Connect with us

Technology

Diageo introduces drones to drive farming efficiency and environmental benefits across tequila farming in Mexico

Published

on

Drones in tequila farming to build data on agave plants to drive better farming decisions, reduce water and fertilizer use and decrease the use of vehicles to reduce carbon emissions Drones work in partnership to collect data on agave plants, identify when the crops need support and dispense the required amount of a unique water fertilizer mix Supports the continued growth of Diageo’s tequila business and progress towards Diageo’s ESG action plan, Society 2030: Spirit of Progress

LONDON, April 11, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Diageo, producer of Don Julio and Casamigos tequilas, continues to innovate and has introduced the use of drones on its agave farms in Jalisco, Mexico, following up a successful pilot conducted in 2022. This has enabled Diageo to upskill its agave planters for the future of the ever-growing tequila industry, and build their digital capability in flying the drones, integrating more efficient farming practices and drive environmental benefits.

Since mid-2022, drones have been in action to identify which agave plants need the pesticide and fertilizer water mix and how much, to ensure precious water resources are used only where needed, whilst driving efficiency across agave farming.  Agave plants are the key ingredient in making tequila.

The drones work in pairs: one to identify the plants that need attention and collect data on the growth of the agave plants, and the other dispenses a unique water fertilizer and pesticide mix where needed at night when the stomata is open. The collection of data has helped the agave planters to make better decisions on resource use.

The data has also shown the best time of day to feed the plants is the early hours of the morning when its cooler, there is less wind to reduce water loss and when the agave plant is more receptive to water. This has resulted in water use dropping by an expected two thirds, an important saving of precious resources. The drones have the capacity to fly over Diageo’s agave fields, so fewer tractors are needed to be driven across the farmland, which has a secondary benefit of reducing carbon emissions.

Ewan Andrew, Chief Sustainability Officer, said: “As the demand for tequila continues to grow, we want to be able to increase our farming efficiency, but in a way that is also kind to the planet. This initiative is a perfect example of the two coming together. It’s an exciting way in which we’re using technological innovation to boost production, upskill our famers, and help us to meet our 2030 sustainability goals.”

The use of the drones has also enabled agave planters to spend their time continuing to plant and nurturing the new agave. In Diageo’s half-year results announced in January 2023, the company reported its tequila business grew 28%, securing its position as the number one producer of tequila in the world1.

Wellington Pauperio, Director for Supply Tequila & Mezcal at Diageo commented: “We’re incredibly proud to be pioneering the use of drones across our agave farming, to improve efficiency in our agriculture operations while leading our industry innovation and technology adoption. This initiative also brings additional capabilities for our team, new opportunities for personnel in the communities we operate, and contributes to a more sustainable world by reducing the use of resources including water mix across our plantations. It has been a great cross-team collaboration for us to reach this point, and the results are speaking for themselves as we look into a better future.” 

The efficiency and precision agriculture efforts resulting from drone use, contribute to Diageo’s 2030 ESG action plan, Society 2030: Spirit of Progress. Within the plan, Diageo has committed to preserve the natural resources on which our long-term success depends including to reduce its water use in water-stressed areas by 40% by 2030, and by 30% in all other areas.

To find out more on Diageo’s sustainability action and commitments visit diageo.com

1.  IWSR 2022

Diageo is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands across spirits and beer categories. These brands include Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, JεB and Buchanan’s whiskies, Smirnoff, Cîroc and Ketel One vodkas, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Don Julio, Tanqueray and Guinness.

Diageo is a global company, and our products are sold in more than 180 countries around the world. The company is listed on both the London Stock Exchange (DGE) and the New York Stock Exchange (DEO). For more information about Diageo, our people, our brands and performance, visit us at www.diageo.com. Visit Diageo’s global responsible drinking resource, www.DRINKiQ.com, for information, initiatives and ways to share best practice.

Video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9yuW6t7PVA

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/diageo-introduces-drones-to-drive-farming-efficiency-and-environmental-benefits-across-tequila-farming-in-mexico-301794234.html

SOURCE Diageo

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Technology

TopCashback Launches TopGiftCards Using Tillo’s Enhanced StoreFront Solution

Published

on

By

Tillo, a global leader in gift card technology, is proud to partner with the UK’s leading cashback website, TopCashback, to support the launch of its new enhanced TopGiftCards platform, allowing TopCashback members to earn cashback on gift cards for their favourite brands.

BRIGHTON, United Kingdom, Feb. 3, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — Tillo, a global leader in gift card technology, is proud to partner with the UK’s leading cashback website, TopCashback, to support the launch of its new enhanced TopGiftCards platform, allowing TopCashback members to earn cashback on gift cards for their favourite brands.

Adam Bullock, UK Director of TopCashback, said: “As the UK’s leading cashback website, we’re continuously striving to improve the user experience for our millions of members, and Tillo’s StoreFront solution for our refreshed TopGiftCards offering is the next step in that journey.

