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☆ Russia’s war in Ukraine sparked a historic food crisis. It’s not over
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Julia Horowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

“All the major causes of the food crisis are still with us — conflict, Covid, climate change, high fuel prices,” Cary Fowler, the US special envoy for global food security, told CNN. But high food prices mean that funding can’t go as far, and Russia’s war continues to generate volatility. “The Ukraine crisis has had this ongoing negative impact on world food prices and [added] even more volatility,” said Abby Maxman, CEO of Oxfam America. Russia “is not assisting in alleviating the food crisis in slowing down the grain inspections,” Fowler said. Oxfam’s Maxman, who traveled there in September, said disruptions to food supplies were obvious in markets.

MONTREAL/BOGOTA Dec 16 (Reuters) - Latin America is drawing early investment for jet fuel produced from materials like forest residues and palm oil as emission-conscious airlines scour emerging markets for less-polluting fuel to power flights, industry executives say. While most sustainable aviation fuel, or SAF, is produced in the United States, Europe, and Singapore, Latin America is emerging as a budding market. "Latin America right now is really a hot spot for Honeywell." Producing and distributing SAF in regions with faster-growing traffic like Latin America is key to meeting industry targets, said Landon Loomis, Latin America president for U.S. planemaker Boeing (BA.N). And Vibra Energia (VBBR3.SA) is working with Brasil BioFuels (BBF) to produce palm oil-based jet fuel in 2025.

☆ French baguette makes it onto World Cultural Heritage list
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS, Nov 30 (Reuters) - The humble baguette, France's staple bread, has made it onto the United Nation's cultural heritage list. Paris-based U.N. heritage body UNESCO on Wednesday voted to include the "artisanal know-how and culture of baguette bread" on its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage, which already includes around 600 traditions from over 130 countries. This "celebrates the French way of life: the baguette is a daily ritual, a structuring element of the meal, synonymous with sharing and conviviality," said UNESCO chief Audrey Azoulay. These days a baguette - which means "wand" or "baton" - is sold for around 1 euro ($1.04) each. ($1 = 0.9645 euros)Reporting by Geert De Clercq and Elizabeth Pineau; Editing by Ingrid Melander and Raissa KasolowskyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Analysis: India power binges on coal, outpaces Asia
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Sudarshan Varadhan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

But the increase in India's coal-fired power output has outstripped its regional peers, data from the government and analysts showed. India's power ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Reuters GraphicsCLEAN ENERGY EFFORTSState-run Coal India, the country’s dominant coal miner, ramped up production to meet the utility demand. It reported a 13.5% year-on-year increase in its coal output in March-October to a record high of 432 million tonnes. Consultancy Wood Mackenzie expects India's coal-fired power output to grow 10% in 2022 compared to the previous year.

☆ Egyptian authorities intervene in prisoner's hunger strike, family says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Abd el-Fattah's sister Mona Seif said Ali was negotiating access at the prison. Abd el-Fattah's hunger strike has loomed over the U.N. talks, with another sister, Sanaa Seif, flying in to campaign for his release, and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak raising the issue with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Without water, Abd el-Fattah's health could rapidly deteriorate and the United Nation's rights agency has expressed concern for his life. They said previously that Abd el-Fattah was being given meals. He is on hunger strike against his detention and prison conditions.

☆ Mexico nominates central banker Esquivel for IDB presidency -sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MEXICO CITY/WASHINGTON, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Mexico has nominated Mexican central bank board member Gerardo Esquivel for the presidency of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), four people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. Headquartered in Washington, the IDB is a key investor in Latin America and the Caribbean. Esquivel, 56, is regarded as perhaps the most doveish member of the board of the Bank of Mexico (Banxico), and his term there is currently scheduled to conclude in December. Former IDB President Mauricio Claver-Carone, the only American president in the bank's history, was fired in September after an investigation showed he had an intimate relationship with a subordinate, Reuters exclusively reported. ET on Nov. 11, with the bank's governors to vote on the next president early on Nov. 20, an IDB official said.

