simple

Mercadona has bought the company that has been supplying pallets and boxes for decades. And there is a very simple reason

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Let Mercadona monopolize 30% of the supermarket business is no coincidence. The success of Juan Roig’s chain responds to a cocktail in which, among other issues, its bet on white labelsthe ready to eat dishes and geographic dispersion. Another key to that equation is your supplierswho are responsible for supplying you from cheeses or kebabs to services. Now the chain has decided take the reins from one of those external firms, Logifruitthe same one that has been supplying it with boxes and pallets for decades. There is a word that explains it: logistics. What has happened? That Mercadona has decided to take over the Valencian company Logifruitone of the key suppliers of its logistics, since it supplies it with the boxes and pallets it uses to transport goods. It has been the Valencian chain itself that has been in charge to announce the acquisition, although without revealing the amount or the dates. In your statement Juan Roig’s company simply emphasizes the importance of the purchase for its internal operations and advances an important piece of information: the 1,600 Logifruit employees will join Mercadona’s team directly. What is Logifruit? A crucial piece in the functioning of the Valencian chain. The company was founded in 1996, has 16 logistics platforms and manages more than 18 million of boxes, boxes and reusable pallets designed for the transport of goods. Its network of facilities is spread across a good part of the peninsula, with 14 nodes distributed throughout Spain and two others in Portugal. Is it just another supplier? No. And not only because your rental model of reusable packaging has earned it a strategic role in Mercadona’s structure. Unlike other suppliers of Juan Roig’s company, which maintain extra business avenues (even if they are minority), the history and work of Logifruit is closely linked to that of the supermarket chain. The company itself explains on his website which started in 1996 as a “logistics operator to provide service to Mercadona’s fruit and vegetable suppliers.” Almost 30 years later, that link remains key for both companies. Why’s that? By defining your “interest groups” in the sustainability report 2023, Logifruit identifies the five major actors that shape its business: the workforce, the companies that supply materials, machinery and services, society as a whole, capital and customers. And among the latter he specifically cites two: Mercadona and its suppliers. In fact, although Logifruit talks on its website about “more than 1,095 clients”that ecosystem seems to basically pivot around Roig’s chain. The diary Five Days assures that, in its latest financial report, the box and pallet company recognizes that it did not have “other clients outside of the pool of services established for Mercadona and its suppliers”. At least by the end of 2024. Do we know anything more about the company? Yes. And it helps to better understand the movement that Mercadona has just made. Last year Logifruit invoiced around 164 million of euros (7% more) and obtained a net profit of 5.2 million. Its assets amount to 22.3 million and its liabilities include debts with financial entities, although most of them mature in the long term. The other piece of information that helps understand Roig’s movement is that in 2024 the company rented packaging worth 54 million euros to Mercadona and its suppliers, according to the documentation consulted by Five Days. What does Mercadona say? That the purchase will help it achieve two of its “objectives”: “unify all its logistics processes” and “continue consolidating the efficiency and sustainability of its distribution network.” “The agreement, pending approval by the Competition agencies and the corresponding administrative authorizations usual in this type of operations, will allow Mercadona to capture important synergies and further optimize its resources,” the Valencian firm stands outwhich hopes to “strengthen” its assembly line. And Logifruit? Logifruit also highlights the historical link between both companies. “When we began our collaboration with Mercadona, in 1996, we took on the challenge of offering a service that met their needs and gave them competitive advantages. Three decades later, I am proud to be able to say that Logifruit has overcome that challenge,” celebrates its president. In its financial report the company itself recognized that it would be “complicated” for Mercadona to find a substitute capable of supplying boxes and pallets in the short term and that this operation would also require a high investment. Is it something exceptional? Yes. And no. In addition to his commitment to the white label, the prepared food and geographical dispersion, Mercadona’s commercial success relies heavily on its network of suppliers. Although it is not common, this is not the first time that he has decided to integrate into his structure one of those companies that help him articulate his business. It already happened in 2010 with the Caladero packaged fish company, although years later he sold it to Profand. Images | Logifruit 1 and 2 and Andalusian Government (Flickr) In Xataka | Mercadona has grown so much in Spain that for the US it is no longer just a supermarket chain: it is a “cultural phenomenon”

This new biodegradable material is much more than a simple substitute for plastic

