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Hamilton Spectator
27-04-2025
- Health
- Hamilton Spectator
UPEI students turn Island spuds into potato soap
A group of student entrepreneurs from the University of Prince Edward Island is upcycling P.E.I. potatoes that were once considered wasteful and turning them into an environmentally friendly hygiene item. That product is Spuds2Suds potato soap and recently won the group an award at a competition in Halifax. In an interview with The Guardian on April 11, Maggie McNeil, co-president of Enactus UPEI, says the Spuds2Suds potato soap uses a type of essential oil called Sugar Plum, giving it fragrant notes consisting of vanilla and jasmine. 'We're looking into making different lines of scents and, hopefully, naming the scents after the farmers we get the potatoes from,' she said. There is an excess amount of P.E.I. potatoes after every harvest and season, McNeil said. 'Some of them, a lot of them don't even get harvested. They just have no purpose in the field,' she said. In research that the Enactus UPEI group conducted while coming up with the idea of Spuds2Suds potato soap, they discovered that approximately 300 million pounds of P.E.I. potatoes were unused per year as of 2022. The group also discovered that P.E.I. was responsible for producing approximately 20 per cent of the nation's potatoes – about 2.58 billion pounds per year. Further, the UPEI entrepreneurs co-ordinated with local Island food banks to see what people need most but the organizations often aren't getting. 'It was hygiene products,' McNeil said. 'Everybody was passionate about getting a solid project that addresses community and local issues,' she added. As McNeil and her group of entrepreneurs co-ordinate the ongoing project with local farmers, they first collect the potatoes that are yet to be harvested. 'And then we bring them back to our home base and juice the potatoes. We cut them up and juice them to extract liquid starch, which is the active ingredient in the soap. Once the process is complete, the team melts it down with their soap base, adding hydrating oils and essential oils for its scent. 'After it's all melted down into a liquid state, we put them in moulds. It takes about an hour to solidify. And then we chop them up into individual bars, and it kind of completes the process,' McNeil said. The Spuds2Suds potato soap is good for exfoliation, McNeil said. 'Potatoes are very high in natural minerals, and they're kind of a natural exfoliant because they have some acidic properties,' she said. The soap has collagen production properties, which is noteworthy for the customer's skin, McNeil added. 'They're organic. They're grown right from the ground in P.E.I., so it's not like (customers) have to go through any kind of preservatives or anything like that,' she said. Long before creating the Spuds2Suds project, the Enactus UPEI group wanted to grow the team and develop a project that could last for years after its members graduate, McNeil said. Last year, the group of UPEI entrepreneurs first launched the potato soap at the winter fair market on campus in December, she said. 'But, it took us around three months to come up with the idea, get everything, get our resources handled, get the team on board with it,' McNeil said. Balancing the life of an entrepreneur and a student is busy, she added. 'It's very gratifying because I realize that if I can do a full course load and also basically run a business on the side of it, it's like, what else can I do?' McNeil said. All of the work is definitely empowering, but the relationships the group gains along the way are probably the best part of it all, she added. In February, Enactus UPEI won top prizes for its project at a regional event in Halifax — a competition among educational institutions across the Atlantic provinces. The group was awarded first place in its league for the Canadian Tire environmental sustainability challenge and second place in the innovation and impact challenge. As a result, the group will compete at the 2024–2025 Enactus Canada National Exposition in Calgary, Alta., from May 6–8. In an interview with The Guardian on April 14, Veseys spokesperson Tara Matheson said the potato soaps sell fast. 'We're really proud to be able to support Island businesses because we really need to support each other, especially in this economy,' she said. As McNeil and another co-president of Enactus UPEI, Sam Harding, are graduating this year, their ultimate hope is that the project will continue. 'We hope that people stay engaged with Enactus because when we first started, it was just the two of us. We didn't have a project. We didn't have people. So we would hate to see it die off again,' McNeil said. 'There's so many different projects out there that are super inspiring,' she added. Yutaro Sasaki is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter, a position funded by the federal government. He can be reached at ysasaki@ .
