Animal testing only if no alternative, minister says in new plan

DutchNews.nl, Friday 28 February 2014

"Every animal that we can make

 redundant counts," said Dijksma.

(NOS/ANP)

Testing drugs and chemicals should only be allowed on animals if there is no viable alternative, junior economic affairs minister Sharon Dijksma says in a new policy document presented to parliament on Friday.

New technology makes much animal testing unnecessary and it should be phased out as much as possible, the minister says in her statement.

In addition, practices which cause pain to animals, such as cutting off a toe from newly-born mice for identification purposes, should be phased out, she said.

Surplus

Breeding genetically manipulated animals has led to a surplus and this should also be tackled, the minister says.

The animals are raised for experimentation but never used. In 2012, nearly 525,000 animals – mainly mice and fish - were surplus to testing requirements.

Nearly 590,000 animals were used for experimentation in relation to human health last year.

Licences

The new legislation will require breeding programmes using genetically manipulated animals to be licenced.

Dijksma has also asked the Dutch Academy of Sciences to come up with recommendations for reducing the use of primates like chimps in animal testing.

Talks are also underway with animal rights groups to work out ways to take better care of animals which are no longer being used for testing.

Divorce debate challenges Pope Francis

Google – AFP, Jean-Louis de la Vaissiere (AFP), 28 February 2014

Pope Francis attends his general audience at St Peter's Square, at the

Vatican, on February 26, 2014 (AFP/File, Vincenzo Pinto)

Vatican City — The issue of divorce is stoking a spirited debate between Catholic cardinals and revealing the challenges and expectations for Pope Francis after his promises to put the Church more in touch with modern life.

The question is whether divorcees who re-marry should be allowed to take part in the most sacred point of Catholic mass, Holy Communion, which is forbidden under current rules that in practice are often not observed.

Changing the doctrine could in turn alter Church rules on marriage annulments and raise broader questions about the institution of marriage, prompting lively exchanges between traditionalists and reformers.

Priests walk in the midst of faithful to give

 the holy communion during Pope Francis'

 inauguration mass, at St. Peter's square at

the Vatican, on March 19, 2013 (AFP/File,

Gabriel Bouys)

Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, the archbishop of Lyon in France, told Vatican radio that a meeting of cardinals from around the world in the Vatican this month devoted "80 to 90 percent" of the time to discussing the issue.

German Cardinal Ludwig Mueller, head of the Church's doctrinal watchdog, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, has said the current rules are "impossible to change" and that people should stop thinking of marriage as "a party in a church".

Honduran Cardinal Oscar Andres Rodriguez Maradiaga, a member of the council of eight cardinals established by the pope to advise him, has taken a more lenient line and has asked Mueller to be "more flexible".

A survey by the Spanish-language network Univision in 12 mainly Catholic countries found that 75 percent of Europeans, 67 percent of Latin Americans and 59 percent of Americans were at odds with the Church on the issue, while in Africa 19 percent of respondents disagreed.

The issue is one of very personal anguish for many Catholic couples, who say they are being treated as second-class believers, and has led to acts of defiance.

The German diocese of Freiburg im Breisgau last year said it was authorizing re-married divorcees to receive Holy Communion on a case by case basis -- prompting a quick telling off from the Vatican.

The issue would affect millions of Catholics around the world, with around a quarter of Catholic marriages ending in divorce in the United States alone.

Lyon's Archbishop, Cardinal Philippe Barbarin,

 attends the first national synod of the United

 Protestant Church of France, at the Grand

 Temple in Lyon, on May 11, 2013 (AFP/

File, Philippe Merle)

Some theologians and clergymen have called for changes to facilitate the annulment of marriages in cases in which it could be argued that the wedding took place under social pressure or was not fully understood.

Re-marrying would then be allowed under Church rules and the couple would be allowed to take Holy Communion.

Another possibility could be the Orthodox model, which allows some divorcees to re-marry in church and take Holy Communion but gives only a blessing for the second marriage and does not consider it a sacrament.

