"open" news and stories

The secret of oyster opening, as revealed at the 2006 World Oyster Opening Championships this past week, is "a steady hand with the oyster knife," since competitors are judged on a lack of grit (from smashed shells) as well as speed. It may not seem like much of a sport compared to soccer or downhill skiing, but it requires a tremendous amount of dexterity and concentration. The contest has been going on for four decades and this year, for the 15th time, it was won by Irish restaurateur Michael Moran, whose father took the title himself nearly three decades ago.

The sport of oyster-opening should be combined with the sport of competitive eating. Working in pairs, one could open and the eaters could, well, eat. The question would be who to team up. Do you put Kobayashi with Moran, the new World Champion Oyster Opener, or should Moran be paired with an underdog to even the teams?

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Zurich-based chocolate manufacturer Barry Callebaut recently announced plans to open a new $20 million factory in Russia early next year, according to a company press release. The plant, to be built near Moscow, will employ about 70 people and have a production capacity of 25,000 tons. Barry Callebaut is already the largest chocolate importer to Russia, so putting a new factory there was a logical decision, according the chocolate-maker's CEO Patrick De Maeseneire. The company's press release goes on to predict that Russian chocolate consumption will top that of the U.K. by 2009. Barry Callebaut was formed 10 years ago through the partnership of Belgium's Callebaut and France's Cacao Barry. In 2003, the company also acquired American candy company Brach's Confections Holding, Inc.