A deadly outbreak of listeria in six states has been linked to contaminated deli meat and cheese, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has announced. But what can you do reduce your risk of becoming infected? What to know Listeria is a hardy germ, so determined to stick around that it can continue to grow while refrigerated, which even fellow bacterial villains salmonella and E. coli cannot do. In the United States, listeria is the third leading cause of death from foodborne illness, killing about 260 a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Even with adequate antibiotic treatment, the disease has a high mortality rate” of 20% to 30%, the US Food and Drug Administration said. Pregnant people are about 10 times more likely to become sick from listeria, and the illness can be fatal to the fetus. Pregnant Hispanics are at highest risk, likely due to eating traditional soft cheeses such as queso fresco and other foods made with milk that is unpasteurized, the FDA said. Foods made with raw milk are 50 to 160 times more likely to contain listeria, the agency said. Adults and children with healthy immune systems may simply develop a mild or unpleasant illness that will not require hospitalization or antibiotics. However, anyone immunocompromised, such as older adults, organ transplant patents, those with cancer or kidney disease, diabetes or people with HIV/AIDS, can become seriously ill and die. The latest outbreak, which caused a pregnancy loss and the death of an adult in Maryland, has been linked to the sale of deli meats and cheeses. To date, 16 people have been infected, and 13 have been hospitalized, but “the true number of sick people in this outbreak is likely higher than the number reported, and the outbreak may not be limited to the states with known illnesses,” the CDC said Wednesday. Deli meat and hot dogs were a common source of listeria outbreaks in the 1990s, according to the CDC, likely because of the difficulty in cleaning the resistant bacteria from every nook and cranny in deli food preparation devices. However, listeria outbreaks have been linked to cantaloupe, celery, ice cream, leafy greens such as spinach, soft cheeses and sprouts, the agency said. How to protect yourself Keep the kitchen clean: Clean your refrigerator regularly with hot water and liquid soap. Prepare meats and vegetables separately and be sure to sanitize food preparation areas, the CDC said. Keep the fridge cool: Because listeria can easily grow in cool temperatures, keep your refrigerator at 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius) or lower. The freezer should be at zero Fahrenheit (minus 18 degrees Celsius) or lower. Raw milk: Eating foods made from raw milk is “one of the riskiest” ways to become infected with listeria and other harmful germs, the CDC said. Soft cheese: If you are pregnant or at high risk, don’t eat soft cheeses, “such as queso fresco, queso blanco, panela (queso panela), brie, Camembert, blue-veined, or feta, unless it is labeled as made with pasteurized milk,” the CDC said. However, know that some soft cheeses have been contaminated during cheese making, the agency said. Sprouts: You can’t just rinse bacteria off alfalfa, clover, radish, mung bean or any type of sprout, the CDC said. High-risk individuals should not eat raw or even lightly cooked sprouts. Always thoroughly heat sprouts first — even homegrown versions can harbor bacteria, the CDC said. When eating out, be sure to ask that no raw spouts be added to your food. Leafy greens: Certain leafy greens such as kale, spinach, lettuces and wild rocket grow lower to the ground and are more likely to become contaminated by listeria in the soil. Always thoroughly wash any greens to be safe, the CDC said. Use these steps: Wash up for 20 seconds with soapy water both before and after handling any leafy greens. Don’t soak greens in the sink — that just spreads any bacteria on one leaf to all the leaves. Remove any torn, bruised or outer leaves. Under running water, scrub each leaf gently and then dry the leaves with a clean cloth. Melons: Melons are another source of listeria infection. Eat cut melon right away and throw away any unrefrigerated for four or more hours, the CDC said. Refrigerate cut melons at 41 F (5 C) or colder for no more than seven days. Deli meats and hot dogs: If you are pregnant or at high risk, don’t eat cold cuts such as bologna, hot dogs, lunch meats, fermented or dry sausages or any other deli meats unless they are heated to steaming hot (165 F or 74 C) just before serving, the agency said. “Do not eat refrigerated pâté or meat spreads from a deli or meat counter or from the refrigerated section of a store,” the CDC said. “Meat spreads and pâté that do not need refrigeration before opening, such as products in cans, jars, or sealed pouches, are a safer choice. Refrigerate these foods after opening.” Anyone eating these foods at home should be careful not to allow juice from hot dog and lunch meat packages to get on other foods or food preparation surfaces, plates and utensils. Always carefully wash your hands after touching any type of hot dog, lunch or deli meat, the agency said. Be aware of how long you store such foods in your home. Factory-sealed unopened packages of hot dogs, lunch and deli meats should be thrown away after two weeks in the fridge, the CDC said. Toss opened packages of deli meats or any sliced by a deli after three to five days, and hot dogs after one week. Cold smoked fish: Don’t eat cold smoked fish “unless it is canned or shelf-stable or it is in a cooked dish, such as a casserole” if you are at high risk, the CDC said. Shelf-stable foods, such as canned tuna, sardines and salmon, will not increase the risk of listeria. But not all canned foods are shelf-stable, the CDC said. “Some canned foods are labeled ‘Keep Refrigerated.’ Examples of such items include cold smoked fish, such as salmon, trout, whitefish, cod, tuna, and mackerel,” the CDC said. “Cold smoked fish items are often labeled as ‘nova-style,’ ‘lox,’ ‘kippered,’ ‘smoked,’ or ‘jerky’ and typically found at seafood or deli counters of grocery stores and delicatessens.” Source: CNN News

