Tag Archives: food

Business/Economics, Idaho, U.S.

What Economic Recovery? East Idaho Salvation Army declares “food crisis”, 20% of Idaho kids going hungry as Idaho politicians slash and burn social services

“We’ve had an increase in requests for that type of service, and so our food supply is dwindling rapidly.”-Brenda Ames, Pocatello Salvation Army

A recent survey by Feeding America revealed that the economic situation in Idaho is much worse than elected leaders claim.  At least 20% of Idaho kids do not know where their next meal is coming from.

“Children are aware that the parents are struggling to feed them. They don’t know if there is enough in the house for breakfast, enough food for dinner.”-Joye Jones, Idaho Food Bank Pocatello Branch

The problem is made worse by the facts that because more people are making less money, donations to food banks are down, and, the state of Idaho has been cutting federally funded social programs.

The state with the least food insecurity is also the state with the best economy; North Dakota with less than 12% of kids going hungry.

 

Fukushima

Tropical Storm Talas heading for nuclear damaged Japan, will become a Typhoon before landfall

Tropical storm Talas, directly south of Japan, is heading right for the center of the nuclear damaged island nation.

It’s predicted that by 29 August 2011 Talas will be a category 1 typhoon.  Japan is still recovering from the 11 March 2011 quake and tsunami. Also, the damaged nuclear plant Fukushima Daiichi could get hit.

International

Chronic overeating caused by the same condition that causes Anorexia

Researchers from the University of New South Wales think they’ve figured out what causes people to overeat, to the point of obesity.  It’s the same thing that causes anorexia: Executive Function Disorders.

EFD is a brain condition that prevents people from being able to organize their lives.  The Australian scientists think that obese people, and anorexic people are just the extreme opposites of the same condition.

Anorexics deal with not being able to deal with food by not eating it.  Obese people deal with not being able to deal with food by not thinking about what, and how much they’re eating.

The researchers think therapies used for anorexics, should work with chronically obese people.

Business/Economics, International

Coriander / Cilantro can kill bacteria

The Science Daily reporting that Portuguese scientists discovered that oil from coriander, aka cilantro, makes a good anti-biotic.

“The results indicate that coriander oil damages the membrane surrounding the bacterial cell.  This disrupts the barrier between the cell and its environment and inhibits essential processes including respiration, which ultimately leads to death of the bacterial cell.”-Fernanda Domingues.

Researchers confirmed that coriander/cilantro oil can affect 12 types of bacterial strains, and some were killed by solutions containing 1.6% or less coriander oil.  The oil comes from the seeds of the plant.  Not only could it be used as an anti-biotic, but it might be used to preserve food.

Business/Economics, Fukushima

Japan Megadisaster boosts Insurance sales!

The Non-Life Insurance Rating Organization of Japan said insurance companies gained more than 2.51 million new earthquake contracts, since the 11 March 2011 megadisaster.

Not surprisingly the biggest gains were in the areas hardest hit: Fukushima Prefecture saw a 49.6% increase.  Iwate Prefecture 26.4% increase.  Miyagi Prefecture up 22.3%.

Fukushima

Radiation decontamination in Japan will be complicated

The Japanese government is about to vote on a standardized decontamination plan.

Here’s a list of suggested decontamination procedures for cities and towns:

High pressure washing of homes and buildings, including rain gutters.

Trimming of outer leaves and branches on bushes and trees.

Pulling up smaller plants and removal of top soil.

Washing roads, including flushing joints on asphalt and concrete roads, removing mud and dirt along roadsides.

All removed soil and plant material must be treated as nuclear waste.

The Japanese government will vote on a standardized plan on 26 August 2011.  The amazing thing is that it’s been more than five months since the start of the ongoing nuclear disaster, and they’re just now coming up with a standardized national government decontamination plan.

Business/Economics, International

BBC serves employees food covered in mouse crap

130 employees, at the British Broadcasting Corporation’s West London office, complained that the food they got in the company cafeteria, was covered with mouse droppings!

This is not the first time the BBC has been criticized for the food it serves its employees.  The famous comedian Peter Sellers (the original Pink Panther movies, Dr Strangelove) once said: “Lunch is now being served in the BBC canteen. Doctors are standing by.”

Fukushima, U.S.

Nuclear plant shut down by Viginia Earthquake, 9 other nuke plants affected

The North Anna nuclear power plant, outside Richmond, Virginia, has shut down.

The plant is on the coastline, just seven miles from the epicenter of the 5.9 quake (earlier reports said it was 5.8).

Diesel generators are supplying power to basic systems at the plant.

Nine nuke plants from New Jersey, Virginia, Pennsylvania to Maryland have declared unusual events.  They have not shut down.

Fukushima

Government Incompetence: Japan government now realizes contamination too high to cancel evac orders!

When orders were finally given to evacuate areas around Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, government officials led people to believe it would only be a few months.

It’s more than five months, and now the government realizes the level of contamination is so bad that it will be “…a long, long time…” before some city and towns can be considered safe for people to live in.

A meeting is being arraigned with local officials to explain the severity of the situation, and to better explain to evacuees why they might never be able to return home.

Fukushima

Government Incompetence: Japan announced beef was safe to eat, then once again, more cesium contaminated cows!

The day after the Japanese government announced it was lifting the contaminated cattle ban on Fukushima cows, four cows tested for cesium levels above safe limits.

Then, the very next day five more cows showed up with cesium contamination.

The contaminated cows had already been shipped to a slaughter house in Yokohama.  It was there that the beef was found to be highly contaminated.

To make matters worse, the cow farmers swear they were not feeding the cows local rice hay, but more expensive imported hay.  The imported hay had been stored indoors.

This means that the cows could be getting contaminated on their way to the slaughter house.  Officials are trying to figure it out.

And yes, the Japanese government suspended the lifting of the contaminated cattle ban.