Search Results for: Climate change

EVEN with the spectre of Brexit looming over the European Union (EU), the authority and power of the EU over environmental policy across Europe remains of critical importance, and so the bio-based oils and fats sector has been closely watching the discussion of proposed reforms to the EU’s renewable energy directive (RED).…

THE EUROPEAN Union’s (EU) fourth anti-money laundering directive (4AMLD – 2015/849) was hailed as major step forward in combatting money laundering when it was adopted in May 2015, but member states are dragging their feet on compliance, just as the bloc moves towards adopting its fifth update.…

LURED by a shifting global market and better margins, Bangladesh’s apparel producers are rushing into the lingerie space, predicting Chinese manufacturers will secure fewer export orders for these lines as their costs rise.

This new niche opportunity for the Bangladesh industry is fortuitous, as it dovetails with the country’s textiles and clothing makers’ core strategy of moving from their traditional low-cost growth pillars, such as t-shirts, shirts, trousers, jackets and sweaters.…

HOW will the Indian food industry evolve in the next decade? If the last decade was about India opening up to the global palate, the next decade is definitely about health and wellness, industry executives said at the India Food Forum 2018, held at Mumbai from January 17 to 19.…

A CHANGE in the name of Macedonia’s Skopje Alexander the Great Airport could be afoot, as the Macedonian government seeks to heal an 18-year-old dispute with Greece over the country’s name and association with this historic king and conqueror. Macedonia Prime Minister Zoran Zaev declared at the World Economic Forum in Davis last month (January) that he would be prepared to stop naming Skopje airport after Alexander, along with maybe changing his country’s name.…

THE CONCEPT of building circular runways with a slight camber to keep planes on the ground as they land and take-off, has received significant attention, but is the idea a practical solution to airport capacity problems? Practical tests on the idea are being discussed, with their use for drones rather than piloted planes maybe being the focus of initial assessments and prototypes.…

Cases of African Swine Fever (ASF) are still very common in Russia, despite its continued ban on European Union (EU) pigmeat exports, imposed since January 2014 following a handful of cases in Poland and Lithuania. While outbreaks have continued in the EU, Russia – whose ban was imposed on live pigs, pork and pig products over fears importing ASF-infected meat and livestock, has from last July (2017) to today (January 30) notified to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) around 2,800 ASF cases of domestic pigs, and 90 cases in wild boars.…

THE EUROPEAN Commission has released its long-awaited plastics strategy, which – claims the European Union (EU) executive, will “transform the way products are designed, produced, used and recycled in the EU”. 

Brussels has now declared (on January 16) that it wants to ensure that all plastics packaging put on the EU market will be recyclable by 2030; the consumption of single-use plastics will be reduced; and the intentional use of microplastics – plastic particles smaller than 5mm, for example microbeads in exfoliating products – will be restricted.…

WHILE Israel maybe developing its own gas resources, its need to import energy supplies has always been a source of strategic vulnerability to a country with often hostile neighbours. As a result, the Israeli government has long understood the benefits of energy efficiency, which has become increasing priority for other developed economies, notably in Europe.…

RUSSIA’S ministry of agriculture is planning to invest up to USD200 million this year and next (2018-2019) in developing breeding stock and systems for the country’s dairy cattle industry. According to a ministry spokesperson, these plans will be implemented by experts at the ministry department of livestock, as well as some leading Russian research institutions in cattle genetics, although specific participants will be announced later this year.…