin B6, and vitamin B2. Flavors This product stands out by the numerous types of flavors it offers; currently there are eight types of flavors: Orange, Mountain Berry Blast (originally Mountain Blast), Fruit Punch, Grape, Lemon Lime, Sour Melon (originally Green Squall), White Cherry (originally Arctic Shatter), and Strawberry Lemonade. Apart from this, there are six flavors of Powerade zero, the zero calorie version of the product, this are: Mixed Berry, Grape, Lemon Lime, Orange, Fruit Punch and Strawberry. Sponsorship Powerade is the official sports drink of teams like Wallabies, New Zealand’s All Blacks, River Plate from Argentina, the Australian Football League, O’Higgins F.C, Argentina’s national football team, Mexico’s national football team, the PGA Tour, Nascar, and the United States Olympic team. Apart from this, Rogelio Funes Mori from River Plate, Lebron James from the Miami Heat, and Wayne Rooney from Manchester United, are the three main sportsman sponsored by Powerade. Product life cycle The Product life cycle consist of four stages starting from introduction stage, growth stage, maturity stage and decline stage. At the introduction stage, the product is not popular and can’t really make a lot of profit. Its marketing cost may be high in order to test a market and set up a distribution channel. At the growth stage, the product start making a profit, the sales increase rapidly with some cost on marketing especially brand building. Competitors enter the market, often in large number depending on how attractive the market is. When a profit starts to decline, it’s the sign of ‘Maturity stage’. Powerade was originally elaborated for athletes. Originally it had to be reformulated because of its bad taste and because of ingredients problems. The new formula offered better nutritional values, and this led to Powerade being consumed as a common drink. Because of this, in its growth stage Powerade started releasing different types of drinks for athletes, with the objective of hydrating them. Powerade has tried to create more new products  than Gatorade and the other competition, but this task is not easy since Gatorade products are more demanded. As sales decline, the firm has several options like maintaining the product, possibly rejuvenating it by adding new features and finding new uses; harvest the product reduce costs and continue to offer it, possibly to a loyal niche segment, or discontinuing the product. In Powerade’s case, it will continue offering its products, with the confident of continue growing and not to decline, and also changing features, like a new bottle which projects a new and fresh image. Brand equity As a Performance Partner of the ‘All Blacks’, Powerade has recorded some exceptional scores of late, having seen volume sales of its 750ml bottles grow by 22.9% in supermarkets across New Zealand since 2009, confirming its status as the countries number one selling sports drink. Ahead of the launch of its latest campaign, the challenge therefore facing Powerade was to grow its brand further than the 80% market share that it currently already occupies. Equipped with the insight that Powerade was only being drunk on game days by consumers in New Zealand, the brand wanted to become an integral part of daily training routines, and utilized its sponsorship of the Rugby team to achieve this through the launch of a multi-touch point campaign launched in late June that aimed to heighten anticipation ahead of the Rugby World Cup in September. This was Powerade’s ‘Black’, which hit the supermarkets across New Zealand creating impact and patriotism among fans in what was a crucial year in the history of the nation from a Rugby perspective. Adding weight to the campaign was the launch of a TVC, ‘Train Like You’re In The Game’, that highlighted how the hard work on the training ground is replicated in a match situation, creating a direct link between high performance and the abilities of Powerade to facilitate this by hydrating the body. Online activation saw the launch of a Powerade New Zealand Facebook page, where training tips and behind the scenes footage of the New Zealand Rugby team could be accessed, providing an insight into the lives of elite athletes by posing the question to members of the New Zealand Rugby Team, â€Å"what makes an ‘All Black’?† The Powerade NZ website took this idea to a new level, featuring tips and advice from NZ Rugby strength and conditioning coach, Dr. Nic Gill, and provided a ‘hydration calculator’ tool that aggregated the amount of fluid lost from the body through sweat during exercise. In addition, various training drills were shared by Dr. Gill targeted at improving endurance, speed, performance and strength whilst details of the ‘Powerade Challenge’ were also provided. In order for consumers to test their fitness levels against those of the All Blacks players, Powerade also launched the ‘Powerade Challenge’ in July, creating a running course located on the Auckland waterfront integrated with RFID technology so that runners could track their times. Participants could register online to receive their free personalized Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) bracelet, which