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[ad_1] If you look at your grocery expenditures over the course of a month or two, you’ll likely find that you spend a significant portion of your grocery budget on meat. I often hear from people who say, “We want to cut our grocery bill, but we like and eat a lot of meat!” Here are some suggestions and ideas on ways you can still enjoy meat — without breaking your budget! Some of these ideas were ones submitted on my Facebook Page. 1. Buy in Bulk If you have the freezer space, buying meat in bulk will usually significantly reduce the cost. Search for local farms nearby that sell in bulk to the public (you can often find great connections at your local farmer’s market). You can also call nearby butcher shops to ask if they sell in bulk. Not only will the meat be less expensive, but it will likely be higher quality and you’ll be supporting local farms! Tip: Don’t have the freezer space to buy a big bulk order? Ask your friends if anyone would be willing to go in with you and split the costs to save money. 2. Shop the Markdowns If you follow my grocery shopping trips here, you know that shopping the markdowns is my favorite way to save money on meat. Many stores — like Kroger, Kroger affiliates, Target, Aldi, and more — will discount meat that has a sell by date in the next few days. It’s often 50% off the regular price! I buy what we will use and can afford in our budget, and then I freeze it as soon as get home. By shopping the meat markdowns and buying a few pounds or more each week, we usually have 20-30 pounds of different types of meat in our freezer to work with to make our menu plan from each week! Leah says: “My local Aldi and Kroger tend to put fresh meats out on Mondays or Wednesdays. I can usually find markdowns on the day before or day of the meat going out of date. I can usually find all varieties of fresh meat for $2 off or 50% off. Then I cook it up and freeze it in meal portions. We usually have 5 pounds of cooked ground turkey and 2-3 pounds of shredded chicken in the freezer at any given time.” 3. Pay Attention to Weekly Sales This is also another tip I employ to save money on meat. I watch the weekly sales and weekly digital coupon deals at Kroger and stock up anytime there is a great deal on meat we use often. 4. Serve Meat as a Condiment I wrote about this strategy in a post back in 2020: When Jesse and I were first married, we committed to stay out of debt while he went through law school. We knew this was going to require a number of sacrifices on our part and we decided staying out of debt and starting our marriage with a strong financial foundation was worth the sacrifices. One area I knew we could save a lot of money on was our grocery budget. I started looking for all the creative ways I could come up with to maximize the mileage of our money when it came to buying food. Not only did I shop the sales, use coupons, and plan a menu, but we also decided to serve meat more a condiment. We had it sprinkled on pizza, sprinkled in casseroles, and sprinkled in soups. We usually only bought one bag of chicken to last two weeks and then we supplemented this with the occasional really good markdown/coupon special on pepperoni or ham. We rarely ever had beef because it just wasn’t in the budget. In addition to serving meat as a condiment, we often had meatless meals. We made lasagna casserole and I just left out the meat. We had corn chowder without meat. We’d have pancakes and eggs or cheese pizza or bean soup or even rice and beans. I loved getting creative and using what we had on hand, what was on sale, and what I found marked down to put together filling and yummy meals. Sure, we didn’t eat anything remotely gourmet, but we always had plenty to eat and the sales and markdowns quite a bit of variety. Plus, being very intentional and strategic in how I shopped and cooked ended up saving us thousands of dollars in our first few years of marriage alone — and was one way we were able to stay out of debt. 5. Add Beans to Your Meat Stretching your meat with legumes is a great way to save money on meat. Mexican dishes, bean soups, and chili are recipes that you can pretty easily add in extra beans to replace some of the meat without most people realizing it. Lentils hide especially well in taco meat, too. Just add in cooked lentils to your ground beef along with your usual seasonings and there’s a good chance your family won’t even notice! 6. Use Less I often use less meat than a recipe calls for — especially in things like soups and casseroles. Karen shared this tip on Facebook: “When I package hamburger for the freezer, I pack approximately 3/4 pound rather than a full pound. That means if you buy 3 pounds, you get four meals instead of three.” 7. Mix Meats Together I often find great deals on ground turkey. Our family isn’t a huge fan of ground turkey in most things, but if I mix a pound of ground turkey with a pound of ground beef, it tastes better and my family doesn’t even notice! You can do this in recipes that call for browned ground beef or it works really well for making dishes like meatballs and meatloaf a lot less expensive. 8. Hunt Nicole says: “We hunt deer, ducks, geese, turkeys. We process our own harvest. Not only does this help to stock our freezers,

