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Sugar prices are rising worldwide after bad weather tied to El Nino damaged crops in Asia

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:41:41 GMT

Skyrocketing sugar prices left Ishaq Abdulraheem with few choices. Increasing the cost of bread would mean declining sales, so the Nigerian baker decided to cut his production by half.For scores of other bakers struggling to stay afloat while enduring higher costs for fuel and flour, the stratospheric sugar prices proved to be the last straw, and they closed for good. Sugar is needed to make bread, which is a staple for Nigeria’s 210 million people, and for many who are struggling to put food on the table, it offers a cheap source of calories. Surging sugar prices — an increase of 55% in two months — means fewer bakers and less bread.“It is a very serious situation,” Abdulraheem said.Sugar worldwide is trading at the highest prices since 2011, mainly due to lower global supplies after unusually dry weather damaged harvests in India and Thailand, the world’s second- and third-largest exporters. This is just the latest hit for developing nations already coping with shortag...

Ahead of Dutch elections, food banks highlight the cost-of-living crisis, a major campaign theme

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:41:41 GMT

VOORBURG, Netherlands (AP) — Cans of fish, jars of pasta sauce and bags of beans are stacked in blue crates. Meat, dairy and bread are kept cold in a huge freezer and a walk-in refrigerator in this affluent Dutch town. The supplies are on hand to feed the new poor in one of the richest nations in the world.Needy families are lining up for free handouts at food banks across the Netherlands, underscoring how poverty is taking root even in lower middle-class families and why tackling it has become a major theme in next Wednesday’s parliamentary election.If it gets any worse, “then it really becomes a scandal for society,” said Rob Kuipers, a 70-year-old retired senior civil servant who is the chairman of the local food bank in Leidschendam-Voorburg, within easy cycling distance of the parliament in The Hague.The cost-of-living crisis, a chronic shortage of social and affordable housing and limits on access to affordable healthcare have combined to become known by the catch-...

Argentines vote in election that could lead Trump-admiring populist to the presidency

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:41:41 GMT

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Voters in Argentina head to the polls Sunday in a presidential runoff election that will determine whether South America’s second-largest economy will take a rightward shift. Populist Javier Milei, an upstart candidate who got his start as a television talking head, has frequently been compared to former U.S. President Donald Trump. He faces Economy Minister Sergio Massa of the Peronist party, which has been a leading force in Argentine politics for decades.On Massa’s watch, inflation has soared to more than 140% and poverty has increased. Milei, a self-described anarcho-capitalist, proposes to slash the size of the state and rein in inflation, while Massa has warned people about the negative impacts of such policies. The highly polarizing election is forcing many to decide which of the two they consider to be the least bad option. “Whatever happens in this election will be incredible,” said Lucas Romero, director of local political consult...

For this group of trans women, the pope and his message of inclusivity are a welcome change

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:41:41 GMT

TORVAIANICA, Italy (AP) — Pope Francis’ recent gesture of welcome for transgender Catholics has resonated strongly in a working class, seaside town south of Rome, where a community of trans women has found help and hope through a remarkable relationship with the pontiff forged during the darkest times of the pandemic.Thanks to the local parish priest, these women now make monthly visits to Francis’ Wednesday general audiences, where they are given VIP seats. On any given day, they receive handouts of medicine, cash and shampoo. When COVID-19 struck, the Vatican bussed them into its health facility so they could be vaccinated ahead of most Italians.On Sunday, these women — many of whom are Latin American migrants and work as prostitutes — will join over 1,000 other poor and homeless people in the Vatican auditorium as Francis’ guests for lunch to mark the Catholic Church’s World Day of the Poor. For the marginalized trans community of Torvaianica, it is just the latest gesture of inc...

Oregon’s first-in-the-nation drug decriminalization law faces growing pushback amid fentanyl crisis

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:41:41 GMT

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon’s first-in-the-nation law that decriminalized the possession of small amounts of heroin, cocaine and other illicit drugs in favor of an emphasis on addiction treatment is facing strong headwinds in the progressive state after an explosion of public drug use fueled by the proliferation of fentanyl and a surge in deaths from opioids, including those of children.“The inability for people to live their day-to-day life without encountering open-air drug use is so pressing on urban folks’ minds,” said John Horvick, vice president of polling firm DHM Research. “That has very much changed people’s perspective about what they think Measure 110 is.”When the law was approved by 58% of Oregon voters three years ago, supporters championed Measure 110 as a revolutionary approach that would transform addiction by minimizing penalties for drug use and investing instead in recovery. But even top Democratic lawmakers who backed the law, which will likely dominate th...

