Hershey, PA (PRWeb) January 30, 2012 Tags: To see a full multimedia press releases, please visit hersheycocoasustainability.com.

PRODUCTS CERTIFIED: Hershey Bliss Hershey Cocoa source? Rainforest brown Alliance Certified farms fromIvory Coast INVESTMENT: Hershey to expand its mobile phone company CocoaLink innovative program for farmers in CostaFARMERS and their families: to learn to grow Hershey Farm and Family Development Center Open in GhanaLong-term commitment: Hershey to invest $ 10 million by 2017 to reduce child labor and increase the supply of cocoa in West Tags: Africa, the Hershey Company today announced plans to strengthen its efforts to facilitate the sustainability of cocoa farmers and family development in West Africa, where 70 per cent of world cocoa cultivation.

Tags: In five years, Hershey will expand and accelerate programs to improve communities by investing $ 10 million of cocoa in West Africa and continue to work with experts in agricultural development community, and government to achieve progress with cocoa farmers and their families . By 2017, Hershey private-public partnership will directly benefit 750,000 cocoa farmers in Africa and more than two million people in cocoa communities throughout the region. * Because of the cocoa farms are family farms, increasing farm family income increased. Today, the West African cocoa farmers can increase their production by 50 percent using modern methods. Doing so will increase enrollment and improve public health.

Article Sources: No Comments to Hershey Expands Program Responsible for the West African Cocoa Communities so far.

HARARE — Circumstances surrounding the death of retired army general Solomon Mujuru took a new twist yesterday, as fresh evidence emerged in court that he was in the company of an unidentified person when he entered his Ruzambo Farm in Beatrice on the fateful day.

A driver, Enock Talapenzi also told the court how his wife called Vice President Joice Mujuru after midnight but the phone was not being picked.

However, it was the fresh detail presented by a member of a private security company that was manning Mujuru’s farm that brings more controversy to circumstances surrounding the late general’s death last August.

The controversy deepened further when a police officer guarding Mujuru’s farm claimed that he did not see anyone in the company of the late five-star national hero as he made his way to his house.

This was contrary to the evidence given by the security guard.

Clemence Runhare told regional magistrate Walter Chikwanha, who was presiding over the high-profile court case, that he saw Mujuru in the company of an unknown person as he made his way to his house.

However, Runhare’s claims were rebuffed by police officer Augustinos Chinyoka who was stationed a distance from him, saying the late general was alone.

“Before I opened the gate, I noticed that the deceased was in the company of another male person. I did not look closer to identify who the other person was, since I assumed he was the driver. I could not have asked him (Mujuru) who the other person was,” said Runhare.

On the other hand, Chinyoka said, “I took note of the fact that he was alone but, something like a suit was hanging on the back seat.”

Mujuru died under mysterious circumstances in an inferno at his Beatrice farm, 60 kilometres south of Harare last August.

Vice President Joice Mujuru, widow to the late general and close relatives of the Mujuru family, attended the high-profile court case.

Security was tight at the Harare Magistrates’ Courts as police officers kept a close eye on any movement, probably because of the presence of the vice president.

Runhare further told the court that: “At around 1:35 and 1:40 am, I heard some noise. The noise is akin to the explosion of bullets. The noise was from the direction of Mujuru’s residence.”

He however changed his statement.

Runhare said that when he got to Mujuru’s house he later assumed the sound he heard was from burning and bursting of asbestos. He further made a U-turn on his assertions and told the court that the sound might have been of gunshots by poachers from the next farm.

The matter was adjourned to today when the Mujuru family lawyer Thakor Kewada from Scanlen and Holderness Legal Practitioners will continue cross-examining the sixth witness, Chinyoka.

“If you were in that room in the farm house would you be able to break one of the windows to escape in the event of a fire?” asked Kewada to which Chinyoka responded by saying he would have been able to break and make his exit.

Another witness who testified included the late general’s personal driver, Talapenzi, who confirmed last seeing Mujuru during the afternoon of August 15.

