Episódios
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Today on the show we are talking about food as a whole and the concept of food design with Jane Armour-Raudon. What is food design exactly? What do we mean when we say something we eat is sustainable? How can food design invigorate our relationship with the food we put into our mouth? Lets chat with Jane the Food Smith and find out!
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Welcome again to the Kiwi Foodcast. Today on the show we have Kevin Ngadisastra, one half of the duo behind the Popup that has been taking Wellington by storm, Townhouse Ramen. Kevin’s ramen journey began in 2016 with a trip to Japan. But he is actually a systems analyst by day and not a chef! How did Kevin’s love affair with ramen begin? Can you run a successful food business if you also work full time? How can YOU score a seat at one of his pop ups? Let’s chat to him and find out!
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Julie Gillingham was a dental hygienist when she fell in love with the keto lifestyle. After giving birth to two children, she loved how keto made her feel. The sleep was better, she had more energy and of course, the weight loss was a bonus. She did miss eating ice cream though. And pizza!
"When my family was following keto strictly, we would have pizza once a week but could never find a pizza base that was both tasty and affordable." So she decided to try making them herself. Julie had hit on the right pain point because anyone doing keto knows that giving up bread is the hardest bit. Not because of its doughy goodness but rather because you need a 'base' for the food you cook or to mop up that curry.
Julie eventually traded in her mask and scrubs for an apron & chefs cap to pursue her dream of running and growing Keto Smart Bakes full time. The range of products she offers has continued to expand from pizza bases to bagels, tortillas and garlic bread, with more to come!
The unique thing about Keto Smart Bakes is that everything is made in small batches, hand-crafted and freshly baked weekly. "I work on a pre-order basis and that can be a bit challenging for new customers because we live in such an instantaneous world. But my customers know that I am a solopreneur and that I'm also a mom. They know that I put so much into my business and my products that it's worth the wait."
Specifically, we chat about:
As a small business owner, finding the balance between work life and home lifeWorking around production challenges when everything is hand-craftedMaking 'convenience' products that are still worth the wait
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Sachie came to New Zealand after graduating high school, mainly to speak English. What was she most surprised with on coming here? She says, "I was surprised with the size...not of the country but with the size of vegetables here. In Japan, a capsicum may be the size of an egg while here it's more like an apple!"
Sachie's journey in entrepreneurship started rather serendipitously while she was working in hospitality sales. She went in one morning and learned of a colleague that had passed away from a heart attack at just 45. That same afternoon she heard of another friend that also passed away. "It was a lightbulb moment. If I die tomorrow, will I have any regrets? I went back home and drew a mind map. What do I love - food, what do I enjoy doing - I love cooking and sitting with others to eat, what skills did I have - I know how to cook Asian food really well. So I thought, that's it. I will teach those who love Asian food how to cook it. It's in my kitchen so I will call it Sachie's kitchen and so it began."
It has now been ten years since that day and Sachie's Kitchen has gone from strength to strength. It is now one of the most-awarded cooking schools in Australasia. To date, more than 50,000 New Zealanders have been through Sachie’s Kitchen with millions more watching her demonstrations on the small screen – her television show is broadcast in over 35 countries.
Her classes appeal to individuals with a passion for Asian cooking and also corporate teams who book events that cover Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese, Malaysian, Chinese, Indian & Korean cuisine. Sachie has gone on to launch her own range of branded food products nationwide and is now exploring virtual cooking classes as well.
Favourite quotes:
Growing up for me, food = people
When I opened the door to Sachie's kitchen in Parnell I had to really think of how people would find me and know about my kitchen. For me, the answer was media. So, I wrote it down on my mind map. I wrote TV, radio, magazine. And the law of attraction took over. When I write things, it attracts opportunities in my life. Over the next two weeks, my husband bumped into someone that ran a radio station and I got onto the radio. Same for my TV show, I wrote it down and then one day, the producer came through the door.
