NEWS COVERAGE PERIOD FROM MAY 11TH TO MAY 17TH
NESTLE MILKPAK DONATING HALF-A-MILLION GLASSES OF MILK
By RECORDER REPORT on May 16, 2020
In the wake of COVID-19, NESTLÉ MILKPAK will be donating half-a-million glasses of milk in collaboration with dairy industry partners Tetra Pak Pakistan, Bulleh Shah Packaging Pvt Ltd, Interloop Ltd and Interloop Holdings, Sheikh Noor-Ud-Din & Sons Pvt Ltd and Texo Poly Industries Pvt Ltd.
The support is part of Nestlé Pakistan’s earlier commitment of 100 million rupees worth of nutritious products in the national response to COVID-19 pandemic.
Talking about the initiative, Jason Avancena, business executive officer, Dairy, Nestlé Pakistan, said, “We will be providing NESTLÉ MILKPAK to food delivery organizations serving vulnerable communities to meet their nutritional needs. Nestlé Milkpak will be part of the ration bags being distributed to these communities by government departments and non-government organizations.”
Jorge Montero, managing director of Tetra Pak Pakistan, said, “This donation perfectly echoes Tetra Pak’s vision of making food safe and available, everywhere.”
“Bulleh Shah Packaging through Packages Foundation is pleased to partner with Nestlé, committing packaging of 500,000 packets of NESTLÉ MILKPAK 250ml in corrugated trays for free distribution to beneficiaries. Together we can make a difference in creating a better tomorrow,” said a spokesperson for Bulleh Shah Packaging Pvt. Ltd.
Highlighting the efforts undertaken, Musadaq Zulqarnain, chairman of Interloop Limited and Interloop Holdings, said, “As a responsible corporate, Interloop group has taken multiple initiatives to support the underprivileged communities during COVID-19 pandemic.” He added, “As part of the partnership with Nestlé Pakistan, Interloop Welfare Trust has donated 50,000 liters of milk for people in need.”
Meanwhile, Farhaj Sarwar, director of Sheikh Noor-Ud-Din & Sons Pvt. Ltd. (HSNDS), said, “During these unprecedented times, HSNDS provides 10,000 liters of pure milk to Nestlé so they can distribute to community. We also provided almost 12,000 facemasks to Punjab Police to keep the frontline heroes safe in these critical times.”
Emphasizing on how important the availability of food was for those in need, Usman Malik, director of Texo Poly Industries Pvt. Ltd., stressed, “This pandemic has defined the difference between essential and non-essential. Food is essential, and there are many who are in need of it.”
Waqar Ahmad, head of corporate affairs, Nestlé Pakistan, added, “At Nestlé, we care deeply for people and for the communities in which we operate, and we believe we have an essential role to play during the COVID-19 crisis.”
Nestlé Pakistan is working tirelessly to ensure that much-needed food and beverage products are available for consumers across Pakistan, in commitment to the strategic roadmap laid out by Prime Minister Imran Khan and respective provincial leaderships.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
https://www.brecorder.com/2020/05/16/597457/nestle-milkpak-donating-half-a-million-glasses-of-milk/
NEWS COVERAGE PERIOD FROM MAY 4TH TO MAY 10TH
PSMA SUMMONED BY INQUIRY COMMISSION
MUSHTAQ GHUMMAN May 06, 2020
ISLAMABAD: The Sugar Inquiry Commission has summoned Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) on Thursday (tomorrow) for presenting its viewpoint on the sugar scam worth billions of rupees, after allegedly five sugar dealers have offered to turn approvers, well-informed sources told Business Recorder.
The Commission has questioned hundreds of stakeholders including farmers’ representative to find out the truth despite difficulties associated with Covid-19 spread. According to media reports, an Additional Director has tested positive. The Chief of Pakistan Kissan Itehad has been questioned for three hours.
On April 29, 2020, Chairman Inquiry Commission, Wajid Zia, wrote a letter to Chairman PSMA, Aslam Farouque, saying that Ministry of Interior has constituted a Commission under his chairmanship to probe the increase in sugar prices. He asked PSMA to attend the meeting of the Sugar Inquiry Commission on May 7, 2020 at FIA headquarters Islamabad with experts who could explain the cost of production mechanism.
An official claimed the Commission has found “undeniable” evidence against the mills and sugar dealers in Punjab and Sindh through probe ledger registers.
Insiders claim that the Inquiry Commission has some evidence of illegal sale of sugar through dealers network but is still unable to connect the missing links despite reaching the end retailers.
However, some dealers who have been grilled ruthlessly by the Inquiry Commission’s teams of about 100 officials, who also raided sugar mills’ their offices and also questioned them in Islamabad, have agreed to turn approvers.
According to insiders, sugar mill owners who are under probe fear bad days ahead as NAB has also initiated inquiry.
The sources said, one group reportedly got permission to set up Mianwali plant for beet crushing but the plant is operating on sugarcane crushing in violation of original permission which was primarily to circumvent the permission on setting up of sugar mills to run and operate under the guise of beet plant by defrauding the government. The group is also said to be making huge investments in Australia to acquire plants overseas. They have a 54% stake in a sugar mill in Australia. The Commission, sources said, will also probe assets of the owners of sugar mills who availed amnesty scheme for funds kept abroad beyond a sum of $ 100,000/- and determine how the funds were sent and the sources. The funds declared in Pakistani rupee are to be used in the Pakistan economy. The group is allegedly involved in massive lowering of recovery in a plant thereby generating tax free profits and acquiring one sugar mill after another.
The same is said to be the case of all mills in southern region Punjab where recovery is depressed and out of books massive profits are generated. The capacities in south have also increased manifold as a result of massive evasion of taxes.
An official associated with the Inquiry Commission said on condition of anonymity that with regard to costing of sugar every mill has three distinct variables: recovery, cost of sugarcane and financial charges therefore any expert would know that to work out exact cost of production on an average basis would be an exercise in futility. Moreover mills with higher recovery want to follow the average cost of production to hide their actual cost of production for purposes of evasion. Same is the case in Sindh where recovery is higher in upper Sindh and less in lower Sindh.
https://epaper.brecorder.com/2020/05/06/1-page/835991-news.html
FIGHT AGAINST COVID-19 NOVARTIS DONATES RS41.25M TO PRCS
RECORDER REPORT May 08, 2020
KARACHI: Novartis donated Rs 41.25 million to Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS), one of the largest humanitarian organizations in the country to support in efforts against Covid-19.
Novartis Pakistan will be working with PRCS to distribute the Testing Kits & PPEs to Health Care staff in areas most severely affected across all provinces.
Dr Imran Rasheed, Chief Executive Officer, Novartis Pharma Pakistan, said that Novartis Pakistan feels proud to stand with our Healthcare Professionals at their hour of need and hope to mitigate and contain this deadly infection as soon as humanly possible.
He said that Novartis has always remained on the forefront when it comes to Corporate Social Responsibility. “In Pakistan, we have ongoing projects in collaboration with government, NGOs and other partners working actively for the benefits of patients. We have the biggest Oncology Access program in Pakistan, providing cancer medicines free of cost, worth billions of rupees”, he added.
He said that during this challenging time of Covid-19 Pandemic, with this donation, Novartis contributing back to the society is core to our strategy and one of the pillars of Novartis vision.
https://epaper.brecorder.com/2020/05/08/5-page/836293-news.html