Francis mentioned the Orthodox solution as a "parenthesis" on the plane during his return from a visit to Brazil and it was raised again by some cardinals in their consistory this month in which they said it could happen following "a period of penitence".

The issue is likely to dominate a synod of world bishops planned for later this year and another one in 2015, which Francis has said should focus on families.

The divorce debate was raised in an unprecedented questionnaire sent out to dioceses worldwide to find out the approach taken by parishes on many issues, including same-sex couples and pre-marital cohabitation.

Vatican expert Henri Tincq, writing on the website Slate.fr, said the divorce issue is particularly complex on a theological level since "a sacrament is given by God and can never be taken back".

Related Articles:

Kryon Q&A

Question: Dear Kryon, how do we know when a divorce is appropriate or not?

Answer: It’s appropriate when the energy and consciousness of the one is on a different reality from the other, and it’s obvious that it will never change.

This isn’t about enlightenment, either. It’s about your individual paths. Although contrary to your society, the rules of the church, and what your family wishes for you, sometimes you go through "partnership stages" that are appropriate but temporary. It can also be between two enlightened souls who simply needed to be together for a while.

So if you’re going to separate a partnership, do it with integrity. Do it in a way where you offer friendship. Do it with wisdom and maturity. Never slam the door. Offer the other person your maturity all your life, and always give them the opportunity for forgiveness and discussion.

As you grow older, you’ll eventually see the dynamics of growth, and why a temporary partnership might have been needed in your own personal path, or in theirs. Sometimes it’s only about being a time placeholder, keeping each other in a place so that something else could happen. Each path is different, and there are as many who will stay together until they stand and hold hands on the other side of the veil. Then they’ll do it again the next time around! Don’t pass judgment either way. There is appropriateness in many things that result in growth and maturity for either or both of those involved.

As I discussed before, your cultural rules are often designed to look like they’re also the "rules of God," but often they’re just the rules of Humans who are doing their best, without full understanding of how big God really is.

Michelle Obama unveils food 'label of the future'

Google – AFP, Kerry Sheridan (AFP), 27 February 2014

US First Lady Michelle Obama speaks during an event in the East Room of

the White House February 27, 2014 in Washington (AFP, Brendan Smialowski)

Washington — In a country where obesity is rampant, First Lady Michelle Obama on Thursday aimed to make healthy choices easier for consumers by unveiling a series of proposed changes to food labels.

Calories, added sugars and more realistic serving information would feature more prominently on more than 700,000 products, in a revamp she described as the "label of the future."

"This will be the new norm in providing consumers with information about the food they buy," she said at a White House event. "So this is a huge deal."

The changes will likely take years to implement but administration officials said they hope that the first major overhaul of nutrition labels in two decades will give Americans new tools for fighting the battle of the bulge.

US First Lady Michelle Obama arrives during

an event in the East Room of the White House

 February 27, 2014 in Washington (AFP,

Brendan Smialowski)

- How much is a serving? -

If approved, the calorie count would be printed in a larger size than the rest, and a new line would detail "added sugars" -- not just total sugars.

The changes would also attempt to eliminate confusion about how many servings a container holds, and how many calories are in a serving.

Under the new proposal, if a soda is 20 ounces (0.6 liters), the calorie count on the label would reflect a 20 ounce soda.

Currently, the advertised calorie count is much lower, since it reflects just one serving, and in a 20 ounce soda there are 2.5 servings.

Single-packaged pastries, cookies and muffins also often say they contain two servings, which experts say can be misleading.

"You as a parent and a consumer should be able to walk into a grocery store, pick an item off the shelf, and tell whether it's good for your family," said Obama.

Labels would include mandatory potassium and vitamin D amounts for the first time.

Calories from fat would be eliminated, since health experts understand more today than they did 20 years ago about good and bad fats, administration officials said.

The proposals are open for a 90-day comment period and would likely take at least two years to implement.

