Hemp organization picks state's ex-AG
Dustin McDaniel, a former attorney general for Arkansas, has been named to the board of the U.S. Hemp Authority, a panel that works with hemp growers, processors and product manufacturers.
McDaniel was touted by the organization for his experience in law enforcement.
Arkansas farmers last year planted their inaugural crop of legal industrial hemp under a pilot program authorized by the 2014 farm bill.
McDaniel was Arkansas attorney general from 2007-15. He served in the state House of Representatives.
He also is an investor in Natural State Wellness Enterprises, one of five cultivation centers selected by the state to grow medical marijuana.
-- Stephen Steed
Walmart's ordering apps merger done
Walmart Inc. has completed the merger of its grocery ordering and e-commerce mobile apps, a move that will let customers shop for groceries as well as merchandise like apparel and electronics from a single app.
Plans to merge Walmart Grocery with the flagship Walmart.com app were announced in February at the company's annual investors meeting. The updated app has been rolled out in phases since March, chief customer officer Janey Whiteside said in a blog post.
The desktop versions of the two apps were also merged, Whiteside said. Walmart Grocery will be deactivated this summer.
The Bentonville retailer said in its first-quarter earnings report Tuesday that its e-commerce business grew 74% over the previous year. That was largely driven by online grocery orders for pickup and delivery during the pandemic crisis, the company said, with many shoppers using the services for the first time.
The Walmart app can be downloaded from the Apple and Google Play stores. Current users of Walmart Grocery will have their information and shopping carts automatically transferred to the new app once they've downloaded it and signed in.
-- Serenah McKay
6 Arkansas Index stocks end day up
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, closed Thursday at 364.49, up 0.70.
Six of the 14 Arkansas stocks rose.
"Stocks retraced a portion of Wednesday's advance with the energy and information technology sectors underperforming on increased uncertainty regarding U.S.-Chinese relations," said Leon Lants, managing director at Stephens Inc. in Little Rock.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business on 05/22/2020