[ad_1] Amazon union leader Smalls went from rapper to unlikely voice of protest [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] India’s unemployment rate fell to 7.6% in March, after rising to a six-month high of 8.1% in February, according to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). Rural joblessness rate fell by over 1 percentage point to 7.29% in March, even as the urban rate rose to a three-month high of 8.28%. The unemployment rate stood at 6.57% in January. Higher jobs creation under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MG-NREGS) could have played a role in the decline in rural joblessness rate in March, experts said. In February, 264 million person days of work was generated under the scheme, which was more than 23 million person days of work generated in January. Labour expert and XLRI professor KR Shyam Sundar said the rise in urban unemployment could be attributed to reductions in production in sectors which depend on spare parts from China. Fresh lockdowns in China due to a new wave of the pandemic will play a crucial role in Indian labour market. The recent peak of unemployment rate in India was 11.84% reported in May 2021, when the second wave of the pandemic was wreaking havoc. During the month, the unemployment rate in both urban and rural areas were in double-digits at 14.72% and 10.55%, respectively. Though urban unemployment rate in urban areas continued to be in double digit in June; joblessness rate in both urban and rural areas remained in single digit each month since then, signalling improvement in economic activity. “A consistent decline in urban unemployment rate will have to be achieved during the next quarter in order to not only ease the employment situation in urban labour market but also in rural areas. And for this, the pandemic-induced lockdowns should gradually but surely removed,” said Sundar. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Brena Nath, Director of HW+ and Events From the cover feature on Finance of America’s Patti Cook to the commentaries and solutions that focus on the title space, our April issue highlights just how much the housing and real estate industries have grown and changed — and changed for the better as innovation and technology drive the space forward. Starting on page 24, you can read about Cook’s retirement announcement at the start of this year, as she steps away from her role as CEO. The feature reflects on her successful career in finance that spanned 45 years, looking back at her time at Salomon Brothers, her experience at Freddie Mac as it went into conservatorship and some of her biggest accomplishments during her career. “I feel very fortunate to be able to look back on a long career that has been filled with such rewarding experiences,” Cook said in her interview. Title also is top of mind throughout this issue, as the intersection of title and technology not only leads to better a borrower experience but also offers a way to address the talent gap in the space. The post HousingWire Magazine: April 2022 appeared first on HousingWire. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Cut the Crap Investing founder Dale Roberts shares financial headlines and offers context for Canadian investors.  Not good-bye, but see you soon After writing this week’s column, I will no longer make sense. My wife will offer that I stopped making sense a long time ago, but that might be in a general sense   This will be my last installment for the “Making sense of the markets” column. I am stepping aside. The weekly column will continue with a new writer, soon to be announced.  “Making sense of the markets” has been the best experience of my investment writing career. As you may know, in my previous life, I was an advertising writer and creative director. Those are two drastically different writing styles and disciplines.  In advertising, we are storytellers, where creativity and surprise rules. That said, the advertising experience greatly helped me prepare for my investment adviser stint at Tangerine Investments. The combined advertising and advisor experience perhaps created a different kind of perspective and background that shaped my investment writing.  It also helps that I have been a self-directed investor and an ETF nut for many decades. Some might argue it made me well-suited to write a weekly column covering the crazy world of stock markets and other investments. “Making sense of the markets” has never been boring. There is more drama, surprise, twists and turns, and crazy characters than your typical Hollywood blockbuster.  It, perhaps, helped that I started this column as the COVID-19 was just getting warmed up. The ongoing pandemic introduced a new dynamic that markets and investors have never seen before. There was never a dull week.  I am not sure if markets are always this interesting or the unbroken string of interesting weeks is pandemic-related. The writing of this column certainly made me look at the markets much closer than ever before.  It was an incredible learning experience.  Core, explore, commodities, inflation, and so much more While I am a true believer in a simple core and passive portfolio, I have always played around the edges, with a slant to some active management—so-called “explore” to complement the “core”—that has historically provided an edge with respect to my long-term portfolio performance. Make that outperformance with respect to passive benchmarks.  