Twitter appears to be battling a wave of celebrity and corporate impersonators on its platform who have quickly gamed the company’s new paid verification system, hours after its launch. CNN has confirmed multiple verified Twitter accounts have been suspended by the platform after other users posted screenshots showing misleading content from the accounts. The fake verified accounts had posed as former President Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, Nintendo of America, the basketball player LeBron James, the software company Valve and others. Before being suspended, the impostor Nintendo account tweeted an image of the video game character Mario giving the viewer the middle finger. The LeBron James account falsely claimed the athlete had requested a trade. The fake Trump account tweeted, “This is why Elon Musk’s plan doesn’t work.” Multiple Twitter users on Wednesday reported having easily created verified impostor accounts, though CNN was unable to independently confirm their responsibility in all cases. CNN did speak to the user behind the fake Trump account, Brian Whelan, whose Twitter bio and LinkedIn identify him as head of video and social at London-based Times Radio. On Twitter, Whelan claimed he created a fake Trump account “within two beers” and after spending £6, and tweeted a screenshot of the fake account attempting — but failing — to follow former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton after the fake account had been suspended. In an interview with CNN, Whelan said he managed to impersonate Trump by repurposing an old, spare account. He purchased Twitter Blue for the old account using a prepaid card tied to his real name, and “immediately [had] a fake Trump with a blue tick for two hours.” Rachel Tobac, a cybersecurity expert, noted the trend and said it could quickly spread to bad actors impersonating first responders or other government accounts. “This verification roll out is causing huge trust issues across the platform already,” Tobac tweeted. New Twitter owner Elon Musk has said the feature is aimed at raising spammers’ costs, and that accounts abusing the new verification system to impersonate others would be permanently banned, despite his earlier promises that such bans would be “extremely rare” under his ownership of the platform. The wave of impersonations comes as Twitter enabled the ability for any user to purchase a blue check mark for their profiles without providing identity verification — a feature that information security experts warned would lead to widespread fakes and deceptive behavior. Musk argued during a Twitter Spaces event with advertisers Wednesday that even wealthy bad actors such as state-sponsored disinformation agents would eventually be deterred because they may run out of credit card and phone numbers. Asked by CNN to respond to that claim, Chris Krebs, the former director of the US government’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, tweeted a GIF from the cartoon “Futurama” showing the character Fry narrowing his eyes in skepticism. Source: CNN News

Hurricane Nicole has made landfall on Florida’s Atlantic coast just south of Vero Beach as a Category 1 hurricane early Thursday morning, according to the National Hurricane Center, sending rising ocean water onshore and lashing the state with damaging winds and heavy rainfall. The hurricane -- packing maximum sustained winds of up to 75 mph -- has arrived in the Sunshine State as some cities are still recovering from Hurricane Ian, which hit Florida as a Category 4 storm just weeks ago. Nicole is the first hurricane to make landfall in the US in November in nearly 40 years. The last hurricane to do so was Hurricane Kate in 1985. The storm system should weaken to a depression early Friday and become a post-tropical cyclone over the Southeast. Source: CNN News

As the Australian town of Shepparton picks up the pieces after weeks of heavy rain and floods, Pacific Islands seasonal workers have also been caught in the disaster. Simon Mack, a Papua New Guinea labour contractor in Shepparton said many seasonal workers are still living in evacuation centres. With farms flooded and no work, Mr Mack said many will not be able to pay rent when they leave emergency housing. Source: ABC Pacific

Democrat Maxwell Frost will be the first member of Generation Z elected to Congress, CNN projects, winning the open seat for Florida’s 10th Congressional District. Generation Z refers to those born after 1996. Frost will succeed Democrat Val Demings, who vacated the seat to run for Senate. The 25-year-old representative-elect told CNN’s Poppy Harlow on Wednesday that when President Joe Biden called to congratulate him, the President recalled being too young to be sworn in as a senator when he was first elected at age 29. “He asked me if it was the same situation. I said, ‘No, Mr. President, you had me beat on that. I’m already old enough to be sworn in on January 3.’ So, it was great to talk with him. You know, he was elected at a very young age, too, so he understands that experience,” Frost said on “CNN This Morning.” Frost, who made reducing gun violence a central part of his campaign, also told CNN that he will work to pass universal background checks in Washington. Source: CNN News