Opportunities are always around you. They are ready, for anyone to grab. But if you're not ready, you will not see them. You will miss the boat.
In front of my computer, I have a wall where I have a mind map. I write on it opportunities I want to attract, where I want to be and then I transfer it into my yearly calendar and then it does just happen.
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Monisha's journey cooking and eating fresh, healthy food started long before she joined Instagram. In India, she worked as a naturopath, as an aerobic instructor and a yoga teacher.
Life changed when her family and she decided to move to New Zealand. They began their journey in Invercargill where Monisha was unable to resurrect her career in naturopathy and started working in a meat and freezing works. A seven-month stint at the local Pita Pit reminded her how much she loved being around fresh food and simple flavours. So, when they moved to Rotorua a few months later, Monisha continued to work in hospitality. But then she got sick.To help her body recover, Monisha resorted to making lots of smoothies. "When it came to food, I always something a bit extra, so I'd make these pretty layered smoothies", says Monisha. When her son saw her pretty creations, he opened an Instagram account for Monisha.
"I had no clue what I was doing. If you scroll down 1000 posts you will see I didn't even know how to write hashtags correctly. But I learned. And I made friends. And then companies started approaching me to give them ideas for dishes. But it's the smoothies that got me started".
On the episode we talk about:
Being real on social mediaFrom influencer to recipe developer, the journeyAdding colour to food and how that can change your mealFollow Monisha and her colourful, fresh food on Instagram
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Ash Razmi was on a trip in the States when he tasted his first quality craft beef jerky and couldn’t get enough. After he came back home he was determined to replicate those flavours and used a home dehydrator to try making his own jerky. It took him hundreds of attempts to get the balance perfect and because beef jerky is not made the same day there was lots of recording involved to see what worked.
Most of the biltong and jerky available in NZ is made by large manufacturing brands and has a long list of artificial ingredients. Ash didn't want to create another tough, rubbery jerky that "can last forever and survive a bomb blast". He decided that his company, Bootleg Jerky would make jerky that's free of nitrites, nitrates, MSG or other additives with unpronounceable names.
Since both Ash worked full-time, they had to partner with a manufacturer who would agree to make the jerky to their exacting standards. Since then, Bootleg Jerky has grown by leaps and bounds and they have now turned their garage into a custom-built licenced manufacturing facility inside - and no, they didn't actually tie up the MPI food safety officer (see their instagram video to know what I mean!)
Bootleg Jerky's secret to success is firstly creating a great product. "Our marinating process is simple. Meat plus marinade plus time, or rather, lots of time". On the episode we talk about:
Why having a great product is importantDirect to consumer or being on the shelves, what’s the better strategyManufacturing journey - from garage to contract manufacturing to purpose built facilityHow Bootleg Jerky spread the wordwww.bootlegjerky.co.nz
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When my mum and I moved to New Zealand, I was always the odd one out at school. Other kids brought sandwiches while mum always packed me some Indian leftovers. "What's that, butter chicken?", my Kiwi friends would ask while I waited near the microwave for my food to be heated. My eyes would roll inside my head. If only they knew the joys of a true Indian dish.
It took growing up, moving back to India and missing the oddly orange 'Kiwi' butter chicken, to realise that it wasn't anyone's fault. After all, butter chicken, tikka masala and naan were the only dishes they knew! How were us Kiwis to get a taste of real India if no one ever made us taste it? I parked that thought until I moved back to New Zealand in 2019.
It clicked that if I wanted my friends and those around me to experience the true taste of India, I had to do more than talk about it. I had to bring those flavours into their kitchen and show them how truly versatile they could be! I wanted to show my fellow Kiwis that Indian spices can be used to make just about anything, from dahl to roast to pasta and everything in between. It was time to start the journey and move beyond butter chicken. Why are these notes in the first person? Because, this time around, I am a guest on my own podcast.