For Obama, advocating healthy eating and exercise, particularly among young people, has been a centerpiece of her efforts, and Thursday also marked the fourth anniversary of her "Let's Move" campaign.

More than one third (35.7 percent) of Americans are obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a trend that has remained steady among adults in recent years.

But new CDC data released earlier this week showed, for the first time, a steep 43 percent drop in obesity among the very young, aged two to five, signaling potential progress against the epidemic.

- High cost of obesity -

Some pushback over the labels is expected from the food industry, particularly regarding salt and sugar content.

The Grocery Manufacturers Association, an industry group, said it would work with the Food and Drug Administration, which is in charge of the process, but said any changes must "ultimately serve to inform, and not confuse, consumers."

US Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius speaks during

 an event in the East Room of the White House February 27, 2014 in Washington (AFP,

Brendan Smialowski)

The nutrition facts label has only undergone one update in two decades, and that was to add a line about trans fat content in 2006.

"Our goal here is to design a label that is easier to read and one that consumers can understand," said FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg.

The labels could help improve public health by reducing the risk of chronic health issues such as heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes and stroke, which cost the United States around $150 billion a year.

"We realize the label alone won't magically change how Americans eat," but it aims to provide them with "the tools to be successful," Hamburg said.

Consumer health groups welcomed the changes, but some called on the FDA to go further by establishing recommended daily values for sugar and by lowering salt.

Ronald Tamler, clinical director of the diabetes center at The Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, called the proposal an important step towards helping American consumers make smart choices.

"Hopefully, the days of declaring half a cookie as one serving -- a common practice that can even fool nutrition experts -- will soon be behind us."

Tough EU smoking rules approved

BBC News, James Gallagher, Health and science reporter, 26 February 2014

Related Stories

• Wil changing cigarette packets reduce smoking?
• Peers backchild car smoking ban
• Smokers edge close to one billion

Anti-smoking legislation is to be introduced across the European Union in an attempt to cut the number of smokers by 2.4 million.

The rules, voted in by the European Parliament, mean picture health warnings will have to dominate the front and back of all packaging.

There will also be a ban on flavoured, such as menthol, cigarettes.

Pro-smoking groups have criticised a "nanny state mentality", but cancer charities have backed the measures.

An estimated 700,000 premature deaths are caused by smoking across the EU each year.

The EU Tobacco Products Directive rules include:

• picture warnings must cover 65% of the front and back of every packet of cigarettes, with additional warnings on the top of the pack
• a ban on "lipstick-style" packs aimed at women - all packs must have at least 20 cigarettes to leave room for health warnings
• roll-your-own tobacco packs to have similar picture warnings
• a ban on promotional elements, such saying "this product is free of additives" or is less harmful than other brands
• a ban on flavoured cigarettes, such as menthol, fruit and vanilla
• a maximum nicotine-concentration level for e-cigarettes.
• EU-wide tracking of cigarettes to combat illegal trade
• Ministers are expected to endorse the rules in March, to come into force in May 2014. Member states will have two years to introduce the legislation.

'Great day'

The European Commission says the new rules will "deter young people from experimenting with, and becoming addicted to, tobacco" and should lead to a 2% drop in the amount smoked over the next five years.

EU Health Commissioner Tonio Borg said: "Today is a great day for EU health policy.

"The new rules will help to reduce the number of people who start smoking in the EU.

"These measures put an end to products which entice children and teenagers into starting to smoke in the European Union."

Simon Clark, the director of the pro-smoking campaign group Forest, said banning menthol cigarettes was a ban on consumer choice that "will do little" to deter children from smoking.

He also questioned the need for plain packaging legislation to remove any branding from packs, which is being considered in some EU countries, including the UK.