With support from UNICEF, the National Department of Health (NDOH) is holding a training on the Integration of Social and Behaviour Change in Health Promotion Strategies in Port Moresby between 1-11 November. The four-day training programme aims to equip health promotion and communication professionals with the requisite knowledge to design, implement, monitor, and measure the outcomes of effective and creative interventions and materials based on evidence and analysis. During this week’s inauguration ceremony, Acting Deputy Secretary for Public Health Services, Mr. Ken Wai calls for commitment and support of the health workforce, to appreciate the National Government’s new paradigm shift, to bring health services back to the people, where they are, throughout the vast communities of the country. Mr. Wai, also challenges the participants to make a difference in the provinces to transform this nation and take back health for the people. “It will take time to change the behaviors and attitudes of our people to make informed decisions and take responsibility of their health. But it can be done!” says Mr. Wai. “I thank NDOH and UNICEF for this excellent initiative because prevention is better than cure. Let’s apply the science of behaviour change to our healthcare interventions to make our beautiful country a healthier place for our communities”, adds Mr Wai. The training, conducted in two batches, brings together 55 health promotion coordinators and communication specialists from 22 provinces and civil society organizations, including Save The Children, Touching the Untouchables, World Vision, FHi360, The Catholic Church Health Services, Child Fund and Christian Health Services. “This is essential training, to introduce the concept of social and behaviour change and I believe, it will have a great impact on the effectiveness of our health promotion interventions needed to better public health in our country,” says Mr. Judah Iparam, Acting Manager for Health Promotion, National Department of Health. “UNICEF is committed to support the National Department of Health in strengthening the capacity of government and CSO partners health promotion staff in PNG to improve consistent design and implementation of viable social and behaviour change strategies at the national and subnational levels.” says Ban Al-Dhayi, Social & Behaviour Change Manager in UNICEF.

29 Electrical professionals sat for their 2 day Electrical examinations starting today in Kavieng, at the Niu Lodge. New Ireland was chosen as the first province to host a regional examination for the Electrical Licensing examination under the recently established National Energy Authority. The subjects examined are “Theory of Applied Electricity” and “PNG Wiring Rules.” The Electrical professionals work in the resource sector including at Lihir, Simberi, Poliamba and other private contractors. 2 working with PNG Power flew in from Port Moresby. Out of the 29 sitting for the exams 3 are females. “ We will continue to conduct these examinations throughout the other regions of the country. It is of great importance that we have well equipped and certified professionals carrying out electrical installations in the energy sector. Whether its using fossil fuel or renewable energy like Solar power to create electricity we have to be on par with the rest of the world,” said Mr Maketa. Acting Managing Director of NEA Ronald Meketa said the Energy sector and Electricity Industry in Papua New Guinea is coming under stricter regulation after the National Government set up the National Energy Authority in July, 2021. “This means power generating firms and plants will have to adhere to industry best practices and technical standards when setting up operations. Professionals in the electrical sector will also have to be certified or have a license to be able to carry out installation work in PNG.” Mr Meketa said applicants who sat for the exam had to pass a number of criteria’s which included being above 19 years of age, have completed an apprenticeship program, be a holder of an Electrical Trade Certificate, an Electrical Engineering graduate and must possess at least a minimum of five years of work experience. “The electrical Licenses are recognized internationally and have to be renewed after every seven years. While all overseas electrical professionals will also be required to  show the same certification when trying to work in Papua New Guinea. ” The NEA is also striving to get more independent power suppliers on board to help solve the issue of constant power outages which PNG Power has failed to manage. “For better management of Power distribution we have to have separate power producers and distributers. Unfortunately PNG Power has failed because it is doing everything and cannot manage the work load. NEA is on the path to rectify this issue by engaging a wider stakeholder approach which involves Provincial Governments and District Development Authorities too ,” said Mr Meketa. The New Ireland Government and its administration welcomed the hosting of the regional examinations in Kavieng stating that such examinations would ensure that higher standards in safety and quality of work was adhered to when carrying out Electrical installations.  