Guest host Grace Kreft of the PepTalk podcast chat's with me this week. We discover:
The importance of sharing the stories of NZ food entrepreneursHow Kiwi Foodcast helped me launch my own business Getting to the starting line of a food business - what's involvedDolly Mumma and how she inspired my love for foodHungry for Indian food? Head to www.dollymumma.com and get a taste of the real India.
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Jayshri was born in New Zealand. However, she grew up eating primarily Gujarati food at home. For her mum, like many Indian mums, food was the primary love language. Jayshri didn't learn how to cook Indian food until she left home to study. She would try calling her mum to ask her how to cook something and would often be told to add 'a little bit of this and a little bit of that'.
It's a quandary many of us have faced. Not wanting her family secrets to be lost, Jayshri started noting the recipes down in a wee notebook when her parents sold the family dairy. However, when she told a few Kiwi friends what she was doing, they all said, "oh my God, we need it because our mums are the same". The project turned into a cookbook that Jayshri has self-published with her mum and the duo's book won the Best in the World Gourmand Cookbook Award in 2018.
On the episode we talk about:
Intuition, a key ingredient for cooking Indian foodFood, the recurring theme in Indian culture
New to cooking Indian food? Here are the key fundamentalsSelf-publishing a cookbook, why do itMy favourite quotes from the episode:
"Back in the 80s when I went to school, we were the only Indians in my school at Christchurch. Back then no one knew about Indian food. They didn't even know what a samosa was."
"My mum was used to just cook with her own teaspoon she had in her home. So she would use her spoon, then we would tip it into the measuring spoon and that's how we figured out the recipes."
"You walk into an Indian household and straightaway they are sharing food with you."
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The FoodBowl is for food entrepreneurs what the Willy Wonka Chocolate factory was for kids. Supported by Callaghan Innovation and run by the Auckland chapter of the NZ Food Innovation Network, the FoodBowl is an open access facility whose core business is to increase the value of New Zealand's food sector by encouraging companies to develop and commercialise new products.
We all know that developing a new product or process can be an exciting journey. But it's also exhausting. FoodBowl provides support and resource for companies and innovators not only with expert advice and connections to experts but also with access to a huge range of equipment. While the facility and therefore the manufacturing runs are partially funded by the tax-payer, all companies pay to use the FoodBowl. Whether you're looking to make something cheaper, faster, safer or better or you're ready to grow beyond Kiwi shores, the FoodBowl can help.
Businesses like Pure Food Co. have used their facility to commercialise their product before investing in a plant while established companies like Sanford Ltd have used FoodBowl's equipment and importantly, engineers to fast-track their research in fish oils, mussel extracts and proteins.
"We are a bridge between a kitchen recipe and a contract manufacturer", explains Alasdair Baxter, Business Development Manager at FoodBowl. On this episode, I talk to Alasdair to find out:
What exactly is the FoodBowl and how they help food innovatorsIs the FoodBowl right for your business?How innovative do you need to be to secure support from the FoodBowlCulley's, Citizen and The Apple Press, how the FoodBowl has helped these Kiwi companiesLearn more about the Food Bowl and how they can help you
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Adlena Wong grew up in Singapore. Her mix of Chinese, Indonesian and Malaysian heritage meant that she grew up eating a lot of sambal and dodo's (a sticky taffy like pudding) as well as having Tau Huay (soy bean pudding sweetened with ginger and vanilla) for breakfast every weekend at the local hawker stall with her grandmum.
At the end of 2020, Singapore hawker culture was added to UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. A whole generation of Singaporean bankers, lawyers, engineers and more have had their studies funded by their parents' hawker stalls. Each stall often sells only one or two items that they are known for and its where the country's best food can be found!
On the episode we talk about:
What does 'shiok' even mean?Food vendors in the Asian subcontinent and their 10000 hours of expertiseSingapore noodleswhy you will never find them in SingaporeIs there such a thing as Singaporean food?The Super Shiok Eats journey
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New Zealanders spend more than $118million annually on pies consuming close to 66 million pies a year. From a gas station to a supermarket to a bistro, they are just about everywhere and for us Kiwis, the ultimate comfort food. The Kiwi pie is famous mainly because of our pastry.