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He used oil that we generate in the kitchen it seems that has no more life than end up discarded, but the reality is very different. The Holy Grail, right now of modern materials science, is to get rid of the oil dependencebut also solve the problem of the waste we already generate. And this is something that has become evident with fryer oil, which now has a new function: being an adhesive. A progress. A team from the University of South Carolina has killed two birds with one stone with a surprising solution: transform the fryer oil into a material that imitates polyethylenebut it is biodegradable and adhesive. But this adhesive is so strong that it has even managed to tow a car using only two steel plates joined with this material. The oil problem. The plastic we use in our daily lives is polyethylene, which is cheap, flexible and resistant. But it has a serious problem: it is of fossil origin and with how difficult its degradation is makes it contribute to global pollution. On the other hand, we have used cooking oil. It is estimated that we generate about 3.8 billion liters per year worldwideand although it is used to produce biodiesel or lubricant, converting it into high-performance thermoplastics was a barely explored field due to the complexity of its chemical composition. Breaking down the fat. What the team led by Chuanbing Tang and Olga Kuksenok has achieved It is not simply “recycling” the oilbut to deconstruct it and reassemble it at the molecular level. And this is something fundamental, since you can take advantage of both the fatty acids and the glycerol that are part of this fat. By polymerizing these components, they created aliphatic polyesters that almost perfectly imitate the mechanical properties of low-density polyethylene (LDPE), the plastic we commonly use in bags and packaging. A new material. The surprise came when the result of this experiment did not generate a traditional polyethylene that is inert, but rather this new material derived from oil has chemical groups that can act as molecular ‘hooks’. That is, it can stick like glue. The research wanted to demonstrate its adhesive capacity on different surfaces such as stainless steel, copper, wood or cardboard. And the results were surprising, since in cut resistance tests it surpassed other renowned commercial adhesives, and could even be used as a silicone gun to seal boxes. Moving a car. Without a doubt this is the litmus test that wanted to demonstrate that used oil has great strength behind it. To do this, they joined two steel plates with this polymer and used them to pull a four-door sedan uphill. The union in this case held without any problem. The importance. This is a big step towards the circular economy. We are not just talking about making a “less bad” plastic, but about creating new materials with high added value, such as their ability to glue the waste we have in the kitchen. And in many things it can be difficult to recycle. Imagine a future where the oil from today’s French fries becomes the bumper on your car or the sticker on your next Amazon package, only to be processed again without ending up in a landfill. This is precisely what science is trying to achieve to increase recycling strategies and dependence on fossil resources. Images | Zoshua Colah Scott Sanker In Xataka | We have been thinking for decades that plastic recycling was worth something. Maybe we were wrong

If the question is why we continue to be drunk on airplanes, the answer is simple: because it is a business.

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We may all be more sensitive to flying from 9/11 attacksbut so is the feeling that every time there are more altercations inside airplanes with a common denominator: the alcohol. Scenes of drunk passengers causing delays, fights, vomiting or even attempts to open doors in mid-flight they are already part of the collective imagination of air travel. The question is almost obligatory: is there really no solution? An increasingly visible phenomenon. They remembered on CNN the recent case of the man who, completely intoxicated, forced to evict a plane in Chicago after vomiting during filming is just one example among hundreds of incidents documented year after year. In the United States alone, a review of more than 1,600 reports from the federal system revealed an incontestable pattern: alcohol in almost all levels of bad behavior, from arguments and disobedience to physical and sexual attacks. And although public perception confirms the problem (more than half of passengers in the United Kingdom claims to have dealt with with drunk travelers), there is still no consensus on how to stop it. Safety in the air. Plus: cabin crews operate in a space that is, by definition, a metal tube thousands of meters above the ground. They are the ones who must manage both the emotional tension of passengers and the consequences of alcohol mixed with fear of flying, long delays or increasingly narrow cabins. Without the ability to expel anyone mid-flight and with companies that do not always support their decisions, the attendants become in the first and last containment line. Although they receive de-escalation training, they face a type of passenger that did not exist a decade ago: the traveler who mixes alcohol with medications, stimulants or recreational substances, generating episodes of aggressiveness that are difficult to predict and control. Distribution of blame. And here comes the crux, because no one wants to assume the root of the problem. Airlines blame airports for allow consumption unlimited in bars and restaurants prior to boarding, pointing that they hardly sell alcohol on board, especially on short flights. The airports, in turn, point out that their role is commercial, not disciplinary, and that responsibility falls on the air operators. And within the flights themselves, the auxiliaries They blame gate agents for not blocking access to obviously intoxicated passengers, while pilots denounce that insufficient disciplinary measures are taken against repeat offenders. The fragmentation between ground and air causes each party to offload the problem on another, creating an operational vacuum that allows the situation to repeat itself flight after flight. The economic dimension. Behind the debate lies a factor that possibly outweighs any security protocol: alcohol, whether we like it or not, is one of the most lucrative businesses of the aeronautical industry. In airports it generates large margins for shops and restaurants, while in the cabin it is used as an incentive in higher categories. Precisely for this reason, rarely clear data is provided on income derived from its sale, and any attempt to limit consumption before boarding is met with resistance from both airport operators and airlines. The result is a permanent contradiction: The industry recognizes that alcohol causes problems, but depends on it financially. In other words, alcohol (and as a consequence, drunks) “interest(s)”, but with a small mouth. Public pressure. The number of passengers support restrictive measures It grows as incidents go viral and attract media attention. Some proposals already have a favorable majority: drinking limits at airports, breathalyzer controls before boarding or even total restrictions on certain routes. Meanwhile, regulators are toughening penalties: the FAA imposed its largest fine in history (more than $80,000) to an extremely violent passenger, and the airlines are expanding their ban lists to repeat travelers. However, the approach remains reactive, not preventive, and each solution encounters resistance in the chain of interests that sustains global air tourism. Between I want and I don’t want. Thus, the problem of the drunk passenger does not arise only from alcohol, but from a fragmented system where no one wants to bear the cost of controlling it. Airports that maximize profits, airlines that fear losing revenue, overloaded crews, regulators who act after the fact and frustrated passengers who see a drink as the instant answer to discomfort. Everyone agrees that there is a problem, but no one wants to be who imposes the solution. The result is a sky increasingly tensewhere safety depends on the professionalism of the crews and a kind of unstable balance that is broken too easily. Image | Instagram, X In Xataka | “This is the last time I pay 10 euros for a gin and tonic”: the anger of British tourists at the price of alcohol in Spain In Xataka | The “tourist cages” arrive in Valencia: holiday gentrification in Spain goes up a gear

