 |
|
|
|||||
Pumpkin spice lovers rejoice! While we’re still battling the summer heat, Krispy Kreme just brought back the iconic fall flavor in its doughnuts and drinks. But you’ll need to act fast. In a recent announcement, the doughnut giant said its Pumpkin Spice Original Glazed doughnut will be available August 11 through August 17. So, those who want to get their hands on the fall favorite will have one week to snag one. Krispy Kreme has also brought back its Pumpkin Spice Latte, Pumpkin Spice Coffee (hot or cold), and Pumpkin Spice Cake doughnut. Beginning August 11, all three will be available throughout the entire fall. “Pumpkin spice fans are counting down the days to their favorite season, and were happy to kick it off by bringing back our Pumpkin Spice Original Glazed doughnutearlier and for a longer period,” said Alison Holder, Krispy Kreme’s chief brand and product officer. “But it wont be around long. Let pumpkin spice season begin!” Krispy Kreme is not the only fast-food restaurant getting an early jump on pumpkin spice items. Starbucks already announced that its PSL (Pumpkin Spice Latte) will return earlier than usual this year, too. While it usually doesn’t hit the menu until September, this year the drink will be on sale August 26. Starbucks said in the announcement that the flavor is already available in stores in the form of coffees and creamers.Dunkin’ is about to drop its fall menu as well, according to Markie Devo, a popular food blogger who’s known for having the inside scoop on food releases. The drop is said to be scheduled for August 20 (Dunkin’ hasn’t confirmed or denied the menu or launch date) and, according to Devo, will include Pumpkin Spice Doughnuts, doughnut holes, and the Pumpkin Spice Signature Latte, made with “pumpkin swirl, vanilla shot, milk, espresso, whipped cream, caramel drizzle, and cinnamon sugar.” Love it or hate it, the return of pumpkin spice offerings is always highly anticipated. And in recent years, the popularity of the flavor has meant its return has come earlier and earlier. The pumpkin pie spice market is projected to reach $1.1 billion this year, and $2.2 billion by 2032, according to Coherent Market Insights. While some people might feel that summer is a tad too early to enjoy pumpkin flavorsand others say climate change has destroyed pumpkin spice season altogethertheir arrival on menus does serve as a reminder that colder weather is on its way. But for some die-hard Pumpkin Spicers, the doughnuts and drinks bring back the feeling that autumn has already arrived, no matter what the calendar says.
Category:
E-Commerce
Paramount will become the new home to Ultimate Fighting Championship events across the U.S. next year, through a seven-year agreement announced with TKO Group on Monday. The news comes just days after Skydance and Paramount officially closed their $8 billion merger kicking off the reign of a new entertainment giant after a contentious endeavor to get the transaction over the finish line. Under the deal with UFC, Paramount will exclusively distribute UFCs full lineup of its 13 marquee numbered events and 30 Fight Nights on its streaming platform Paramount+ with select numbered events also set to simulcast on CBS starting in 2026. It’s a shift away from the UFCs existing pay-per-view model, which Paramount and TKO say will allow the mixed martial arts programming to reach more consumers nationwide. Paramounts advantage lies in the expansive reach of our linear and streaming platforms,” David Ellison, chairman and CEO of Paramount, said in a statement. Live sports continue to be a cornerstone of our broader strategy driving engagement, subscriber growth, and long-term loyalty, and the addition of UFCs year-round must-watch events to our platforms is a major win.” Mark Shapiro, president and COO of TKO, added that the deal will mean deeper engagement for UFCs passionate fan base and that its athletes “will love this new stage. UFC events currently air on ESPN which has offered tiered pricing for fans to view content across the sports network’s TV offerings and streaming platform ESPN+ since 2019. UFC’s partnership with Disney-owned ESPN runs through the end of 2025. The seven-year deal between Paramount and TKO has an average annual value of $1.1 billion, the companies said Monday marking a notable jump from the roughly $550 million that ESPN reportedly pays each year for UFC coverage today. But UFC’s new home on Paramount will simplify offerings for fans with all content set to be available on Paramount+ (which currently costs between $7.99 and $12.99 a month), rather than various pay-per-view fees. Paramount also said it intends to explore UFC rights outside the U.S. as they become available in the future. While now a done deal, the path towards approval for the Paramount and Skydance merger was far from smooth sailing. Months of scrutiny and turmoil surrounded the transaction particularly amid President Donald Trumps legal battle with 60 Minutes, the crown jewel of Paramount-owned broadcast network CBS. With the specter of the Trump administration potentially blocking the hard-fought deal with Skydance, Paramount agreed to pay a $16 million settlement to the president in early July. The deal later received regulatory approval from the Trump administration. Trump has long been friends with UFC CEO Dana White and routinely attends UFC events. Last month Trump said that hes thinking of staging a UFC match on the White House grounds with upwards of 20,000 spectators to celebrate 250 years of American independence. Trump announced his plan in Iowa during the kickoff for a years worth of festivities to celebrate Americas 250th birthday on July 4, 2026. White said in a post on social media platform X that the deal with Paramount will make it more affordable and accessible for U.S. consumers to watch UFC events. This deal puts UFC amongst the biggest sports in the world, he wrote. The exposure provided by the Paramount and CBS networks under this new structure is a huge win for our athletes and anyone who watches and loves this sport. Aside from the UFC, TKO also houses the WWE and has been actively working out deals for the sports entertainment company. Last week Disney announced an agreement with WWE that will see its premium live events, like WrestleMania , streamed by ESPN. Disney subsidiary ESPN struck a rights agreement with TKO Groups WWE to become the exclusive U.S. domestic streamer of the sports entertainment companys premium live events starting next year. Aside from gaining access to WrestleMania, ESPN will also air marquee events such as the Royal Rumble, SummerSlam and Survivor Series. The wrestling events will be available on ESPNs new streaming service, which is set to launch next month, with select ESPN cable channels also airing them. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, but The Wall Street Journal said that its a five-year deal worth more than $1.6 billion. Shares of TKO jumped over 7% in midday trading on Monday. Wyatte Grantham-Philips and Michelle Chapman, AP business writers