A bar lady at Beatrice Motel, Portia Kamvura, also testified and confirmed seeing Mujuru on the day. Her evidence was corroborated by Blessing Madzivire, a farmer in the Beatrice area and Tongai Chimuka, a Mujuru family friend, who were also drinking beer with the late general at the motel.

They concurred in court that the late general was not drunk on the day.

“Upon arrival he ordered two tots of John Walker Black Label whiskey blended with soda water. He ordered two more tots and said he did not intend to take much beer since he had a journey the following day.

During the time that he talked of the journey, I overheard him saying he was passing through Beitbridge. At around 7pm he bade farewell and then I accompanied him together with Madzivire and Douglas Nyakungu to his vehicle,” said Kamvura.

Prosecutors Sharon Fero and Clemence Chimbari from the Attorney General’s office produced 25 photographs depicting the scene of the fire and five photographs of the post mortem results carried on Mujuru.

A sketch plan of the floor of Ruzambo farm house, homestead and floor layout of the burnt farm house, reports from the Fire Brigade, Zesa, police and three forensic reports from South Africa were also produced as exhibits.

The state told the court that forensic experts had taken skin samples from the late general’s body and that of his daughter Kumbirai to verify whether it was indeed the late Mujuru who had died in the inferno.

Speaking to journalists after the adjournment of the case, vice president Mujuru said she was satisfied with progress made so far.

She said she hoped that the inquest would unlock facts on what actually transpired when her husband met his death.

“It was a good beginning. It was a good start but in between the period of inquest I was called by his Excellency (Mugabe) since I am at work and then I came back later so some of the witnesses had already finished giving their evidence,” said Mujuru.

According to the state, the late retired general left his Chisipite home driving an Isuzu KB 250 double cab on August 15 last year.

He allegedly arrived at Beatrice Motel at 5:30pm where he drank four tots of John Walker Black Label; whiskey diluted with soda water, before proceeding to his farm at 8pm, whereupon arrival Runhare opened the gate for him.

Three police officers namely, Constable Chinyoka, Obert Mark and Lazarus Handikatari were manning the inner gate leading to the general’s yard.

Five minutes later the court heard he drove towards the eastern gate going to maid Rosemary Short’s cottage, where he intended to collect keys to the farm house.

The three later discovered that the general’s house was on fire at 2am.

Article Sources: Fresh evidence emerges on Mujuru’s death

I was putting the last helmet away after teaching my morning riding lessons when Bob arrived to pick me up in a white station wagon.  “Who’s car are you driving?” I asked and he answered, “It might be ours.”  I blanched.  Just what we need, another expense, I thought.

We were about to turn our rent in to a mortgage which would involve withdrawing ten thousand dollars from savings and doubling our monthly housing payment.  We’d been a one-car family for nearly five years, embracing the many benefits of this arrangement.  Shelling out $2,300 for a second used car seemed like folly.

But I agreed to ride up to Bynum so Andy and Jill could take a look.  Jill and Andy agreed with Bob that the 1987 Mercedes TD300 was a good, solid car for a price we couldn’t pass up.  Although there were nearly 300,000 miles on the odometer, she still ran as smooth as a youngster, purring along on the road with hardly a bump.  I was outnumbered.

She had seating for seven which included a third seat for two that faced backwards and folded down for to make a flat bed.  Ditto with the back seats.  This car was capable of acting like a pick up truck when she wasn’t serving as a party car!

We all considered Bob lucky for spying her in Diaz’s lot before anyone else had.  Andy said if we didn’t buy her, he would.  That’s when I started thinking about names for our new car.  Lilly was the first name that came to mind.  As in “Lilly White.”  It seemed like a good tongue-in-cheek Southern name.

After nearly two years of running alongside the biodiesel crowd in Christine, our 1995 gas powered Ford Escort, we’d be driving a car many of our friends spent their days making fuel for.  We would finally be able to put our Piedmont Biodiesel Coop membership to good use.

