Eating sharks’ fins for Chinese New Year is bad luck
OK, we made that up. But so are dozens of customs that purport to usher prosperity and longevity into our lives.
The fact of the matter is this – sharks’ fins do not add any flavour to your soup – it’s the other ingredients that make the soup taste what it tastes like. Stay away from it, and the whole marine eco-system will thank you for it, and you never know, you might be making your own luck by doing just that.
Resources:
Singapore is 2nd biggest trader of sharks’ fins.
Vertical farming boosts production of vegetables
January 28, 2011 by green team
Filed under Green Reporter, Tech & Science
Singapore has successfully developed a vertical farming system prototype, which could help the land-scarce Republic maximise its production of leafy vegetables.
Vertical farming is a technique of producing agricultural products at multiple levels, conserving land space in the process.
A six-metre tall structure rotates at one millimetre per second, distributing sunlight to all the plants.
via Channel NewsAsia.
Re-use, Recycle, Reward
January 28, 2011 by green team
Filed under Events, Green Living, Green Reporter
If you’re spring cleaning for Chinese New Year, don’t throw away your old electronic items. Bring them to Funan Centre’s Juzz1 store (Level 1) to be recycled. And you’ll be rewarded with a mystery gift.
No purchase required too, so that’s sweet.
Earth Hour 2011
January 26, 2011 by green team
Filed under Events, Green Reporter
Save the date, and help save the Earth.
Earth Hour 2011 will be held on 26 March 2011, and apart from the hour when, as usual, all lights will be turned off, there will be a concert (which will be powered by recycled cooking oil, just in case you’re wondering how eco-friendly a full-scale concert might be, and now that you know, here’s your chance to catch some music that may smell like banana fritters) at various points on the island, as well as a Walk For The Planet.
So, remember to set aside the hour (and a bit more) on 26th March, and join Nadya our Village Chief the official Earth Hour ambassador for the 3rd year running!
Here’s more information at the Earth Hour site (hosted by WWF), and here’s the official video trailer:
UK watchdog: Coke’s Vitaminwater claims misleading
January 20, 2011 by green team
Filed under Food, Green Reporter
You’ve probably seen them starting to be sold in Singapore and the region, so this is good to know:
Britain’s ad regulator says Vitaminwater has too much sugar to be accurately described as nutritious and has ordered owner Coca-Cola to stop running advertisements carrying the claim.
The Advertising Standards Authority says Coca-Cola broke ad rules when it described its popular line of flavored water products as “delicious and nutritious,” explaining that consumers wouldn’t expect a drink marketed as nutritious to have between four and five teaspoons of added sugar.
via The Associated Press.
New eco-label for food-courts
January 19, 2011 by green team
Filed under Food, Green Reporter
Our only worry is that food vendors really do recycle cooking oil, but not in the healthiest way.
The Singapore Environment Council SEC has launched a new certification scheme to facilitate the adoption of environmentally sustainable practices among local food-court operators.SECs Executive Director, Howard Shaw, said food courts generate huge amounts of waste and consume massive amounts of energy and water every day.The Eco-Foodcourt certification assesses the environmental management system in a foodcourt, from its environmental policies to water, energy and waste management.One of the mandatory requirements is that takeaway orders must not be placed in Styrofoam boxes.Minister of State for the Environment and Water Resources, Dr Amy Khor, who was at the launch, gave certificates to Singapores first two Eco-Foodcourts – The Deck at the National University of Singapores NUS Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences, and the Kopitiam @ City Square Mall.Examples of environmentally sustainable practices implemented at The Deck include organic food recycling, the recycling of cooking oil, and the use of eco-friendly and reusable boxes as well as the promotion of meat-free meals.
via Channel NewsAsia.
Communities in Bloom
January 16, 2011 by Mr Miyagi
Filed under Green Living
More than 80% of residents in Singapore live in apartments, and we’re usually limited to pottering about potted and indoor plants when we exercise our green fingers.
So it’s great news that in just six years, 400-odd gardens have taken root around the island as part of National Parks’ “Community in Bloom” movement, which allows residents to band together to create gardens outside their residences or schools.
If you haven’t heard of it, and are interested in getting your hands dirty, you can check out NParks’ CIB site for tips and other pieces of information.
There’s even a YouTube channel where you can get gardening ideas:
