FERNDALE, N.Y., March 18, 2026 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — La Belle Farms, a fourth-generation, family owned and operated duck farm located in Ferndale, N.Y., announced today it will appeal the recent decision by the Appellate Division, Third Department, which ruled that the State Department of Agriculture and Markets misapplied state law when it blocked New York City’s 2019 ban on the sale of foie gras (Local Law 202).

Photo caption: Foie gras, a timeless delicacy rich in tradition and flavor. Courtesy La Belle Farms.

Last week, the appeals court found that the state agency’s protection of La Belle’s farm operations went beyond what the statute allows. The farm said it respects the court system and will seek review by the New York Court of Appeals to resolve the competing priorities at issue – NYC’s animal-welfare concerns and New York State’s longstanding policy to support agriculture as a vital part of the economy.

“Today’s ruling is a setback, but we will not stop fighting for our right to farm and to sell our product,” said Sergio Saravia. “This appeal is about more than foie gras; it’s about protecting family farms and the many jobs and small businesses that depend on them. We’ll be asking the Court of Appeals to clarify how state agricultural protection should operate so farmers aren’t left vulnerable to local measures that reach well beyond city limits.”

La Belle Farms is a fourth-generation, family-run duck farm on 40 acres in Sullivan County, NY. Founded by the Saravia family in 1999, La Belle is one of the few farms nationwide producing foie gras and premium duck meat, and it supports the regional economy by employing hundreds of local workers and partnering with area businesses.

“Agriculture depends on predictable and consistent policies so farmers can operate with certainty,” notes Marcus Henley, manager of Hudson Valley Foie Gras, a premier New York foie gras producer. “It becomes difficult when different municipalities adopt their own restrictions on products that are otherwise legal under state law.”

Edward Phillips of Keane & Bean, PC, who represents La Belle Farms, added: “We will ask the Court of Appeals to review the record and uphold the Commissioner’s determination. The Appellate Division held that the Commissioner was powerless to stop the City from imposing a sales ban that was admittedly designed to restrict a farming practice. That ruling, which is unprecedented and leaves all farmers across the state vulnerable to similar sales bans, should be reviewed by New York’s highest court.”

While the Appellate Division ruled against the agency’s interpretation, La Belle Farms notes that a separate injunction from another case currently prevents the city from enforcing Local Law 202.

Court: NY Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department

Docket Number: CV-24-1310 – https://decisions.courts.state.ny.us/ad3/Decisions/2026/CV-24-1310.pdf

Citation: 2026 NY Slip Op 01426

ABOUT LA BELLE FARMS:

La Belle Farms is a 40-acre, family-run, duck farm located in Sullivan County, NY. It is one of three farms in the country that produce foie gras. The farm was established by the Saravia and Lee families in 1999 and has supported four generations of family members. It currently produces over 182,000 ducks per-year for high-quality foie gras and other superior duck meat products. Their management team constantly travels around the world, learning about the latest production methods and keeping tabs on culinary trends. Learn more: https://labellefarms.com/.

MULTIMEDIA:

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Photo caption: Foie gras, a timeless delicacy rich in tradition and flavor. Courtesy La Belle Farms.

News Source: La Belle Farms

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AUSTIN, Texas, March 18, 2026 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — BioAustinCTX today announced that Scott Collins, PhD, has transitioned from his role as President at the end of February after more than a decade of leadership supporting the growth of the Central Texas life sciences ecosystem.

Image caption: BioAustinCTX.

During his tenure over the past decade, Dr. Collins helped guide BioAustinCTX through a period of significant expansion for the region’s biotechnology and life science community. Under his leadership, the organization strengthened its role as a connector across startups, established companies, academic institutions, investors, and economic development partners, helping foster collaboration and visibility across the ecosystem.

“Serving as President of BioAustinCTX has been one of the great privileges of my professional career,” said Dr. Collins. “I am proud of the progress our community has made and look forward to continuing to support the organization as Ambassador and Past President while focusing on advancing deep technology and biotechnology innovation in the Central Texas region.”

Following this transition, Dr. Collins will remain actively engaged with BioAustinCTX in an Ambassador and Past President capacity, supporting the organization’s mission and ongoing initiatives.