Back in 1981, Tom and Ben's father, Eddie, started Dads Pies in a small pie shop at Red Beach. Word spread fast and they went from a small pie shop to a pie factory in Silverdale to being stocked at Wild Bean Café's across the country. It's fair to say therefore that both Ben and Tom grew up around pastry and pies. In their own words, they were the cool kids in as their dad delivered all the pies for Friday pie day at school.
On the show today we talk about:
Why do Kiwis love pies so muchHigh quality pie fillings and why that makes a differenceVegan pies - is that even a thing and do they taste good?Running a multi generation family owned business and the associated complexitiesKey learnings from exporting pies globallyCreating a new brand and how that rejuvenates a business that's been around for decades
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Since selling their first scoop in December 2017, they've now built their own creamery in Nelson, won a whole bunch of awards for their icecream and export their premium icecreams to Singapore and Australia. Made using real milk, real cream and in most cases local fruit, Appleby Farms Icecream is a worthy addition to your supermarket trolley.
On the show today we talk about:
Dairy farming in New Zealand - how it's different from the rest of the worldA2 milk - what is it really and what's the fuss?Growing a dairy farming business and how icecream came in to the pictureWhacky flavours v/s the originals v/s the best ingredients, the secret to being a successful icecream brandQuotes:
"Having been involved in a few startups before, I can say that it always is more difficult than you expect, it always costs more and it always takes longer."
"95% of the dairy cow population live in a corral or a shed. They are industrial factory farms. In comparison, in NZ our animals stay outside all year round and are able to express a lot of their natural behaviours. This leads to a really high quality product"
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Indika came for a day visit to Waiheke when he had just moved to New Zealand. He loved it so much he decided to start living there. For someone from Srilanka, "it was like home, just without the coconut trees".
Today, he owns his own food truck, Indy's Curry pot which serves up delicious Srilankan curries and fusion Srilankan food on Waiheke Island. But the journey to this seemingly 'dream job' has taken a serious amount of hustle on Indika's part. He's gone from cooking a curry as the staff meal at the vineyard he worked at to hosting a popup Curry Monday on his only day off in the week to now owning his food truck. How did he do it? You're going to have to listen to the whole episode for that!
On the show we chat about:
Is there a thing like too much curry?How is a Srilankan curry different to an Indian oneWhere in Auckland can you tuck into some Srilankan foodFollowing the slow path to food entrepreneurshipDoing business on Waiheke Island - is it hard?Favourite quotes:
“Growing up, was it curry every night? Oh yes. Sometimes, it was curry three times a day, even for breakfast!”
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New Zealand's hospitality industry is worth more than $11 billion and as of 2019 employed close to 130,000 people. Yet as many of us know, succeeding and owning a profitable hospitality business that lasts a long time is notoriously difficult. That's where the Restaurant Association comes in.
The Restaurant Association supports NZ's diverse and creative hospitality businesses. They give advice, provide buying groups, give discounts and make sure our industry's voice is heard in both the media and the government.
A common misconception is that the Restaurant Association is just for cafes and restaurants. In reality, CEO Marisa Bidois shares that they can help any business for whom food is the hero. From food delivery businesses to meal kits to even rest-homes, the Restaurant Association has helped them all. They act as a link between good food and good business. "We’re like your silent business partner, available at a moment’s notice to answer questions, offer advice, navigate the terms of your lease or advocate on your behalf, we've got your back", says Marisa.
On the show today we chat about:
The size and diversity of NZ's hospitality industryMentors, buyer groups, legal helplines and job boards, why all of these are important support systemsStories of hope and resilience, how the hospitality industry has pivotedImportance of advocacy in times of strifeMinimum wage, finding the right balanceFind out more about the Restaurant Association and how they can help you.
Top Quotes:
"I've been exposed to a lot of diverse food from traditional Māori kai to American cuisine, if that's a thing. I also lived in Arizona and I have fond memories of a family friend Olga who taught me how to make tamales and tortillas."