On the internets, we found that the 1987 Mercedes Touring Diesel 300 sold for $40,000 when new.  We loved the write up about this 300TD on a blog titled Hoopty Rides in which the author said:

With absolute conviction, I can say, the 1987 Mercedes 300TD is one of the very best automobiles ever made. Though I don’t have 7 friends, should I acquire a few more, I will be able to bring them with me in absolute comfort. It is a 6 cylinder turbo charged diesel and it was only available in 1987. The W124 body cars (the 80s E-classes) were the last true Mercedes that felt like they were machined from a single block of steel.

That writer also quoted the Mercedes Illustrated Buyer’s Guide:

The modest 300E hides its capabilities… The 300E is among the world’s best cars for the driver. Precise steering and comfortable ride make them particularly good long-distance cars… Discussing the handling of these cars is academic. Anything that you can do to break them loose on the public road is not only irresponsible and illegal, but also unlikely.

At this point, Lilly seemed like too frivolous a name for our new Mercedes.  Her real name revealed itself to me while I was washing my hair.  Head full of white suds, “Blanche!” suddenly popped into my head.  As in Blanche DuBois from “A Streetcar Named Desire,” the southern belle who always relied on the kindness of strangers.  As in a woman from an earlier generation when women were made of sturdier stuff.  As in my initial reaction to Bob’s suggestion that this might be our next car.

Article Sources: HOOPTY RIDE « Plastic Farm Animals

A traditional Chinese medicine company at the heart of an angry Internet campaign accusing it of violating animal welfare opened one of its controversial bear bile farms to journalists on Wednesday.

An Asian black bear waits to be moved from a truck after being rescued from a bear bile farm in Chengdu. To extract the bile, bears are often placed in cages so small they cannot move, while tubes are inserted in their gall bladders to extract the bile for extended periods of time, animal rights groups have said.

Bear bile has long been used in China to treat various health problems, despite skepticism over its effectiveness and outrage over the bile extraction process, which animal rights group say is excruciatingly painful for bears.

The Guizhentang pharmaceutical company in the southeastern province of Fujian last year announced plans to raise millions of dollars through a stock exchange listing in order to increase production of the bile.

But the announcement sparked a noisy Internet campaign against the listing that brought into question the medical effectiveness of the bile and the cruel manner in which it is extracted from living bears.

According to a Guizhentang spokeswoman surnamed Wang, Chinese journalists began visiting one of the company’s bear farms on Wednesday as part of attempts to address the controversy.

She said they were promised full “transparency” to inspect the premise, but the state-run Beijing News reported that journalists would not be allowed to ask questions during the visit.

“Guizhentang made public a list of journalists without prior consultations. They could be putting on a show,” the paper quoted Zhang Xingsheng of the Nature Conservancy’s North Asia office as saying.

The company refused to allow AFP journalists to take part in the tour, saying the event was not open to foreign reporters.

According to Guizhentang’s website, the company farmed 470 bears last year and hoped to increase the number to 1,200 following the listing in order to step up annual production of bear bile to 4,000 tonnes.

Bear bile is used in China and other Asian countries to treat fevers, liver disease, eye problems and other health problems.

To extract the bile, bears are often placed in cages so small they cannot move, while tubes are inserted in their gall bladders to extract the bile for extended periods of time, animal rights groups have said.

According to the non-governmental group Animals Asia, official figures state that around 7,000 bears still languish in bile farms across China, but many more could be used in illegal establishments.

Latest stories in this category:

Article Sources: China company opens bear bile farm to media

With our current way of life, preventing a devastating climate change is next to impossible. According to reports, ‘Three hundred fifty parts per million (350 ppm) is the recommended safe threshold for carbon dioxide in our atmosphere. Today, at 386 ppm, we’re over the limit.’ This is the reason why half of Metro Manila, a city we believed to be unsinkable, were left submerged, even today. This is also the reason why storm after storm have ravaged our farms and mountains, resulting in massive shortages of food supplies as well as cutting-off major access roads to across the provinces.

