It might seem hard to see past Iran right now when looking at the Trump agenda. But there are significant successful moves happening here on the American homefront – particularly in the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) department, spearheaded by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
He’s long-since made the case against artificial food dyes, which have been linked to childhood hyperactivity and neurobehavioral issues, along with heightened cancer risks. And now that he’s in a position of federal-level power, he’s encouraging changes at big-name companies.
As a result, Mars will soon offer an artificial-dye-free version of its M&M’s (minus the blue and brown colors). Nestlé has officially removed all petroleum-based FD&C colors from its offerings. And other companies should announce similar accomplishments in the coming months considering how almost 35% of the U.S. food industry pledged to do so last July.
The American Beverage Association (ABA) – which includes members like The Coca-Cola Company (KO), PepsiCo (PEP), and Keurig Dr. Pepper (KDP) – meanwhile, announced a new initiative to include QR codes on the front of bottled drinks. Those graphics will then lead to pages on GoodtoKnowFacts.org filled with “easy-to-understand information about the ingredients in their drinks so they can make the decisions that are right for them.”
But perhaps MAHA’s biggest win so far is that the U.S. obesity rate has dropped 2.5% since Trump’s return to office. Kennedy announced that news last week in Charlotte, North Carolina, adding, “That’s the first drop in 50 years.”
Considering all the health initiatives underway right now, there’s good reason to think it will be the first drop of many.
Coworking makes a comeback
“Coworking has become an established component of the U.S. office landscape,” Commercial Property Executive writes. And “secondary markets [are] playing an increasingly meaningful role in how flexible workspace is deployed beyond gateway cities.”
That opening line makes it seem as if this is a long-established trend. But the truth is coworking struggled significantly after three major hits one after another:
Coworking giant WeWork’s repeated failures
Social distancing
The work-from-home revolution.
Some might associate those last two factors together. But one trend did last longer than the other. And regardless, they all came together to create a distinctly unattractive picture for the concept of sharing communal office space with other entrepreneurs and small companies.
Yet not only are those “little” guys and gals getting back in on coworking. Global companies like Amazon (AMZN), Pfizer (PFE), and JPMorgan Chase (JPM) are seeing the benefits as well.
Coldwell Banker Commercial writes that:
… more than half of global occupiers now report using flexible workspace as part of their real estate strategy, with many expecting to expand their use in the coming years…. Rather than committing to long-term leases for large headquarters, many organizations are combining smaller core offices with flexible workspace options that can expand or contract as needs change.
I’ve noted rising regular office usage in my last two Saturday copies (accessible here and here), including in Miami. But fellow Floridian locations like Gainesville, Daytona Beach, and Palm Coast are apparently seeing spikes in coworking.
I don’t know if we’ll see another round of IPO hype over this trend like we did in 2019 when WeWork tried to go public. But it’s still interesting activity to watch, even if only from the sidelines.
Most millennials and hopefully all of Gen Z don’t expect a single dime back from their Social Security contributions. They know that the once-good idea has turned into a Ponzi scheme… where they’ll be left holding the bag.
At least that’s what they’ve thought.
Germany – which has its own pension problems that very much mirror the U.S. Social Security situation – might have found a solution. It might not be one younger generations care for, but it’s a solution nonetheless.
Over there, a recent government-commissioned study has pointed out the obvious: that the country has a lot more older people than it does younger. And since those older people are getting government-funded pensions, it’s putting a severe strain on the larger economy.
Just as obviously, something should have been done about it decades ago. That’s how long economists everywhere have been talking about the natural effects of an aging Baby Boomer population.
To quote German Chancellor Friedrich Merz upon reading the results:
We’re actually already very late [to addressing the issue]. We should have done all of this many, many years ago… I want us to get this moving very quickly now and to make the decisions necessary to implement this reform in the second half of the year.
That could involve:
• Gradually raising the retirement age, which is currently set at 67
• Requiring workers to contribute to the pension system who aren’t currently doing so and/or making all workers pay into a market-based, supplemental system on the side
• Eliminating current early retirement options.
Those “solutions” may solve the problem. Or they could just be one collective act of kicking the can down the road once again as politicians the world over tend to do.
Happy SWAN investing,
Brad Thomas
Editor, Wide Moat Daily
The Wide Moat Show
Source: ChatGPT
Wide Moat Research recently reviewed the concept of HALO stocks: publicly traded companies that are immune to the threat of artificial intelligence (AI) rendering them obsolete.
And it’s hard to find businesses that are more HALO-ish than those centered around growing and making food.
If you want to diversify your portfolio outside of the AI trade, this week’s Wide Moat Show could be precisely what you’ve been waiting for.
Click here to watch the full episode.