Related Articles:

13 million deaths avoidable in China by 2050 with smoking ban: report

Greek shipping tycoons threaten to set sail over tax privileges

"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy,Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it), Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse), Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) -(Text version)

“… The Shift in Human Nature

You're starting to see integrity change. Awareness recalibrates integrity, and the Human Being who would sit there and take advantage of another Human Being in an old energy would never do it in a new energy. The reason? It will become intuitive, so this is a shift in Human Nature as well, for in the past you have assumed that people take advantage of people first and integrity comes later. That's just ordinary Human nature.

In the past, Human nature expressed within governments worked like this: If you were stronger than the other one, you simply conquered them. If you were strong, it was an invitation to conquer. If you were weak, it was an invitation to be conquered. No one even thought about it. It was the way of things. The bigger you could have your armies, the better they would do when you sent them out to conquer. That's not how you think today. Did you notice?

Any country that thinks this way today will not survive, for humanity has discovered that the world goes far better by putting things together instead of tearing them apart. The new energy puts the weak and strong together in ways that make sense and that have integrity. Take a look at what happened to some of the businesses in this great land (USA). Up to 30 years ago, when you started realizing some of them didn't have integrity, you eliminated them. What happened to the tobacco companies when you realized they were knowingly addicting your children? Today, they still sell their products to less-aware countries, but that will also change.

What did you do a few years ago when you realized that your bankers were actually selling you homes that they knew you couldn't pay for later? They were walking away, smiling greedily, not thinking about the heartbreak that was to follow when a life's dream would be lost. Dear American, you are in a recession. However, this is like when you prune a tree and cut back the branches. When the tree grows back, you've got control and the branches will grow bigger and stronger than they were before, without the greed factor. Then, if you don't like the way it grows back, you'll prune it again! I tell you this because awareness is now in control of big money. It's right before your eyes, what you're doing. But fear often rules. …”

Domestic workers around the world: the big picture

There are an estimated 52 million domestic workers worldwide, but the kafala system in the Middle East can make life particularly hard there

The Guardian, Leila Haddou, Wednesday 26 February 2014

Foreign maids gather in Central, the business district in Hong Kong. Only 10%
 of domestic employees worldwide have the same rights as other workers. Photograph:
Kin Cheung/Associated Press

The number of domestic workers has surged in recent years to at least 52 million people worldwide, according to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), though the real figure may be far higher. In all, 83% are women and 45% have no entitlement to weekly rest periods or paid annual leave.

Only 10% of domestic workers are covered by general labour legislation to the same extent as other workers. More than a quarter are excluded from national labour laws, the ILO says.

The kafala system in the Gulf exacerbates their precarious position, ILO experts say, by requiring every foreign worker in Qatar to have a local sponsor who employs them and supervises their stay. It exists in different forms across the Gulf. According to Human Rights Watch, the "sponsorship law prohibits migrant workers from changing jobs without their employer's consent; even when employers fail to pay competitive wages, provide decent conditions, or meet the conditions of the employment contract, workers cannot simply change jobs."

The law requires employers to report workers who quit without permission for "absconding", an offence leading to their detention and deportation. It also requires workers to secure exit permits from their employers before leaving.

These conditions make migrant workers particularly vulnerable to forced labour. Azfar Khan, a senior migration specialist for the ILO, says: "The kafala system destroys the balance between employer and employee. Workers can be subjected to moral, sexual and physical abuse.

"In many states proposals for new laws have been sat on in parliament for years, and the rules that are eventually made are unenforceable.

"There is a hierarchy in these countries. If somebody has a well-educated, highly skilled Filipino maid, everyone else wants one too. It's like keeping up with the Joneses," Khan explains.

Related Article:

Domestic workers to get equal rights in Brazil

Saudi Arabia Migrant Moratorium Still Stands

Rights groups criticise Saudi-Indonesia maid agreement

Malala Yousafzai backs campaign against FGM

Pakistani schoolgirl shot by Taliban praises campaign calling for better education on female genital mutilation in UK schools

• Click here to sign the FGM petition to Michael Gove

theguardian.com, Alexandra Topping, Monday 24 February 2014

Malala Yousafzai with the anti-FGM campaigner Muna Hasan.
Photograph: David Levene

MalalaYousafzai, the Pakistani schoolgirl who has spearheaded the campaign for universal education for children, has backed a campaign led by the 17-year-old British student Fahma Mohamed to get education about female genital mutilation into all schools in the UK.