‘To avoid further expensive climate chaos we must deploy the most creative and innovative technology in the world to rapidly pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. And [sustainable, organic, biodynamic,] regenerative farming is it.’ Buy and send philippine flower through online philippine flower shop.

If, however, we changed our lifestyle, there may still be some hope left for us. One way is through climate-friendly farming. As much as possible, we need to pull off more carbon out of our atmosphere. ‘Organic farming could pull forty percent of global greenhouse emissions our of the atmosphere each year.’ 40% is a huge help in our environment. ‘Farmers who are building soil organic carbon can remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere at rates of 2 tons of CO2 per acre.’

By practicing sustainable, organic, or biodynamic agriculture, we can steadily nurture our soils with creative techniques such as crop rotations, cover cropping, organic fertilizers, and mimic nature’s innovative but gentle methods. Unlike conventional farming where chemical companies burn fossil fuels to produce synthetic fertilizers, which in turn will go up into the air and further disrupt our environment. Take an advantage an send some flowers to your loved ones through an online philippine flower shop.

According to Organic Farming Could Stop Global Climate Change, “Real farmers build real soils. Real soils hold more carbon and hold more water. Real soils perform better in very dry or very wet weather. With good soil, we build a better earth, resilient to the very uncertain climate that awaits us. And that means more healthy food for our growing world.”

It would be better for us to take advantage of the situation while the effect hasn’t yet taken its toll. Change should be our main priority if we ever wanted to make our future a better place for our kids to live. If not, then all of what we stood for, all that is dear to us, and all that we built will be pointless in the coming years. For more information visit to our site at myflowerdepot.com

Samantha Forest, an author is able to offer bulk flowers at such affordable prices because they deal directly with the growers. There is no middle- man to speak of. That means the flowers they sell are beautiful and fresh and since they are grown in Texas, they don’t take too long to reach the customer.

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Article Sources: The Effect Of Organic Farming In Climate Change – Luxury Watches Guide,

IN normal circumstances, raw eggs and raw fish left in pails for 10 days will stink to high heavens.

Knowing this, attendees of an organic gardening workshop were apprehensive when asked to sniff homemade fertiliser made of the items at Consumer Association of Penang (CAP).

Those brave enough were, however, surprised.

The Egg Lime Solution – made of raw eggs and lime – had a wine-like smell.

Another organic fertiliser, the Fish Amino Acid, smelled like rojak sauce, according to some people.

CAP education officer N. Suseela said if bad smells start to emerge from organic mixtures, chances are something had gone wrong.

Article Sources: Sowing seeds of success

Like most young children, your youngsters most likely have a ton of stuffed animals. They cover the bed, sit on bookshelves, the floor, rest on the sofa and also tag along for car rides to the shop.

To a child, a stuffed animal can represent a sense of familiarity and comfort. Sort of like the security blanket that Linus from the Peanuts comics carried around everywhere with him.

My Pillow Pets gives kids that identical joy that a stuffed animal brings, along with a comfy sense of security when they snuggle up with it as a pillow. It is a terrific pal for your child in the course of a nap or for bedtime.

These superb toys make excellent gift items that youngsters will adore for years to come and you’ll be able to come across a preferred for any one thanks to the extensive collection offered within the line. The lines are broken down into categories.

1 category will be the farm animal collection and they are fluffy and merely adorable. For the child who loves bunnies, the collection presents Thumpy Bunny. Made out of ultra soft chenille, this pal speedily unfolds to grow to be a favored pillow. In the similar collection, there’s also the popular Lovable Lamb made from the same plush chenille.

All children really like puppies and My Pillow Pets has a terrific line of pillows in puppy shapes that make great Christmas gifts. The puppies are Patriotic Pup (he’s red, white and blue), Snuggly Puppy and Luv Pup with the cute nose shaped like a red heart.

