My blog: 4/26/09

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Organic food

An alternative source for better, healthy life

“Deaths caused by cancer has sounded an alarm bell among experts for fear of further proliferation. The statistic speaks for itself… 58 million deaths in 2005, cancer accounts for 7.6 million or about 13 percent of all deaths worldwide. The raise of cancer cases is a worrying trend and triggering health authority to position it as the no. 2 killer disease in the sultanate. More alarming though, the country’s young generations are also at risked contracting the disease, the experts observed.

In 2004 alone, based on the most recent figure released at last week Health Seminar at ICC, a number of 278 cases was reported in this country. The most common type of cancers that lead to mortality are lung, stomach, liver, colon and breast cancers. In Brunei, five most common cancers for both sexes are lungs, breast, stomach, cervic and nasopharynx.

As emphasized by the speaker, Bruneians should not be compelled to give up easily when they are diagnosed with the disease. Another speaker spoke of a general malaise that cancer is “an automatic death sentence”. She stressed the need for cancer patients to be monitored as they have a high incidence of psychological distress and this in turn can ultimately impact on quality of life and possible survival. At this juncture as experts pointed out, there is a high need to ‘de-stigmatize’ cancer and raise more public awareness thus dispelling the myths that cancer diagnose equates to a death sentence.

The good news is that cancer is treatable, curable and preventable if detected at an early stage. However, as one expert said, patients only consider a consultation with doctors once they inhibit symptoms. In some cases, cancerous cells had metastasized and more difficult to treat.

“Cancer are insidious diseases and most are without symptoms until the very last stage. Even if there are symptoms like backaches, headaches, flatulence or general tiredness; most of us would have dispelled them as mere manifestations of a tired or aging body,” an extract taken from a book “Thanks Goodness I have Cancer’, authored by cancer survivor Lawrence Loh who was himself diagnosed with the deadly disease in 2001.

“Healthy children are valuable assets for future generation” - Lawrence

Recently, the author was participating in the first ever Health Expo 2007 held in the sultanate to promote his new venture with an organic farm company which produces tropical fruits and vegetables. “Organically grown food is free from pesticides and use only natural fertilizers, no chemical, no addition of inorganic materials, no air pollution and so forth,” commented Mr. Loh when asked about his undertakings. He is currently collaborating with Tropical Organic Farming and Research (M) Sdn Bhd who owns a 30 acres of virgin land specifically allocated to plant and grow organic food such as pumpkin, water apples and lady’s fingers. “Organic food just tastes so much better,” exclaimed visitors who tasted water apples (Jambu air) at Lawrence’s booth at the expo.

“Jambu air is one of the most difficult fruits to produce because of inherent worm infestations inside the fruit. It is to our knowledge, a lot of attempts by local enthusiasts or farmers to try to grow them succulently. Fortunately, we have the technology to produce the fruit organically without worms and our produce are above average sizes and nutritionally palatable,” Lawrence explained.. “All of our fruits and vegetables are delivered to customers within 12 hours of harvesting to ensure freshness.”

Historically, the phrase “organic farming’ first appeared in a book by Lord Northboume entitled “Look to the Land” published in 1940. But the truth is, organic farming is the oldest form of agriculture. Before the end of World War II, farming without the use of petroleum-based chemicals (synthetic fertilizers and pesticides) was the only option for farmers.

These days, farmers are switching to organic agriculture once again but now with an ecologically base, systematic approach that includes long-term planning, detailed record keeping and major investment in equipment and supplies. Lawrence went to say that public has the leeway either to go for conventional or organic food as both type of farming bear diverse outputs in terms of flavors, nutritional contents and pricings. As long as organic food producers meet stringent standard, organic is much more rich in vitamins, fibers and retains much of the nutrients longer thus the body is more resistant to diseases.

The weight of an organically grown pumpkin can reach up to 10kg

Apart from growing vegetables and fruits, the farm has the technical expertise and infrastructure to breed up to 4,000 edible fishes such as Pacu fish (Ikan bawal), Patin and Tilapia in organic environment. The fishes can be bought on contractual basis. Lawrence touted anyone wishes to commercialize fishes can seek professional assistance from him and his team.

“I believe organic food will help in the prophylactic of diseases such as cancer. Vegetables such as pumpkin is rich in anti-cancer properties and healthy for diabetic sufferers. People who regularly consume pumpkins are believed to have lower incidence of cancers of the breasts and lungs. Lady’s fingers is rich in zinc and is useful as a cancer preventive source,” Lawrence claimed.

The farm is also capable to rear up to 2,000 ‘organic goats’ on contract basis - the reared animals are solely fed on organically produced fruits and vegetables deliverable within 2 years to prospective buyers, Lawrence added.

Lawrence’s book on his battle against cancer

Touching on the sales of his book, he was delightful the demand is still growing. “This shows that public is more health-conscious now and parents should play a pivotal role in educating their valuable assets (children) to live out a healthy lifestyle. I always believe the book will be a great help not just for cancer sufferers/survivors but can be a reference guide for general health,” he concluded.