could be activated by placing it on unique Powerade vending machines located a various distances around the running route. All results were uploaded to the brand’s website. The integrated push from Powerade highlights the desire of the brand to cement its status as the number one selling sports drink in New Zealand, building equity in the process and showcasing its innovative technologies during the Rugby World Cup, a time where the sport (already massive in the country) is at the forefront of consumers minds. PRICE In order to talk about the Price, inside the Marketing Mix of POWERADE. To introduce this part of the presentation, what we can say is that ‘Price’ as one of the elements that gives a real benefit to the company, needs to be studied, in order to know why companies put a determined price to the product. And, as we are going to see now, the price will vary, depending on the country it’s sold and the GDP of the country. AMERICA In the table above what we can see are the values of the POWERADE and GATORADE (its major competitor in the whole market of the energetic beverages) North America: In Canada, price of Powerade is less than Gatorade, as it is usual due to Powerade (normally) sells its product at a lower price than its major competitor (Gatorade). In the USA, price of Powerade acts in the same way than Canada, lower price than Gatorade. In this case the GDP of Canada and USA is not a great factor, in order to evaluate the price the product. Central America: In Mexico, price of Powerade is much lower than in North America, but is a little greater in comparison with Gatorade. Here we can appreciate, that the GDP of Mexico is less, so price of both products is lower. South America: In Brazil, we can see that price of Powerade is quite bigger than in the USA, even with a lower GDP, in this case, the main reason could be that, Powerade demand is not so big, in order to decrease the price, or another reason, could be that, Gatorade has a greater Market Share. So, it could explain why the difference between both products is relatively big. In Argentina, we can see a greater difference between both products, and here, is clear that marketing strategy of Powerade, which is ‘to offer same product, but a lower price’, is done. Other thing that we can see about price, if we compare it with USA, it’s clear that Powerade is more expensive. EUROPE POWERADE (500 ML) $ POWERADE $ GATORADE $GDP EUROPE UK 1,33 1,42 35.500 FRANCE 2,08 2,51 34.569 GERMANY 1,58 1,83 37.900 ITALY 1,64 2,34 31.264 SPAIN 1,22 1,41 31.500 Studying the price of Powerade in Europe, we can say that: the variety of prices doesn’t vary between countries. The main reason could be that European countries analyzed are inside the European Union, and the difference of prices doesn’t vary between them. Only remark France, where the prices of Powerade (and Gatorade) are quite bigger than the rest, even comparing them with Germany, where the GDP is higher. ASIA POWERADE (500 ML) $ POWERADE $ GATORADE $GDP ASIA CHINA 1,26 1,6 8400 JAPAN 2,81 3,25 35280 SOUTH KOREA 1,26 1,89 33100 In the box above, we can appreciate that in Asia, the variation of GDP is very high, and wide, due to the wealth of the nations studied. The main thing remarkable is that in Japan, the price of Powerade is quite high than in China or South Korea, the main reason, it’s because the wealth of Japan is high than the rest of the Asian countries. AFRICA POWERADE (500 ML) $ POWERADE $ GATORADE $GDP AFRICA MOROCCO 0,9 1,145 5252 EGYPT 0,95 1,12 6180 SOUTH AFRICA 1,093 1,35 10890 Here in Africa, what we can appreciate is that the prices of Powerade (and Gatorade) don’t vary with other developed countries. One thing remarkable is that Powerade costs more in South Africa than Morocco or Egypt, maybe because the GDP of this country is higher than the others compared. OCEANIA POWERADE (500 ML) $ POWERADE $ GATORADE $GDP OCEANIA AUSTRALIA 2,25 2,79 40820 NEW ZEALAND 3,56 2,76 29535 Analyzing the prices in Oceania, we can appreciate that there is a big difference between the prices of this continent and the rest of the world. Bottles of 500 ml, of Powerade, are more expensive than in other countries outside Australia or New Zealand. One reason could be because of the distance between this countries and Asia,  so, the production cost could be higher. Other reason could be because of the GDP, if we see, its high comparing it with the media of GDP, and between Australia and New Zealand the difference is clearly defined. In New Zealand is much more expensive to buy a bottle of Powerade than in Australia. BUT, if you buy a bottle of Gatorade is cheaper than a bottle of Powerade, this could because the demand of Gatorade is higher than Powerade, so the company decided to reduce its price, in order to maintain the consumption. Natural disasters in Australia Natural disasters are events that occur naturally such as earthquakes, cyclones, Storms, and floods. These kinds of disasters can cause significant physical damage, interruption of business services and personal injury/loss of life. Due to the effects of global warming and consequential climate change the rate of natural disasters in Australia is increasing day by day. I myself have faced such kind of natural disaster in Pakistan in the year 2012 which was a flood. So I can relate and describe how painful and how bad economically these disasters can be; destroying each and everything coming in its way. There are two types of economic impacts due to natural disasters: 1. Direct Economic impact. This includes lifelines such as water, sanitation system, gas, electricity, telecommunication and transportation which are vulnerable to all types of natural disasters which are included in public infrastructure and community facilities. Other than this business enterprise, households & residents are also part of direct impact. 