Why Laboratory-Grown Meat Is Not Vegan

Why Laboratory-Grown Meat Is Not Vegan On August 5, 2013, Dutch scientist Mark Post presented the worlds first laboratory-grown burger at a press conference, where he shared the patty with two food critics. Although the foodies found the flavor lacking, Post stated that the purpose of the exercise was to show that it could be done; flavor could be improved later. Laboratory-grown meat may seem at once a Frankenfoods nightmare, as well as a solution to the animal rights and environmental concerns regarding meat-eating. While some animal protection organizations applaud the idea, meat grown in a laboratory could never be called vegan, would still be environmentally wasteful, and would not be cruelty-free. Laboratory-Grown Meat Contains Animal Products Although the number of animals affected would be greatly reduced, laboratory-grown meat would still require the use of animals. When scientists created the first laboratory-grown meat, they started with muscle cells from a live pig. However, cell cultures and tissue cultures typically do not live and reproduce forever. To mass-produce laboratory-grown meat on an ongoing basis, scientists would need a constant supply of live pigs, cows, chickens and other animals from which to take cells. According to The Telegraph, Prof Post said the most efficient way of taking the process forward would still involve slaughter. He said: Eventually my vision is that you have a limited herd of donor animals in the world that you keep in stock and that you get your cells from there. Furthermore, these early experiments involved growing the cells â€Å"in a broth of other animal products,† which means that animals were used and perhaps killed in order to create the broth. This broth is either the food for the tissue culture, the matrix upon which the cells were grown, or both. Although the types of animal products used were not specified, the product could not be called vegan if the tissue culture was grown in animal products. Later, The Telegraph reported that pig stem cells were grown using a serum taken from a horse fetus, although it is unclear whether this serum is the same as the broth of animal products used in the earlier experiments. Posts final experiments involved shoulder muscle cells taken from two organically raised calves and grown in a broth containing vital nutrients and serum from a cow fetus. Its Still Considered Wasteful Scientists are hopeful that laboratory-grown meat will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but growing animal cells in a laboratory would still be a waste of resources, even if the cells were grown in a vegan medium. Traditional animal agriculture is wasteful because feeding grain to animals so that we can eat the animals is an inefficient use of resources. It takes 10 to 16 pounds of grain to produce one pound of feedlot beef. Similarly, feeding plant foods to a muscle tissue culture would be wasteful compared to feeding plant foods to people directly. Energy would also be required to â€Å"exercise† the muscle tissue, to create a texture similar to meat. Growing meat in a laboratory may be more efficient than feedlot beef because only the desired tissues would be fed and produced, but it cannot be more efficient than feeding plant foods directly to people. However, Pamela Martin, an associate professor of geophysical sciences at the University of Chicago, co-authored a paper on the increased greenhouse gas emissions of a meat-based diet over a plant-based diet, and questions whether laboratory-grown meat would be more efficient than traditional meat. Martin stated, â€Å"It sounds like an energy-intensive process to me.† As reported in the New York Times, Post replied to a question about whether vegetarians would like lab-grown meat, Vegetarians should remain vegetarian. That’s even better for the environment. Perpetuating Animal Use and Suffering Assuming that immortal cell lines from cows, pigs and chickens could be developed and no new animals would have to be killed to produce certain types of meat, the use of animals to develop new types of meat would still continue. Even today, with thousands of years of traditional animal agriculture behind us, scientists still try to breed new varieties of animals who grow larger and faster, whose flesh has certain health benefits, or who have certain disease resistance. In the future, if laboratory-grown meat becomes a commercially viable product, scientists will continue to breed new varieties of animals. They will continue to experiment with cells from different types and species of animals, and those animals will be bred, kept, confined, used and killed in the never-ending search for a better product. Also, because current research into laboratory-grown meat is using animals, it cannot be called cruelty-free  and purchasing the product would support animal suffering. While laboratory-grown meat would probably reduce animal suffering, it’s important to keep in mind that it is not vegan, it is not cruelty-free, its still wasteful, and animals will suffer for laboratory-grown meat.