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First Post
25-04-2025
- Automotive
- First Post
Canada's Carney says Trump raised '51st state' matter during March call
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney had skipped mentioning this detail after his call with Trump on March 28. He has reiterated that Canada will 'never' become part of the US. read more Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney looks on before delivering remarks during his Liberal Party election campaign tour at the University of Prince Edward Island in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada. Reuters Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has revealed that US President Donald Trump raised the matter of Canada becoming the 51st state during a call with him in March. According to a report by the Globe and Mail, Carney had skipped mentioning this detail after his call with Trump on March 28. 'The president brings this up all the time. He brought it up yesterday. He brought it up before,' the Canadian prime minister said during a press conference on Thursday. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The US President, on several occasions, has said that Canada should come under the ambit of the US and become its 51st state. Last month, Trump said he is serious about wanting Canada to become the 51st State in an interview with Fox News. 'I think Canada would be much better off being the 51st State because we lose $200 billion a year with Canada. And I'm not going to let that happen,' he said. Meanwhile, the new prime minister, Carney, has reiterated that Canada will 'never' become part of the US. 'To be clear, as I've said to anyone who's raised this issue in private or in public, including the president, it will never happen,' he said. 'Canada needs US more' Trump said Wednesday that Canada would 'cease to exist' if it weren't for the United States — comments that came just days before Canadians are set to vote in an election dominated by Trump's remarks on the country's economy and sovereignty. 'I have to be honest, as a state, it works great," the US president said. Trump also suggested Wednesday that he might increase import taxes on cars from Canada. Trump has a 25 per cent tariff on autos, although there are some exemptions related to the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade, and automakers are seeking other policy changes to minimise the tariff burden. Trump has separate 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods — ostensibly to address drug smuggling into the US. With inputs from agencies
CBC
15-04-2025
- Health
- CBC
New guidelines to treat childhood obesity send mixed messages, says UPEI prof
Social Sharing An associate professor and registered dietitian at the University of Prince Edward Island is calling new Canadian guidelines to treat childhood obesity problematic. "You're saying, on one hand, we don't want to stigmatize heavy weight, but then on the other, you're pulling out pretty big guns to try and attack this," said Sarah Hewko. "As a child, you're going to be like, 'OK, which one is it? Is it something I should feel ashamed of and deserve to be treated differently for? Or is it not?'" The guidelines were co-developed by Obesity Canada and published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal on Monday. It's the first time the guidelines have been updated in nearly 20 years. "The main kind of takeaways are that we shouldn't be focusing necessarily on specifically weight," said Ian Patton, the director of advocacy and public engagement at Obesity Canada. "The important things are the health outcomes — you know, quality of life." Why this doctor says BMI shouldn't be used to diagnose obesity 3 months ago Duration 9:00 'Pretty extreme' The recommendation includes not just physical, psychological and nutritional interventions, but also medical ones — for example, considering prescribing Ozempic or Mounjaro for children at least 12 years old and surgeries like gastric bypass for those 13 and older. "It's not saying that every one that is, you know, living with obesity or every kid that has obesity should be put on a medication. That is absolutely not what the guidelines state," said Patton. "But for some people, they are a valuable tool that could be very effective and could be life-altering." Hewko said the guidelines send mixed messages. She is happy to see components talking about weight stigma, but including "recommendations that you can use surgery and Ozempic or Manjaro in kids is stigmatizing," she believes. "That's a pretty extreme thing. I do have some fear around that." Hewko also has concerns about how P.E.I.'s health-care system might struggle to use the guidelines to address issues, given the long waits for family doctors and the demand for more pediatricians. Still, Patton is optimistic that the new guidelines will make a difference. He grew up living with obesity and believes these latest recommendations could have helped. "Just having the knowledge of, you know, 'How we can go about this?' can really, really have a positive impact on families as a whole," he said. "I was really, really ill at one point and I needed some pretty significant help. And I didn't, you know, didn't need to get that far."
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
New guidelines to treat childhood obesity send mixed messages, says UPEI prof
An associate professor and registered dietitian at the University of Prince Edward Island is calling new Canadian guidelines to treat childhood obesity problematic. "You're saying, on one hand, we don't want to stigmatize heavy weight, but then on the other, you're pulling out pretty big guns to try and attack this," said Sarah Hewko. "As a child, you're going to be like, 'OK, which one is it? Is it something I should feel ashamed of and deserve to be treated differently for? Or is it not?'" The guidelines were co-developed by Obesity Canada and published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal on Monday. It's the first time the guidelines have been updated in nearly 20 years. "The main kind of takeaways are that we shouldn't be focusing necessarily on specifically weight," said Ian Patton, the director of advocacy and public engagement at Obesity Canada. "The important things are the health outcomes — you know, quality of life." 'Pretty extreme' The recommendation includes not just physical, psychological and nutritional interventions, but also medical ones — for example, considering prescribing Ozempic or Mounjaro for children at least 12 years old and surgeries like gastric bypass for those 13 and older. "It's not saying that every one that is, you know, living with obesity or every kid that has obesity should be put on a medication. That is absolutely not what the guidelines state," said Patton. "But for some people, they are a valuable tool that could be very effective and could be life-altering." 'I completely agree with the components of the guideline that talk about weight stigma,' says Sarah Hewko. (Sheehan Desjardins/CBC News) Hewko said the guidelines send mixed messages. She is happy to see components talking about weight stigma, but including "recommendations that you can use surgery and Ozempic or Manjaro in kids is stigmatizing," she believes. "That's a pretty extreme thing. I do have some fear around that." Hewko also has concerns about how P.E.I.'s health-care system might struggle to use the guidelines to address issues, given the long waits for family doctors and the demand for more pediatricians. 'I know that [my parents] struggled with what to do because there wasn't options, there wasn't knowledge. It wasn't something we talked about,' says Ian Patton. (Submitted by Ian Patton) Still, Patton is optimistic that the new guidelines will make a difference. He grew up living with obesity and believes these latest recommendations could have helped. "Just having the knowledge of, you know, 'How we can go about this?' can really, really have a positive impact on families as a whole," he said. "I was really, really ill at one point and I needed some pretty significant help. And I didn't, you know, didn't need to get that far." While more research is still needed, Patton hopes the introduction of guidelines can change how people understand and think about obesity.