The special zoo collection of these toys has Zippity Zebra, Chocolate Moose, Silly Monkey and naturally, the sweetest king of the jungle inside the world, Lively Lion. The Ocean line has some favorites among boys and girls alike – namely, the Sharky Shark (he’s new), Splashy Whale and Squeaky Dolphin.

Many of the leading Pillow Pets fall into the Sports collection and offer you pals like the Chicago Cub, Pittsburgh Steelers and Dallas Cowboys (this pillow pet is new too). But there’s also the New York Giants and also the Detroit Lions (a lion pet with an adorable expression on his face).

My Pillow Pets even has insects as pillows in their Bug collection featuring Dreamy Lady Bug, Mrs. Ladybug and Bumbly Bee. The enterprise has a fantasy collection where you could locate them in shapes like Dizzy Dragon, Rainbow Unicorn, Rexy-Rex and Perry Pterodactyl.

These pillow pets are lovable and inspire hugs from youngsters of all ages. The Velcro strap keeps the pillow neatly stored as a pet till it’s required. The pillow even has a solution to keep the Velcro piece covered when the pet is in use as a pillow.

These durable toys make terrific gifts and are the excellent traveling companion for kids. The chenille material is so soft that your child will appear forward to nap or bedtime and will really feel like he has a friend with him.

Article Sources: Bunny Rabbits Are Awesomely Cute: The Enjoyable and Thrilling – My Pillow Pets – Family

It’s a free Monday at LACMA today, so why not view art like Chris Burden’s ‘Metropolis II.’ (Photo: (c) 2012 Museum Associates/LACMA)

We needed this long weekend to relax and squeeze in a little bit of fun between errands. If you’re looking for something to do, we found plenty of music with Sinead O’Connor; Craig Finn of The Hold Steady; and a whole lineup over at Bardot in Hollywood for It’s a School Night. Target pays for admission at LACMA today, and Steven Rea signs his book Hollywood Rides a Bike at Vroman’s. Read on for all the details.

MUSICIrish bad bald girl Sinead O’Connor plays tonight and tomorrow at the El Rey. Note that this is a new venue—she was supposed to play at the Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever. This all ages show features ESP opening for O’Connor tonight and Rocco de Luca opening for her tomorrow night. Doors at 7 pm. Tickets: $30. Another concert of note tonight: Craig Finn, lead singer of The Hold Steady plays a solo gig at the Troubadour. Tickets: $15. Doors at 8 pm.

BOOKSAuthor Steven Rea discusses and signs Hollywood Rides A Bike tonight at 7 pm at Vroman’s in Pasadena. Hollywood Rides a Bike shows classic stars—from Shirley Temple, Betty Grable, and Brigitte Bardot to Bogie, Gable, and Bing—on vintage bikes. There are 125 rare vintage photographs that should titillate old Hollywood and bicycle fans alike. There’s even a special index just about the bicycles featured.

SCHOOL NIGHTIt’s a School Night takes over Bardot in Hollywood for an evening of live music and DJs. Performing live tonight are Baby Alpaca at 9 pm; Cuckoo Chaos at 9:45 pm; Hey Rosetta! at 10:45 pm; and Reggie Watts at 11:45 pm. The night opens with KCRW’s Chris Douridas DJing at 8 pm and Brandon Ginsberg DJing between sets. Free with RSVP for those 21+; $10 for 18+ with RSVP. 9 pm to 2 am.

ARTIt’s a free day at LACMA today thanks to Target. Visitors of all ages can participate in activities on the museum’s campus all day long. Most (but not all) exhibitions are free, Check out California Design, 1930-1965: Living in a Modern Way for a glimpse into California style. Also on view is Chris Burden’s Metropolis II during the following times: 12:30-1:30 pm; 2:30-3:30 pm; 4:30-5:30 pm; 6:30-7:30 pm. Live music by Rhythm Child perform on the plaza at 12:30 pm and 2:45 pm.

