Costly food waste cannot be tolerated

Costly food waste cannot be tolerated

Malaysians waste 15,000 tonnes of food daily including 3,000 tonnes that is still fit for consumption by human beings and should not be discarded but still it all ended in garbage dump.  

"Globally, about 1.3 billion tonnes of food valued at RM4.4tril is lost or wasted yearly,"  Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) senior enterprise development officer Dr Rosa Rolle at the "MySaveFood" jointly organised by FAO and Mardi’s forum attended by 100 participants from government agencies and the private sector aims to create awareness about the food life cycle and to reduce food waste. 

Are we not concerned that such massive waste is recurring for some decades already especially food sources are expensive and quality food production is still very much desired in agriculture and farming sectors?

One of the key problems is that cooked foods have very short time to maintain their freshness and quality to be consumed by human beings even today with the availability of cold storage or freezers.  Maybe it is appropriate that untouched food be left in cool rooms until it is collected.

Have we identified who are to be blamed for such massive food waste in today’s  environment?

During my student days in London, I had a college holiday job for a few weeks in December more than thirty years ago in a busy London general hospital’s canteen.  I noticed that after 2 pm almost daily, one or two big containers of untouched egg curd would be discarded into the drain by the chefs. The practice of cooking in bulk was economical as demand could not be known prior to cooking that.  There would be problem with the patrons if such egg curd as a sweet item ran out before the lunch hours were over.

Isn’t it that untouched expired/left food from the buffet tables still fit to be recycled to feed pigs but not mentioned in the news reports to avoid total loss ending in the garbage dump which only feed the rats and possibly strayed dogs?

Isn’t it that food waste can be converted by some heat process to sort of “organic” fertilizer?

Isn’t it that certain food waste can be utilised for earth worms to digest it to some sort of organic fertilizer?

Maybe it is still inconvenience to deal with food waste other than just dump it in garbage dump as out of sight as far as restaurants/kitchens are concerned daily.

Like it or not we must deal with the daily food waste in the most suitable set of options.

One of the problems for recycle of food waste is that the collection issue to be punctual and that food waste cannot be retained too long in the kitchens.

For the food untouched but still fit for human consumptions, there are such problems as hours of collection for deliveries to the target groups possibly in the odd hours of the night for dinners while for the lunch food left-over deliveries could be held up or much delayed in traffic jams.  So the commitment of the people to collect and deliver such food for recycle to the target groups could be ‘unreliable’ daily.  It is also possible for delayed collections and deliveries of untouched food can cause such food to deteriorate in freshness/quality unfit for human consumption.

We must address the increasing food waste in the following aspects namely reduce the cooked food according to the demands by the hours as monitored by the kitchens, maintain the quality/freshness of unconsumed cooked food in suitable containers for deliveries to target groups, food waste as leftover in the plates/tables should be recycled for the pigs normally re-cooked, fertilizers factories and earth worm centres. Continued dumping in the waste bins not collected daily is environmentally questioned and pose health hazards.

While it is the responsibility of the food handlers and the kitchens to deal with the food waste, the authorities, the public and consumers have an important role to play for the environment.

Joshua Y C Kong.  30/6/2017

Flyover barriers seem too low

Flyover barriers seem too low

Published on: Sunday, June 18, 2017

By Joshua Y C Kong
This is the first time I used the Luyang flyover since it was opened some months ago.

What I notice is that the barriers on the left appear to be too low which could be unsafe for very fast vehicles in sudden emergency incidents. The vehicles could topple and be thrown out onto the ground below.

Such situations can be avoided by installing higher strong barriers on the left side of the dual carriage flyover.

We have seen in some cars parks in Kota Kinabalu where cars even broke through some concrete barrier/wall to fall to the ground.

The luyang flyover was once also recently flooded. Is this hazard/defect and any related ones dealt with successfully?

I hope the relevant authorities would do a thorough inspection on the safety aspects including the suitable lighting at night.

