Latest news with #Igor
The Star
13-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Bracing for a cheese clash
Leonardi at Igor's production facility in Cameri, Italy, outside of Milan. — Matteo de Mayda/The New York Times ITALIAN food producers have long fretted over competition from American brands that are made to look, and sound, as if they are from Italy. Some carry Italian flags and Tuscan-looking landscapes on their labels; others have (sometimes made-up) Italian-sounding names.
New York Post
06-05-2025
- Health
- New York Post
This household appliance may be a breeding ground for superbacteria — and cleaning agents can make it worse
Talk about a dirty little secret. One everyday appliance — a staple of domestic hygiene — may actually be harboring microscopic nasties that no amount of disinfectant can scrub away. 3 This staple of domestic hygiene could be harboring harmful bacteria, a new study says. magdal3na – Advertisement While you might be eyeballing your toilet or your trash can, a new study says it's actually your washing machine that could be teeming with antibiotic-resistant superbugs — and, shockingly, using detergent may only be making them stronger. Published in the journal PLOS ONE, the study tested several machines and found that — even when set to hot — half of home washing machines don't achieve high enough temperatures to effectively kill bacteria. Advertisement Even worse, common cleaning chemicals such as bleach-based disinfectants and antibacterial detergents may actually tip the evolutionary scales in the bacteria's favor by eliminating weaker microbes while letting the resilient ones multiply. While hospitals have long known the risk of cross-contamination through laundry, this new research highlights how the average home washer may be quietly cultivating a similar microbial threat. And with cold or eco-friendly cycles on the rise, many households are inadvertently making things worse, as most bugs can survive washes under 140 degrees Fahrenheit. This isn't the first time sickening superbugs in washing machines have made headlines. Advertisement 3 Detergent might actually be by eliminating weaker microbes while letting the resilient ones multiply. phurinee – In 2019, harmful pathogens were discovered in the knitted caps and socks used to keep babies warm in the ICU — the bacteria was traced back to the German hospital's energy-saving washing machines. At the time, researchers said this had 'implications for household use of washers' as 'resistance genes, as well as different microorganisms, can persist in domestic washing machines at those reduced temperatures.' More recently, content creator @thatcleanhome shocked her followers by revealing just how gross her washing machine turned out to be when she put it through an empty self-cleaning cycle. Advertisement 3 Researchers recommend cleaning your washing machine regularly and getting it replaced every four years. Igor – To mitigate the risks, the researchers of this new study advise shooting for temperatures above 158 degrees Fahrenheit — especially if you're washing clothing that is likely to be heavily soiled or bacteria-laden, such as the hospital clothing worn by healthcare workers. They also recommend cleaning your washing machine regularly and getting it replaced every four years. If possible, you might want to steer clear of doing your laundry at home altogether and opt for professional laundry cleaning services instead, they said.
New York Times
18-04-2025
- Business
- New York Times
A Shadow Hanging Over Europe: ‘A Taste of Italy' Made in New Jersey
Italian food producers have long fretted over competition from American brands that are made to look, and sound, as if they are from Italy. Some carry Italian flags and Tuscan-looking landscapes on their labels; others have (sometimes made-up) Italian-sounding names. But since President Trump began his tariff war with Europe, those concerns have become outright alarm. American competitors could gain an unfair advantage in U.S. supermarkets, the Italians say, turning crumbled Gorgonzola cheese made in the Midwest into a new threat. 'They could take over,' said Fabio Leonardi, the chief executive of Igor, an Italian Gorgonzola producer in Novara, west of Milan. 'Authentic Italian products could be replaced with Italian-sounding products from Wisconsin.' That, according to one American, would be a culinary travesty. 'I will not go back to the green shaker of unrefrigerated dust that America calls Parm, has the balls to call Parm,' Stephen Colbert said on 'The Late Show' this month. 'I am not interested in eating eggplant à la dandruff.' Italy exports nearly $9 billion worth of foodstuffs to the United States, with Parmigiano-Reggiano, Gorgonzola, Prosecco and olive oil filling American kitchen cabinets and restaurant menus. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Ukrainian refugees give back to 'second home' centre