Category:
E-Commerce
An explosion at a U.S. Steel plant near Pittsburgh left dozens injured or trapped under the rubble Monday, with emergency workers on site trying to rescue them, officials said. There are no confirmed fatalities at the Clairton Coke Works, said Abigail Gardner, director of communications for Allegheny County. The explosion sent black smoke spiralling into the midday sky in the Monongahela Valley, a region synonymous with the state for more than a century. It felt like thunder, Zachary Buday, a construction worker near the scene, told WTAE-TV. Shook the scaffold, shook my chest, and shook the building, and then when we saw the dark smoke coming up from the steel mill and put two and two together, and it’s like something bad happened. Allegheny County Emergency Services said a fire at the plant started around 10:51 a.m. and that it has transported five people. The agency did not provide any more details on those people transported. An Allegheny County emergency services spokesperson, Kasey Reigner, said dozens were injured and the county was sending 15 ambulances, on top of the ambulances supplied by local emergency response agencies. Air quality concerns and health warnings The plant, a massive industrial facility along the Monongahela River south of Pittsburgh, is considered the largest coking operation in North America and is one of four major U.S. Steel plants in Pennsylvania that employ several thousand workers. Democratic Sen. John Fetterman, who formerly served as the mayor of nearby Braddock, called the explosion absolutely tragic and vowed to support steelworkers in the aftermath. I grieve for these families, Fetterman said. I stand with the steelworkers. The Allegheny County Health Department said it is monitoring the explosion and advised residents within 1 mile (1.6 kilometers) of the plant to remain indoors, close all windows and doors, set air conditioning systems to recirculate, and avoid drawing in outside air, such as using exhaust fans. It said its monitors have not detected levels of soot or sulfur dioxide above federal standards. The plant converts coal to coke, a key component in the steel-making process. According to the company, it produces 4.3 million tons (3.9 million metric tons) of coke annually and has approximately 1,400 workers. The plant has a long history of pollution concerns In recent years, the Clairton plant has been dogged by concerns about pollution. In 2019, it agreed to settle a 2017 lawsuit for $8.5 million. Under the settlement, the company agreed to spend $6.5 million to reduce soot emissions and noxious odors from the Clairton coke-making facility. The company also faced other lawsuits over pollution from the Clairton facility, including ones accusing the company of violating clean air laws after a 2018 fire damaged the facilitys sulfur pollution controls. In 2018, a Christmas Eve fire at the Clairton coke works plant caused $40 million in damage. The fire damaged pollution control equipment and led to repeated releases of sulfur dioxide, according to a lawsuit. Sulfur dioxide is a colorless, pungent byproduct of fossil fuel combustion that can make it hard to breathe. In the wake of the fire, Allegheny County warned residents to limit outdoor activities, with residents saying for weeks afterward that the air felt acidic, smelled like rotten eggs and was hard to breathe. In February, a problem with a battery at the plant led to a buildup of combustible material that ignited, causing an audible boom, the Allegheny County Health Department said. Two workers who got material in their eyes received first aid treatment at a local hospital but were not seriously injured. Last year, the company agreed to spend $19.5 million in equipment upgrades and $5 million on local clean air efforts and programs as part of settling a federal lawsuit filed by Clean Air Council and PennEnvironment and the Allegheny County Health Department. The fire at the Clairton plant knocked out pollution controls at its Mon Valley plants, but U.S. Steel continued to run them anyway, environmental groups said. The lawsuits accused the steel producer of more than 12,000 violations of its air pollution permits. Environmental group calls for an investigation David Masur, executive director of PennEnvironment, another environmental group that has sued U.S. Steel over pollution, said there needed to be a full, independent investigation into the causes of this latest catastrophe and a re-evaluation as to whether the Clairton plant is fit to keep operating. In June, U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel announced they had finalized a historic partnership, a deal that gives the U.S. government a say in some matters and comes a year and a half after the Japanese company first proposed its nearly $15 billion buyout of the iconic American steelmaker. The pursuit by Nippon Steel for the Pittsburgh-based company was buffeted by national security concerns and presidential politics in a premier battleground state, dragging out the transaction for more than a year after U.S. Steel shareholders approved it. Clairton Mayor Richard Lattanzi said his heart goes out to the victims of Monday explosion. The mill is such a big part of Clairton, he said. Its just a sad day for Clairton. Marc Levy, Michael Casey, and Patrick Whittle, Associated Press Associated Press reporters Holly Ramer and Beatrice Dupuy contributed to this report.
Category:
E-Commerce
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||