"Owning a business is lonely. It's nice to have someone that you can regularly check in with who has been there, done that who can help you figure out what to do next."
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Starting and growing a food business is a long, hard hustle. There are many hoops to jump through before you can get your product on those grocery shelves and hit the bigtime. But, what if you had the opportunity to go from 1 - 1000 fast? If all the doors that you needed opening for your business simply opened, would you race through?
If you nodded yes, then you need to know about FoodStarter. It's a nationwide search for NZ's most innovative food and beverage products with the ultimate prize being the chance to have your product on New World shelves across New Zealand.
We talk to Marian Johnson, CEO of Ministry of Awesome, the incubator behind FoodStarter as well Tim Campbell, Category Manager at Foodstuffs about what it means to create an innovative product. "The challenge with innovation is walking the tightrope between creating something that is new and something that the customer wants", says Tim. So do be on trend and go plant based or make kombucha or could you innovate in other ways that focus on the provenance of food or the founder story? In the episode we talk about:
Foodstarter, who it’s for and why you should applyCan innovation happen beyond the product itselfThe one thing category managers look for in your food product Where to begin if you want to stock your product at a NZ supermarketFind out more about Foodstarter on www.Foodstarter.co.nz
Applications close 7 February 2021.
Quotes from the episode:
"Going to the supermarket and watching people shop is actually quite interesting. What people say they are going to do versus what they actually put into their shopping trolley is often quite different." - Tim Campbell
"When you're investing in a startup, you're investing in the founder. It's not often that you go from no to go in a year. With FoodStarter we are giving you the skates, the network and the opportunity. But you still have to do the running, no one is going to do that for you" - Marian Johnson
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How often have you been cooking in the kitchen and wished you had a second pair of hands? Or perhaps you bought a gadget (I’m sure someone else also owns a yogurt maker that’s still in its box) to help you with some of the kitchen drudgery or to help you make more exciting meals only to have it loiter on your pantry shelf unused for months?
I was in the same boat until I came across the Thermomix. The Thermomix claims to be a smart connected kitchen that in our guest Odette’s words changes your relationship with food. Owned by Vorwerk, the Thermomix is a staple in many European kitchens and in recent years has been making headway into Aussie and Kiwi homes.
It’s easy at first glance to dismiss the machine as a “$2,500 blender” just like Odette’s husband did which is why you need to really see it in action to get a feel for how it could be used in your kitchen. Thermomix consultant, Shernaz Petigara shares that she has clients who use the machine just for their businesses to make jams or ganache for cakes. She also knows a 13 year old boy who loved it so much he now cooks all weeknight dinners in it once he comes home from school! What is this sorcery? We find out!
In this episode we talk about:
Is the Thermomix really just a bloody expensive blender?Can a machine really change your relationship with food?Why is the Thermomix not just available in a retail store?How you can finally get your husband to cook!To see the Thermomix in action or to get weeknight meal envy follow Shernaz Petigara on @peacewiththermo and Odette Smith on @thermodette . You can also email [email protected] if you’d like to see it in action for yourself or head to the Thermomix NZ page on Facebook and join one of their virtual cooking classes!
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Akemi grew up in Osaka, Japan savouring her grandmother’s pork and chive dumplings or gyoza as the Japanese call them. Gyoza was her favourite thing to eat and her Grandmum would always make them for her as long as Akemi helped her. As a result, Akemi learnt what went into the perfect gyoza and how to form them by hand when she was just six years old.
When Akemi came to New Zealand in 2009 she started working as a kitchen hand at a vineyard in Matakana and in her own words she “somehow became a chef”. She has no formal training as a cook. Akemi first made gyoza for a wedding at the vineyard. The Head Chef loved them so much they became a regular feature on their menu. Fast forward a few years and Akemi’s Gyoza was born in 2016 selling first at Matakana Farmers’ Market.