That said, you do not have to apply any active management to your investment approach. Simple and passive works more than well. MoneySense.ca has been a long time supporter of the core couch potato portfolio. You can keep it simple and keep it cheap.  The research I conducted for this column opened my eyes to the many investment opportunities available in the short term and via a long-term perspective. The markets often react in expected and predictable fashion. I had to get up to speed on how economic factors and conditions can affect the movement of markets, including the direction of sectors.  Perhaps the greatest example is investing in Canadian energy stocks. I shared that theme in this column on an ongoing basis. It was an obvious opportunity and not just in hindsight. Certainly oil prices had to stay above a certain level (let’s say above USD$60 per barrel for argument’s sake) and oil demand needed to recover. But the likelihood of those two events was great, and a very reasonable bet, IMHO. That opportunity has played out in spades and the economic environment has accelerated in a pro-traditional energy sense.  The energy producer index is up 250% from the time of that post on my blog (October 18, 2020).  Source: iShares The index is up over 100% over the last year. I continue to like the space.  At the current oil price the CDN energy sector is debt free by mid-2023. Think about that! Awash in cash, long on inventory, it will literally have a cash problem…too much of it. What do do? Buybacks and dividends. Q1 results should mark the beginning of the "golden era of FCF" — Eric Nuttall (@ericnuttall) March 31, 2022 The energy surge provides a segue into the theme of inflation, the use of commodities and gold as an inflation hedge. Of course, the storm clouds for inflation began swirling in early 2021, and I mapped the ongoing economic concerns in this column. The fears of inflation soon turned into real and growing inflation.  Here’s the column that looks back at 2021. Inflation concerns were put on the table in January 2021 with more urgency, and commodities were offered as the common-sense hedge. Commodities are the most reliable and robust inflation portfolio hedge.  I will often write: “You don’t fix a ship in a hurricane.”  OK, I borrow this from Mawer Investments. That is to say, you don’t wait for inflation or deflation or a severe market correction to prepare your portfolio. You prepare in advance.  It is certainly a fluke that I offered up commodities in the Advanced Couch Potato models just before inflation reared its ugly money-grubbing head. In many periods, gold and commodities can be a portfolio drag. Investors who thought it was a good idea to buy some of that inflation insurance were rewarded.  Here’s the Purpose Real Asset Fund (PRA.TO), which holds a basket of gold plus other commodities and commodity stocks.  Source: Yahoo! Finance  In the above chart, you see PRA outperform Canadian and U.S. stocks over the last two years. We see the incredible surge and separation from late 2021, when it was clear that inflation was not transitory.  Will inflation continue to be a serious concern? Who knows? Whether you choose to protect, or not, it’s up to you. I put the ideas on the table—you decide.  Here’s a post that offers more on greater diversification. The post also offers a performance comparison showing the recent benefit of adding commodities exposure to a traditional balanced portfolio.  Growth stocks can also suffer during periods of inflation. With growth stocks, much of the earnings potential is in the future when inflation might eat away at the value of those future

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[ad_1] Amazon workers in New York warehouse vote to form a union [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Bharat Biotech on Friday announced a temporary slowing down of production of its COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin across its manufacturing facilities, having completed its supply obligations to procurement agencies and foreseeing a decrease in demand. The company, in a press release, said Bharat Biotech will focus on pending facility maintenance, process and facility optimisation activities for the coming period. According to sources, the facility optimisation was also “suggested” by a recent World Health Organisation inspection team. As all existing facilities were repurposed for the manufacture of Covaxin with continuous production over the past year to meet the public health emergency, the upgrades were due, Bharat Biotech said. Certain highly sophisticated equipment that were required to enhance the process stringency were unavailable during the COVID-19 pandemic. It has to be stressed that the quality of Covaxin was never compromised at any point in time, the company said. During the recent World Health Organisation’s post EUL (emergency use authorisation) inspection, Bharat Biotech agreed with the WHO team on the scope of the planned improvement activities and indicated that they will be executed as soon as possible, the release said. “Notwithstanding this