The development of aid agency policy on the use of imported biscuits in emergency relief

During 1985 more than 5,000 tonnes of biscuits consisting of twenty-eight different brands were sent to Ethiopia and Sudan for emergency relief feeding. They were freely available to recognized agencies operating feeding programmes. Biscuits were popular with programme supervisors as few resources (fuel, staff and personnel) were required for their preparation and distribution. They were also popular with beneficiaries.
Different aspects of biscuits were examined and characteristics considered important included: nutritional composition, acceptability to beneficiaries, packaging, the biscuit dimensions, shelf-life and accompanying information (nutritional composition, ingredients and guidelines for use).
The results of a field study indicated that biscuits have a limited, but useful, role to play in the early stages of emergency relief. Based on the study, guidelines for both donors and users, on the use of food aid biscuits were developed, which emphasize their joint responsibility in minimizing the misuse of biscuits.     

中国有机食品的生产和认证

中国的有机食品开发和认证工作起步于上个世纪末。经过近十年的发展，有机食品的开发行为已基本得到了社会各界的认可，更多的基地、企业、高校、科研单位以及政府部门都参与到这一新兴产业中，有机食品产业蓄势待发。目前，如何正确分析和处理有机食品开发过程中的一些问题以引导和促进该项事业的健康发展，已显得尤为重要。本文在总结近年来工作的基础上，提出了中国有机食品开发工作中存在的一些不足之处，希望能够起到抛砖引玉的作用，使更多的人参与到有机食品认证管理的讨论之中。     

The mental health of expatriate and Kosovar Albanian humanitarian aid workers

The mental health consequences of exposure to traumatic events and the risk factors for psychological morbidity among expatriate and Kosovar Albanian humanitarian aid workers have not been well studied. In June 2000, we used standardised screening tools to survey 285 (69.5%) of 410 expatriate aid workers and 325 (75.8%) of 429 Kosovar Albanian aid workers from 22 humanitarian organizations that were implementing health programmes in Kosovo. The mean number of trauma events experienced by expatriates was 2.8 (standard deviation: 2.7) and by Kosovar staff 3.2 (standard deviation: 2.8). Although only 1.1% of expatriate and 6.2% of Kosovar aid workers reported symptoms consistent with the diagnosis for post-traumatic stress disorder, 17.2% and 16.9%, respectively, reported symptoms satisfying the definition of depression. Regression analysis demonstrated that the number of trauma events experienced was significantly associated with depression for the two sets of workers. Organisational support services may be an important mediating factor and should be targeted at both groups.     

Risk assessment for safety of soils and vegetables around a lead/zinc mine

Concentrations of heavy metals (Pb, Zn, Cd, Cu) were determined in soils and vegetables (chrysanthemum, spinach and four cultivars of Chinese cabbage from the area adjacent to a Pb/Zn mine in Shaoxing, Zhejiang province, China, and compared with the Chinese National Standards for Soil Environmental Quality. The accumulation of heavy metals in cabbage cv. Siyuegreen was investigated at different distances from the center of the mine. The vegetable plantation soils were polluted with Pb, Cd, Cu and Zn, especially by Pb and Cd. The levels of Pb and Cd were 20 and 30 times higher than the permitted standards, indicating that this Pb/Zn mining area is unsuitable for agricultural use. Chinese cabbage, chrysanthemum and spinach had different enrichment coefficients. The enrichment coefficient of Cd from soil to roots of chrysanthemum was >80% and from roots to leaves of cabbage cv. Shanghaigreen was >120%. These vegetables were polluted by heavy metals and could not be regarded as safe for human consumption. Environmental accumulation of heavy metals in the vegetable plantation soils was proportional to heavy metal accumulation in vegetables and both were inversely proportional to the distance from the lead/zinc mine.     

pp´DDT and pp´DDE Accumulation in a Food Chain of Lake Maggiore (Northern Italy): Testing Steady-State Condition

- DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1065/espr2006.01.010 Background, Aims and Scope Although pp'DDT usage was strongly limited or banned in most parts of the world during the last three or four decades, the parent compound, its homologues and their metabolites still occur at levels which might pose a risk for many ecosystem components. A case of DDT pollution of industrial origin was discovered in 1996 in Lake Maggiore, the second largest (212 km2) and deepest (370 m) lake in Italy, causing concern for wildlife and human health. The extensive monitoring of many biotic and abiotic compartments which followed from 1998 in order to assess the pollution level and its trend in time, provided a great availability of data referring to DDT contamination of the different fish species of the lake. In this study, the recent contamination levels in selected fish species were compared to those measured in 1998 to evaluate the temporal pollution trend of the lake and its natural recovery, given that no remediation measures were carried out on the contaminated soils and sediments in this time span. Moreover, a modelling approach to test the equilibrium condition between water and pelagic fish species was used. Analytical results of pp'DDT and pp'DDE concentrations in lake water were used as input data in the bioenergetic model by Connolly & Pedersen (1988) to calculate concentrations in two fish species and to compare the predicted and the measured contamination. Methods Sampling and analytical determination of DDT homologues in lake water: Five water sampling campaigns were carried out from May 2002 to February 2004 in three sampling sites of Lake Maggiore. Suspended and dissolved pollutants were determined separately. Quantitative DDT homologue analyses were performed by HRGC coupled with ECD detection by the external standard method. Single water extracts were put together in correspondence with the stratification zones of the water column inferred on the basis of the temperature profile to improve analytical sensitivity. Selection of fish data: Concentrations of DDT and DDE in fishes were selected from recent literature (CIPAIS 2003, 2004). Bioaccumulation model: The bioenergetic model proposed by Connolly & Pedersen (1988) was used to assess the bioaccumulation of pp'DDT and pp'DDE of Alosa fallax (landlocked shad) and Coregonus spp. (whitefish), selected among the different species as representative of a secondary consumer level. Results and Discussion The average concentrations of pp'DDT and pp'DDE in water to be used as input data in the bioenergetic model were obtained considering all the concentrations measured at the three sampling stations in the epylimnion where the fish species considered in this study spend most of their life. The resulting values were 0.05 and 0.16 ng/L for pp'DDT and pp'DDE, respectively. Average measured pp'DDT and pp'DDE concentrations in landlocked shad were 0.81 +/- 0.39 and 1.69 +/- 0.71 mg/kg lipids, respectively, and were 0.29 +/- 0.12 and 1.06 +/- 0.41 mg/kg lipids for the whitefish. Calculated and measured values turned out to be in quite good agreement for pp'DDT, while measured pp'DDE concentrations were higher than expected on the basis of the bioenergetic model in both species. Probably metabolic transformations of pp'DDT accumulated in fish tissues in the past are responsible for the observed differences between calculated and expected pp'DDE concentrations in fish. Conclusions Pelagic fishes of Lake Maggiore seem to maintain the DDT accumulated during their life time and the most efficient mechanism responsible for the fish population recoveries is probably their generation changes; for this reason, equilibrium models cannot be used until negligible pp'DDT concentrations are reached in fish tissues. Recommendations and Outlook The limit proposed for pp'DDT in water by the EU Directive 2000/60, which will come in force in 2008, is 0.2 ng/L, four times higher than the average concentration measured in Lake Maggiore waters. Nevertheless, concentrations measured in Lake Maggiore fish were very close and sometimes exceeded the Maximum residue limits (MRLs) settled by the Italian legislation for foods (0.1 mg/kg w.w. for fish containing 5–20% lipid). It seems, therefore, that the 'environmental quality standard' of 0.2 ng/L cannot guarantee the suitability of fish for human consumption.     

云南个旧多金属矿区农田土壤-作物系统重金属污染现状——以乍甸镇为例

对云南个旧市乍甸镇农田土壤和农作物重金属污染现状进行了野外调查及评价。结果表明:农田土壤Pb、Zn、Cu、Cd、As质量比均超出GB 15618—1995《土壤环境质量标准》二级标准,Hg未检出,该地区农田呈现以As、Cd为主多种重金属复合污染。Pb、Zn、Cu、Cd、As土壤有效态质量比与土壤全量呈极显著正相关(p<0.01)。农作物中Cu、As质量比与土壤有效态Cu、As质量比无显著相关,Zn质量比与土壤有效态Zn呈极显著负相关(p<0.01),Cd、Pb质量比与土壤有效态Cd、Pb呈显著正相关(p<0.05)。89%的农作物As超标,油菜籽(Brassica napusL.)As质量比最高,均值达(23.04±14.33)mg/kg(鲜重,下同)。Pb超标率达72%,油菜籽Pb质量比最高,平均为(5.55±2.53)mg/kg。Zn、Cd超标率均为11.11%,超标最严重的油菜籽Zn质量比为(46.65±13.61)mg/kg,Cd质量比为(0.24±0.10)mg/kg。Cu超标率为5.55%,油菜籽Cu质量比最高,达(16.02±2.75)mg/kg。油菜籽对As、Pb、Zn、Cu、Cd的转移系数(农作物可食部分重金属质量比(鲜重)与土壤重金属质量比的比值)远高于其他作物。农作物对Pb、Zn、Cd、As的转移顺序依次为果实类、叶菜类、根茎类,对Cu的转移顺序为果实类、根茎类、叶菜类。农作物以As、Pb污染为主,总体属重度污染。聚类分析得出:油菜籽、青蒜(Allium ampeloprasumL.)和生菜(Lactuca sativaL.var.ramosaHort.)重金属污染严重,不适合在该地区继续种植和食用。     

江西食物生产波动特征与效率研究

食物波动与效率是食物安全的重要研究内容。1993~2003年江西省平均食物生产全要素相对生产率为0.974,其规模效益基本上呈现常数规模效益与规模效益递增交替波动现象。灰色关联分析表明,粮食产量、油料产量、肉类产量、糖料产量等与食物总量具有显著关联性,其灰色关联序为：粮食产量＞油料产量＞肉类产量＞糖料产量＞禽蛋产量＞水果产量＞牛奶产量,所以要保证食物总量安全,必须首先保障粮食、油料、肉类等的生产。     