Carnauba Wax Composition and Uses

Carnauba Wax Composition and Uses My son says my car smells like candy. This is not because I satisfy some sugar craving while driving, but because I waxed it with the same wax used to coat many candies. This is carnauba wax, also known as palm wax or Brazil wax. What is carnauba wax? Carnauba wax is an ingredient in many foods and household products. Heres a look at what carnauba wax is made of and the properties that make it such a useful chemical. Carnauba Wax Origin Carnauba wax is a natural wax. It  comes from the leaves of the Copernicia prunifera palm grown only in Brazil. The wax is obtained by beating the wax off of the dried palm fronds and then refining it for use. The pure wax is yellow in color. Carnauba Wax Chemical Composition Carnauba wax consists of fatty acid esters (80-85%), fatty alcohols (10-16%), acids (3-6%) and hydrocarbons (1-3%). It is around 20% esterified fatty diols, 10% methoxylated or hydroxylated cinnamic acid, and 6% hydroxylated fatty acids. Properties and Uses Carnauba wax has a very high melting point of 82-86  °C (180-187  °F). It is harder than concrete and nearly insoluble in water and ethanol. It is non-toxic and hypoallergenic. It can be polished to a high gloss. The combination of properties leads to many applications, including use in food, cosmetics, automobile and furniture wax, molds for semiconductor devices, and as a coating for dental floss. You use products that contain carnauba wax every day, though you may not have known what the ingredient was or where it came from. It is one of those extremely useful natural chemicals and renewable resources that doesnt have a synthetic equivalent. As for my car smelling like candy: the wax does have a distinctive sweet scent. It might be more accurate to say many car waxes and candies smell like carnauba wax.

Food Policy Reform in Schools Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Food Policy Reform in Schools - Research Paper Example For the lower socioeconomic groups, the food is free, whereas for the upper group children, it is provided at a cost but a subsidized rate. The main objective of the program is to deliver a healthy and nutritious diet for children at school and to develop good eating habits and promote healthy eating practices during the growing period when nutrition is utmost important for the development of the child (USDA 2008). More than 94% of the schools have subscribed to the NSLP and this is provided under the National School Lunch Act 1946 that was adopted as a policy by the Harry Truman Administration. About 17% of the federal budget meant for food and nutrition assistance programs actually goes to the NSLP (USDA 2008). During the implementation and development of the program initially in the 1940’s and the 1950’s, greater effort was being laid on addressing poverty, starvation and malnutrition in children. However, today, the concern is much different, and seems to be an equa l challenge that was present during the baby days of the NSLP. There is a growing concern of obesity and being overweight in children, especially in the lower socioeconomic groups who find it difficult to address their health needs (Rogers 2010). The NSLP was earlier meant to help children who were eating a diet at home to eat more and to meet their higher calorie and protein demand. Besides, there are children coming from diverse family backgrounds having diverse food nutrition and food needs and it would often be difficult to cater to their tastes. Hence, it would be difficult to meet the various needs through one lunch program. There are other concerns also including the sustaining the program through the federal funding and donations may create difficulties, facing stiff competition from the junk food sector, unnecessarily creating a crunch for the agricultural produce, and outdated structure of the program. In this paper, we would analyze one of the problems faced by the NSLP, look at the viable alternatives, and develop a solution to resolve the same (US Government Accounting Office 2003). Define and analyze the problem One of the main concerns of the NSLP is that the objectives of the program may not be in line with the requirements of the children today. When the program was being implemented during its baby days, its main aim was to address malnutrition, weakness and starvation in children and provide them with a nutritious meal for at least once daily. However, today, the program is considered as a factor that is causing obesity and unhealthy eating in children, and there is a concern on the quality of foods that is currently being served via the program. There is a growing concern whether the program is worsening the effect of obesity in the population in order to support the agricultural sector. Even the poor today are no more undernourished and are facing a stiffer problem with obesity. The program is encouraging the overconsumption of energy and fats and is also increasing the amount of food being consumed by children. As children of the poor are provided by food at lower costs, they are encouraged to eat more, not helping in reducing obesity and in the process developing eating habits that would worsen the problem further in life. The child when he or she grows into an adult would be prone to several health risks including diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, arthritis, stroke, etc. There were concerns as to why the NSLP was