NASA invites you to send your name to the Moon for free. Behind it there is something more than a simple symbolic gesture

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That your name travels around the Moon no longer belongs to the realm of fantasy. NASA has once again opened a door so that anyone can register it and watch it travel aboard Artemis IIthe first manned mission of the Artemis program. It will be stored on a memory card inside the Orion spacecraft, which will circle our satellite and return to Earth. But what is relevant is not just the gesture. The agency has been inviting the public to be part of its missions for years. Now, with Artemis, he is renewing that pact between exploration and participation. NASA does not ask you to register or create an account. Simply enter three basic details on an official website and the system automatically generates a personalized digital pass associated with Artemis II, with the participant’s name. The PIN is the only way to access that pass, and the agency warns that you cannot recover it if it is lost. According to the information available, all the names will be compiled on a digital medium that will travel on the Orion spacecraft during the mission. It has not been confirmed if these names will be consulted or reviewed at some point, but they will be part of the lunar journey in a symbolic way. A tradition that began with a golden record and is still alive in Artemis NASA has been looking for ways to leave a human mark on your missions. One of the best known examples is the Voyager Golden Recorddesigned in 1977 under the scientific direction of Carl Sagan. It was a metal disc covered in gold with sounds, greetings and images that represented life on Earth. Years later, with Cassini, transferred to a CD-ROM with scanned signatures, and in Stardust and OSIRIS-REx microchips with names sent from all over the world were used. Artemis II takes another step: a digital memory card, much more similar to the ones we use today in any device. These initiatives are not understood only as gestures of participation. NASA operates with public funds and needs to justify, year after year, that programs like Artemis make sense beyond scientific interest. Connecting with citizens is a way to keep that support current, especially in missions that take place over decades and require budget continuity. When numerous educational centers, families and fans share their symbolic boarding passes, what they actually do is make visible that space exploration continues to have social, cultural and political relevance. While Apollo was an unprecedented milestone, it also left a lesson for the future of exploration. After the global impact of the first moon landing, public attention began to fallr, and with it, political and budgetary support. The book “Moonport”, published by NASAdescribes how enthusiasm became routine, and how subsequent missions stopped generating interest outside the scientific field. In the early 1970s, Congress reduced funding and thousands of employees were laid off. The program had won the space race, but it lost something just as important: the sustained attention of society. Artemis advances in a very different context than Apollo, but with a clear lesson: space exploration needs both political continuity and social legitimacy. Today the challenges are no longer only technological, but also strategic. The program is accumulating technical delays and Artemis II is now scheduled for launch between February and April 2026. At the same time, China has accelerated its plans and is developing its own manned program with the aim of sending astronauts to the Moon. Everything seems to indicate that we are facing a new competition, this time more open and prolonged, where public support is once again a decisive element. As we can see, signing up does not change the course of a mission, but it is part of something broader. It’s not about seeing your name circle the Moon, but about knowing that space exploration continues to involve society and not only to the control centers. Artemis does not only seek to return to our satellite, but rather to build a shared story about why to go, what to go for, and who is invited to take part. It is a way of remembering that this trip also needed an audience, and that perhaps awakens enthusiasm in those who, from a young age, begin to look upward. Images | POT | THAT | Screenshot In Xataka | The biggest mystery in science today is dark matter. And a Japanese scientist believes he has detected it

Asturias has the electrical network so saturated that a simple failure would be enough to put the supply in check this summer