This partnership marks a significant milestone for Tillo, whose white-label StoreFront solution now supports three consumer journeys, empowering businesses to sell gift cards at face value, at a discount and now for cashback.

TopCashback is utilising Tillo’s StoreFront to take advantage of its cutting-edge technology, which offers a superior user experience and advanced functionality designed to enhance the value and ease of use for customers. With StoreFront, TopCashback members can enjoy a more streamlined purchasing process, including features such as a mixed product basket allowing them to redeem cashback across a broader range of gift card brands in one seamless transaction.

“We’re delighted to welcome TopCashback to our growing list of StoreFront customers,” said Alex Preece, CEO and Co-Founder of Tillo. “This partnership showcases our commitment to delivering technology that not only enhances the retailer’s capabilities but also improves the overall experience for their customers. The introduction of features like the mixed product basket exemplifies how we’re making the process smoother and more rewarding for end users.”

Adam Bullock, UK Director of TopCashback, said: “As the UK’s leading cashback website, we’re continuously striving to improve the user experience for our millions of members, and Tillo’s StoreFront solution for our refreshed TopGiftCards offering is the next step in that journey.

“The new platform – which we hope members will agree is straightforward and smooth right through to final purchases – offers new features as well as some new big names, with gift cards from over 100 retailers on offer. Plus, purchasing a gift card this way puts instant payable cashback into a member’s TopCashback account – making those savings immediately tangible for consumers.

“This launch demonstrates TopCashback’s commitment to highlighting and finding more ways members can save and cash in on their spending. Whilst TopGiftCards is naturally well positioned as a quick and easy way to cut the cost of gifting, it can be used for a whole manner of other savings; At stores that don’t already have an online presence, as a budgeting tool for bills like the weekly grocery shop or monthly entertainment subscriptions, or when booking services online such as accommodation and travel. We hope more options to save this way grow as time goes on.

“It’s just one of the ways TopCashback members save more than £300 a year on average, simply by doing their usual online shopping – making the most of our competitive cashback rates, schemes like our Tell-A-Friend referral and other dedicated savings tools such as Compare, for price comparison quotes.”

As a fully white-labelled platform, Tillo StoreFront integrates seamlessly with the TopCashback brand, enabling TopCashback to expand its cashback rewards offering while maintaining its brand identity.

The launch of TopCashback’s new StoreFront highlights the growing demand for flexible, digital-first solutions that cater to evolving consumer preferences. By switching to Tillo, TopCashback customers will now benefit from faster, more convenient access to cashback rewards, driving higher satisfaction and engagement during a time when value is more important than ever.

About Tillo

Tillo makes gift cards, rewards, and incentives simple, efficient, and profitable. Tillo is challenging the market with a best-in-class, plug-and-go API that offers businesses seamless connections to 2,000+ global brands that their customers and employees love.

Tillo is the first global gift card network purpose-built to make it easy for brands and buyers to unlock engagement and growth through sustained partnerships, helping people’s money go further, inspiring lasting loyalty, and building meaningful relationships.

Tillo operates in 37 markets and 16 currencies, processing billions of dollars worth of gift cards through its award-winning platform.

For more information, visit Tillo

About TopCashback.co.uk

Established over 18 years ago, and with more than 15 million members, TopCashback is the UK’s leading cashback site. It is simple; TopCashback offers people savings and money back on everything they buy when clicking through the site to over 6,000 retailers available. Rates vary from brand to brand, but on average members earn over £300 by doing their shopping, utility switching and renewing insurance policies through the site.

Media Contact

Sophia Whitham, Tillo, 44 07773 241613, marketing@tillo.io, https://tillo.io/

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prweb.com/releases/topcashback-launches-topgiftcards-using-tillos-enhanced-storefront-solution-302365378.html

SOURCE Tillo

Continue Reading

Technology

Federal Law Enforcement Leader Joins FaceTec Executive Team

Published

on

By

Nicole McNamee-Wicks named Director of Biometric Cybersecurity

SUMMERLIN, Nev., Feb. 3, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — FaceTec announced a key addition to its executive team, Nicole McNamee-Wicks, Director of Biometric Cybersecurity, as the company expands its industry-leading position in global 3D Face Verification, and digital and mobile ID markets.

Nicole joins FaceTec at a very important point in our history. She will help lead the adoption of our UR® Code protocol by federal and state governments and educate about the benefits of our 3D Liveness and 3D Face matching software, which are the state-of-the-art in digital identity verification.

Nicole’s decorated career in the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General (SSA OIG) focused on program integrity, reducing fraud, and all aspects of crime relating to identity theft. For over two decades, she conducted complex and strategically impactful investigations in areas of fraud and detection, internal and external employee violations, disability pre-effectuation and continuing disability fraud, identity fraud, and impostor detection.