Chartered Portfolio Manager- Week 9 Discussion Post and Student Assignment - 1

Chartered Portfolio Manager- Week 9 Discussion Post and Student Responses - Assignment Example Following the Second World War, it was clear that oil was a coveted industrial commodity. The most celebrated and visible event in history took place when the United States president, Franklin Roosevelt met the founding monarch of Saudi Arabia. The meeting between the two world leaders linked American national security and Middle East oil. It also gave birth to one of the most significant strategic relationship that was forged in the 20th century with Saudis meant to supply cheap oil to the world markets with an aim of acquiring American protection. Over the course of the 20th century, preserving the security of Saudi Arabia as well as that of other countries such as Iraq were among the main political and economic concerns of countries such as the united states of America (Bouillon, 2013). The presence of oil in the Middle East countries and the struggle to control the commodity was fraught with peril and always proved costly in terms of treasure and blood. Oil has continued to flow into the global markets even though with a lot of difficulties emanating both internally and externally. Since the end of the 1970s, most of the countries in the Middle East including Iraq have experienced permanent war and revolution as a result of the commodity. In Iraq for example under the regime of Saddam Hussein, was rocked by domestic war that resulted to loss of lives. Even though security is measured by absence of war, most of the countries in the Middle East have encountered threats of domestic and international war as a result of supply of oil. The United States led inversion of Iraq in the year 2003 and the conflicts experienced in most of the countries in the region have represented both the international and domestic politics affecting the region. The American military invasion of the country represented only a stage of the US militarism in the Middle East. While more considerable

How employees react when facing organization change and what HR Literature review

How employees react when facing organization change and what HR manager should do - Literature review Example None of the mini computer companies could succeed in the business of personal computers Business schools and medical colleges are finding a hard tome to transform their curriculum according to the types of doctors and managers that are in demand in the market (Christensen & Overdorf, 2000, p.67). There are numerous other examples displaying the same challenge. It is seen that change efforts fail primarily because employers fail to handle the resistance towards change from employees. Managing change successfully means managing the fear of people. However, the peoples’ reactions to change efforts remain irrational and unsuccessful. Resistance towards the change originates from the fear of the unknown and apprehensions about a loss. HR managers play the crucial role of managing the reaction or response of employees towards the change process. The apparent reason to peoples’ fears is the way they perceive the change process, while the back end reaction to the change process is the extent to which they are equipped to deal with the change process. ... The project brings forth numerous critical reviews and suggestions of researchers and practitioners on the subject and delivers a critical analysis. It also puts forth their views regarding how changes can be managed effectively through effective people management procedures (Adair, 2007, p.124). Literature Review- How employees react when facing organization change and what HR manager should do Employee Resistance to Change- Critical Analysis The research begins with analysis of the greatest challenges of managing change initiatives in the organization. Managing organizational change is a difficult process as the conditions under which it is undertaken at the initial stage keeps changing. As situations keep shifting it becomes increasingly difficult for the top managers and agents to prepare for manage the change process in a way which satisfied both employers and employees. It is not surprising to understand that change resistance has attracted immense attention from practitioners and researchers. Immense attention has gone into the understanding of determinants and sources of change resistance. The general public and the media have gone into various forms of active resistances such as protests and strikes. Some of the other forms of organizational resistances are passive resistance, which is comparatively less observable, but has immensely attracted the concern of employers in organizations. Unsurprisingly, resistance towards change initiatives account for being one of the most crucial sources of organizational change failures (Conger & Kanungo, 1998, p.8). Meyer, (1982) and Nadler, (1998) have defined the concept of organizational change as the effort or the series of efforts which is designed in a manner to bring about change or transformation in