In an exclusive interview with the Guardian, Malala praised Fahma's campaign, and joined her in calling for better education in schools about FGM. "I've watched every step of Fahma's campaign and I think she is on the edge of something huge," she said. "Over 140 million girls and women are mutilated – but like keeping girls out of school in Pakistan, we can come out together and be strong and change things for the next generation. I am her sister and I am at her side and I want her to be listened to I as I was."

Fahma is to meet the education secretary, Michael Gove, on Tuesday in an attempt to convince him to play a role in ending the practice of FGM in the UK. Gove agreed to a meeting after a Guardian-backed petition – which is supported by a range of FGM campaigners and groups – attracted hundreds of thousands of signatures since launching at the beginning of February.

Malala – who was shot at close range by the Taliban for her campaign for girls' education and went on to become the youngest ever nominee for the Nobel peace prize – urged Fahma to keep up pressure on the education secretary to write to every school in the UK telling them to train teachers and parents about the risks and impact of FGM on women and girls.

"I think it is very important that we make people aware of this issue because if no one knows, if no one wants to know, then we can never highlight it in front of responsible people and we can never find a solution," said Malala, who is 16. "It's good that … girls like Fahma – so active and with a passion – are continuing this campaign. I truly support you."

Fahma Mohamed is to meet Michael Gove on Tuesday. Photograph:
Patrick Hoeschler

Following sustained public pressure which has seen the Guardian petition attract almost a quarter of a million signatures on Change.org, the Scottish government has agreed to write to every teacher in Scotland about FGM, while an early day motion led by the Liberal Democrat MP Tim Farron in support of the campaign has received the backing of 33 MPs.

The UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, supported the campaign, calling it "deeply inspiring" and praising Mohamed.

The Kent police and crime commissioner, Ann Barnes, also signed the petition and, with the backing of the not-for-profit lobbying group Policing for All, urged all 41 PCCs to sign the campaign before Fahma meets Gove.

Malala, who has recovered well in the UK after receiving specialised treatment at the Queen Elizabeth hospital in Birmingham, compared the work done by Fahma and other members of the anti-FGM charity Integrate Bristol to her own battle for universal education. "I'm also trying to work for women's rights and girls' education and I think the campaign that you are doing is a part of my campaign as well," she said. "[W]hen you talk about education you talk about quality education and it should be [known] all over the world about FGM – what it is and how can it affect the life of a girl. So I think it should be a part of education and we both will struggle for this. Because we can never achieve our goals unless we struggle for it, so I think this is the time to start it."

Malala, who now lives in Birmingham with her family, took time from revising for her GCSEs to meet representatives of Integrate Bristol, including Lisa Zimmermann, a teacher at City Academy Bristol who set up the project seven years ago, and 20-year-old Muna Hasan, one of the group's original members. City Academy Bristol is one of only two schools in the country to have a dedicated project on the practice, which is thought to affect 140 million women and girls worldwide, and is practiced in 28 African countries as well as some parts of Asia and the Middle East.

Hasan said when she joined the campaign the group had to overcome prejudice and opposition from those who did not want FGM to be discussed. "I faced, and quite a few of the girls in the community faced, hardship," she said. "It wasn't just certain people in our communities who didn't want to know – teachers didn't, politicians didn't want to know, some doctors didn't know what it was."

She said it was now time for politicians such as Gove to play their part in eradicating the practice of FGM, which is believed to affect 66,000 women in England and Wales, while 24,000 girls under the age of 15 are thought to be at risk. "For this to have got so big and to have so many signatures shows people do care, but it is politicians' time – it's their turn to start caring and do something active to stop FGM in this country," she said.