A Certified Economic Crime Forensic Examiner (CECFE), Nicole is the recipient of more than 40 performance and recognition awards, including the WIFLE Outstanding Federal Law Enforcement Employee, New York State Police (NYSP) Letters of Commendation for working in the command post during the David Sweat and Richard Matt manhunt, and a Commissioner Award and other recognition for participation in the government response to the 9/11 attacks. As the Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Investigative Support Division, Nicole provided country-wide guidance on agency policy and procedures, and was responsible for over 40 other tasks that included reporting to the FBI and Congress.

“Nicole joins FaceTec at a very important point in our history. She will help lead the adoption of our UR® Code protocol by federal and state governments, and educate about the benefits of our 3D Liveness and 3D Face matching software, which are the state-of-the-art in digital identity verification,” said Kevin Alan Tussy, FaceTec CEO.

As Director of Biometric Cybersecurity for FaceTec, Nicole will play a key role in helping manage the company’s next phase of deployments into major public sector identity issuing authorities, domestically and internationally.

“I am very excited to join the highly respected, talented team at FaceTec, and to have this opportunity to contribute to their important and impactful work in biometric identity verification,” said Nicole. “FaceTec’s focus on Liveness-proven biometrics and binding the legal identity to the legitimate account holder has proven to be exceptionally effective and can be implemented to prevent fraud and identity theft in countless industries. FaceTec provides users safe and secure methods to prove their identity through a software-based solution available to everyone, regardless of their device. I look forward to serving the industry and our partners to help solve their increasingly important identity-related challenges.”

About FaceTec

FaceTec is a global force in the fight against identity fraud. For use on standard, ubiquitous digital devices, FaceTec’s patented biometric security software solutions provide exceptionally secure, remote, unsupervised identity verification and authentication, ensuring that only the legitimate account owner is allowed access to their valuable or sensitive digital services, assets, and systems.

Founded in 2013, and headquartered in the U.S. with additional staff in the UK, Brazil, Portugal, Mexico, Canada, and Singapore, FaceTec is the world’s leading provider of 3D face biometric Liveness and matching software, processing well over three billion Liveness Checks annualized, protecting sensitive information in high-risk, high-value environments, including banking and finance, government, major ecommerce, global social networks, digital national IDs and mobile driver licenses, and much more.

FaceTec’s AI-driven technology employs advanced algorithms and deep learning models to accurately and securely verify, authenticate, and bind individuals to their accounts based on their unique face biometrics. FaceTec’s patented, industry-leading Certified 3D Liveness Detection and face matching, UR Codes, optical character recognition, know-your-customer, and age estimation technology anchor a secure chain of trust in the IDV process for reliable, trusted access to mobile and web applications.

FaceTec technology has been exhaustively tested against tens-of-millions of digital and physical spoof artifacts–including hi-res photos and videos, life-like masks, and mannequin heads–but also against much more sophisticated injection and bypass-type attacks, all now easily blocked. With ongoing, advanced AI development and the world’s only spoof bounty program, FaceTec continues to stay ahead of ever-changing attack methods.

For more information and business inquiries, please visit FaceTec.com. For media inquiries, please contact John Wojewidka at JohnW@FaceTec.com.

About FaceTec 3D Face Verification

FaceTec’s pioneering, patented 3D Face Biometrics are fast becoming the global standard in secure onboarding, KYC, and reverification, stopping ID fraud and unauthorized access for millions of users on six continents.

FaceTec’s 3D Face Verification Platform features:

100% data-sovereign, customer-run software: no user data is sent to FaceTecWorld-leading 3D Face Matching rate at 1-in-125 million FAR at less-than-1% FRRPatented UI generates data-rich 3D FaceMaps® from standard 2D camerasWorld’s-first UR® Codes enable secure, low-cost two-party identity verification$600,000 Spoof Bounty Program and Level 1&2 Certified 3D Liveness DetectionUnphishable 3D FaceMaps ensure trust without creating honeypotsSupport for all modern smartphones, tablets, and PCs with webcamsKYC/IDV Dashboard with integrated 1-to-N de-duplication to catch fraudstersWorld-leading 1-in-2 million FAR 3D FaceMap-to-2D-photo-ID matchingAnonymous, better-than-human 3D age estimation and 3D age checksFast, intuitive interface with 98-99% first-time-user success ratesEasy to integrate, customize, deploy, and manage

Developers can download FaceTec’s demo apps directly from FaceTec.com for iOS, Android, and any modern browser, and the developer SDKs are available free at dev.facetec.com.

