US Food Safety: Home-Grown Problems Abound
The News Review:
- US Food Safety: Home-Grown Problems Abound
- A league for club and country
- Suspected Islamic insurgents behead Thai soldier, kill 7 more troops…
- Cold-Adverse Plants Warm Up to a New Home
- Plexicushion replaces Rebound Ace at Australian Open
US Food Safety: Home-Grown Problems Abound
BusinessWeek – Jan 14, 2008
coli outbreak in spinach that swept the nation in 2006 was never determined. However, the episode provided a glimpse into what can and does go wrong. Increasingly today, produce is grown in fields close to cattle and, sometimes, wild animals. coli spinach contamination could have come from cattle or boar feces, or from contaminated irrigation systems, federal officials concluded. coli cases from protein products to fresh fruits and vegetables is related to “the fact that U… And problems can also arise after the produce has left the field. Today, it’s more likely that one huge agri-business ships its product to processors who bag it under different labels and then distribute it to every state in the union. The whole food production system has grown increasingly concentrated, overwhelmingly complex, and — paradoxically — at times fragmented. At the same time, critics charge, U. government oversight is not adequate. “Our real issue here comes down to appropriate oversight and regulation by our government agencies,” said Mickey Parish, chairman of the department of nutrition and food science and acting chairman of the Center for Food Systems Security at the University of Maryland.
A league for club and country
BBC News – Jan 14, 2008
It is a very complex issue because the phrase “home-grown” is not, I think, what Mr Blatter is talking about. He is talking about being qualified to play for the national team. “Home-grown” means something else. It means you have been developed in this country. Under the home-grown rules, Cesc Fabregas is home-grown and Owen Hargreaves is not… It is a very complex issue because the phrase “home-grown” is not, I think, what Mr Blatter is talking about. He is talking about being qualified to play for the national team. “Home-grown” means something else. It means you have been developed in this country. Under the home-grown rules, Cesc Fabregas is home-grown and Owen Hargreaves is not. Mr Blatter runs world football and his interests are aligned with international competition. In the club versus country debate he is always going to be in favour of things that protect international football – just as I am going to protect the interests of club football.
Suspected Islamic insurgents behead Thai soldier, kill 7 more troops…
San Diego Union Tribune – Jan 14, 2008
The insurgents do not issue public statements, but researchers who have had contact with them believe they seek a separate Islamic state. The region was a sultanate until it was annexed by Thailand in the early 1900s, and most of its Muslim residents are ethnic Malays who have more in common with the people of neighboring Malaysia. The degree of influence on the insurgents by outside Islamic extremist groups is still debated, though most experts agree the rebellion is home grown – an outgrowth of decades of disenchantment over misrule and discrimination by Thailand’s central government. Akara insisted the ambush was evidence the government has made progress against the uprising, saying a recent lull in large-scale violence stems partly from an effort to round up major suspects. “We have gotten close to some of the bigger suspects, and they are responding to that,” he said. “Every time we launch an offensive attack or round up some suspects, we see this kind of reaction. ”
Srisompob Jitpiromsri, a political scientist at Prince of Songkhla University in Pattani, said the roundups had been successful but only “to a certain extent.
Cold-Adverse Plants Warm Up to a New Home
NPR – Jan 14, 2008
Walk down a leafy street and you’ll see not only native or Asian plants, but less familiar species from South Africa, Chile and the South Pacific, particularly from New Zealand. Phormium, the New Zealand flax, is found nearly everywhere. A popular foliage plant, it’s grown for its big, strapping multicolored leaves. Hebe (pronounced hee-bee), however, is not so well-known; its native haunts include New Zealand’s dramatic cliffs and tufted grasslands. “The thing about hebes is that they come in so many different shapes and forms,” says Fiona Eadie, head gardener at one of New Zealand’s most popular public gardens, Larnach Castle. “You can get groundcovers, you can get little bushes and you can get small trees. And you can basically get a hebe in whatever color foliage you like… ” In his work for the Oregon State University’s extension service, Bell is making the kinds of observations about previously unfamiliar genera that may one day alter the look of the Northwest landscape. (In addition to Hebe, he’s also evaluating hardy species of Grevillea and Cistus). He shares his discoveries about Northwestern hardy plants both with home gardeners and eager nurseries looking for the next big trend. “This one I like a lot,” he says, pointing to a particularly robust plant. “It’s Hebe corriganii and this one will just cover itself in flowers. “A few thousand hebes flowering in Oregon does not mean the Pacific Northwest fancies itself the new South Pacific. But we have reached a point where prejudices like “That won’t grow here!” might deny our chlorophyllic friends a port in the storm.
Plexicushion replaces Rebound Ace at Australian Open
NEWS.com.au – Jan 14, 2008
The Australian Open’s new double-blue hue will today usher in a new era. From 1905, when it was first contested on grass at the Warehouseman’s Cricket Ground at Albert Park by amateurs, until 2007, the Open was decided on various shades of green. In a radical move officials hope delivers a superior surface, improved TV and a court that produces a new generation of home-grown champs, Plexicushion has replaced Rebound Ace. Its supporters claim it is more consistent in speed and bounce, while its lower-bouncing characteristics will help foster a fresh wave of Australian talent. Its detractors lament the fact the Open has lost a century-long connection with Australia with the installation of an American court. Blue, instead of green. Whatever the whys and wherefores, Melbourne Park will be bursting at the seams over the next two weeks as virtually all the world’s top players descend in search of grand slam glory.