This commentary is a face-to-face debate between two almost opposite positions regarding the application of genetic engineering in agriculture and food production. Seven questions on the potential benefits of the application of genetic engineering in agriculture and on the potentially adverse impacts on the environment and human health were posed to two scientists: one who is sceptical about the use of GMOs in Agriculture, and one who views GMOs as an important tool for quantitatively and qualitatively improving food production.

This review reports recent knowledge on the role of ingredients (barley, hop and yeasts), including genetic factors, on the final yield of phenolic compounds in beer, and how these molecules generally affect resulting beer attributes, focusing mainly on new attempts at the enrichment of beer phenols, with fruits or cereals other than barley. An entire section is dedicated to health-related effects, analyzing the degree up to which studies, investigating phenols-related health effects of beer, have appropriately considered the contribution of alcohol (pure or spirits) intake. For such purpose, we searched Scopus.com for any kind of experimental model (in vitro, animal, human observational or intervention) using beer and considering phenols. Overall, data reported so far support the existence of the somehow additive or synergistic effects of phenols and ethanol present in beer. However, findings are inconclusive and thus deserve further animal and human studies.

Fatty acids and bioactive lipophilic and hydrophilic compounds (tocopherols, β-carotene, lutein, squalene, total polyphenols and secoiridoids) in monocultivar Italian extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) samples produced from the Leccino cultivar and six other yet uncharacterised cultivars (Rustica, Carpinetana, Dritta, Gentile di Chieti and Intosso) were analysed, also taking into account the effect of the type of decanter used for the oil extraction. Significant differences among cultivars were found for α-tocopherol and squalene, but not for carotenoids. Among phenols, cultivars significantly influenced oleuropein and ligstroside aglycones contents, but not those of the dialdehydic form of decarboxymethyl elenolic acid linked neither to tyrosol nor hydroxytyrosol. As previously reported, phenol is quantitatively affected by the type of decanter used for oil extraction. Accordingly, we found that the two-phases decanter preserved in the oil 1.5 times more phenolic compounds as compared with three-phases, whereas it did not influence the amount of lipophilic compounds. Moreover, our data statistically support the finding that type of decanter affects phenols also qualitatively. In fact, the two-phases decanter preferably preserved more the hydroxytyrosol secoiridoid derivatives than the tyrosol ones. Our results from one hand characterise for the first time oils previously unreported, from the other give some new indications on the relative role of factors relevant for the achievement of biologically active extra-virgin oil, i.e. the cultivar and technological ones.

Objective: To describe the case of Congo as an example of the assessment and appropriateness of donor operational and sectoral strategies in a complex emergency.Design and setting: The paper reports the findings of an external evaluation of operations financed by the European Commission Humanitarian Office in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).Results: The Congolese health system is suffering from severe deterioration. What is functioning in the public health context is donor-dependent with high costs and limited coverage. Despite a relatively favourable agro-climatic situation, food shortage and famine severely affect the nutritional status of large population groups. In this context, humanitarian programmes have generally improved access to health care and the nutritional status of beneficiaries. The reduction of malnutrition in project areas is often demonstrated even though the context did not permit consolidation of these results. Malnutrition continues to claim a massive cost of lives owing to the effect of widespread food insecurity that follows a circular cause-and-effect pattern of very low food production and extreme poverty.Conclusions: The current context in DRC does not correspond yet to ‘post-crisis’: neither at population level with regard to indicators of poverty, malnutrition, disease and death, nor at institutional level, with regard to state support to institutions. In these situations, the international community is often called upon to replace the state as service provider. Integrated humanitarian actions should be the future of relief projects in DRC. Health, nutrition and food security components should be considered a standard public health intervention strategy representing the most sensible approach to address the needs of the affected population.