As BioAustinCTX looks ahead, the organization remains focused on strengthening the connectivity, competitiveness, and growth of the Central Texas life sciences sector. The Board of Directors is committed to building on the strong foundation established to date and will share additional updates regarding leadership and strategic priorities in the coming weeks.

BioAustinCTX thanks Dr. Collins for his service and leadership and looks forward to continued collaboration as the organization enters its next phase.

About BioAustinCTX

BioAustinCTX is a nonprofit industry organization dedicated to advancing the life sciences ecosystem in Central Texas. Through collaboration, education, networking, and strategic engagement, BioAustinCTX supports entrepreneurs, researchers, companies, and partners working to bring life-changing technologies to market. Learn more at https://bioaustinctx.com/.

News Source: BioAustinCTX

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PORTLAND, Ore., March 17, 2026 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Diode, the leader in blockchain-defined networking, today announced a collaboration with CleanConnect.ai to strengthen the integrity and traceability of oil and gas production certificates. The initiative integrates Diode’s zero trust networking technology, Oasis’ privacy preserving blockchain, and CleanConnect.ai’s ProveZero multi-certification pathway system to deliver authenticated production proofs with source level provenance. The AI-driven verification framework safeguards regulated industrial information while ensuring the validity of on-chain Real World Assets (RWAs).

Image caption: Diode, the leader in blockchain-defined networking.

“Every certified performance target, every methane measurement, every evidence document is only as valuable as the trust chain behind it,” said Mark Smith, Chief Strategy Officer of CleanConnect.ai. “By routing production data generated by ProveZero through Diode’s zero-trust network and anchoring it on Oasis, we give producers, traders, and buyers cryptographic proof that the attributes encoded in every Environmental Attribute Certificate reflect real, verified, source-level data — not a registry spreadsheet someone emailed. Our ProveZero multi-certification platform can now generate tokenized energy as a verifiable Real World Asset on the blockchain, spanning ISO 14067, ISCC, EO100™, MiQ, OGMP, EUMR, and more — giving the market a single, auditable chain of custody across every major standard simultaneously.”

“We see private, automated, and cross-vendor AI systems as the next frontier for regulated data,” said Hans Rempel, CEO of Diode. “By leveraging our private AI control plane anchored on Oasis, CleanConnect.ai can rapidly deploy new assurance capabilities without sacrificing privacy, compliance, or control.”

“Oasis provides the private foundation that makes zero-trust networking so powerful for regulated industries,” said Marko Stokic, Head of AI at Oasis. “Seeing that infrastructure now underpinning real-world certification workflows in the energy sector is the kind of adoption we built for. We look forward to seeing CleanConnect.ai and Diode push the boundaries even further.”

To read the case study on how Diode, Oasis, and CleanConnect.ai are delivering verifiable Real World Assets, go to https://diode.io/blog/diode-cleanconectai-oasis-verfiable-rwa.

ABOUT OASIS

Oasis makes applications private and verifiable, empowering developers to build experiences where data ownership and user confidentiality are foundational and where user data is protected by default. Learn more at https://oasis.net/.

ABOUT CLEANCONNECT.AI

CleanConnect.ai provides AI-driven automation solutions that monitor and reduce methane emissions across oil and gas operations, enabling cost savings, regulatory compliance, and environmental sustainability in real time. Learn more at https://cleanconnect.ai/.

ABOUT DIODE

Diode is the innovation leader in Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) technology, providing blockchain‑secured networking that automates defense of teams, systems, and AI infrastructure while securely unlocking collaboration across organizational boundaries. Learn more at https://diode.io/.

For media inquiries, contact
Hans Rempel
media@diode.io

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News Source: Diode

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Source: https://www.send2press.com/wire/new-collaboration-strengthens-trust-in-oil-and-gas-certification-data/

LAS VEGAS, Nev., March 17, 2026 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — For centuries, the first sacred music written in the Americas lay hidden in archives, waiting to be rediscovered. Now, an international effort is bringing those voices back to life. The Guardians of Culture & Arts Foundation (GOCA), a newly established 501(c)(3) nonprofit headquartered in Las Vegas, has officially launched with a mission to preserve, protect, and revitalize cultural heritage through music and the arts. Through international collaboration among artists, scholars, historians, and cultural leaders, the foundation seeks to rediscover endangered traditions and help communities reconnect with their identities.