CAEXPO 07 'revisited'

Nanning, a city of charm and surprises

NANNING is the capital of Ghuanxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in China, 160km from the border with Vietnam. Built in the first year of Daxing (AD 318) of Eastern Jin Dynasty, today Nanning governs six districts and six countries covering an area of 22,293 sq km, almost 4 times larger than the size of Brunei Darussalam. It consists of 35 nationalities out of which 57 percent is predominantly ethnic Zhuang.

Being the top China’s tourist destination city, Nanning is also named the most competitive expo city and dubbed the Green City. These advantages have quickly grows Nanning as a major and leading city linking Asean countries and China. More grandeur awaits visitors as the city is in abundance of gourmet, shopping centers, entertainments, parks and resorts.

A general view of Nanning City

My first impression of this bustling city was on my way to Nanning hotel with an overwhelming number of billboards, banners and streamers put up on facades of major buildings and main roads welcoming visitors to CAEXPO (China-Asean Expo) which was held simultaneously with business conferences, seminars and cultural shows. The vehicles movements were surprisingly at ease despite the huge convergence of cars, buses, motorcycles and bicycles crisscrossing in and out of the city. Off the beaten track for most of us, my observation is arguable since the four days extravaganza was still days away and I have never been to other big cities in China where the population may exceed Nanning city of over 6.7 million inhabitants. The masses seemed oblivious of enormous contingents that have been crowding the city as if no major event was imminent.

Morning rush hour in downtown

Electric-motor bicycles were a familiar sight in this city. Seemingly, the machines outnumbered other mode of transportations because it is economic and environmentally-friendly. Another ‘finding’ surprised us. Motorcycles were fitted with alarm system and parking attendants duly performed their duties issuing tags and collecting fees from the motorcyclists at designated spaces. I noticed there weren’t many traffic lights at downtown either except at heavily congested junctions which I think was one of the many reasons why traffic snag was kept to a minimum. Other contributing factor might be the presence of tirelessly looking uniformed personnel directing vehicles movement throughout the day thus saving everyone’s adrenalin rush. When road accidents occurred, a buildup of inquisitive onlookers was virtually unseen. Whether it was a normal sight or not, undoubtedly put a break on unnecessary traffic congestions.

Nanning expo center

As a rule of a thumb, the thrill and spill of any city is best experienced either on foot or traveling in a vehicle. On an informal short tour of the city by bus, I caught a glimpse of skyscrapers and more importantly the city surroundings for which Nanning is largely well-known for; lush tropical foliage, magnificent landscape and beautiful gardens. No wonder Nanning is nicknamed the Green City. The main river dividing two major parts of the city was illuminated by stationary multi-shaped floating processions at night. Based on the travel guide reference book, visitors will be spoiled for choices with more than 1,700 kinds of plants and over 40 spieces of rare animals which can be spotted in Damingshan, one of the top ten countryside scenic spots at Nanning.

The hectic schedule at daytime and the incessant foggy skyline blanketing most part of the city. Wind blew into every nook and cranny of the city but we managed to help ourselves in the breezing condition sauntering down the road to a popular multi-storey night market, a 15 minute’s walk from the hotel. On the last day at the city, the temperature was dropped to a 15 degrees Celsius with scattered rains.

A two storey Nanning Mosque

A convenient passage to reach the market is either using the subway or overhead bridge. The market has a lot to offer ranging from everything to tailored made garments at reasonable price depending on fabric quality and would be ready for pick up in two days. The only obvious hiccup is of course the language. There are instances bargaining at shopping outlets gave us a torrid time. Nonchalantly, they would turn us away if we tried to confer in a foreign language. The best alternative was to improvise or use other means of interaction to save the day’s blushes.

There was more at stake when night starts to fall where traders unpacked their stuff along a street well into the night with rock bottom prices. Here, plenty of local brand goods from children’s wears and toys to jackets, trousers, begs, shirts and shoes were sold at unbeatable bargains provided you stumble on the right outlets. The only noticeable mosque was within a walking distance from the market which offers an eatery outlet within its precinct.

Attendant (clad in jacket) manning motorcyclist parking space

This year marked the 4th time CAEXPO is being organized by The People’s Government of GuangXi Zhuang Autonomous Region and co-sponsored by all Asean nations. It was held for the first time in 2004 which is based on the Framework Agreement on China-Asean Comprehensive Economic Cooperation. Its sole objective is to promote the building of China-Asean Free Trade Area, striving for mutual benefits and common prosperity. The CAEXPO focuses on regional economic and trade cooperation and provides tremendous opportunities for the business communities from all over the world.

Brunei handicrafts a hit among Chinese visitors

With the potential of Brunei products penetrating a slice of China market in the foreseeable future, it is a matter of times when Brunei Halal brand and other commodities would end up in China’s supermarket shelves and outlets. In anticipation, the event would open up the floodgates for more cooperation between Brunei and China in tourism, ICT, Education, handicraft and budding food sector.