Malala, who will share a platform with other women's rights campaigners, including FGM activists, at the Southbank centre in London next month as part of the Women of the World festival, said the struggle for women's and girls' right must continue. "I totally support you in your campaign for girls' rights because it should be the right of a girl how she wants her body," she said. "I'm truly surprised to hear that 140 million women are affected by FGM. I think we should start a campaign and we should struggle for it because if we remain silent we will never achieve our goals and we will never achieve change. The only way to fight against it is to speak."

Related Articles:

Michael Gove agrees to write to schools over female genital mutilation

British girl leads Guardian campaign to end female genital mutilation

Kryon Q&A

Question: Dear and beloved Kryon: What should we know about "Brit-Mila" (Jewish circumcision)?

Answer: All circumcision was based on commonsense health issues of the day, which manifested itself in religious-based teaching. That basically is what made people keep doing it. This eighth-day-from-birth ritual is no more religious today than trimming your fingernails (except that Brit-Mila is only done once, and it hurts a bit more).

It's time to start seeing these things for what they are. Common sense is not static. It's dynamic, and related to the culture of the time. Yesterday's common sense about health changed greatly with the discovery of germs. It changed again with practices of cleanliness due to the discovery of germs, and so on. Therefore, we would say that it really doesn't make a lot of difference in today's health practices. It's done almost totally for cultural historic and traditional purposes and holds no energy around it other than the obvious intent of the tradition.

This is also true for a great deal of the admonishments of the Old Testament regarding food and cleanliness, and even the rules of the neighborhood (such as taking your neighbor's life if he steals your goat, or selling your daughter in slavery if you really need the money... all found in scripture). The times are gone where these things matter anymore, yet they're still treated with reverence and even practiced religiously in some places. They're now only relics of tradition, and that's all. If you feel that you should honor a tradition, then do it. If not, then don't. It's not a spiritual or health issue any longer.

Be the boss of your own body and your own traditions. Follow what your spiritual intuition tells you is appropriate for your own spiritual path and health.

Respiratory Illness and Flights Disruptions as Riau Haze Worsens

Jakarta Globe,  February 24, 2014

Riau residents evacuate on June 23, 2013 as a forest fire engulfs their village
in the Rokan Hulu district. (AFP Photo/Ulet Ifansasti/Greenpeace)

Jakarta. Some 20,000 people have reported respiratory illnesses in Riau as forest fires and the resulting haze continued to worsen on Monday, the local health agency reported.

“That is the data we’ve compiled from a number of districts and municipalities since late January to Sunday [Feb. 23],” Zainal Arifin, the head of the Riau Health Agency, said in Pekanbaru on Monday.

Last month, fewer than 5,000 people reported respiratory problems in Riau. Last week, however, the figure jumped to 15,000 before surpassing 20,000 on Sunday, the health authority reported.

“We’ve been focusing only on patients with respiratory problems because they are  the focus of the Ministry of Health,” he told Indonesian news portal Bisnis Indonesia.

Zainal urged people in Riau to minimize their time outdoors, citing the poor air quality, especially in the town of Dumai and in the Pelalawan and Siak districts.

“Toddlers and people with asthma should avoid outdoor activities,” he said. “Workers should wear masks in anticipation of respiratory illnesses.”

Officials with Sultan Syarif Kasim II Airport in Pekanbaru said at least 12 flights were delayed, canceled or rerouted because the haze had reduced visibility in the province.

“Between 5 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. [on Monday], the visibility was only 500 meters,” airport manager Baekuni said on Monday. “The minimum visibility for safe flights is at least 1,000 meters.”

Affected routes included those to and from Malaysia and Singapore, as well as Bandung, Batam, Jakarta and Medan, on flights operated by Aviastar, Citilink, Garuda Indonesia, Lion Air and Tigerair Mandala.

A Citilink flight from Jakarta, which was supposed to land at Pekanbaru airport at 7:20 a.m., was diverted to Batam.