Image caption: The Guardians of Culture & Arts Foundation (GOCA).

GOCA’s inaugural event will take place August 1, 2026, at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles, California, where sacred Baroque music from Perú — silent for more than 300 years — will be reawakened in a grand performance.

ABOUT THE GUARDIANS OF CULTURE & ARTS FOUNDATION

Rather than focusing solely on archival preservation, GOCA emphasizes living cultural experience. Through documentary storytelling, concerts, and educational initiatives, the foundation raises awareness of traditions that still exist but are often overlooked — from music and language to culinary heritage and architecture. Proceeds are reinvested directly into the communities whose traditions are being preserved, supporting music education, instruments and training for young musicians, and programs that help sustain language and artistic heritage.

LEADERSHIP VISION

The foundation was established by Dennis Bonilla (Founding Trustee, Chairman & Chief Learning Officer), David Rodriguez (Founding Trustee & Chief Executive Officer), and Robert Golden (Founding Trustee & President) in response to a growing global need to protect endangered cultural expressions. Together, they envision a world where sacred traditions are not forgotten, but rediscovered and brought forward for future generations.

“Guardians of Culture & Arts exists to preserve, protect, and revitalize music and art as living expressions of cultural identity — not artifacts behind glass, but works that are performed again, studied again, and honored again,” said Dennis Bonilla, Founding Trustee, Chairman and Chief Learning Officer.

“Cultural identity lives in the music, stories, and traditions that communities carry across generations. When these works are restored and performed again, communities reconnect with their heritage and the world gains a deeper understanding of its shared history and unity,” said David Rodriguez, Founding Trustee and Chief Executive Officer.

“Cultural heritage is one of humanity’s most valuable resources, yet many artistic traditions are disappearing without recognition. Through initiatives like The Lost Music of Perú, GOCA is working to ensure these extraordinary works are rediscovered, performed, and carried into the future,” said Robert Golden, Founding Trustee and President.

THE LOST MUSIC OF PERÚ

“The Lost Music of Perú” is an international documentary and cultural project exploring sacred Baroque compositions from the viceroyal period — hidden in Peruvian archives for more than three centuries. These works reflect a remarkable fusion of European, Indigenous, and African influences that shaped the spiritual and cultural identity of the Americas. During the viceroyal era, Perú emerged as one of the continent’s most vital cultural centers, producing music, architecture, and visual arts that influenced the broader hemisphere, along with agricultural and culinary traditions that continue to shape global culture today. Through historical research, documentary filmmaking, and live performance spanning multiple countries, the project traces the rediscovery of these manuscripts and the musicians and communities working to restore them.

ABOUT THE AUGUST 1 EVENT

The concert is presented in coordination with the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels – Los Angeles, and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The concert, recognized by the respective embassies as part of the 200th year celebration of diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Perú, will feature orchestras, choirs, and musicians from across the Americas performing rediscovered sacred compositions that have not been widely heard for centuries. The event will be streamed globally.

“This project represents more than a concert,” said Rodriguez. “It is a moment of cultural restoration — music that has been silent for centuries will once again be heard in a majestic sacred space, a setting designed for voices that endure across time.”

The concert will also be documented as part of a forthcoming film — ensuring its impact extends far beyond a single evening and into a lasting cultural record.

A GLOBAL CALL TO CULTURAL STEWARDSHIP

GOCA invites communities, scholars, supporters, and cultural partners worldwide to join this work. These traditions belong to all of us — and preserving them honors identity, memory, and the shared human story. To learn more or to become a Guardian, visit https://gocafoundation.org/.

EVENT INFORMATION

Title: The Lost Music of Perú — A Live Cultural Event

Date: August 1, 2026

Location: Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, 555 W Temple St, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Streaming: Available globally

Learn More: https://gocafoundation.org/the-lost-music-of-per

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News Source: Guardians of Culture and Arts Foundation

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PLANO, Texas, March 17, 2026 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Optimal Blue today announced key results of an independent analysis by consulting advisory firm MarketWise Advisors LLC quantifying the operational and financial efficiencies of its end-to-end capital markets platform and the significant value it generates per loan. The study found that mortgage lenders using Optimal Blue technology are more efficient and competitive. Optimal Blue mortgage lenders report an average net financial benefit of $1,006 per loan, reflecting measurable gains in execution quality, error reduction, automation and operational efficiency.