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A year ago everything indicated that Asturias was going to become the new Spanish energy storage hub. But these plans, which were going to help integrate renewables, alleviate the grid and attract industry, collided with reality. Today, the panorama is very different. Not only has the region paralyzed new storage facilities, but an official report has just confirmed a more worrying diagnosis: Asturias is saturated with energy, but does not know where to put it. In short, the central area’s electrical grid is at its limit. The CNMC uncovers the problem. The trigger It is an apparently technical conflict between EDP (Hidrocantábrico Distribución) and Red Eléctrica de España for access to the Carrió substation. As local media have reportedthe distributor requested to replace two transformers to increase its capacity from 513 MW to 665 MW, but REE rejected it, arguing that the network could not supply so much simultaneous demand. This rejection took the case to the National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC), which issued a resolution with a forceful message: the transport network in the central zone is saturated, it cannot grant new permits, there is “relevant overcapacity” and there is a “risk to the security of supply in the event of a simple failure, in the summer season.” Furthermore, the commission itself recognizes that the case dates back to 2007, when the separation between distribution and transportation occurred and assets were transferred to REE without documenting the guaranteed access capacities. As the official report explains, for years REE and EDP operated “as always”, but with opposite interpretations about how much capacity was really assured for the Asturian network. What does it mean to be saturated? Although it may seem like a technical concept, the CNMC has detailed in its report a more precise image of what is happening. To begin with, saturation means that the network cannot grant even one more access. The regulator detects a “total saturation of capacity, without the possibility of granting new access or connection permissions.” This means that no new industries, no renewable parks and no storage projects can connect: the grid is literally full. Added to this blockage is another underlying problem. The central Asturias network does not meet the minimum legal criterion known as N-1, which requires guaranteeing supply even if a key component fails. However, the CNMC itself confirms that this requirement is not met: If a transformer or main line falls, there is no alternative path capable of absorbing the energy, making any incident a potential risk. The situation is even more delicate according to the data. The regulator’s report indicates that two large electro-intensive consumers already absorb 686 MW, to which we must add the 200 MW that EDP needs to feed the distribution network. In total, more than 800 MW connected. The problem is that the safe capacity in summer – when the lines perform worse due to high temperatures – is 754 MW. In other words: there is more connected power than the network can safely support. And the room for maneuver is practically non-existent. According to the CNMC, if Cardoso’s 400/220 kV transformer failed, the entire area would be supplied only by a 220 kV line that does not support current consumption in summer. In practical terms, this means that any simple failure could trigger a real supply problem in the middle of the summer season. The point is that there is energy, but it cannot be moved. The paradox is evident: Asturias wants more renewables, it wants batteries, it wants to electrify its industry and it wants to attract new strategic projects. But all this growth requires a robust electrical grid with margin. And right now, that margin does not exist. Carrió’s transformers could handle more power, yes, but that is unimportant if the lines that connect them are already at their limit. Even the future conversion to gas of the Aboño thermal power plant —designated by the Principality as future relief— does not solve the current problem, because the bottleneck is in transportation, not in generation. How did we get here? In addition to the historical conflict between REE and EDP, a chain of factors have aggravated the situation. One of the most decisive is the increase in power assigned to some large industrial consumers. In 2022, Red Eléctrica granted an electro-intensive customer an increase of 132 MW, reaching 450 MW of power between Carrió and Tabiella. The regulator clarifies that this decision did not violate the regulations, but it does highlight the lack of coordination with EDP, which was not informed and saw how the capacity margin of the area was exhausted practically at once. Added to this problem is another longer-term problem. As El Comercio remembersthe necessary reinforcements for the central network have been planned for more than 20 years, but were never executed. The result is that Asturias faces industrial electrification and the growth expected for the coming years with a network that has not been updated at the pace of demand. The evolution of the local generation. The situation is complicated as cogeneration, a key technology for producing electricity and heat near industrial centers, has collapsed. According to figures published by El ComercioAsturias has lost 82% of cogeneration production in six years. This implies less energy generated at source and, therefore, more need to bring electricity from outside through a network that is already saturated. The economic and environmental impact is also notable: 60 million euros less industrial turnover and 230,000 additional tons of CO₂. And now what? The Asturian Government insists that the problem will be resolved with the 400 kV central ringa gigantic infrastructure included in the energy planning for 2030. This ring will double the electric transportation capacity in the metropolitan area and will allow it to absorb the planned industrial growth. For its part, Red Eléctrica you already have authorization for the new Cardoso substation, key to that ring, with an investment of 26.5 million euros. However, the CNMC warns that the problem is … Read more

If the question is why are non-alcoholic drinks so expensive if they are not taxed, the answer is simple

