Puma, the German shoe and sportswear company that was founded in 1924 when Rudolf Dassler split out from his brother Adi’s Adidas, is betting big on Africa.

A new Wilderness Collection of apparel, footwear, and accessories is “inspired by the landscape and climate of the continent,” according to Ecouterre.com. The goods are also “primarily sourced and manufactured in Kenya in collaboration with Wildlife Works.”

More than 80 percent of the apparel will be made out of fair-trade cotton, with the goal of being 100 percent by next year, with 20% organic and African cotton making up the difference.Continue reading...

For a few years now in India, PepsiCo has been making its snacks with rice-bran oil, a fact that allowed it to stick a “snack smart” logo on the packaging. After all, the snacks then “had 40% less saturated fat, zero trans fats and no added monosodium glutamate,” the Economic Times reports. The publication notes that the company made various pronouncements “across various multimedia campaigns” about the oil switch back in 2007.

Well, that was then. Recently, the company didn’t bother to use those various multimedia campaigns to let folks know about a different switch: a return to the original, cheaper palm oil. It simply removed the logo from such products as Lay’s chips, Krukure, Uncle Chipps, and Cheetos.

Three officials tell the Times that the switch was driven by a cost-saving measure — stop using the pricier rice-bran oil because it wasn't driving sales. No rice bran oil; no snack smart logo. "Our analysis of consumer feedback on the use of rice bran oil showed that the consumer did not show any added preference to the use of rice bran oil," a PepsiCo spokesman told ET.Continue reading...

Proving, once again, they've got a sense of humor, the marketing wags at Ben & Jerry's are rolling out a limited edition ice-cream flavor in the US: Schweddy Balls, named for a punning 2007 Saturday Night Live skit featuring Alec Baldwin as Pete Schweddy, a guest on a fictitious NPR radio show called "Delicious Dish."Continue reading...

Ben & Jerry’s commercials are, naturally, cool: clever, quick, funny, sweet and simple. The ice cream brand's recent commercials have been shot in a similar style, using stop motion animation and miniature sets, a charming way to flavor their marketing.Continue reading...

Facebook

... refreshes its privacy policy in plain English

... will continue to share users' phone numbers (and spark privacy concerns)

... releases new comments plug-in for other sites

... is blamed for one in five US divorces

... builds traction for Ford's "Go. Do. Adventures" campaign

... will launch Premier League interactive "show" on Friday

... runs "Show Off Your Label" game in Fair Trade apparel promotion

... adds interactive flight booking with Malaysia Airlines

... may muscle into Twitter's space with Beluga acquisitionContinue reading...