excellent safety and efficacy record, Bharat Biotech is diligently working to further improvements and upgrades to ensure that the production of Covaxin continues to meet ever increasing global regulatory requirements. Since patient safety is the primary consideration for any new vaccine, there can be no compromises in meeting operational excellence objectives,” Bharat Biotech said. This risk assessment by WHO is based on the supply of hundreds of millions of doses of Covaxin globally, during which the product has demonstrated an excellent safety and efficacy profile in detailed and thorough post-marketing surveillance activities. More than one million doses of the vaccine were introduced under the clinical trial mode, where the safety of subjects was actively documented. The vaccine was extensively evaluated in nearly 30,000 subjects in more than 10 controlled clinical trials, resulting in more than 15 publications. Based on the data as well as a wealth of empirical evidence from India and globally, this is a strong justification for WHO’s conclusions on Covaxin’s safety and efficacy, the vaccine maker added. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Title reports can be confusing, while at the same time lenders seek to reduce time and friction in the loan origination cycle to remain competitive and provide their borrowers with excellent customer service.  Radian provides lender customers with the service and speed they need to create quality relationships with their customers that can turn into repeat business. As a full-service title partner, Radian reduces hassle and provides greater value for loan originators, sales managers, vendor managers and lending executives.  “Radian is disrupting traditional title processes and using technology and automation to create a better take on title,” said Grant Brittain, SVP, Title Sales. “We are reimagining title insurance and settlement services to produce a new experience that is streamlined, transparent and cost-effective.”  In furtherance of this goal, Radian created Radian Ready to help its lender customers shorten loan cycle times, increase transparency and reduce friction with the title product. Radian Ready provides an instant clear-to-close to lenders in less than a day, as well as actionable items for both lenders and their borrowers to follow in order to clear remaining items quickly. Radian Ready is a compliant solution that yields a standard ALTA loan policy meeting investor requirements. In addition to the standard ALTA commitment, the solution provides a clear summary of the title commitment and what issues, if any, need to be solved prior to closing.  Radian Ready is written to make it easy for a junior processor or loan originator to review and discuss with their customer. Its simplified grading system provides clarity for consumers at every stage. When there are items that need to be cleared, the solution provides an exact breakdown of each issue and plain-language explanations of how Radian will solve them.  When title is Radian Ready, the solution provides a cover page, a clear-to-close certificate and traditional title bundle documents, either as a single document or broken up as needed.  Radian Ready uses technology to reduce cycle times for standard processes and increase efficiency and quality. On average, Radian Ready cuts the time to produce and clear title by 50%, eliminating unnecessary holdups in the underwriting and clearance process.  Radian augments the efficiencies created by Radian Ready by investing in quality personnel who provide outstanding customer service.  Consumers expect a smooth loan transaction that includes a minimum of touch points prior to closing. Radian Ready simplifies the title process, reducing those touch points for both lenders and consumers.  “Radian is a standard of excellence in the mortgage industry. Customers choose Radian based on our long-standing reputation and dedication to quality service,” Brittain said. “They rely on our expertise to execute title orders accurately and consistently.”  Jill Cadwell, SVP, Title Operations Jill Cadwell, a 30-year industry veteran, is responsible for building a digital strategy that continues to make Radian a pioneer in the industry, accommodating both lenders and customers. Grant Brittain, SVP, Title Sales With 17 years of experience in roles across the title industry, Grant Brittain brings the voice of the customer and a deep knowledge of the title industry to his role leading the title and settlement sales team at Radian. The post Radian aims to shorten loan cycle times and increase transparency with title solution Radian Ready appeared first on HousingWire. [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] The post How to Make Money on Pinterest: A Step-by-Step Guide appeared first on Millennial Money. Pinterest is the website for discovering ideas. Whether you’re looking for a funny Halloween costume for your pug or a creative way to repaint your grandpa’s old wooden rocking chair, you’ll find inspiration here. The social media platform is also a pathway to profits for marketers.  