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Taking a look at the drinks menu of any establishment is a contradiction: non-alcoholic beer It is worth the same as one with alcohol. The same thing happens as with the decaffeinated coffee and the easiest thing is to think that it doesn’t make sense. If you don’t have alcohol, the rules don’t apply. specific taxes on alcohol. The problem is that there are a lot of factors that come into play. The contradiction. Than the price of non-alcoholic beer equal The counterpart with alcohol is something that is not reserved for locals: it is also seen on supermarket shelves. The price of these versions not only equals that of alcoholic beverages, but can exceed it in some cases, and is not limited to beer: also non-alcoholic wine or to refined alcohol products. It’s… strange, especially considering that there are a series of taxes levied on alcoholic products. Guardian echoed this situation, pointing out that the prices of a liter of non-alcoholic beer It is 5% higher than the alcoholic counterpart in supermarkets, 25% higher in pubs. Cider without is 10% more expensive than with and with wine and liquors Something curious was happening: the same price or cheaper in the supermarket, more expensive in the bars. Taxes. In the United Kingdom, about 10% of the price of beer are taxes, but it is not something exclusive to the islands. In Spain, Italy or France there is also the tax to beer and it depends on whether they have more or less alcohol, also if it is artisanal or not. Wine has VAT in Italy, Germany and Spain, but in France it has a tax between 4 and 10 euros per hectoliter and the highest taxes are observed for distillates. That is to say, it is evident that part of what is paid for a non-alcoholic drink is taxes and logic tells us that, if a drink does not have alcohol, it should be between a little cheaper -beer- and much cheaper -0% spirits-. The reason why this is not the case is quite simple. R&D. There are three elements that come into play to prevent it from happening. The first is that, in many cases, production is more complex and expensive than that of alcoholic beverages. In the case of non-alcoholic beer and wine, production starts exactly the same as with alcoholic versions. This implies that the drink is made with fermentationwhich is what raises the graduation. However, then you have to take that extra step that costs money: dealcoholization. It is something that involves specific technology to remove alcoholic content preserving both flavor and texture. In the elimination process, part of the liquid is lost, so producers must use more raw materials to “fill” and, in addition, the alcohol works as a flavor enhancer and, when eliminating it, it is necessary to incorporate additional ingredients such as extracts, aromas or whatever each brand has in its formula. In short: it is not so much the ingredients as the times and processes, which are not eliminated with alcohol, but rather increased. “The industry has made the decision that non-alcoholic drinks are versions of premium products, seeking to ensure that ‘non-alcoholic beer’ is not associated with something cheap and of lower quality” Economy of scale. More or less. That is one of the factors. The second is that yes, it seems that we have embarked on the fashion to stop consuming so many alcoholic beverages. It is something that the industry, especially the beer and wine industry, has observed in recent years, when there has been a significant increase in consumers of non-alcoholic products. If we look back, the non-alcoholic beer market has explodedbut if we look at the total, non-alcoholic beverages only represent a small percentage of volume sales in the alcoholic beverage market. Since there is less demand than the counterpart with alcohol, they do not benefit from economies of scale. That is: the factories that produce bottles, cans, labels, advertising and the alcohol products themselves produce such a high quantity that the cost per unit is low. When non-alcoholic drinks are produced, different labels are made, but as the quantity produced is smaller, the cost per unit is higher. As for the big brands: the independent ones that only produce non-alcoholic drinks have invested a lot of money in research and machinery and cannot afford aggressive margins because they want to recover that investment. and psychology. And the third factor is something that seems silly, but also plays an important role in all of this. The Guardian article alluded to the fact that wine or non-alcoholic spirits were priced the same or lower than alcoholic versions in the supermarket, but in bars, things were different. And it is something that has to do with the positioning of the brands and the perception of the user themselves. Mixing the psychology and marketingif the price of one of the products were significantly lower, it could be perceived as inferior quality. Therefore, in the case of beer, for 0.0 to be seen as a legitimate substitute, the price must be comparable to the alcoholic equivalent. If we see a price equal to or slightly lower than the alcoholic equivalent, the reason may be that it is a version made by an already established brand, with a massive infrastructure that allows them to play with margins and their own brand image. And it also comes into play that non-alcoholic beers from not so long ago were pretty bad. They have improved a lot in recent years, but John Holmes, director of Sheffield Addictions Research Group (a public health think tank based at the University of Sheffield), point that, to improve the image, “the industry has made the decision that non-alcoholic drinks are versions of premium products, seeking to ensure that ‘non-alcoholic beer’ is not associated with something cheap and of lower quality.” He assures that “if you want to reform the reputation of a product, you launch a premium version.” … Read more

