First Bank of Berne earns award

A local bank received a statewide award this week.

Indiana Bankers Association on Tuesday honored First Bank of Berne as a Five Star Member.

The designation recognizes Indiana Bankers Association that show “outstanding commitment to the association” in the areas of political awareness, issues advocacy, life-long learning, volunteerism and Preferred Service Provider utilization. Chris Bennett, vice president of Indiana Bankers Association, presented the award Tuesday.

“We very much appreciate the dedication of First Bank of Berne and as a Five Star Member bank,” said Indiana Bankers Association president and CEO Amber Van Until. “Our Association is strong, thanks to our supportive members.”



To acquire

NextEra Energy Transmission, a subsidiary of NextEra Energy, announced Tuesday that it has entered into agreements to acquire GridLiance Holdco and GridLiance for about $660 million.

GridLiance owns about 700 miles of high-voltage transmission lines and other equipment in six states. The transaction will require approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

"GridLiance partners with electric cooperatives and public power utilities to enhance transmission system reliability and is well positioned to benefit from the substantial expected renewables growth over the coming years," said NextEra Energy chairman and CEO Jim Robo in a press release. "This acquisition furthers our goal of creating America's leading competitive transmission company and is consistent with our strategy of adding high-quality regulated assets to our portfolio.”



Not bread

Ireland’s Supreme Court ruled this week that Subway’s bread is not bread.

The court ruled that the loaves do not qualify as bread because Ireland’s Value-Added Tax Act of 1972 specifies that tax-exempt bread can’t have sugar content of greater than 2% the weight of flour. In Subway’s recipe, NPR reported, sugar makes up 10% of the weight of flour.

Ireland’s law distinguishes between bread and baked goods it refers to as “confectionery or fancy baked goods.”

"The resulting product falls outside the definition of 'bread' for the purposes of the Act," the ruling said.

Subway disagreed with the court’s judgment, NPR reported. The company is reviewing the ruling.



Walmart selling

Walmart announced Friday that it is selling controlling interest in Asda to the Issa brothers and TDR Capital for about $8.8 billion.

Asda, of which the Issa brothers and TDR were already part owners, is Walmart’s business in the United Kingdom. Walmart will retain an equity investment in the business.

“We are very proud to be investing in Asda, an iconic British business that we have admired for many years,” said Mohsin and Zuber Issa in a press release. “Asda’s customer-centric philosophy, focus on operational excellence and commitment to the communities in which it operates are the same values that we have built EG Group on.”



New executive

Dollar General has named Emily Taylor as its executive vice president and chief merchandising officer.

Taylor was previously the company’s senior vice president of channel innovation. She has worked for Dollar General since 1998.

“We are confident that Emily’s strategic vision and longstanding leadership with Dollar General will help to drive our continued efforts to innovate, capture growth opportunities and serve our customers and communities,” Dollar General chief operating officer Jeff Owen said in a press release. “I would also like to thank Jason for his contributions to advancing Dollar General’s merchandising strategy and wish him the best in his future endeavors.”



Team formed

McDonald’s announced Thursday that it has formed a new Global Impact Team.

The team is tasked with “McDonald’s ongoing efforts to affect positive change around the world.”

McDonald’s executive vice president Katie Beirne Fallon was named chief global impact officer to oversee the team.

“At a time of great global complexity, there is an increasing expectation on companies to play a leading role. We welcome that challenge and are raising our ambitions,” said Chris Kempczinski, McDonald’s president and CEO, in a press release. “Our ability to make an impact in the world will be deeply strengthened by bringing together expertise from across our organization to create a function that is focused on purpose and guided by our values.”



Yum! reports

Yum! Brands on Wednesday released its annual Global Citizenship & Sustainability Report.

The company, which owns Taco bell and Pizza Hut, has committed to investing $100 million over five years toward its sustainability agenda. The effort includes more plant-based and vegetarian menu items as well as deforestation commitments.

“As a global restaurant company, we can and must do more to unlock opportunities and make real and lasting change that will benefit our businesses and communities,” said Yum! Brands CEO David Gibbs in a press release. “To reflect the growing intersection of business and purpose, we recently integrated our Recipe for Growth — the guiding principles of our business strategy — with our Recipe for Good.”



To release

Ardagh announced this week that it will publish its third quarter 2020 results Oct. 22.

The company will post its results at 7 a.m. Oct. 22 on ardaghgroup.com. An investor webcast and conference call will follow at 10 a.m.

Ardagh operates glass manufacturing plants in Dunkirk and Winchester.



Call set

O’Reilly Automotive will release its third quarter earnings results Oct. 28 with a conference all to follow Oct. 29.

The results will initially be available at oreillyauto.com. The conference call will be at 10 a.m. Oct. 29 and will be webcast on the website as well.