Joshua Y C Kong

Anti Mosquitoes herbal drink

http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/read.cfm?NewsID=2591

Anti Mosquitoes herbal drink

Further to my letter “Simple herbal drink that kept mosquitoes away” DE 11/6/2017, the editor made a note “since the herbal concoction proved effective on you, why explain at length but keep its name secret? “.

This letter is in response to that apt note.

If I were to give away the name straightaway as expected by the Editor, I could also end in sort of “deep soup” if someone tries it and claim anything against me.

Actually I am not really worried about that but we need to handle the whole scenario professionally with care as in any cure or vaccine that have to go through all sorts of detailed analysis and trials and errors possibly with some “guinea pigs” as in any medical  protocols. Some people may encounter side effects which may disturb them mentally, emotionally and that can work up to some unpleasantness.

For me to use the herbal drink regularly is no choice as there is no cheap solutions or proven cure against the mosquitoes viruses.  The case of the dying man that lived to tell a story after consuming the simple herbal drink was evident of the permanent potent cure.

In my earlier letter, I missed an item and that is I felt shivering inside me and woke up in my sleep early this year.  I never experienced that for a very long time.  I thought it could be due to mosquitoes as I had been exposed then to some mosquitoes in my back garden feeding my dogs and that the herbal effect could have gone low. So I took a spoonful of that herbal concentrate and within seconds I was back to normal and went on to sleep again.

Do I still need to confirm the potent cure?  I consume the herbal drink like a tea regularly.

To steer clear of any objection or dubious questions, I think I can contribute to the solution by inviting people with fund to explore that potential item as a confirmed cure to malaria, dengue or any other related “bloody” diseases from the viruses of mosquitoes.

So we do some clinical tests and trials with existing patients if the doctors permitting such treatment without losing their medical profession or licence?

Before we do that I think that any stakeholders can work through my Koperasi Pengguna Sabah Bhd (KPSB) ( consumerism) and Caring Earth Society of Sabah (CARES) (environment) both I head, to do whatever that is desirable to enable the cure to be patented.  Mosquitoes matters are both consumerism and environmental.

How effective is this new vaccine as alleged developed in Dengue War?  Is it an instant cure? What costs for each dosage?

Component of this herbal product is in the market in some forms but people are not aware of that potency in treating the viruses of mosquitoes.

The patented products would have global market and worth pursuing it now.

Some people have believed that they could treat the aedes mosquitoes in the wild with expensive vector impacts but what is the report on this as working in our midst?

Flogging of mosquitoes too can be too extensive without known possibilities of actually treating the viruses once contacted by the victims.   The ingredients of the flogging mixture can be questioned too.

Can we afford to delay my herbal drink health-wise to be applied extensively?  It can be just a simple drink we can buy from shops too once proven safe beyond doubt for all people.

Joshua Y C Kong 20/6/2017

Cannot hide the mosquitoes...

Keeping this secret is harmful to society.

Mosquito is to be feared for whatever that may happen to anyone now known variously as malaria, dengue and other virus infections.

I am writing in response to the title in Daily Express- “Degnue War: bio-control mosquitoes, new vaccines - 9 June 2017 following Borneo Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease Congress 2017.

This is the first time I would like to share my “relationship” with mosquitoes for good or for bad times.

Is it that bad that Borneo is a hotbed for mosquito related disease?  Maybe the most prominent death due to mosquitoes is on the very young British administrator in Jesselton in 1902. Then the clock tower was built in the memory of Francis George Atkinson, Jesselton’s first district officer who died of Malaria or ‘Borneo Fever’ at the age of 28 in December 1902.  So the clock tower is indeed a great reminder of the dreaded mosquitoes in Borneo.

Yet, we have survived in Borneo for so long and now we may have newly discovered vaccines against mosquitoes diseases.

So it is timely I share my special experiences with mosquitoes.

In my young days in Labuan, we never had mosquito netting proof for houses except we had them for our beds.  Yet, very little were heard of such diseases of mosquitoes as we hear today regularly.