self-employed workers with simple invoices are spared

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As of January 1, 2026, Spanish companies will be required to implement Verifactu, the billing system of the Tax Agency to put an end to fraud. The self-employed have a little more time, until July 1, the problem is that communications are being very confusing and many still do not know if they should comply with the new regulations or how to do so. Now the Treasury has clarified something important: those who use simple invoices made by hand or with programs such as Word or Excel are exempt. Alarm and confusion. This is what reigns among the group of self-employed professionals. They count in Europa Press that at the end of October, the Treasury sent a notice to all companies reminding them of the new regulations and the fines that failure to implement them would entail (up to 50,000 euros), creating an “unnecessary alarm.” We are used to Communications from the Tax Agency are quite confusingbut with Verifactu it is being a real chaos. In statements to The Vanguardthe president of the self-employed employers’ association has criticized that “things are not done that way, they are done with a communication campaign” and admits that not even the agencies are clarified with the new system. He has requested an extension so that the self-employed are not obligated until 2027, although for now the dates remain the same. A key clarification. The Ministry of Finance, through the General Directorate of Taxes, recently resolved a query and clarified something very important: all those companies and professionals who create their invoices manually or using simple programs such as Word or Excel are not obliged to use Verifactu, as long as they limit themselves to generating and printing invoices without any additional functions. What is Verifactu?. Verifactu is a system to ensure the traceability and transparency of billing. It is not a billing program as such, but a technological system that is integrated into the SIF (computer billing systems) and guarantees that invoices are unalterable, secure and traceable. The key, therefore, is what is considered a SIF and what is not. SIF. What exactly is a computer billing system? According to the regulationsis a “set of hardware and software used to issue invoices by performing the following actions”: Generate invoices: Billing information can arrive from any method, whether entering it manually or automatically from another program. Save invoice information: well stored in the program itself, extract it in some physical format (such as paper, USB, etc.), or send it telematically (over the Internet) to another computer or system, even if that other system is not a billing system. Process invoice information: use invoice information to generate other results derived from it, such as making reports, analyzes or statistics. The nuance. The third point that defines a SIF is where the most important nuance is. In the response to the query, the General Directorate of Taxes makes it clear that the fact of creating an invoice with Excel is not synonymous with being exempt from applying Verifactu. The text says that “such spreadsheets may have data processing and conservation utilities that may imply their consideration as Computer Billing Systems.” Therefore, if you use a program like Excel or Word solely to make the invoice and store the data (digital or printed), it is not considered a SIF. If, on the other hand, you reuse the data by applying calculation or programming functions or export it to other computer systems, it would be considered SIF and you would have to use Verifactu. Image | Pexelsedited In Xataka | If you were a mutual member in the 70s, the Treasury may have to return up to 4,000 euros to you now by order of the Supreme Court

China is quietly winning the AI ​​race thanks to something very simple: cheap energy

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“China is going to win the artificial intelligence race,” warned Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia. Many thought he was exaggerating, interested in fueling demand for his chips. But, as analyst June Yoon explained in her column for the Financial TimesHuang’s argument contains an uncomfortable truth: the availability of electricity—not chips—is becoming the critical factor for the development of AI. A model like GPT-4 can consume more than 460,000 megawatt-hours per year, the equivalent of the energy consumption of 35,000 American homes, according to a study. The world’s data centers—already colossal—could double their electricity consumption before 2030. And that changes the rules of the game. When there are plenty of chips, but there are no plugs. The race for AI It started with a GPU fever. Big tech companies rushed to buy every Nvidia chip available, but they soon discovered something more worrying: there weren’t enough sockets to connect them. Satya Nadella himself, CEO of Microsoft, he said it bluntly: “The biggest problem we have now is not excess chips, but energy.” Electricity demand has skyrocketed so much that Google, Microsoft and Amazon are already contemplating build nuclear reactors to keep your servers on. The paradox sums up the moment well: the digital leadership of the West encounters a physical limit, that of cheap energy. Energy as a new geopolitics. Analyst June Yoon throw a question that reorders the technological map: what if the AI ​​race had nothing to do with chips, but with electricity? If the last century was defined by oil, this one will be defined by the current China no longer lives off oil: generates it. It has gone from being a petrostate dependent on crude oil to becoming the first electrostate on the planet. More than one quarter of your electricity It comes from renewable sources and its network is growing at a speed that no other country can match. Now that energy sovereignty fuels a new front: artificial intelligence. How did you find the formula? Since September, the Chinese Government Subsidizes up to 50% of energy costs of data centers that use national chips. The inland provinces—Guizhou, Gansu, Inner Mongolia—have become “electric hearts” of Chinese AI: there energy is abundant and cheapand local governments offer historically low rates of just 0.4 yuan per kilowatt-hour. The measure has a dual purpose: Compensate for the lower efficiency of domestic chips compared to Nvidia’s. Promote technological independence in the midst of a trade war. As Bloomberg has detailedthese regions are connected by ultra-high voltage (UHV) lines that transport renewable energy from the interior to the coastal areas where big technology companies, such as Alibaba, Tencent and ByteDance, are concentrated. The goal is clear: ensure abundant, low-cost energy for AI training clusters. According to Rystad Energythe electricity consumption of data centers could more than double before 2030, reaching 1,800 terawatt-hours in 2040. Beijing is preparing to absorb it. The result is a planned, centralized energy ecosystem designed to scale AI. An example is the Talatan Solar Parkwhich extends like a sea of ​​metal mirrors: more than 600 square kilometers of panels that are combined with wind and hydroelectric parks. From there, the power travels along high-voltage lines to data centers on the coast. It is a postcard of the new Chinese power: sun, wind and silicon. China’s electrical advantage. The strategy is also working in the markets. According to Bloombergshares of Chinese power companies have risen up to 40% in a week, driven by demand for AI data centers. UBS forecasts that electricity demand in China will grow 8% annually until 2028. Meanwhile, in Washington, the Trump administration has launched an AI Action Plan to accelerate the construction of data centers and remove obstacles to energy projects. But, as FT analysts point outchip improvements are stuck in single digits, while Chinese renewable energy grows by double digits every year. The power is in the socket. In the race for artificial intelligence, chips are the brain. But the heart beats with electricity. The United States retains leadership and has the best semiconductors (for now); China, the network that keeps them on. As June Yoon wroteall the technological superpowers in history—from coal England to oil America—were built on a source of cheap energy. Today, artificial intelligence needs electricity as it once needed steam. And on that new board, China seems to have found the key: plug in the future before anyone else. Image | Pixabay and Hanwha Xataka | SoftBank abandons the king of chips in its prime. And he bets everything on OpenAI