About UR® Codes

FaceTec’s UR Codes allow codeholders to prove with high confidence their legal identity, age, and the right to access their accounts or privileges, in-person and remotely. UR Codes have embedded within them digitally-bound biometric and legal identity information that ensures privacy-preserving, decentralized identity verification. As they store unique, signed face data, personal info, and legal identity data, UR Codes enable secure, low-cost, two-party identity verification at unlimited scale in any identity-related scenario from any issuing authority, such as a DMV, passport issuer, school, or employer. For more information visit the following resources:

An introduction to UR CodesThe UR Encoder DemoUR Code Scan+Match Apps are Available on iOS and AndroidLearn more at URCodes.com

About Liveness.com

Liveness.com is an educational resource for biometrics users, vendors, analysts, media, and regulators, providing a comprehensive history of Level 1-5 Presentation Attack Detection, Template Tampering, and Camera Bypasses, as well as explanations of methods and means for evaluation, certification testing, and bounty programs.

Media Contact

John Wojeiwdka, FaceTec, Inc., 1.415.997.9235, JohnW@FaceTec.com, FaceTec.com

Twitter

View original content:https://www.prweb.com/releases/federal-law-enforcement-leader-joins-facetec-executive-team-302366187.html

SOURCE FaceTec, Inc.

Continue Reading

Technology

IgniteData Expands EHR-to-EDC Capabilities with Yunu Integration for Imaging Data in Clinical Trials

Published

on

By

WILMINGTON, Del., Feb. 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — IgniteData, a leader in EHR-to-EDC interoperability for clinical trials, has partnered with Yunu to enhance the seamless integration of imaging data into clinical trial workflows. This strategic collaboration enables pharmaceutical sponsors using IgniteData’s Archer EHR-to-EDC application to access audit-ready, radiologist-controlled imaging assessments directly within their EDC system, improving data accuracy, trial efficiency, and decision-making.

By incorporating Yunu-managed imaging workflows, IgniteData expands its capabilities to address a long-standing challenge in clinical trials: the lack of standardized, structured imaging data within EHR systems. While trial sites generate critical imaging assessments, these results are often delayed, error-prone, and lack the audit-readiness required for regulatory compliance. With Yunu’s industry-leading imaging platform now integrated with Archer, sponsors gain real-time access to structured imaging endpoints, ensuring greater accuracy, consistency, and efficiency across trials.

Key Benefits for IgniteData Customers

Enhanced Data Standardization: By integrating imaging data alongside EHR-sourced clinical data, IgniteData delivers a complete and accurate dataset within sponsors’ EDC systems, eliminating manual data reconciliation.Optimized Workflow & Site Productivity: The combined solution automates imaging data capture, reducing administrative burden on trial sites and minimizing delays in data availability.Faster, More Accurate Imaging Assessments: With Yunu ensuring radiologist-verified results, sponsors can confidently use imaging data for eligibility assessments, longitudinal tracking, and regulatory submissions.Accelerated Trial Timelines & Reduced Error Rates: By streamlining imaging workflows and minimizing site-level dependencies, the integration reduces costly data errors and accelerates trial execution.AI-Enabled Decision-Making: Sponsors can now apply AI-driven insights to imaging assessments directly within Archer, unlocking new opportunities for data-driven trial optimization.

“IgniteData is committed to redefining clinical trial data workflows by eliminating interoperability challenges and reducing manual data entry,” said Steve Tolle, Chief Product Officer at IgniteData. “Through our integration with Yunu, we are expanding Archer’s capabilities to include structured imaging results, offering sponsors a more complete and real-time view of all critical trial data. This partnership enhances data integrity, improves trial efficiency, and ultimately accelerates the path to regulatory success.”

Both IgniteData (Booth #841) and Yunu (Booth #106) will be exhibiting at SCOPE 2025, February 3-6 in Orlando, Florida, where sponsors and CROs can schedule a meeting to learn more about the new offering.

For more information, visit www.ignitedata.com and www.yunu.io.

About IgniteData 

IgniteData is transforming the future of clinical trials through Archer, its cloud-based EHR-to-EDC interoperability solution. Designed for seamless, secure data transfer between electronic health records and research applications, Archer streamlines trial workflows, reduces manual data entry, and ensures real-time access to critical study data. By enabling faster, more accurate clinical data exchange, IgniteData helps sponsors optimize trial timelines and enhance data integrity across global studies. Learn more at www.ignitedata.com.

About Yunu 

Yunu is the industry leader in clinical trial imaging workflows, providing cutting-edge technology to optimize imaging data capture, standardization, and compliance. Supporting over 5,000 active clinical trials, Yunu’s platform serves as the primary imaging data system for 25% of all NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers. By integrating with IgniteData’s Archer, Yunu ensures trial sponsors gain immediate, audit-ready imaging endpoint access within their EDC systems. For more information, visit www.yunu.io.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ignitedata-expands-ehr-to-edc-capabilities-with-yunu-integration-for-imaging-data-in-clinical-trials-302366028.html

SOURCE IgniteData

Continue Reading

Trending