CBC
14-04-2025
- Politics
- CBC
I never thought Canada would face the threat my homeland did
This First Person article is the experience of Nino Antadze, an associate professor at the University of Prince Edward Island. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please see the FAQ. I was a PhD student at the University of Waterloo when Russia invaded my homeland — the small country of Georgia, which straddles southwestern Asia and Europe — in August 2008. Within days, Russian troops were less than 80 kilometres away from the capital Tbilisi, where my family lived. I called my parents and brother to persuade them to leave, but they refused. Thousands of kilometres away, I felt utterly powerless and desperate, unable to do anything amid the oncoming catastrophe. By this time, I had been in Canada for about a year. I was enjoying the intellectual excitement of graduate studies and the sunlit streets of Waterloo, Ont., thanks to a generous scholarship. Yet, the quiet, predictable surroundings of the university campus were in sharp contrast with the internal turmoil I was experiencing. Russia eventually retreated without taking over Tbilisi, but some areas remain occupied to this day. Last year, Russia's influence strengthened, and Georgia now has an administration increasingly aligned with Moscow following a disputed national election in October. The shadow of Russia's imperialism is long and dark, stretching across centuries and countries. For me, it is quite personal — three of my family members were victims of Stalin's Great Terror of 1937 to 1938, when more than one million citizens were arrested and convicted mostly for anti-Soviet activity. Two of my family members were executed and one disappeared in a labour camp somewhere in Siberia. When I was born, the Soviet Union was entering the last decade of its existence. Its last years in Georgia were marked by the night of April 9, 1989 when the Soviet army violently attacked a group of peaceful anti-Soviet protesters in front of the Parliament building in Tbilisi, leaving 20 people dead. Although I was a kid, I remember that day very well. There was mourning but also hope for an emerging independent country. The Soviet Union collapsed a few years later, in 1991, yet the road to freedom after 200 years of Russian and Soviet imperial rule would be long and painful. The anxiety that comes with the constant threat to your country has always been something I associated with that part of my life and that part of the world. Only after resettling in Canada did I appreciate what it meant to live in a country where you could plan your life without worrying about political and economic instability or an armed conflict. That's why reliving the familiar anxiety here in Canada was unexpected. Since Trump began referring to Canada as "the 51 st state" and our prime minister as "a governor," I have had a terrible, nauseating feeling of déjà vu. Canadians who are unfamiliar with Eastern European politics may not see the similarities between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. But my experience shows me that their playbooks are very similar. The start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine is marked on February 24, 2022 — the day Russian troops crossed the Ukrainian border. But the day I remember is two days earlier when Putin delivered a two-hour televised address in which he once again claimed that Ukraine was not really a country — that it was created by Russia and has never had a statehood of its own. What I heard was Putin voicing a pretext to justify military action just like he did before the annexation of Georgian territories, and I came to the chilling conclusion that the war in Ukraine was now inevitable. Every time Trump repeats his claims that the Canada-U.S. border is an "artificial line" or when Elon Musk tweeted that "Canada is not a real country" (a tweet he has since deleted), I can't help but recall Putin's terrifying speech. I see other narratives used by Putin to justify his war on Ukraine in Trump's rhetoric, too. Putin has claimed that those living on the territories targeted for takeover actually want to be part of a stronger, bigger country. In Canada's case, Trump has claimed that Canadians want to become a U.S. state. I also remember Russia imposing trade bans on Georgia's most lucrative exports — wine and mineral water — as tensions between the two countries escalated before the 2008 war. My family thankfully wasn't directly impacted, but for some of our acquaintances, this meant losing their jobs when finding a well-paid job was already a challenge. I recognize a similar pattern in President Trump's tactic with Canada — punish us with tariffs on one hand and promise things like lower taxes if Canada becomes a U.S. state. For me, these parallels are too obvious to ignore. It feels like I am being followed by the shadow of Putin's Russia here in Canada, where I thought it could never reach me. When I took the oath of Canadian citizenship about a decade ago, I never imagined that the country I now call home would be threatened by a United States headed by a president who seems to have an affinity for a Russian dictator. But that's exactly the position I find myself in today. My life experience has taught me to never take my freedoms for granted. I grew up in a country accustomed to defending its sovereignty from a mighty and powerful neighbour, and now it's my responsibility as a Canadian citizen to stand up for Canada's sovereignty, too. 90% of Canadians don't want to be a 51st state. What's up with the rest? 1 month ago Duration 4:25 Polls show that 90 per cent of people in Canada have no interest in being a part of President Donald Trump's threatened 51st state, but what about the rest? CBC's Lyndsay Duncombe sets out to understand why the other 10 per cent want to be a part of the U.S.
