Organic Certification is now available by a Bulgarian company

Balkan Biocert LTD was registered in January 2003 and has conducted the first inspections in Bulgaria. BALKAN BIOCERT Ltd, a private shareholder company which is fully owned by Bulgarian shareholders, offers inspection and certification services for organic production, processing and trade in Bulgaria and its neighbouring countries. Certification is done in accordance with Bulgarian legislation as well as EU-Regulation. BALKAN BIOCERT technically collaborates with the reputed Swiss Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), which has been active in Bulgaria for several years, and with IMO (Institute for Market Ecology), a certification body based in Switzerland that is well-recognised internationally

Organic or mineral fertilization

To meet Swedish environmental goals organic farming will play an important role in the development of a sustainable and high quality food production system. However, several conflicts exist, such as the achievement of high yields without the use of chemical fertilizers or pesticides and the minimization of nutrient losses. In this thesis the effect of organic fertilizers compared to mineral fertilizers on plant product quality was investigated. Tomato yield and quality aspects such as taste and chemical composition were measured. Three greenhouse experiments were performed at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Uppsala during 2002 and 2004. Organic fertilizers, based on chicken manure or fresh grass clover mulch, were compared to mineral fertilizer nutrient solutions with ammonium or nitrate as the dominant nitrogen source. In both years yields from the mineral fertilized tomato plants were higher than from the organic fertilized ones. However, plant nitrogen status was similar for all treatments and the limiting nutrient in the organic grass-mulch treatment appeared to be sulphur, as the addition of mineral sulphur increased the yield. The effects on quality appeared to be more complex. While taste test scores and vitamin C contents in 2002 were highest in the organic or ammonium-fertilized tomatoes and lowest in the nitrate-fertilized tomatoes, in 2004 the results were contrary. Taste is a complex quality aspect, affected by sugars, acids and other secondary compounds (aromatic flavour compounds), which apart from nutrient supply are affected by environmental conditions as sunlight and temperature that are beyond the grower’s control. It was concluded that organic or mineral fertilizers are not the major factors affecting yield and product quality. A balanced nutrient supply is important for yield and quality, irrespective nutrient source. A combination of organic and mineral fertilizers should be considered in order to achieve a resource saving and balanced nutrient supply and a high quality tomato yield

Bulgaria. A relatively short organic history

Organic agriculture in Bulgaria has a relatively short history. The concept of organic agriculture was only introduced after the fall of the communist regime in 1990, when the process of land restitution started. Below is an account of developments over the following thirteen years and a report on the current status of organic agriculture in the country

Developing a Local Clay Body: Augusta County, Virginia

Several samples of raw clay from Augusta County, Virginia were analyzed, and one was chosen to develop into a clay body that could successfully be thrown on the wheel, fired, and made into functional ware. The characteristics of plasticity, strength, absorption, and glaze effects were important when deciding what materials to add to the raw clay samples. Issues included low plasticity when throwing, cracking while drying, warping when firing, and pinholing in the glaze fire. A recipe was developed that worked well for the chosen clay, found in a roadside in Craigsville, Virginia

Gaining Trust in Emerging markets in South East Europe

Lessons learnt Starting a project in Organic agriculture mobilizes: - New dynamics on all levels - Networks of organic stakeholders - Awareness creation for other agricultural methods Limited predictability of processes - Difficult to plan - Strongly influenced by a few individuals and the frame conditions (legal, economic, etc.) Organisational development is very important: - Often underestimated (in time, difficulty, importance) - Lacking experience in civil societies and democratic structures - Burden of Comunistic history - Dominated by a few individuals (positive or negative) - Professional support available (welcomed) - Significant impact on general mind set of people - Giving chances to motivated and open people Multistakeholder approach is worth the effort: - Wider acceptance - Efficient use of local knowledge and experience - Supports and network developmen

Professional translators’ self-concepts and directionality : indications from translation process research

Translation into a second language (also called inverse translation or L2 translation) is a widespread professional practice in many language communities. However, it is still fraught with prejudice and believed to result in work of low quality, and is therefore widely under-researched. This paper investigates whether the self-concepts of professional L2 translators differ from those of professional L1 translators. The translator’s self-concept, which can loosely be defined as the self-perception of professional roles and responsibilities, is a key aspect in certain well-known cognitive models of translation competence. The present article reports on a study of a group of bidirectional translators and a group of unidirectional translators whose self-concepts are investigated by means of retrospective verbal protocols. Results suggest that there are no substantial differences in the self-concepts of the two groups

Changes in the prevalence of overweight and obesity: some evidence from the Swiss Health Surveys 1992/93 and 2002

Background: This study examines changes in the prevalence of overweight and obesity in the Swiss general population from 1992/93 to 2002 and their relationship with changes in the distribution and effect of socioeconomic and health behavioural risk factors. Methods: Cross-sectional data from telephone interviews of the non-institutionalized Swiss population aged 19 years and more were obtained from the Swiss Health Study 1992/93 (n = 13798) and 2002 (n = 17677). Binary logistic regression was used to address changes in overweight and obesity, defined as body mass index 25.0 kg/m2 or more. The expected prevalence of overweight and obesity under adjusted models was computed to demonstrate the influence of changes in risk factors. Results: The prevalence of overweight and obesity rose from 22.8% in 1992/93 to 30.9% in 2002 among women and from 41.1% to 48.1% among men. In international comparison, the increase in the overall prevalence of overweight and obesity in Switzerland was lower. Contrary to similar studies from other countries, the increase in prevalence was lower among men than that among women, possibly because of an increased protective effect of the observed health behavioural factors among men and unobserved behavioural factors among middle-aged men. Conclusion: Public health action should consider the potential of changing health behavioural factors in subgroups with a higher prevalence of overweight and obesity. Measures that stimulate, for instance, light physical activity or healthy diet, to be supported by changes in the obesogenic environment, should be encouraged. More evidence is needed for gender-specific approache

Cornesti-Iarcuri - a Bronze Age town in the Romanian Banat?

©2011 Antiquity PublicationsA massive Late Bronze Age fortified settlement in Central Europe has been the subject of a new and exemplary investigation by excavation and site survey. This prehistoric enclosure, nearly 6km across, had a complex development, dense occupation and signs of destruction by fire. It can hardly be other than a capital city playing a role in the determinant struggles of its day — weighty and far reaching events of the European continent now being chronicled by archaeology.Funding for the project has been provided by the Fritz-Thyssen-Stiftung, K¨oln, the County Council of Timis¸ and the Muzeul Banatului Timis¸oara