Then in early 1970s, I was “awarded” a free food and free housing with 24/7 total security environment for 11 months somewhere in Kepayan not far from where I am now staying.  I was detained by the kleptocrats without trial for fear of my exposure after working so hard in the audit of the Inland Revenue Department.  Recently the IRB director did say anyone not paying their taxes could face due attention.  Did those kleptocrats really paid their taxes even up to today?

Why I want to bring up the past sick situation is that during my stay, TV (black and white) was just introduced in Sabah by the USNO Government. Many nights, the wardens who keep me company in the solitary confinement wanted to watch TV themselves would let me out to another block where there is a TV set.  During such sessions, the door of the block would be left open so that the wardens could watch TV standing nearby behind me. Soon I would go to sleep and waking up to see many mosquitoes on my exposed hands.  Yet I did not “catch” those mosquitoes sicknesses or diseases.  Do I have some special relationship with mosquitoes that did not bite me but stayed on my hands?  I also did not feel any bites.  I could not complain to the wardens.

Also I had been staying in many rented houses in and around Kota Kinabalu since I returned from London in 1980.  All those houses are not mosquitoes proof as it is today.  The mosquitoes menace as it is known is indeed worrying until I consume the special simple herbal drink.  What could I do about that?  Nothing.

Then one day my mechanic friend told me a simple and straight true story about his father given up to die by the doctor for dengue.  The patient was asked to go home to die.  Then suddenly a friend appeared and told the patient that all he needed was a herbal item costing RM5.  Drinking the boiled herbal item, the patient survived and went back to the doctor who was shocked.

So I also took up this simple cheap drink and what did I find?  My days of bloated mosquitoes sucking my blood in my sleep and found on the bedroom walls in the mornings are over.  I could not see any such bloated mosquitoes and so I believe those mosquitoes had died/fainted after sucking my blood.

The herbal item is easily available in Sabah but medical doctors practising on western medicine cannot prescribe such herbal items or face losing their practising licence with the Medical Board .  So it is really useless to share with such medical doctors as these professional continue with the nightmare to deal such patients without solutions for simple proper treatment.

Also many may condemn me if I share it here as all medical items for public consumption need to go through a thorough long process of acceptability and health safety.  In such prolonged process, many could have perished.

There have been several other options to deal with such dreaded vector virus of the mosquitoes by flogging them in our environment.  How could such flogging be really effective given the massive land mass to be touched and the cost associated with such flogging?  Also, the ingredients in such flogging can be harmful to the health of the public as exposed outdoor and indoor.

I have since very opposed to such flogging as in one instance, I was outside in my house compound exposed to the flogging and the next morning I experienced constipation.

So I had been drinking the simple and cheap herbal item and easily available in seasons annually like a tea.

After sharing this the pharmacies and inventor of the newly found vaccines could be disappointed for the traditional knowledge I had acquired at almost zero costs with the effectiveness I had already shared.

Now, mosquitoes would simply go to my ears in my sleep to wake me up to crash the irritation instantly.  Isn’t it that mosquitoes are also protesting that my blood is poison for them as animals/insects too have great instinct?

I would like to conclude that it is worth sharing my belated experience as to prevent further profligacy in the endless search for cure or remedies for dengue, malaria etc associated with mosquitoes which of sort has some similarity with mosque linguistically.  Some mosques in KK are built on water the bleeding ground of mosquitoes.  Would the mosques be flogged too as some health events demand going into our houses?  We never will know where we get the virus.

In recent years, many times flogging were demanded by the health department and private enterprises.  So would I get more requests or red demands for flogging after this sharing for the benefits of all?

Coincidentally, in the Daily Express the same day, we had two health articles namely “only necessary amount of medicines” and “Review work hours of doctors: MMA”.  So if we have simple solution for dengue etc with the simple herbal drink, the medical and health authorities would be relieved of that burden of an incurable sickness so far.

Joshua Y C Kong  4/6/17