Image caption: Optimal Blue logo.

Across the institutions studied, lenders reported improvements in accuracy, performance, operational capacity and capital markets execution. The analysis highlights both the cumulative value created when lenders adopt multiple capabilities across the Optimal Blue ecosystem and the value delivered by specific Optimal Blue technology solutions when combined with individual strategic decision-making. By combining pricing, execution, data and secondary marketing tools within a single platform, lenders are able to scale loan production more efficiently and respond more effectively to changing market conditions.

“In mortgage capital markets, every basis point matters. That is why our core goal is providing our clients with data that enables them to be more competitive. When lenders are gaining more than $1,000 per loan and achieving a rate of return of $12 for every $1 spent, that’s more than efficiency, that is operational advantage,” said Joe Tyrrell, CEO of Optimal Blue. “This independent analysis confirms what our clients experience every day: when lenders have better technology, including use-case specific AI tools backed by real expertise, the impact shows up on their bottom line.

“The results confirm that Optimal Blue delivers substantial, measurable value – contributing to clients’ ability to scale efficiently, improve execution, manage risk and achieve strong returns across the ecosystem,” said Jordan Brown, founding principal and CEO of MarketWise Advisors.

KEY FINDINGS

The analysis identified five key findings showing how lenders use Optimal Blue’s solutions to make smarter decisions, resulting in:

• Average positive impact of more than $1,000 per loan. Across the Optimal Blue ecosystem, lenders reported an average net benefit of $1,006 per closed loan.
• Nearly 45% increase in operational capacity. Respondents reported a 43.65% improvement in their ability to manage higher loan volume using Optimal Blue technology without requiring an increase in staff.
• More than $400 per-loan impact from advanced hedging and secondary marketing tools. The AI-driven hedging and trading capabilities supporting strategic execution, trade optimization, MSR valuation and mark-to-market reporting produced an average financial impact of $401.43 per loan.
• 12X ROI for Optimal Blue PPE clients. Clients reported a median return on investment of 1,193%, representing nearly $12 returned for every dollar spent with Optimal Blue.
• Universal error reduction with measurable financial impact. 100% of survey respondents indicated that Optimal Blue helps reduce errors, with 98% reporting financial benefits tied to improved pricing and eligibility accuracy. These benefits represent an average additional gain of $181.83 per loan.

Full results from the study will be available in early May. To explore these key findings in greater detail or be notified when the full report is released, visit https://www2.optimalblue.com/2026-study.

METHODOLOGY

The ROI analysis was conducted by MarketWise Advisors LLC, a consulting advisory firm specializing in financial services technology and benchmarking. The study evaluated client-reported outcomes across Optimal Blue’s end-to-end platform, including its Product and Pricing Engine (PPE), hedging and trading solutions, data solutions and Comergence counterparty oversight solution.

More than a quarter of Optimal Blue’s nearly 1,000 unique lender customers participated in the analysis, representing a balanced mix of banks, credit unions, independent mortgage banks and housing authorities. Because Optimal Blue’s client base spans various segments of the mortgage market, the participating institutions collectively provide a representative cross-section of lender types, sizes and business models.

MarketWise Advisors applied a deliberately conservative methodology to assess value delivery, using median production volumes and client-reported outcomes to quantify financial and operational impact while avoiding assumptions that could overstate results.

NOTE ON RESULTS

Results reflect client-reported outcomes collected as part of the MarketWise Advisors analysis. Neither MarketWise Advisors LLC nor Optimal Blue provide any warranty or representation regarding performance outcomes, which rely on clients’ independent business strategies and decision-making. Individual results may vary.

About Optimal Blue

Optimal Blue powers strategic performance across the mortgage capital markets ecosystem. As the industry’s only end-to-end capital markets platform, our technology, data and integrations bridge the primary and secondary markets to help lenders of all sizes optimize performance – from pricing accuracy to margin protection and every step in between. Backed by over 20 years of proven expertise, our modern, cloud-native technology delivers the real-time automation, actionable data and seamless connectivity lenders need to navigate market volatility and scale for growth. To learn more about how Optimal Blue helps deliver measurable ROI, visit OptimalBlue.com.

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