Counterbalancing China or Exploiting BRICS

Counterbalancing China or Exploiting BRICS COUNTERBALANCING CHINA OR EXPLOITING BRICS: OPTIONS FOR INDIA INTRODUCTION 1.BRICS, a unique group of countries with shared opportunities common challenges, came into being in New York in Sep 2006. However, it was during the third Summit at Sanya, in China, in Apr 2011 that South Africa joined this group thereby completing the acronym. BRICS symbolises the amalgamation of the most powerful emerging economies of the world into a group whose composite economic strength will wrest the global economic power away from the developedG7economies. 2.BRICS economies account for a quarter of the world’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has been consistently displaying sustained high annual growth rates. The economic potential of the BRICS nations cannot be overlooked however, it is yet to be seen whether BRICS would only limit itself to being an economic group or will it also assert itself on the world matters in global forums that have been dominated by the G7 nations. The possibilities of using its economic potential are endless. In its quest to realise the stated goals, it is imperative that these nations work jointly cohesively. 3. The Sixth BRICS Summit held in Brazil on 16th 17th Jul was an important milestone for the member nations as well as huge economic opportunities for them as well as the member nations with the announcement of making BRICS Bank operational to be headquartered at Shanghai. China and India being the two of the largest and most influential members share an uneasy relationship both economically and politically. BRICS is the key to their relationship and path to mutual growth. Statement of the Problem 4.Can India leverage BRICS platform to offset its economic and border issues with China? Hypothesis 5.India can resolve its economic and border issues with China by leveraging BRICS platform. Method of Data Collection 6.The information for this paper shall be gathered through the study of various books, journals papers in print as well as the Internet. Views of various guest speakers would also be incorporated. An attempt would be made to refer the sources from various agencies. Scope 7.The scope of the Dissertation is:- (a)Background/Historical perspective of BRICS. (b)Economic potential of BRICS. (c)Significance of BRICS in global politics/ international governance. (d)Challenges faced way ahead. (e) Sino-Indian Disputes. (e)Sino-Indian Relations in Foreseeable Future. (f) How India can leverage BRICS. CHAPTERS Chapter I : Background/Historical Perspective Of BRICS 8.This section will attempt to throw light on the origin the journey of BRICS from its inception to the present day. It will also broadly cover important aspects of the Goldman Sachs report by Jim O’ Neil that brought about the acronym of BRICS. Chapter II : Economic Potential of BRICS 9.Developing to Emerging Economies. This section of the paper will bring out the geo economic geo political journey of individual nations, leading to their present status. It will also give out the steps initiated by the member nations of BRICS to emerge as a cohesive stable economic platform. It will also highlight the key economic reforms resorted to by the BRICS nations the latent potential existing with these members. 10.Present Scenario. This section will deal with the current economic potential of the BRICS nations, both individually collectively. The present potential of BRICS has been listed as progressive however certain critical aspects that boost the economic potential are not symmetric across the members of BRICS. 12.Future Potential. The future potential as predicted for the BRICS will be discussed in this section. This section will also analyse the barriers that BRICS can implement to immune itself from the present global economic slowdown thereby maintaining its economic growth. It will aim to bring out that as economic powerhouses regional hubs, intra-BRICS market integration can insulate these nations from worldwide economic downturn. Chapter III : Significance Of BRICS in Global Politics / International Governance 13. Economics Finance. The interaction of BRICS members in order to reform international financial system is likely to remain a key priority in the midterm perhaps also in the long term. 14. Global Politics. BRICS as a group has already accumulated valuable experience in coordinating actions with regard to several major global political problems. BRICSs deeper engagement with the UN will aim to preserve strengthen the central role of the Security Council in maintaining international peace security. 