☆ Much of biopharma industry yet to set any climate impact targets - report
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Natalie Grover | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The report, authored by My Green Lab in collaboration with with Urgentem, an independent provider of emissions data, examined direct and indirect carbon emissions created by hundreds of companies in the biopharma industry from publicly available and inferred data. Reporting of scope 3 emissions remains imperfect, there is no standardisation on how this data is gathered and measured, said Connelly. "So some companies do have significantly higher carbon emissions for scope 3, while others are significantly lower, or it may just be that they are reporting quite differently from their peers." Executives from companies big and small told Reuters they were optimistic about strides being made towards cutting carbon output in the industry. The report was supported by the United Nation's High Level Climate Champions team.

☆ Kenya deploys troops to Congo to help end decades of bloodshed
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Edwin Waita | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Thomas MukoyaNAIROBI, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Kenya's President William Ruto on Wednesday officially deployed troops to eastern Democratic Republic of Congo to join an East African regional force aiming to end decades of bloodshed. The seven countries of the East African Community (EAC), which Congo joined this year, agreed in April to set up a joint force to fight militia groups in Congo's east. Despite billions of dollars spent on one of the United Nation's largest peacekeeping forces, more than 120 armed groups continue to operate across large swathes of east Congo, including the M23 rebels, which Congo has repeatedly accused Rwanda of supporting. Uganda has already sent troops into Congo as part of separate deployment to chase down an Islamic State-linked armed militants, one of the warring groups in eastern Congo. "We have been working very hard to mobilise the international community to support the east African force," Kenya's defence minister Aden Duale said at the event.

☆ Brazil to nominate ex-central bank governor Goldfajn to run the Inter-American Development Bank
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-16 | by ( Marcela Ayres | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRASILIA, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Brazil plans to nominate former central bank governor Ilan Goldfajn to head the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), a person familiar with the matter said on Sunday, as Latin America's largest economy seeks to secure its first presidency of the institution. The development bank will elect its next president on Nov. 20 after the ouster of Mauricio Claver-Carone in an ethics scandal. Currently head of the International Monetary Fund's Western Hemisphere department, Goldfajn led Brazil’s central bank under former President Michel Temer, before handing the reins to current chief Roberto Campos Neto in February 2019. Under Goldfajn’s tenure, the central bank began developing its Pix instant payment platform, which was launched under Campos Neto. After leaving the central bank, Goldfajn chaired the board of Credit Suisse in Brazil before joining the IMF.

☆ It is taking up to 2 weeks to inspect tankers carrying grain from Ukraine, causing a massive backlog of 150 ships
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( Stephen Jones | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

150 Ukrainian grain ships are waiting to be cleared by UN inspectors, the agency told Insider. The progress of the grain ships has been closely monitored since the beginning of the Ukraine war. Exports virtually stopped following Russia's invasion, prompting concerns over the possible impact less Ukrainian grain being available could have on global food security. The Financial Times first reported the backlog of ships waiting inspection, citing figures published by SovEcon which tracks Black Sea agricultural markets. As of Monday, more than 90 ships are yet to reach their final destination, according to the Black Sea Grain Initiative's tracker, although some of these left port recently.

☆ Biden denounces Putin's 'overt' nuclear threats, urges UN allies to reject Russia's invasion of Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Emma Kinery | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

"Russia has shamelessly violated the core tenets of the United Nations' charter, no more important than the clear prohibition against countries taking the territory of their neighbor by force." Biden's remarks come as Europe faces its biggest crisis since World War II as nations grapple with how to deter Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The country has not yet declared war on Ukraine, despite having invaded in February, an invasion it still calls "a special military operation." A nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought," Biden said. "The United Nations charter and the ideals it represents are in jeopardy and we have a duty to act," Guterres said Tuesday.

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