2. Indirect economic impact. Indirect economic impact includes disruption and clean up. These impacts are incurred due to consequence of the disaster. Australia has always been facing these kinds of disasters which made a huge loss for Australia and a lot of time and money was spent to bring Australia back in its kind of original form. If we go through the history of Australia  we can read that from the year 1967 till 1999 there have been 265 such disasters costing more than $10 million dollars each. The total cost of most disasters is ranging from $10 to $50 million which is a huge amount. Among the entire disasters, floods were most common and most costly. Floods have always been on number one causing destruction on a high level, contributing $10.4 billion or 29 percent to the total cost followed by Storms and Cyclones making 26 and 24 percent of the total cost. The bushfire crisis in Victoria is Australia’s worst-ever bushfire disaster. It’s also Australia’s worst natural disaster in 110 years which so far has claimed 131 lives. If we analyze the currently available data then we come up with a statement that total cost of natural disasters in Australia between the years 1967 and 1999 is approximately $36.4 billion, which is easy to say and hard to believe. If we integrate deaths and injuries into this data then the total cost increases to $37.8 billion or approximately $85 per person compared to prices in 1999. This estimation brings to an average annual total cost of natural disasters to $1.14 billion since 1967 or $1.17 since 1980 and $1.51 billion prices are subjected to year 1999. An organization called â€Å"The Natural disaster Relief and Recover Arrangements (NDRRA) is an organization that provides Commonwealth and States which share costs in rebuilding the assets of states that are damaged by the natural disaster. By which the states are able to get a little part of the total cost from the Common wealth used in reconstructing state government assets. Every state in Australia has some self-insurance or some form of managed fund which helps in insuring states assets. It is recommended by many that the formula used under â€Å"The Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements† should be changed to expenditure method before the State or Territory gets any insurance recovery. Natural disasters cause so much heavy burden on the economy of Australia that at some stage it becomes so hard for the government to deal with the outcomes of that disaster. There are many ways which can help the government getting over these disasters and make plans or organizations which can work  on these disasters as these disasters are unavoidable part of Australia. Nothing much can be done besides what has always done on such events. Below are some ways that can help. Low interest concessional loans should be given on large scale by the government to companies. Series of loan repayment should be increased to as maximum as possible. Flood premium discount should be given for existing homes but not for new homes. Every year some part of the Gross Domestic Product should be saved a side. Emergency relief assistance and emergency re-establishment assistance should be increased. Provide a carrier that has good reputation in claiming service. 1. Neil Gentle, Sharyn Kierce, Alistair Nitz, 2001 â€Å"Economic cost of natural disaster in Australia† Retrieved from â€Å"https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CDAQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.em.gov.au%2FDocuments%2FEconomic_costs_of_natural_disasters_in_Australia.pdf&ei=XO17UdX2FcaiigeT1oCYCQ&usg=AFQjCNE89LiWzBdi_zr3hvixQdXzkLYLBA&sig2=bVIuhvxRuq8ZUmgV1h7sYg&bvm=bv.45645796,d.dGI† on 18th April 2013. 2. Emergency Management Australia, 2002 â€Å"Economic and Financial aspects of Disaster Recovery† Retrieved from https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&ved=0CDUQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.em.gov.au%2FDocuments%2FManual28-EconomicandFinancialAspectsofDisasterRecovery.pdf&ei=XO17UdX2FcaiigeT1oCYCQ&usg=AFQjCNGgKyl9WZm6lEw4LUhncbrFlzf7zA&sig2=4zfhYHeYKdlqn4qrM5cFaA&bvm=bv.45645796,d.dGI on April 19, 2013. 3. Bureau of Transport Economics Report 103, 2001 â€Å"Economic costs of natural disasters in Australia† Retrieved from http://www.bitre.gov.au/publications/2001/files/report_103.pdf on April 21, 2013. 4. John Trowbridge, Jim Minto, John Berrill, September 2001 â€Å"Natural disaster insurance review,†