Today she is a regular feature at the Mangawhai Tavern market on a Saturday and the Clevedon market on a Sunday. She also caters for events and in the summer features at 2 – 3 other food events a month. On an average, she sells anywhere from 8,000 to 15,000 gyoza a week!
On our episode we talk about:
The difference between a Chinese dumpling and Japanese gyozaAkemi’s journey of learning to make gyozaWhy Akemi loves being at farmers’ marketsHow Akemi’s Gyoza evolved during the pandemicFollow their journey on https://akemisgyoza.nz/
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The Papatoetoe Food Hub is a community-driven project that aims to nurture and develop new approaches to food. They are reimagining how food can be served and shared in a way that enables healthy lifestyles. A collective is made up Roots Creative Entrepreneurs, Kai Tupuna, Taiohi Whai Oranga and Auckland Teaching Gardens, supported by The Southern Initiative, Healthy Families South Auckland, Otara Papatoetoe Local Board and Panuku Development Auckland. It’s a community driven project.
Their aim is to nurture a new approach to kai. One that encourages a behaviour change towards healthy food while also tackling food insecurity. On the surface they run a café. However, what this multi-use space is really doing is making good food accessible and affordable to the local community while also creating a hub where people can connect and share new concepts related to food.
Their partnership approach has seen them working with farmers in Pukekohe to rescue surplus produce and turn it into soup for local schools in Papatoetoe. They have made available indigenous food like hangi and umu available in Papatoetoe and they regularly also provide work opportunities for Papatoetoe youth and locals.
Since October 2019 the Papatoetoe Food Hub has also worked with Papatoetoe New World to rescue some of the supermarket’s surplus produce. This has resulted in approximately one tonne of produce being rescued each week to create healthy, affordable meals and juices at the Food Hub.
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Clare Gallagher and Lauren Taylor have seven kids between them. They believe in the magic of home baking but know firsthand how messy baking with kids can be. They also know how busy life can get and recognized that while we’d all like a plate of treats to share baking from scratch can be tedious.
When Lulu lost her job during the Covid lockdown they put their heads together and came up with an 8th baby. Their business, Secret Kiwi Kitchen. Secret Kiwi Kitchen makes all natural, artisan baking mixes like a brownie mix, fudge sauces as well as a molten marshmallow sauce.
Not only do their baking mixes bring families together but they also empower kids! Lauren shares, “We got an email from a mother who shared how our mixes are empowering their kids. Her son had a shared morning tea for his rugby team and she got him our blondie kits so that he could make them himself”.
From launching in August to being stocked at Smith & Caughey’s just five months later, this is an incredible story you want to listen to!
On the show we talk about:
How can baking at home be made easier?Getting the word out about your business in the really, early daysWhat exactly is marshmallow fluffRapidly scaling a food products business, what it takesCraving some brownies? Head to Secret Kiwi Kitchen and order a mix, or two.
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Bread and Butter are a Ponsonby based bakery and cafe that specialises in traditional European foods and naturally leavened bread made using organic ingredients. Curiously Isabel Pasch, the owner of Bread and Butter is neither a baker now a pastry chef. She is actually a trained microbiologist and prior to the bakery owned a company that specialised in science PR. However, growing up in Germany meant that Isabel grew up around bread and cake. Her family loved baking and Isabel and her sister grew baking cakes, biscuits and slices whenever the opportunity arose. “It wasn’t frowned upon to have several pieces of cake – with cream”, she says.
When she moved to New Zealand, she was not only in search of a new career but also in search of better bread. Having come up empty in the bread department, Isabel decided to open her own bakery. “I would save us all from the dreaded ‘white fluff’ that New Zealanders, at the time, considered to be bread”.
On the show we chat about:
The history of breadWhy does bread have such a bad reputation?Naturally leavened bread and why it tastes betterNot compromising on taste and all that it entailsSourcing wheat grown locally and why that’s importantScaling a bakery businessLearn more - www.breadandbutter.nz
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