Almost 220,000 Ukrainian refugees arrived in the UK up to December 2024 through two dedicated schemes set up after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with 17% of them initially arriving in London. Among them was Igor, a children's fiction writer from Kyiv, who recalled how lost he felt when he first arrived in the capital. "Imagine, you move to London, with one bag and no knowledge of English. It was incredibly difficult," he said, but added since he set foot in the Ukrainian Welcome Centre in central London he "didn't want to go anywhere else". The charity has helped thousands of Ukrainians forge new lives in the UK from its base in the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral just off Bond Street. The centre has provided a lifeline and sanctuary for many Ukrainian refugees, not just Igor, providing immediate support as they navigated Biometric Residence Permits, GPs and school curriculums. Run by volunteers and supported entirely by donations - including English textbooks, computers, and even a kiln for clay sculpting classes - the centre was operational within weeks of the full-scale invasion. After benefitting from immigration advice and English language classes Igor has become a volunteer himself, leading children's sessions and the centre's "Ukrainian gatherings", where the community come together to discuss both Ukrainian and British history and culture. For Igor, "the centre is a second home - or now, perhaps even my first". "This isn't just a centre, it's a family," he said. Inna, another centre user turned volunteer, described her awe at the breadth of support available. With such a vast network "everything can be resolved" and nobody is turned away, she said. As a receptionist for the centre, she has helped those who arrive "wide-eyed" and "confused" as she once was. Becoming a volunteer, she said, had boosted her self-esteem and allowed her to give back to the place she could not imagine surviving without. Centre co-founder Bishop Kenneth Nowakowski, a fifth-generation Ukrainian-Canadian from the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral, said he still remembered the early hours of 24 February 2022 "as if it was this morning". He said after he woke up in the early hours to a flood of phone notifications, he "thought somebody was sending me some kind of fake news that Ukraine is being invaded". It was only when he turned on BBC News and saw bombs falling on Kyiv that his disbelief quickly turned into action. The Ukrainian community gathered in his cathedral, where the idea for the centre was mapped out among the pews. Together with the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain, the cathedral transformed its basement into a one-stop facility providing virtual and online services to Ukrainians arriving in the UK. Since then it has welcomed thousands including King Charles, who officially opened the centre in November 2022 during a visit with Ukraine's First Lady, Olena Zelenska. Andriy Marchenko, the centre's director, said it "started from scratch" and they "scarcely knew anything" but have now successfully helped people to "thrive, not just survive". 'We won't forget the support but we long for home' Sick refugee grandad 'forced to sleep on floor' 'Life as we knew it ended when Russia invaded' Teachers have come out of retirement to provide English language classes, Ukrainian-speaking lawyers and counsellors offer vital legal and mental health support, and until recently the Home Office visited the facility every fortnight, providing direct access to immigration advice. But for every practical service there are just as many creative and wellbeing classes, from knitting and line dancing to "Tea and Talk" afternoons. In the three years since the full-scale invasion, the refugees' needs have changed. Those who once needed urgent help with visas now seek advice on careers and polish their English in advanced classes as their lives in the UK become less temporary with every year the war goes on. Bishop Kenneth has acknowledged the warm welcome Ukrainians have received from the centre and he calls the UK "a double-edged sword" as many of those he meets express both deep gratitude alongside a longing to return home. "The longer people remain here - children are going to school, people are planning their careers, their lives - it becomes more and more unlikely that they will be able to go back to Ukraine," said Bishop Kenneth. Having recently been to eastern Ukraine, he paints a stark picture of what little is left. "All of the schools, all of the houses, the hospitals, the infrastructure is so badly damaged. What can they go back to?" Mr Marchenko also said he never anticipated the centre would still be needed today. He remembered how he was told in 2022 to stay strong because "the war might go on for six months". "If we had this conversation two years ago, I would have bluntly said that I'm looking forward to losing my job, that the centre closed down because the war ended. Unfortunately, this is not the case," he added. As the war goes on through its fourth year, Bishop Kenneth noted the bittersweet fact that "Zaporizhzhia, Kyiv and Lviv flow off everybody's tongue as if they were Manchester, Coventry and Bolton. Nobody has to show you on the map where Ukraine is". Cross-hatched lines on that map continue to shift as different colours chart Ukrainian and Russian advances on the battlefield, while miles away, those at the Ukrainian Welcome Centre continue to put the kettle on and open the doors wide. Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to Ukrainians lose out on jobs and homes over visa uncertainty Hundreds attend Ukraine peace rally in London Ukrainian Welcome Centre - About Us - UK visa support for Ukrainian nationals
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Ukrainian refugees give back to 'second home' centre
