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Humanitarian agencies stand by in Pakistan as floods kill 25, displace estimated 50,000 others

"Predictions by Pakistan's Meteorological Department of more rain in the days ahead have raised flood fears, especially in Sindh Province, as the monsoon season peaks," IRIN reports.

18 Aug 2011

Some Muesli fattier than double quarter pounder

According to a consumer organization Choice, a morning bowl of muesli may contain as much fat as a McDonald's Double Quarter Pounder. The consumer organization tested 159 types of muesli and discovered that the popular breakfast meal isn't necessarily a healthy choice.

18 Aug 2011

Tobacco giants sue FDA over ‘shock tactic’ cigarette pack images

The FDA ruled that by Oct. 22, 2012, every pack of cigarettes sold in the United States will carry one of nine graphic, full color, graphic warnings reminding people of just how horrible smoking is for their health. The image might be a pair of healthy lungs next to a pair of blackened and diseased lungs or a man smoking out of a hole in his throat or a mouth with sores on the lips and teeth all yellowed and decayed.

18 Aug 2011

U.S., international support for Somali refugees making a difference

Ambassador Ertharin Cousin, U.S. representative to the U.N. Agencies for Food and Agriculture in Rome, writes about her recent visit to the Dadaab refugee camps in Kenya in the State Department's "DipNote" blog.

16 Aug 2011

Somalia famine highlights need for long-term food security initiatives

Jill Biden, the wife of Vice President Joe Biden, and Former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (D-Tenn.) write in a USA Today opinion piece about their visit last week to the Dadaab refugee camps in Kenya, stating, "Amid the devastation, we saw the impact of [U.S. and international] aid. We saw inexpensive oral rehydration packs bring listless babies back to life. We saw children getting vitamins and vaccines that will stop the spread of deadly diseases throughout the camps."

16 Aug 2011

Multi-prong approach needed to fight famine in Somalia

"The Obama administration deserves credit for acting in advance to ameliorate the effects" of drought in East Africa, a New York Times editorial states, noting that USAID has been working since last summer, when the crisis was predicted, to "plac[e] food and other supplies in Kenya, Djibouti and South Africa" and "working on programs to help Somalia and other countries improve food production to avert future crises."

12 Aug 2011

Rising food prices in East Africa exacerbating food shortages, famine, FAO says

"The prices of grain and milk in the drought-hit Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia have risen to record highs, exacerbating hardship for the estimated 12.4 million people in the region who are facing severe food shortages and famine in some parts of Somalia," according to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization's August food price monitor, the U.N. News Centre reports.

12 Aug 2011

Linking U.S. foreign aid to U.N. General Assembly voting

A backgrounder by Jay Schaefer, a Jay Kingham fellow in International Regulatory Affairs at the Heritage Foundation's Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom, and Anthony Kim, a policy analyst in Heritage's Center for International Trade and Economics, examines the relationship between U.S. foreign aid and U.N. General Assembly voting.

11 Aug 2011

More than 9M Afghans facing food insecurity, WFP says

The World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that 1.5 to 2 million more people in Afghanistan likely will be pushed into food insecurity later this year because of ongoing drought in the northern, northeastern and western parts of the country, IRIN reports.

11 Aug 2011

Foreign aid community faces difficulties as food prices rise and dollar declines

The Council on Foreign Relations features an interview with Laurie Garrett, a CFR senior fellow for Global Health, in which she discusses the effects of the declining dollar, the struggling global economy and the rise in food prices on food aid pledges for the drought and famine in East Africa.

11 Aug 2011

Springer signs book agreement with the American Physiological Society

Springer has signed a book partnership agreement with the American Physiological Society (APS) to publish titles in three APS book series as well as individual monographs and contributed volumes. The new publications are aimed primarily at researchers and will support Springer’s growing physiology publishing program.

11 Aug 2011

ONE hosts discussion of famine with USAID, WFP officials

"ONE Blog" features an audio recording of a conference call the organization held on Wednesday with USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah, World Food Programme Executive Director Josette Sheeran and Somali advocate Ali Ali about the famine in Somalia.

6 Aug 2011

Foreign aid being 'held up' by Congress

In a Foreign Policy opinion piece, FP staff writer Josh Rogin lists foreign aid as one of "the top eight foreign-policy items currently held up by the do-nothing 112th Congress."

6 Aug 2011

Delays in procuring food aid, funding hampering relief efforts in Somalia, aid agencies say

"Famine relief efforts in Somalia are being hampered as much by delays in procuring food aid and raising funds as by difficulties in accessing Islamist-controlled areas, according to humanitarian organizations working there," the Guardian reports.

6 Aug 2011

New results will provide a common thread for climate change research

New computer modeling work shows that by 2100, if society wants to limit carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to less than 40 percent higher than it is today, the lowest cost option is to use every available means of reducing emissions.

6 Aug 2011

USAID GeoCenter to use satellite imagery, on-the-ground reports to inform aid disbursement

USAID officials are in the early stages of planning a Geospatial Intelligence Center, or GeoCenter, that will combine information from "satellite imagery and on-the-ground surveys and reports to cut down on field-based work and give the agency a better sense of where development dollars can do the most good," Nextgov reports.

6 Aug 2011

Oxfam interactive map shows 'food price pressure points'

A new interactive map from Oxfam "shows how poor communities across the world are being hurt by high and volatile food prices. This 'food price pressure points map' provides a global snapshot of the impacts of the global food price crisis," according to the website.

5 Aug 2011

Desalination could help combat worldwide fresh water shortages

Over one-third of the world's population already lives in areas struggling to keep up with the demand for fresh water. By 2025, that number will nearly double.

5 Aug 2011

36 million pounds of ground turkey recalled due to Salmonella

Meat manufacturer Cargill Inc. is recalling nearly 36 million pounds of ground turkey linked to a California death and at least 78 other salmonella illnesses nationwide, company officials said. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the Class I recall, with the highest health risk, late Wednesday. All of the recalled products were produced at the company's Springdale, Ark., plant.

4 Aug 2011

NNSA provides radiological contamination training to emergency responders in Mexico

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), in cooperation with Mexico’s National Commission of Nuclear Safety and Safeguards and the National Center for Disaster Prevention, last week held a four-day workshop on radiological contamination and accident casualties aimed at further developing Mexico’s strategic crisis response capabilities. The workshop comes as Mexico prepares for the 2011 Pan American Games to be held in Guadalajara, Mexico in October.

2 Aug 2011