COMEDYDid you know Russell Brand has been playing Largo on Monday nights? Tonight, too, but tickets are sold out. When we last checked the website, there were a few tickets left for next Monday’s show. Tickets: $25.

*Pencil pick of the day

Want more events? Follow me on Twitter (@christineziemba). Or follow Lauren Lloyd—who takes care of Pencil on Wednesdays (@LadyyyLloyd).

Article Sources: Pencil This In: ‘Hollywood Rides a Bike’ Book Signing; Sinead O’Connor, Craig Finn Concerts and Free LACMA Admission

WOODSTOCK – Learn to canoe, explore wetlands, camp under the stars and more by taking advantage of McHenry County Conservation District programs this summer.

MCCD will offer nine summer day camps for ages 6 through 15, community relations specialist Lora Petrak said in an MCCD news release.

Article Sources: Early bird registration discounts available for summer day camps

Organic farming has long suffered from a lack of comprehensive data. At OF&G we hear plenty of anecdotal reports of producers at least matching their previous non-organic yields after a few years of conversion, or of dairy producers even beating their non-organic production levels.

What we’ve always struggled with is reliable empirical data from properly scientific studies. Now though, the US-based Rodale Institute has wrapped-up its 30-year Farming System Trial with some hugely encouraging facts and figures that go a long, long way to putting paid to the jaded arguments about organic being less productive. In essence, they suggest we can’t afford to do other than ensure the benefits of organic systems are entrenched in our methods of food production for an increasingly unstable future.

The headlines of the study look like this (taken from the report précis):

• Organic yields match conventional yields.
• Organic outperforms conventional in years of drought.
• Organic farming systems build rather than deplete soil organic matter, making it a more sustainable system.
• Organic farming uses 45% less energy and is more efficient.
• Non-organic systems produce 40% more greenhouse gases.
• Organic farming systems are more profitable than conventional.

There are some eyebrow raisers in there, undoubtedly. But these results come from three decades of scientific comparison between organic and non-organic farms, across multiple crops.

Rather than spelling it all out here, we highly recommend you take a look at the report for yourself. There’s a handy summary on the Rodale Institute website, or you can dive straight in with this PDF download of the full, and very accessible, report.

In essence, the trial demonstrates that organic methods build long-term fertility and good structure in the soil, which then creates healthy plants with strong yields, better protected against periods of drought, which are going to be more and more of a problem in years to come.

As the costs and availability of artificial fertilisers increasingly pose a problem, you have to ask yourself for how long the planet can ignore a method that intrinsically solves the problem at, we can now say, no long-term cost to overall yield.

When you delve deeper into the full report, there are even more thought-provoking issues to be considered, such as how the Rodale Institute suggests that traditional plant breeding is offering crops with three-to-four-times higher yields than GM variants (which it also says are proving more costly to growers than non-GM).

Non-organic farmers almost invariably throw up the issue of weed management when they talk themselves and others out of going organic. It’s true, this is one issue, but it’s one that can be handled gracefully by organic farmers and increasingly they have the benefit of new machinery that’s getting smarter and smarter at dealing with weeds. Not to mention that there is clear evidence that species of herbicide resistant weeds are increasing alarmingly in GM systems. Do we really want to proceed down that road? How much evidence has to mount against it before the world sees sense (and we speak from a logical, not emotive standpoint on the issue).

The results of the Rodale Institute’s Farming Systems Trial are fascinating. No matter who you are or what you believe, they make for thought-provoking reading and are worthy of digestion by everyone working in agriculture. No trial is utterly foolproof and someone will always be able to find weaknesses, but such long-term and comprehensive trials are rare and we have to take them seriously.

The evidence continues to build (see our post on another recent, reputable trial that came to equally supportive conclusions) that, to use the hackneyed phrase, organic farming can “feed the world”. In fact, the more you look at the facts from a rational standpoint, maybe it will have to…

Article Sources: 30-year study suggests organic is the future