Day: 24 October 2016

Monaco’s premium meat distributor, Giraudi, has launched a new product, Kobe Kreations, consisting of a range of Kobe beef products aimed at restaurants worldwide. The range also caused a stir with the retail trade at Sial Paris, the international food expo that ran last week.
One of the recipes making up the range is Barbagiuan du Munegu Artigianali, with its obvious Monaco connections and consisting of fried dough, Japanese Kobe beef, spinach, ricotta, parmesan and chard.
Other recipes include Kobe beef cooked in beer gravy and chestnuts wrapped in mini raviolis. Giraudi, which also runs several restaurants in the Principality, including Beef Bar, became the first authorised importer of certified Kobe beef to Europe in 2014.
That appointment, and Giraudi’s track record as an importer of premium beef, has made the Monegasque company one of the leaders in the European top-end meat market. The company now sells in excess of 90,000 tonnes of premium meat products every year.

As a member state since 2015, the Principality of Monaco took part in the work of the 43rd session of the World Food Security Committee and the celebration of its 40th anniversary. The 43rd session of the Committee on the theme “Food Security and Nutrition – make a difference” was held in Rome from October 17 to 21.
As part of its development policy, the Government of Monaco, actively engaged in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goal No. 2 “Eliminating hunger, food security, improving nutrition and promoting sustainable agriculture,” has so far invested over 2.6 million euros for food security in its priority recipient countries. These investments have been made in partnership with FAO and the World Food Programme (WFP), with the dual objective of sustainable development and greater resilience in the face of climate change and water shortages.
José Graziano da Silva, Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) presented the Annual Report 2016 on “The State of Food and Agriculture” which assessed current and future impacts of climate change on agriculture and food security. This report also dealt with agricultural and food systems transformation policies to increase sustainability and provide an effective response to climate change – supporting small farms, providing access to technology, markets and credits investment.
The Committee adopted a set of policy recommendations proposed in the 2016 Report of the High-Level Panel of Experts (HLPE) on “Sustainable Agricultural Development in Food Security and Nutrition, including the role of livestock,” which provides scientific contributions on these issues, and the fifth version of the global strategic framework for food security and nutrition, including water directives in protracted crises.

An accountant is one of three men to have been jailed in the UK for a total of 19 years after they conspired to steal almost £7 million in UK taxes to fund a lavish lifestyle that helped them buy properties in Turkey and the US and fund trips to Dubai and the Monaco Grand Prix.
Chris Gill, assistant director of HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service, said: “These men were driven by greed, abusing systems that are designed to ensure workers are paid correctly and taxes paid to HMRC.
“They were all professionals who knew they were breaking the law, but as an accountant Aquil Ahmed was in a position of trust, making his part in the conspiracy even more deplorable.
“These criminals thought they’d created a sophisticated fraud, and that by operating through numerous UK and offshore companies, they could hide what they were doing.
“But our investigations are thorough, and with assistance from authorities in Gibraltar, we unravelled the many layers they’d created and they are now paying the price for their crimes.
“This investigation shows that regardless of the resources of those involved, or how hard they try to hide their crime, no one is beyond our reach. Tax evasion isn’t victimless, it is theft from public services used by us all.”
Sentencing the men, Judge Macdonald QC, said the “loss to HMRC is just another way of stealing from citizens of the UK,” adding, that the men “took millions to spend on themselves.”

The Federal Council, which brings together the 28 Presidents of Employers’ Unions affiliated to the Federation of Enterprises Monegasques (FEDEM), received Stephane Valeri, Government Counsellor – Minister of Social Affairs and Health, and Pascale Pallanca, Director of Labour, during an informal lunch last Wednesday.
FEDEM President Philippe Ortelli stressed the importance of good relations between the political and economic sectors: “Clearly, we are in tune with your projects, and we are trying to build together the future of Monaco in the socio-economic sense. We hope that this meeting allows you to communicate with business practitioners on key issues for the country’s economy.”
Stéphane Valeri outlined his work for the Monaco Government and clarified its basic principles: “My deep conviction is that social and economic (interests) should not oppose each other. Our social model is advanced and only a strong economy can give us the means to finance it. It is important to defend and sustain it.”
The Director of Labour, Pascale Pallanca, reported a real corporate interest in teleworking. “We are here to provide our support and assistance to all interested companies,” he said.
Other matters discussed at the lunch included legislation relating to industrial medicine.
President Philippe Ortelli concluded: “This meeting reflects the fact that the Monaco Government is listening to its economic sector. Monaco has no oil or other commodity, its success comes exclusively from the intelligence of the people who work there and create wealth, which is then divided among all.”
Stephane Valeri Adviser welcomed the excellent relations with FEDEM and called for the continuation of such meetings.