The next evolution of tupperware is organic packaging. The reason is very simple: endocrine disruptors

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Plastic has revolutionized food packaging and storage in recent decades, but today its massive use represents one of the biggest environmental and health challenges globally. The main protagonist in this case are microplastics and toxic substances that migrate into our body and are called endocrine disruptors by altering the body’s information exchange system. More and more concern. Endocrine disruptors are increasingly in the mouths of more people and no wonder, since they can be present in many places, such as coffee capsules when subjected to high temperatures. And it is very important to take them into account because these disruptors are nothing more than chemical substances that alter the hormonal system by posing as a hormone or blocking the effect that our body’s natural hormones have. And this is something fatal. The scientific literature suggests that they can have different effects on our health, by having reproductive disorders such as infertility or precocious puberty, neurological problems or even metabolic diseases important or cancer. But the real problem comes when different endocrine disruptors combine, causing the ‘cocktail’ effect that chronically Yes, it can be a big problem for our state of health. We are surrounded. And when faced with something so dangerous, the logical thing is to ask where it is. The question is that we can see it in many different places, such as in ultra-processed food itself, but also in the containers we use daily such as the famous containers. Conventional plastics, manufactured from raw materials derived from petroleum, They usually contain thousands of chemical compounds as different studies point out, many of which are not chemically bonded to the polymer and can leach or migrate to the food, although it has been seen that it is much more common when heat is applied (such as when heating food or pour hot coffee into a bottle). For example, bisphenols and phthalates, known endocrine disruptorshave been detected in numerous products and their impact on health is significant. As if that were not enough, the generation and persistence of micro- and nanoplastics in the environment, and even in our body, represent another emerging health problem. But it does not remain in these containers, but also in plastic products that we use to cook with heat and that also causes this release of different substances that we are going to ingest. The solution. Faced with this important problem, we must look for alternatives, such as glass containers for storage. But for those who want to bet on plastic, science is already focusing its efforts on the development of bioplastics derived from natural sources and not oil. Starch, polylactic acid, PHA or even algae-based materials are some of the options that are being considered right now because they are biodegradable and do not release harmful substances into food. In this case where we are above all immersed is in bioplastics with improved properties, with new compounds that have better mechanical resistance and barriers to gases and humidity, without compromising their biodegradability and without releasing dangerous chemicals such as different scientific studies already point out. Innovations that make a difference. In addition to new materials, technologies such as edible packaging made with polysaccharides and plant proteins are gaining ground, offering a surprising solution: cConsume the container itself with the foodeliminating waste and possible contamination. Ecological coatings and bioconversion methods are also being explored to transform plastic waste into useful products, closing the cycle and reducing the environmental footprint. Regulation. At European level, new directives guide manufacturers towards packaging that is safer and more recyclable, setting strict limits for migratory substances and promoting materials that do not contribute to microplastic pollution. Spain and other countries are already aligning their regulations to encourage change in the industry. The protagonist in this case is the Regulation (EU) 2025/40 which points the way to reducing waste generation and ensuring that new packaging is reusable or recyclable. A legal framework, which came into force in February 2025 and will be fully applicable from August 2026, establishes a set of obligations for companies of all types and sizes that produce, distribute or use packaging in the European Union. What is most interesting in this case is the point that refers to the need to control the dangerous substances in packaging such as perfluoroalkylated substances and heavy metals. What to expect in the future. Seeing the new regulation imposed by the EU on all countries and the advances in science, the immediate future seems to involve a greater presence of biodegradable packaging in supermarkets and also in restaurants. But this is something that not only responds to the legal obligation, but also to the social demand for these products. Images | Cesar Badilla Miranda Kate Trifo In Xataka | If we want to have more children, a researcher is clear about what to do: clean our ejaculations of microplastics

