by Christopher D. Cook, Kari Hamerschlag and Kendra Klein Friends of the Earth Hunger is not primarily a problem of overall supply of food, but rather of poverty, lack of democracy and unequal access to land, water and other resources,…
Category: Food & nutrition
You shouldn’t eat raw cookie dough
Health officials are lending legitimacy to the age-old warning not to eat raw cookie dough. The Food and Drug Administration issued a warning on Tuesday about a recent E. coli outbreak linked to contaminated flour, advising consumers not to eat…
New game to resist fast food cravings
Health Desk Researchers at Drexel University have developed a computer game and smartphone app to help people control unhealthy eating habits and ultimately lose weight. The game is designed to improve a person’s “inhibitory control,” the part of the brain…
2016 World Food Prize Laureate Dr. Howarth
HarvestPlus is proud to congratulate 2016 World Food Prize Laureate Dr. Howarth “Howdy” Bouis, who won for his pioneering work in addressing the global problem of micronutrient deficiencies, known as hidden hunger, through biofortification. The World Food Prize, known as…
Stories key to informing, inspiring action to end malnutrition
Washington, D.C.—The costs of malnutrition—health, social, and economic—are staggering. However, the tools to improve nutrition are within our grasp. “Nourishing Millions: Stories of Change in Nutrition,” written by development leaders from the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and other…
Biofortification pioneers win 2016 World Food Prize
Washington, D.C. – Four scientists responsible for improving the health of 10 million rural poor in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to receive $250,000 award. Drs. Maria Andrade, Robert Mwanga, Jan Low and Howarth Bouis were announced Monday as the…
Mung bean farming makes rural women self-reliant in Rajshahi
Rajshahi Correspondent Expanded mung-bean farming has opened up the money-making door for more than twenty thousand rural women, including students, as they are harvesting the cash crop in the greater Rajshahi region this season. Harvest of mung bean is going…
Vitamin A, high-fibre diet keeps food allergies at bay
Health Desk Consuming high-fibre diet consisting of a bowl of bran and some dried apricots in the morning and intake of Vitamin A can help reduce food allergies, finds a new study. The findings showed that mice allergic to peanuts…
Tackling new frontiers in malnutrition: Overweight and obesity
Guest blog by Judith Hodge, independent consultant on global food and nutrition security, based in the UK, and one of the editors of the Nourishing Millions book. Why there’s a chapter on obesity in Nourishing Millions It’s taken some time…
Soil degradation threatens nutrition in Latin America
By Orlando Milesi and Marianela Jarroud SANTIAGO, Jun 15 2016 (IPS) – Curbing soil degradation is essential for ecological sustainability and food security in Latin America and the Caribbean. “Everyone knows how important water is, but not everyone understands that…
Foods that may help or harm your sleep
Health Desk What you eat affects how you sleep. If you could pick the right foods to help you get the best sleep possible, wouldn’t you? And if you knew which foods would hinder your restful slumber, wouldn’t you avoid…
Protecting pollinators
Danielle Nierenberg According to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), approximately 80 percent of all flowering plant species reproduce with the help of pollinator animals like bees, butterflies, birds, and more. This accounts for at least one third of…
Seven superfoods for diabetes
With diabetes being the theme for World Health Day this year, an expert says one should include millets, beans and fish in regular diet to keep diabetes away. Neha Sewani, dietician of weight loss company Truweight, has shared what should…
BAU: Boro cultivation in dry field can save 50% water and electricity
Dhaka-Cultivation of Boro rice to the puddle field using the saplings from seedbed is widely introduced in our country. According to soil types, a total of 3 to 5 liter water is used to produce one kg of paddy in…
Manage diabetes during Ramadan
Health Desk Diabetic patients who fast during Ramadan are likely to be at risk of major health complications. Hence they should fast only if their doctors consider them fit enough. The month-long period that is typically marked by long fasting…
Measure of food waste aims to put more on plates
A third of all food is spoiled or thrown away worldwide as it moves from where it is produced to where it is eaten. A new global standard for measuring food loss and waste will help countries and companies step…
Nature’s smartest invention
Sudhirendar Sharma Thor Hanson’s book is a thoroughly engaging treatise on the many ways in which seeds sustain life on this planet Accomplished artists may have painted hundreds of verses on a kernel but the unwritten genetic instructions a seed…
Chefs make a tasty case for eating bugs
You can talk about the environmental benefits, but many people won’t try insects unless they actually taste good. The aperitif cocktail was mealworm puree syrup, shaken with bitter Aperol, fresh lemon juice and ice, topped off with Cava and a…
Small food but big appeal
The ultimate food miniacs, however, may be the Japanese. Clever Japanese cooks have created real meals fit for the Borrowers: penny-size omelets and strawberry shortcakes, spaghetti boiled in thimble-size pots, pea-size potato salads. All are prepared and cooked using miniature…
5 foods that can help prevent prostate cancer
Health Desk Too Much Red Meat May Lead to Kidney Cancer Thus, we’ve gone ahead and pieced together all of the eye-catching cancer-related headlines that we’ve published over the past few months in order to provide you with a comprehensive…
6 ‘healthy’ foods nutrition pros refuse to put in their bodies
Health Desk We know nutrition pros load up on wild salmon, ancient grains, and kale, but what virtuous-seeming fare will you never find on their plates? Here are the health-halo items they leave right on the shelves. Flavored yogurt “I…
‘Roanu’ causes colossal loss to crops in Bangladesh coasts
Dhaka – Cyclone ‘Roanu’ on Saturday caused huge damages to crops and livestock in three upazilas — Anwara, Banshkhali and Sandwip — in the Southeastern distric of Chittagong, unb news agency reported. According to a preliminary estimate of the district…
Growing inspiration—17 farming heroes
Danielle Nierenberg The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has estimated that there are more than 570 million farms in the world. Behind each farm – at least 90 percent of which are considered family farms – is a farmer,…
What yoghurt tells us about the obesity fight
Health Desk When it comes to understanding the challenge facing the nation on obesity, yoghurt is a good place to start. It’s one of the most common items in our shopping basket. We spend more on it than we do…
IFAD-funded projects help improve lives of India’s rural poor
New Delhi, 12 May 2016 – Development projects supported by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in India have been effective in reducing poverty and improving the livelihoods of rural poor people, according to an independent evaluation report presented…
5 Vitamins you’re probably not getting enough of if you’re over 50
Health Desk Life changes a lot as you get older—so why would you expect your nutritional needs to stay the same? Many people who’ve passed the big 5-0 need more of certain vitamins and minerals than they did when they…
65-day ban on deep sea fishing from May 20
Dhaka – The government on Sunday imposed a 65-day ban on fishing in the exclusive economic zone area of the Bay of Bengal from May 20 to July 23, aiming to boost the country’s fish output.
Not all meat is created equal
Danielle Nierenberg Raising livestock provides livelihoods for an estimated one billion people, according to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Many small farmers in developing countries own livestock, including cattle, goats, horses, sheep, pigs, rabbits, chickens, donkeys, ducks, geese,…
Hand over Sundarbans arsonists to police: Minister
Dhaka – Environment and Forests Minister Anwar Hossain Manju on Sunday urged all to hand over to law enforcers those involved in setting fire to the Sundarbans, saying stern action will be taken against them. He made the call while…
IFAD-supported project tackles malnutrition, stunting in Laos
Vientiane – The UN’s International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the government of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic signed an agreement yesterday to finance and implement a project that will reduce extreme poverty and malnutrition for 34,000 poor rural…