Endangered shark meat sold off as swordfish

Jan 17 2022

Customers were buying shark meat thinking they were being sold swordfish, after a fish importer was caught with a storeroom full of protected shark carcasses.

Officials from the Department of Fisheries were carrying out routine inspections in September 2019 on a local fish market when they noticed the swordfish at one stall having peculiar looking flesh.

The seller at the market stall told inspectors he bought the fish from a local importer and believed it was genuine swordfish, with the importer being identified later identified as being from Pisani Fisheries in Qormi.

A raid on the importer’s Żejtun cold stores a few weeks later revealed around two dozens carcasses of short-fin mako shark. The carcasses had heads and fins removed, but a team from the Environment and Resources Authority assisted the fisheries officials in correctly identifying them as shortfin mako.

The shark species also known as blue pointer are an endangered species and are protected under the Convention on international Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. This is a global agreement among governments to regulate and ban international trade in species under threat.

The sharks are not allowed to be fished in Maltese waters and cannot be sold for consumption, and it turns out they had not come from Maltese fishing boats but had been irregularly imports to Malta from Spain. The importer was fined €10,000 this week after he was found guilty of violating wildlife protection laws.

Even if fishing for these sharks were to stop immediately, it could take around 50 years to recover the population of these sharks said the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT).

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Study suggests rubbing wasabi on your head could stop balding

Jan 17 2022

Even though there’s a multi-billion industry built around touting cures for baldness, people might be better off just going to the local sushi restaurant.

According to some researchers, the secret to stimulating hair growth is found in wasabi, a condiment offered with most Japanese takeouts.

A 2017 study published by wasabi producers Kinin, it was revealed that the spicy sauce contains high levels of a chemical known to awaken the papilla cells responsible for hair growth in the human scalp.

This study proclaiming the benefits of wasabi, run by a wasabi company, should probably be taken with a pinch of salt. Allegedly, the chemical isosaponarin prompts the papilla cells to respond to external stimulus promoting hair growth.

This, allegedly, triggers the development of proteins that create pathways for nutrients to feed the cells, according to English-language Japanese news site SoraNews24.

Isosaponarin has already been shown to aid human collagen production in previous studies, with researchers not claiming that the chemical could be up to three times more effective than classic hair loss treatments in treating male pattern baldness.

The catch is, you cannot get the benefits by eating wasabi. It has to come into direct contact with the human scalp, which means you have to actually rub it into your head.

And its not just any wasabi, its fresh Japanese wasabi that you need. So don’t rub just any green paste sachets onto your head. That will probably also come at a bit of a cost, as wasabi plants sell for around $80 per pound.

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Public transport use increased last year when compared to 2020

Jan 17 2022

The pandemic landed a big blow to the usage of buses in Malta, as many feared infection and being in tight spaces with more people. However, it seems as though the use of tal-linja has increased, with many making use free of charge.

Transport Malta director Ivan Pierre Vella explained how before the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, Malta registered a record breaking amount of public transport voyages.

Between January and February of 2020, Vella revealed, the amount of passengers using the bus system was way higher than any other previous year. A 21% increase to previous years was being noticed – a statistic which unfortunately fell due to COVID.

However, between March and December of 2021, the number of voyages increased by 24% when compared to the same period the year before. Vella also highlighted how a substantial amount of voyages which occurred last year were free of charge.

‘In 2021, up to 20% of public transport voyages were carried out free of charge for the individuals concerned’ said Vella. He went on to highlight the environmental benefits of using public transport by reducing emissions.

Using public transport reduces the amount of cars on the road, with the buses in use all being Euro6, which means that they have the highest standards in emission reduction.

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Parents donate €9000 to Puttinu from fundraiser for their own daughter

Jan 17 2022

A circle of kindness that keeps on helping people in need. Puttinu Cares revealed that parents Miriana and Jean donated €9,000 from a fundraiser created for their own daughter.

The baby girl was born prematurely at 33 weeks to some complications and thus, her parents were thinking of travelling with the baby to a hospital abroad. A fundraiser was initiated and many showed their heartwarming generosity by giving some financial aid.

With a substantial amount raised and the baby in better health, the parents donated €9,000 to the organisation that helps other kids get better as they undergo treatment for severe illnesses. Miriana and Jean also wanted to thank the NPICU staff for all the patience and hard work that goes into helping such individuals.

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