We have been wondering for centuries how the statues on Easter Island moved. The answer was very simple: walking

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Can you walk a block of stone the size of a school bus? Can a rock that weighs tons and measures several meters long be walked? The most logical answer is (obviously) no, but things change if what we are talking about is the moai of Easter Island, the unmistakable carvings sculpted and distributed throughout the Polynesian island several centuries ago through the old town of Rapa Nui. Beyond your meaningcharacteristics or design archaeologists have always wondered how the hell the natives managed to move those multi-ton masses from the quarries to the ahuthe ceremonial platforms on which they stood. The answer was just that: no more and no less than ‘walking’. An ancient mystery. There are few sculptures in the world as iconic, unmistakable and fascinating as the moai of Easter Island, the enormous rock heads that seem to emerge from the earth on the distant oceanic island. Since Jacob Roggeveen and its people arrived there in 1722, the world wonders what they were for, what they represent and of course how their creators, the people of Rapa Nui, managed to move them from the quarries to their destinations. Why is it so surprising? Because the statues, carved especially in volcanic tuff of the Rano RarakuThey measure several meters long and weigh tons. In fact, it is said that on average they are around 4.5 meters and 10 talthough there are older specimens. Taking that into account and that they had to move from the places where they were made to their platforms, how did the islanders move them? It is not a minor question if we remember that on the island there are hundreds and hundreds of statues, some have the buried torso and were manufactured mainly among 13th and 16th centuries. Their displacement has aroused so much curiosity that over the last decades it has inspired various theories, such as the one that maintains that the figures they lay down on a kind of wooden sled with ropes. Now a group of researchers he thinks he has settled the debate once and for all. And your answer has little to do with trailers, horizontal loads and logs. ‘Walking’ sculptures. The ancient legends of Rapa Nui they assured that the moai arrived “walking” to their ceremonial platforms, the ahu. And although that possibility has always sounded like a pure fable, it seems that it was not so far off the mark. Thanks to a study that combines physics, 3D modeling and field experiments, a team led by experts from Binghamton and Arizona universities has confirmed that “the statues really walked”. And the most interesting thing is that this process had very little mysterious about it. It was simple physics and engineering. All that was needed was ropes, people, paths and a special design. “After studying nearly a thousand moai, Professor Carl Lipo and Terry Hunt discovered that the inhabitants of Rapa Nui probably used ropes and ‘walked’ the gigantic statues in a zigzag pattern along carefully designed paths,” he explains. a statement launched by Binghamton University. Is it something new? More or less. The theory itself is not new. In the 80s a Czech engineer (Pavel Pavel) already raised that the moai moved upright thanks to a system that propelled them from two points. Carl Lipo himself and his colleagues they argued does years that the statues “walked” with vertical and oscillating movements, contravening the hypothesis that the people of Rapa Nui transported them upside down with the help of logs. To prove it they even did a practical demonstration that attracted interest of National Geographic. Despite these efforts, there were still critical voices that questioned the theory. And that is what Lipo and Hunt have now wanted to settle by deploying their entire arsenal. From the theory… To the facts, which is what the investigators have done. For prove the validity of his theory and better understand the movement of the carvings, Lipo and his colleagues turned to high-resolution 3D models and thoroughly studied the shape of the moais, both those that remain upright and the dozens that fell by the wayside when their creators tried to remove them from the quarry. Not only that. The team also incorporated practical tests into its argument. Practical tests? Yes. The researchers built a moai of 4.35 tons and they dedicated themselves to moving it with the help of ropes. The result is fascinating and Binghamton University itself has taken care of divulge it on YouTube. The team needed just 18 people to move the moai 100 meters in 40 minutes. “Once it gets moving it’s not difficult. People pull with just one arm. It saves energy and it moves very fast,” comment Professor Carl Lipo. “The tricky part is getting it to swing in the first place.” That experience, added to the 3D models and the rest of the analysis, demonstrates, in the opinion of the archaeologists, that their theories “really work.” And to silence voices they have captured it in a paper published in Journal of Archaeological Science with a headline as revealing as it is provocative: “The hypothesis of the walking moai.” Have they discovered anything else? Yes. The researchers identified certain “distinctive characteristics” in the design of the moai that, a priori, made it more feasible for them to advance with an oscillating and zigzag movement with the help of the ropes. What features? The archaeologists quote two specifically: “wide ‘D’ shaped bases and certain inclination forward” (between 5 and 15º). To be more precise, the experts appreciated bases wide and roundedespecially in the moai that were left halfway, which suggests that the islanders used them to move them (the design served to lower the center of gravity). Then, once the figures reached their destination, they carved them to settle them. Another of the clues they have found is in the paths used by the islanders of Rapa Nui. Its width (4.5 meters) and concave cross section invites experts to think that roads were “ideal” … Read more

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