GOP secures all elected statewide offices in Louisiana, after Republican victories Saturday

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:41:41 GMT

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Come January, the GOP will control every elected statewide office in Louisiana after Republicans swept three runoff races for attorney general, secretary of state and treasurer Saturday night.The GOP success, in a state that has had a Democrat in the governor’s office for the past eight years, means that Republicans secured all of Louisiana’s statewide offices for the first time since 2015. In addition, the GOP holds a two-third supermajority in the House and Senate.Liz Murrill was elected as attorney general, Nancy Landry as secretary of state and John Fleming as treasurer. The results also mean Louisiana will have its first female attorney general and first woman elected as secretary of state. Saturday’s election completes the shaping of Louisiana’s executive branch, where most incumbents didn’t seek reelection and opened the door for new leadership in some of the most powerful positions. Louisiana’s gubernatorial election was decided in October...

Jayden Daniels piles up over 500 total yards, powers No. 15 LSU past Georgia State 56-14

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:41:41 GMT

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Senior quarterback Jayden Daniels piled up 509 total yards, threw six touchdown passes and rushed for two more scores as No. 15 LSU defeated Georgia State 56-14 Saturday night.Daniels continued to make his case for Heisman Trophy consideration, leading the Tigers (8-3, 5-2 SEC) on touchdown drives on all eight of his team’s possessions before being subbed out with under four minutes to go in the game. He completed 25 of 30 passes for 413 yards. He also rushed for 96 yards on 10 carries.“People are starting to see how assertive and decisive of a football player he is,” LSU head coach Brian Kelly said of his quarterback. “When you are 25 or 30 throwing the football, the decisiveness and decision making has to be that way.“It was a great performance by our offense. Eight touchdowns on eight possessions; what more can you say.”Daniels’ role in eight total touchdowns in the game matched a school record set by 2019 Heisman Trophy winner Joe Burrow, who had a ...

Jefferson’s 3 TD passes help Arkansas roll past Florida International, 44-20

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:41:41 GMT

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — KJ Jefferson passed for 187 yards and three touchdowns on a record-setting night to help Arkansas defeat Florida International 44-20 on Saturday night.Jefferson became Arkansas’ all-time leader in career yards passing and passing touchdowns. He eclipsed Tyler Wilson’s yardage mark of 7,765 yards and now has 7,909. He has 65 touchdown passes, surpassing Brandon Allen’s mark of 64.“It’s a surreal moment,” Jefferson said. “Just to be able to come here — it’s a milestone for me. I mean, that’s one of my goals is to come here and make sure I go down in the record books and make history here.”Jefferson also ran 15 times for 90 yards. He paced an offense that gained 510 yards, including 323 on the ground.Isaiah Augustave ran for 101 yards for Arkansas (4-7). The freshman entered the day with six carries for 21 yards this season. Injuries to Raheim Sanders and Rashod Dubinion early in the game opened the door for Augu...

California Democrats cancel some convention events amid large Gaza cease-fire demonstration

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:41:41 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Demonstrators demanding a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war prompted California Democratic Party officials to cancel evening events during their state convention on Saturday “for the safety and security of our delegates.”California Democrats have been meeting in Sacramento this weekend to consider candidate endorsements ahead of the March primary. That includes the state’s competitive U.S. Senate race featuring four Democrats, including three sitting U.S. House members.The convention was disrupted multiple times Saturday afternoon by demonstrators demanding a cease-fire in Gaza. Party officials had increased security for the weekend convention, requiring participants to be scanned and have their bags searched before entering the convention hall. Following the afternoon session, a large crowd of demonstrators gathered at the hall. Sacramento police closed some roads near the convention center, but soon reopened them. Saturday evening, shor...

No. 5 Washington clinches Pac-12 championship berth with 22-20 victory over No. 10 Oregon State

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:41:41 GMT

CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) — While the final result felt a bit too close, No. 5 Washington survived a wet and wild game against Oregon State to clinch a spot in the Pac-12 championship game. Michael Penix Jr. threw for two touchdowns and ran for another to keep the Huskies undefeated with a 22-20 victory over No. 10 Oregon State on Saturday night. Played in a nearly constant rain, it was the final Pac-12 game at Reser Stadium as the conference currently stands. The Pac-12 collapsed over the summer, leaving Oregon State and Washington State as the lone remaining teams. Rome Odunze caught seven passes for 106 yards and two touchdowns for the Huskies (11-0, 8-0, No. 5 CFP), who have won 18 straight games. Washington is departing for the Big Ten next season, along with Oregon, USC and UCLA. Penix completed 13 of 28 passes for 162 yards. He has thrown for 30 touchdowns this season. He sealed the win with a deep third-down pass to Odunze as the click wound down. “We had to find a way to win and...