Keep reading to learn how to make money on Pinterest. Pinterest: An Overview Pinterest is a free, content-sharing website that has been around since 2010. Head over to the site and you’ll find a range of information across various categories — like beauty, travel, motivational quotes, digital products, food, and DIY home projects. Pinterest users can browse the site and pin images they see from around the web on their pages. The primary purpose of the average website visitor is to discover inspiration and share cool or thought-provoking media, such as fudgy flourless gluten-free brownies recipes or patio furniture ideas.  Who’s on Pinterest? More than 400 million users browse Pinterest monthly. That’s even more than Amazon gets! Women make up more than 60 percent of Pinterest’s global audience. However, the site also has a growing presence of male and Gen Z Pinners, which together are up 40 percent year over year (YoY). On top of this, U.S. Millennial Pinners are up 35 percent YoY, indicating the site is still popular among younger audiences. Interestingly, a large portion of Pinterest’s base is affluent. In fact, 45 percent of people in the U.S. with a household income over $100,000 are on Pinterest. Another important thing to keep in mind is that most people go to Pinterest to either start a new project or make a purchase. According to Pinterest, 85 percent of users say they browse the site to start a new project. And 80 percent of weekly Pinners report discovering a new brand or product on the site. Now that you’re aware of the opportunity Pinterest provides, let’s take a closer look at how to start making money using the platform.  How to Make Money on Pinterest Making money on Pinterest is a bit more complicated than it is on marketplaces such as Etsy or Amazon Handmade. That’s because Pinterest isn’t a store. Instead, it’s a third-party content-sharing site. The site lets you link to a store, but you can’t directly sell on the platform like you can with its eCommerce competitors. This may turn some merchants off, but it can also be a good thing. To attract potential buyers, content has to be authentic and provide a valuable user experience. With that in mind, here is a step-by-step guide to making money on Pinterest. 1. Create an account  First things first: Start by creating a free Pinterest account by submitting your name and email address and setting a password.  Pinterest offers two types of accounts, including options for personal and business use. Since we’re talking about making money, select a Pinterest business account. Pinterest personal accounts are not for commercial purposes. However, it’s possible to start with a personal account and convert it to a business account down the line.  Pinterest for business offers wider brand exposure and advanced tools for analytics and reporting. So it’s definitely the way to go if you’re serious about making money. 2. Make a Pinterest profile After setting up an account, the next step is to create a profile.  Add a photo, your location, and any information that you want to convey to the public.  As a word of advice, remember to match your Pinterest brand with whatever brand you’re promoting. Your Pinterest page will be a direct extension of the organization you’re representing,  whether it’s your company or a client’s company. Pinterest profiles present a unique opportunity for brands to expand their horizons and express personality beyond traditional marketing methods. The content you share sets the tone of your brand.  To illustrate, check out Tilly and Patagonia. Don’t be afraid to get creative and expand beyond the products you are trying to sell. 3. Get to know Pinterest  If you really want to become successful selling stuff on Pinterest, you must familiarize yourself with how the platform works and become somewhat of an expert on it. Key terms to know about  Here are a few important definitions you’ll need to know if you plan on making money on Pinterest.  Boards Just as the name suggests, a board is like a bulletin board. This is where you collect ideas to share with public viewers. Group boards  It’s possible to start a board and invite other people to contribute to it using group boards. Pinterest also lets you request to join other public boards.  Pins  A Pinterest Pin is simply something that you post on Pinterest. When you find something that catches your eye — or that you want to sell — Pin it to a board for others to see.  Users can also repin on Pinterest. This happens when a user takes an existing Pin and saves it to another Pinterest board.  Rich Pin  A Rich Pin is a type of Pin that shows metadata in the actual Pin. It provides a more comprehensive experience and increases engagement. Pinners  Pinterest calls users Pinners. To become a Pinner, you simply need to create an account.  Exploring Pinterest  The first thing that you’ll see when exploring Pinterest is the home page, which contains recommended Pins based on the interests you select. You’ll also see content from other accounts, boards, and topics that you choose to follow.  To research new Pinterest ideas, navigate away from the website and start browsing the internet for things you like. For example, you might find a picture of a pair of homemade candle holders or a tutorial on how to make holiday cookies.  Look for a social banner on the website where you’re browsing, and select the Pinterest logo to save media to one of your boards. 4. Claim your site  At this point, you should have