England and Samoa will face off for the second time this World Cup on Sunday (AEDT), but there's much more at stake for the winner of the semi-final showdown than there was when the two sides met back in the opening fixture of the tournament last month. On that day, it was England who ran riot against an injury-hit and out-of-form Samoa, emerging with a stunning 60-6 over the Pacific powerhouse in Newcastle. Since then, Shaun Wane's side have staked their credentials as one of the teams to beat at the World Cup, brushing aside their group stage games before piling on the points against Papua New Guinea in their quarterfinal match-up. Ahead of their semi-final, England have now won their last four games by an average margin of 52 points; the only time they’ve won more successive games at the World Cup was an eight-game streak from September 1975 to October 1995. Much has changed for Samoa, however, since their sluggish start to the tournament, with Matt Parish's side bouncing back to form against France and Greece before holding on for a thrilling two-point win over Tonga in the quarterfinal. Having won their last three Test matches, Samoa head into their semi-final on their joint longest winning run since a 15-game streak from October 1990 to November 1994, and will certainly fancy their chances at springing an upset on the day. Source: NRL.Com

Following the official opening of the UN Climate Change, Conference of Parties (COP27) this week in Egypt, Papua New Guinea presented a resounding statement on behalf of the Coalition for Rainforest Nations (CFRN) at the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) session of the COP. Also being the chair of the CFRN, PNG has called for the need for Parties, both developing and developed countries to align their commitments in their current Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). NDCs are climate action plans by parties to the Paris Agreement to cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and adapt to climate impacts. PNG’s Climate Special Envoy Ruel Yamuna who delivered the statement on behalf of the CFRN expressed that the NDC Synthesis Report and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Gap report, both highlight that current NDCs are not aligned with emissions pathways to achieve the Paris Agreement of keeping global temperature below 1.5 degrees Celsius. “We must take stock of that reality now”, said Mr. Yamuna. In encouraging Parties to consider this, Mr. Yamuna also highlighted crucial climate change mitigation actions as recommended by CFRN going forward in forestry, land-use and related sectors. “The forest and land-use sectors have huge mitigation potential, particularly in developing countries, and are essential in all 1.5 Degree Celsius pathway. “The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Report highlights that the (Agriculture, Forestry and Land-Use) AFOLU sectors can provide 20-30% of the global mitigation under the 1.5 degrees Celsius pathway. “We strongly request that developed countries also apply the same national level guidance on any forest related activity in their territories to ensure fairness and balance. It would be inequitable that developing countries are held to a high standard than developed”, said Mr. Yamuna. Mr. Yamuna added that rainforest nations have already delivered more than 9 giga tones of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions through Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) mechanism. He however said, so far, developing countries have carried that economic burden mostly alone. Mr. Yamuna stressed that Parties must strongly encourage a significant scale up of public and private finance for REDD+, particularly for corporations towards net-zero emissions. “Developing countries cannot be expected to solve a problem they did not cause without finance to implement the Paris Agreement”, said Mr. Yamuna

We are going to be strict on Digicel Cup players taking part in the Lae Biscuit sponsored Snax 9s rugby League tournament. And only six current Digicel Cup players are allowed per team with only two to take the field at anyone time. Snax 9s Tournament Director Steven Malum stressed today to teams participating as the required number of teams to participate in the 2022 tournament reaches the ceiling. Malum said within just two weeks of officially announcing the return of the Snax 9s, they have been bombarded with overwhelming interest and can now confirm that as planned to stage this tournament with 24 teams, the required number his achieved. ‘’24 teams have already paid in their registration for the tournament as of today,’’ Malum said.

Officers from Climate Change and Development Authority (CCDA) commemorated the World Mangrove Day by taking part in planting 5000 Mangrove seedlings at Dogura Beach in Port Moresby on Wednesday, (Nov 9th, 2022). The Mangrove planting event was hosted by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and supported by key partners. Jacinta Kull from CCDA during the event acknowledged TNC for the initiative in organizing such event. “We are happy to be here to represent Government in terms of Climate Change and what we are doing here in PNG. Basically, one of our areas of support is in the REDD+, that is reducing emission from deforestation and degradation. We mainly deal with the policies, to have those right polices in place by the government to enable the implementation,” she said. Mangrove is good for both Adaption and Mitigation. For Adaption it is recommend for coastal areas because it is less cost. It’s the least cost Method for costal protection for developing countries like Papua New Guinea. Other methods for coastal protection like stone walling and others are expensive. For mitigation, Mangroves absorb Carbon Dioxide faster than the trees in the forest. The Nature Conservancy Country Director Jacqueline Nen said this event was supposed to happen sometime in July but because of elections and other reasons it was pushed back. “Our plan is to plant 20,000 Mangrove seedlings over the next 2 years. By the end of 2 years, we will have planted 20 000 Mangroves, so today you are all here to help us and help the community to plant the 5000 Mangroves. This is not something that is impossible to achieve. If we can all do this every year, we can make it a bigger program,” she said. “I want to acknowledge communities here in Dogura because they have taken ownership of the rehabilitation of the Mangrove. It has really been their project we are just supporting them,” Ms. Nen said.

Australia's 10-8 win over New Zealand in the final Women's Rugby League World Cup pool match means Australia top their pool and will play us in the semi-final on Monday 14 November at 5pm UK time (Tuesday 15 November at 3am PNG time) in York. [caption id="attachment_30099" align="alignnone" width="768"] PC: RLWC[/caption] Let's do this! Credit: Santos PNG Orchids