Forests in Riau began burning again earlier this month, with officials blaming local farmers for using the slash-and-burn method to clear land.

On Monday, the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) said 1,398 hotspots were detected across Sumatra, with most of them concentrated in Riau.

Ahmad Agus Widodo, an analyst with the Pekanbaru office of the BMKG, said Bangka-Belitung and Lampung each reported one hotspot. South Sumatra reported two, Aceh five, Jambi 24, Riau Islands 43 and North Sumatra 85.

“Most hotspots were recorded in Riau province,” Ahmad told liputan6.com. “[NASA's] Terra and Aqua satellites detected 1,234 fire hotspots across eight districts and municipalities in Riau.”

He added the figure marked a significant rise from the roughly 80 hotspots detected in Riau on Sunday.

Ahmad said that with the wind blowing toward the south, haze was spreading to the neighboring provinces of Jambi and West Sumatra.

Related Article:

Riau is Burning… Again

Air Purifier Rush as Smog Shrouds Northern China

Jakarta Globe – AFP, February 24, 2014

China’s National Meteorological Centre has issued several “yellow” smog
alerts for much of the country’s north. (AFP Photo)

Dangerous smog which has blighted swathes of northern China in recent days has prompted a spike in air purifier sales, local media reported Monday, as pollution continued to shroud Beijing.

China’s National Meteorological Centre issued a “yellow” smog alert for much of the country’s north on Monday, the fifth consecutive day of heavy pollution which has slashed visibility and seen pollution reach hazardous levels.

The smog has prompted a rush by consumers to buy face masks and air purifiers, state-run China National Radio reported, with sales of the machines tripling in recent days at one Beijing electronics store, it said citing a store employee.

Beijing issued an “orange” pollution alert on Friday — the second-highest on the scale — leading to orders for manufacturing plants in the city to cut production, while building work has been halted and barbeques curbed.

Physical education classes and outdoor exercises at schools have also been called off, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Levels of small airborne particles which easily penetrate the lungs and are known as PM 2.5 have repeatedly reached more than 400 micrograms per cubic metre in recent days, according to a count by the US embassy in Beijing, more than 16 times the World Health Organization’s (WHO) safety guideline of 25 micrograms.

Cities across China have been hit by intense air pollution in recent years, much of it caused by emissions from coal-burning power stations.

China’s pollution problems are blamed on rapid urbanization, dramatic economic development, increasing car use and climatic factors. Pollution tends to worsen in winter.

Airborne particles have been linked to hundreds of thousands of premature deaths, and the problem has emerged as a major source of discontent with China’s government.

The National Meteorological Centre has said the pollution is expected to continue until Thursday.

Agence France-Presse

KFC uses GM soybeans to make soy milk in China says review website

Want China Times, Staff Reporter 2014-02-23

A screenshot of the webpage of the review website, featuring the headline
"Genetically modified Soybean milk is closer than you think." (Internet photo)

Fast food chain KFC in China is suspected of using genetically-modified soybeans in its soy milk, said a Chinese inspection and testing institute and a product-review website reports Shanghai-based China Business News.

The product review website, Huajiao, worked with a third-party inspection and testing institute, Centre Testing International, to examine the soy milk of four chain restaurants — KFC, 7-11, McDonald's and Yonghe King — in the country.

If a product uses genetically-modified soybeans during food preparation or processing, it should be labeled clearly, said assistant professor Zhu Yi with the School of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering at China Agricultural University. Most of the genetically-modified soybeans were imported. They are only allowed to be used to make soybean oils and fodder and are banned from food, strictly speaking. Using them to make soybeans thereby would be considered illegal, said Zhu.

The KFC said it has begun examining its foods in response to the allegations. Its soybean powder suppliers have made a written announcement to assert that it does not use genetically-modified soybeans and said its raw materials were soybeans produced in China's northeastern regions. It welcomes third-party examination but cast doubt on the website's samples, the quality of Centre Testing International's tests and the report.