Almost 220,000 Ukrainian refugees arrived in the UK up to December 2024 through two dedicated schemes set up after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with 17% of them initially arriving in London. Among them was Igor, a children's fiction writer from Kyiv, who recalled how lost he felt when he first arrived in the capital. "Imagine, you move to London, with one bag and no knowledge of English. It was incredibly difficult," he said, but added since he set foot in the Ukrainian Welcome Centre in central London he "didn't want to go anywhere else". The charity has helped thousands of Ukrainians forge new lives in the UK from its base in the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral just off Bond Street. The centre has provided a lifeline and sanctuary for many Ukrainian refugees, not just Igor, providing immediate support as they navigated Biometric Residence Permits, GPs and school curriculums. Run by volunteers and supported entirely by donations - including English textbooks, computers, and even a kiln for clay sculpting classes - the centre was operational within weeks of the full-scale invasion. After benefitting from immigration advice and English language classes Igor has become a volunteer himself, leading children's sessions and the centre's "Ukrainian gatherings", where the community come together to discuss both Ukrainian and British history and culture. For Igor, "the centre is a second home - or now, perhaps even my first". "This isn't just a centre, it's a family," he said. Inna, another centre user turned volunteer, described her awe at the breadth of support available. With such a vast network "everything can be resolved" and nobody is turned away, she said. As a receptionist for the centre, she has helped those who arrive "wide-eyed" and "confused" as she once was. Becoming a volunteer, she said, had boosted her self-esteem and allowed her to give back to the place she could not imagine surviving without. Centre co-founder Bishop Kenneth Nowakowski, a fifth-generation Ukrainian-Canadian from the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral, said he still remembered the early hours of 24 February 2022 "as if it was this morning". He said after he woke up in the early hours to a flood of phone notifications, he "thought somebody was sending me some kind of fake news that Ukraine is being invaded". It was only when he turned on BBC News and saw bombs falling on Kyiv that his disbelief quickly turned into action. The Ukrainian community gathered in his cathedral, where the idea for the centre was mapped out among the pews. Together with the Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain, the cathedral transformed its basement into a one-stop facility providing virtual and online services to Ukrainians arriving in the UK. Since then it has welcomed thousands including King Charles, who officially opened the centre in November 2022 during a visit with Ukraine's First Lady, Olena Zelenska. Andriy Marchenko, the centre's director, said it "started from scratch" and they "scarcely knew anything" but have now successfully helped people to "thrive, not just survive". 'We won't forget the support but we long for home' Sick refugee grandad 'forced to sleep on floor' 'Life as we knew it ended when Russia invaded' Teachers have come out of retirement to provide English language classes, Ukrainian-speaking lawyers and counsellors offer vital legal and mental health support, and until recently the Home Office visited the facility every fortnight, providing direct access to immigration advice. But for every practical service there are just as many creative and wellbeing classes, from knitting and line dancing to "Tea and Talk" afternoons. In the three years since the full-scale invasion, the refugees' needs have changed. Those who once needed urgent help with visas now seek advice on careers and polish their English in advanced classes as their lives in the UK become less temporary with every year the war goes on. Bishop Kenneth has acknowledged the warm welcome Ukrainians have received from the centre and he calls the UK "a double-edged sword" as many of those he meets express both deep gratitude alongside a longing to return home. "The longer people remain here - children are going to school, people are planning their careers, their lives - it becomes more and more unlikely that they will be able to go back to Ukraine," said Bishop Kenneth. Having recently been to eastern Ukraine, he paints a stark picture of what little is left. "All of the schools, all of the houses, the hospitals, the infrastructure is so badly damaged. What can they go back to?" Mr Marchenko also said he never anticipated the centre would still be needed today. He remembered how he was told in 2022 to stay strong because "the war might go on for six months". "If we had this conversation two years ago, I would have bluntly said that I'm looking forward to losing my job, that the centre closed down because the war ended. Unfortunately, this is not the case," he added. As the war goes on through its fourth year, Bishop Kenneth noted the bittersweet fact that "Zaporizhzhia, Kyiv and Lviv flow off everybody's tongue as if they were Manchester, Coventry and Bolton. Nobody has to show you on the map where Ukraine is". Cross-hatched lines on that map continue to shift as different colours chart Ukrainian and Russian advances on the battlefield, while miles away, those at the Ukrainian Welcome Centre continue to put the kettle on and open the doors wide. Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to Ukrainians lose out on jobs and homes over visa uncertainty Hundreds attend Ukraine peace rally in London Ukrainian Welcome Centre - About Us - UK visa support for Ukrainian nationals