HAZOP和LOPA方法在食品企业氨制冷系统中的应用

为评估食品企业氨制冷系统所处的风险状态,文章在HAZOP方法和LOPA方法理论研究的基础上,将其组合应用于食品企业氨制冷系统的风险评估中,以提前识别可能导致事故的原因和后果,确定现有防控措施是否足够、有效,并将风险控制在可接受水平。通过对氨制冷系统中低压循环桶液位过高场景的实例分析,得出该场景下的剩余风险基本在企业可接受范围内,不需要增加独立安全仪表系统的结论,为食品企业安全管理决策提供了科学依据。     

Urban wild meat consumption and trade in central Amazonia

The switch from hunting wild meat for home consumption to supplying more lucrative city markets in Amazonia can adversely affect some game species. Despite this, information on the amounts of wild meat eaten in Amazonian cities is still limited. We estimated wild meat consumption rates in 5 cities in the State of Amazonas in Brazil through 1046 door-to-door household interviews conducted from 2004 to 2012. With these data, we modeled the relationship between wild meat use and a selection of socioeconomic indices. We then scaled up our model to determine the amounts of wild meat likely to be consumed annually in the 62 urban centers in central Amazonia. A total of 80.3% of all interviewees reported consuming wild meat during an average of 29.3 (CI 11.6) days per year. Most wild meat was reported as bought in local markets (80.1%) or hunted by a family member (14.9%). Twenty-one taxa were cited as consumed, mostly mammals (71.6%), followed by reptiles (23.2%) and then birds (5.2%). The declared frequency of wild meat consumption was positively correlated with the proportion of rural population as well as with the per capita gross domestic product of the municipality (administrative divisions) where the cities were seated. We estimated that as much as 10,691 t of wild meat might be consumed annually in the 62 urban centers within central Amazonia, the equivalent of 6.49 kg per person per year. In monetary terms, this amounts to US$21.72 per person per year or US$35.1 million overall, the latter figure is comparable to fish and timber production in the region. Given this magnitude of wild meat trade in central Amazonia, it is fundamental to integrate this activity into the formal economy and actively develop policies that allow the trade of more resilient taxa and restrict trade in species sensitive to hunting.     

Are naked and common mole-rats eusocial and if so, why?

Eusociality in mammals is defined in the present paper by the following criteria: reproductive altruism (which involves reproductive division of labor and cooperative alloparental brood care), overlap of adult generations, and permanent (lifelong) philopatry. We argue that additional criteria such as the existence of castes, colony size, reproductive skew, and social cohesion are not pertinent to the definition of eusociality in mammals. According to our definition of mammalian eusociality, several rodent species of the African family Bathyergidae can be considered eusocial, including the naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber), Damaraland mole-rat (Cryptomys damarensis), and several additional, if not all, species in the genus Cryptomys. Furthermore, some species of social voles (like Microtus ochrogaster) may also fulfill criteria of mammalian eusociality. Understanding the evolution of eusociality in mole-rats requires answers to two primary questions: (1) What are the preconditions for the development of their eusocial systems? (2) Why do offspring remain in the natal group rather than dispersing and reproducing? Eusociality in mammals is by definition a special case of monogamy (more specifically: monogyny one female breeding), involving prolonged pair bonding for more than one breeding period. We argue that eusociality in mole-rats evolved from a monogamous mating system where cooperative brood care was already established. A tendency for group living is considered to be an ancestral (plesiomorph) trait among African bathyergid mole-rats, linking them to other hystricognath rodents. A solitary lifestyle seen in some genera, such as Bathyergus, Georychus, and Heliophobius, is assumed to be a derived trait that arose independently in different lineages of bathyergids, possibly as a consequence of selective constraints associated with the subterranean environment. In proximate terms, in eusocial mole-rats either puberty is assumed to be developmentally delayed so that under natural conditions most animals die before dispersal is triggered (e.g., in the case of Heterocephalus) or dispersal is induced only by an incidental encounter with an unfamiliar, yet adequate sexual partner (e.g., in the case of Cryptomys). Ultimately, a combination of strategies involving either dispersal and/or philopatry can be beneficial, especially in a highly unpredictable environment. If genetic relatedness among siblings is high (e.g., a coefficient of relatedness of 0.5 or more), then philopatry would not invoke an appreciable loss of fitness, especially if the cost of dispersing is higher than staying within the natal group. High genetic relatedness is more likely in a monogamous mating system or a highly inbred population. In this paper, we argue that the preconditions for eusociality in bathyergid mole-rats were a monogamous mating system and high genetic relatedness among individuals. We argue against the aridity food-distribution hypothesis (AFDH) that suggests a causal relationship between cooperative foraging for patchily distributed resources and the origin of eusociality. The AFDH may explain group size dynamics of social mole-rats as a function of the distribution and availability of resources but it is inadequate to explain the formation of eusocial societies of mole-rats, especially with respect to providing preconditions conducive for the emergence of eusociality.