The fast food chain has reported Huajiao's video to Chinese authorities as a precautionary measure.

US bans bidis made by Indian tobacco company

Google – AFP, 21 February 2014

A sidewalk stall displays packs of bidis for sale in New Delhi May 8, 2002

(AFP/File, Prakash Singh)

Washington — US regulators Friday banned the sale and import of small cigarettes known as bidis made by an Indian company, their first such action since being given oversight of tobacco products in 2009.

Bidis are small, hand-rolled cigarettes that contain tobacco wrapped in leaves from a tendu tree, and may come in various flavors.

The move by the US Food and Drug Administration applies to four varieties made by Jash International, which an agency spokeswoman described to AFP as an Indian company with headquarters in Illinois.

The ban came about because the products were found to be substantially different from existing tobacco products on the market as of 2007, and did not meet new regulatory requirements, the FDA said.

"This means they can no longer be sold or distributed in interstate commerce or imported into the United States," the FDA said in a statement.

The order applies to Sutra Bidis Red, Sutra Bidis Menthol, Sutra Bidis Red Cone, and Sutra Bidis Menthol Cone.

Existing inventory may be subject to seizure without further notice, the FDA said.

"Companies that continue to sell and distribute these products in the United States may be subject to enforcement actions by the FDA."

Jash International did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned that bidis contain higher levels of nicotine, tar and carbon monoxide than conventional cigarettes.

"Smoke from a bidi contains three to five times the amount of nicotine as a regular cigarette and places users at risk for nicotine addiction," said the CDC website.

Two percent of high school students and 1.7 percent of middle school students smoke bidis, according to a 2011 CDC survey.

The FDA was granted authority to regulate tobacco products in 2009 as a result of the Tobacco Control Act, signed into law by President Barack Obama.

The law is aimed particularly at curbing smoking among young people.

"Historically, tobacco companies controlled which products came on and off the market without any oversight," said Mitch Zeller, director of the FDA's Center for Tobacco Products.

"But the Tobacco Control Act gave the FDA, a science-based regulatory agency, the authority to review applications and determine which new tobacco products may be sold and distributed under the law in order to protect public health."

Related Article:

"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy,Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it), Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse), Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) -(Text version)

“… The Shift in Human Nature

You're starting to see integrity change. Awareness recalibrates integrity, and the Human Being who would sit there and take advantage of another Human Being in an old energy would never do it in a new energy. The reason? It will become intuitive, so this is a shift in Human Nature as well, for in the past you have assumed that people take advantage of people first and integrity comes later. That's just ordinary Human nature.

In the past, Human nature expressed within governments worked like this: If you were stronger than the other one, you simply conquered them. If you were strong, it was an invitation to conquer. If you were weak, it was an invitation to be conquered. No one even thought about it. It was the way of things. The bigger you could have your armies, the better they would do when you sent them out to conquer. That's not how you think today. Did you notice?

Any country that thinks this way today will not survive, for humanity has discovered that the world goes far better by putting things together instead of tearing them apart. The new energy puts the weak and strong together in ways that make sense and that have integrity. Take a look at what happened to some of the businesses in this great land (USA). Up to 30 years ago, when you started realizing some of them didn't have integrity, you eliminated them. What happened to the tobacco companies when you realized they were knowingly addicting your children? Today, they still sell their products to less-aware countries, but that will also change.

What did you do a few years ago when you realized that your bankers were actually selling you homes that they knew you couldn't pay for later? They were walking away, smiling greedily, not thinking about the heartbreak that was to follow when a life's dream would be lost. Dear American, you are in a recession. However, this is like when you prune a tree and cut back the branches. When the tree grows back, you've got control and the branches will grow bigger and stronger than they were before, without the greed factor. Then, if you don't like the way it grows back, you'll prune it again! I tell you this because awareness is now in control of big money. It's right before your eyes, what you're doing. But fear often rules. …”