15.Security. The format of the BRICS does not provide for deliberating military, political issues developing mechanisms for military cooperation. However, there are regular meetings of the high representatives of the members on security issues, including strategic stability, international regional security, non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction the settlement of regional conflicts. This section will aim to bring out the underlying security implications for the BRICS nations in current geo – political environment. Chapter IV : Challenges Faced Way Ahead 16.The BRICS is still in its nascent stage owing to which it is likely to face a number of challenges ahead. The member nations need to overcome the internal contradictions to develop the group into a cohesive entity. This section will analyse some of these challenges like:- (a)Growth Disparity between member nations. (b)Trade Imbalance Mutual Distrust. (c)Public Private Participation. (d)Policy reforms for BRICS members to make their growth processes more durable development oriented. (e)Bring out the need to reform the structure functioning of IMF. (f)Launching of a joint development bank. 17.The Way Ahead. Under way ahead, recommendations for BRICS nations to sustain their economic growth mutual development will be deliberated. The important aspects such as mutual cooperation, handling of economic situation, establishment of BRICS bank and other miscellaneous issues will be discussed. Chapter V : Sino-Indian Disputes. 18. This chapter will be covering the disputes between both the nations as under:- Border issues. Geopolitical threat. Economic imbalance. Tibet issues. Nexus with Pakistan. Potential arms race. Indian Ocean Region. Brahmaputra water projects dispute. (j) Race for minerals/hydrocarbons in Africa and CAR. Chapter V : Sino-Indian Relations in Foreseeable Future. 19. This Chapter will be dealing with the mutual relations:- (a) Political relations. (b) Economic relations. (c) Potential cooperation areas. Chapter V : How Can India Leverage BRICS? 20.Key Thrust Areas for India. There are a few key thrust areas that India must seek in order to enhance its influence in the world forums. These thrust areas such as strengthening economic infrastructure reforms, building strategic alliances with members of BRICS, maintenance of steady pace of economic growth; increasing service industry’s influence energy security will also be discussed in this section. 21.Leveraging BRICS. (a)Geo-Political Leverage. This sub section will bring out how India stands to gain Geo-Political mileage by being part of BRICS. It will cover the aspects that will bear major advantages for India in the Geo-Political sphere. (b) Economic Leverage. This sub section will dwell upon India’s likely economic gains from BRICS that will further boost its economic growth add greater value to its economic potential. (c) Geo-Strategic Leverage. BRICS offers India ample opportunities to enhance its global reach overcome certain strategic impediments. This sub section will view all these opportunities against the backdrop of the Geo-Strategic implications that they may bring forth. (d) Defence Cooperation. This sub section will analyse the opportunities that India will have in realms of security while being the member of this group especially as Russia China, two of major military powers also part of the group. CONCLUSION 19. It is well evident that BRICS has emerged as an entity that has the potential to challenge the influence of G7 in the world forums. This potential evolves from a sustained economic growth the diversity exhibited by its member nations. The economic potential of BRICS is the sole reason why it is being viewed as the initiation of a Multi Polar World Order that is set to overcome the unipolar hegemony of the US. However, BRICS, in order to maintain its economic potential will need to eradicate multiple challenges that it faces due to the Geo-strategic locations divergent national interests of its member nations. BRICS will be a success in true self only if India and China can resolve their mutual issues and steer it towards the path of development and prosperity.

Management Models :: Business Employee Management

The Industrial Revolution brought about the emergence of large-scale business and its need for professional managers. Modern managers use many of the practices, principles and techniques developed from earlier concepts and experiences. Early military and church organizations provided the leadership models on which the classical/functional model was the first to be developed. It began around the 1900 and continued into the 1920s. Max Weber known as the father of modern sociology analyzed bureaucracy as the most rational and logical structure for large organizations4. Through the years, other men and women like Frederick Taylor, Frank and Lilian Gilbreth, Mary Parker Follet and Chester Barnard, to name a few, tried to come with better models which were all geared towards making organizations more productive and lucrative until in the 1950s, the project management model was developed by Henry Gratt.