Search Results (2,954)

This study analyzes the spatial distribution of restaurant services in Tanta, Egypt, using a multi-scalar framework that integrates spatial autocorrelation, kernel density estimation, diversity measures, and spatial econometric modeling. It is theoretically grounded in Central Place Theory (CPT) and Central Flow Theory (CFT) to examine how urban hierarchy and mobility dynamics jointly shape food service geography in a mid-sized Global South city. The findings reveal significant spatial inequalities, with nearly half of all restaurants concentrated in a limited number of central neighborhoods, while peripheral areas remain underserved. Spatial regression analysis indicates that these patterns are not adequately explained by population distribution, as total population and density variables showed non-significant effects in the OLS model. Instead, clustering is more strongly associated with accessibility and infrastructure. The transition from OLS to the Spatial Error Model (SEM) significantly improved the explanatory power (R² increased from 0.369 to 0.534), with a highly significant Lambda coefficient (λ = 0.69, p < 0.00001) confirming that unobserved spatial processes and mobility flows are the primary drivers of restaurant concentration. Correlation results further indicate that road density (Coefficient = 2.10, p < 0.01) and educational facilities have significant positive relationships with restaurant density, whereas most demographic indicators show weak effects. Furthermore, a significant negative interaction between population and road density (−2.63, p = 0.014) underscores that mobility corridors can override traditional residential thresholds, providing empirical support for CFT. Diversity analysis highlights clear intra-urban disparities, with high-diversity clusters located along major accessibility axes. Kernel density results point to a hybrid spatial structure, where traditional urban cores coexist with emerging secondary nodes. Overall, the study demonstrates that restaurant distribution in Tanta is better explained through a hybrid CPT–CFT framework, where accessibility and mobility flows outweigh population thresholds. These findings challenge traditional models and emphasize the need for dynamic, accessibility-oriented planning approaches to address spatial inequalities in urban services. Full article

The roles of proline in stress tolerance, energy metabolism, immune function, and ecology across organisms suggest a broader relevance in orchard agroecosystems than is often recognized. In fruit trees, stress-induced proline accumulation reflects a complex regulatory network, while evidence also indicates that inter-organ transport contributes to protective responses under abiotic stress. In insects, proline functions as an oxidative substrate priming the rest-to-flight metabolic transition in pollinators and pests, a cryoprotective osmolyte and a structural element of conserved classes of antimicrobial peptides against microbial threats. These roles create paradoxical orchard-scale feedbacks while a stress-protective molecule both intensifies herbivore pressure and enhances pollination and biocontrol services. The orchard environment represents a meeting point of plant, environmental, animal and human health, reflecting the integrative logic of the One Health framework, where proline emerges as a highly water-soluble and bioactive compound. The functional homology between insect and human proline catabolism emerges governance-critical issues across tree physiology, insect immunity and human dietary exposure. The targeted application offers a unifying framework for farmers, scientists and policymakers to advance Sustainable Development Goal commitments across food security, human health, climate resilience and biodiversity. We conclude that proline supplementation in orchards requires regulatory monitoring across ecophysiological and pharmaceutical dimensions. Full article

Food safety inspection systems generate rich historical records, yet converting these records into actionable pre-inspection risk signals remains challenging under limited regulatory resources. The objective of this study was to develop and evaluate a temporally valid, leakage-free, multimodal screening framework for identifying high-risk food service inspections before the upcoming inspection outcome is known. Existing studies have improved inspection prediction with machine learning, but many focus on contemporaneous classification rather than temporally valid high-risk screening, and few jointly model historical numeric behavior, prior narrative context, and predictive uncertainty. To address this gap, this study proposes a temporal high-risk food inspection screening framework based on multimodal evidential learning. Using New York State food service inspection data, we constructed a event-level dataset of 55,454 inspections from 20,082 establishments and predicted whether an upcoming inspection would be high-risk using only pre-inspection information. The proposed evidential deep learning multilayer perceptron integrates current metadata, longitudinal numeric history, and historical inspection comments while producing calibrated uncertainty estimates for selective prediction. On the held-out test set, the proposed model achieved the best overall performance, with an AUROC of 0.846, AUPRC of 0.424, F1 score of 0.431, Brier score of 0.063, and ECE of 0.012, outperforming strong tabular baselines including CatBoost and TabM. Under selective prediction, its retained-set F1 increased from 0.431 at full coverage to 0.542 at 80% coverage. Explainability analysis further showed that predictive gains were driven primarily by historical compliance dynamics, with historical text providing complementary contextual value. These findings support the use of temporally valid, uncertainty-aware multimodal models for risk-based food inspection prioritization. Full article

Single-use polypropylene (PP) food containers represent a rapidly growing waste stream characterized by compositional heterogeneity and microstructural defects. Conventional reactive compatibilization using isotactic maleic anhydride-grafted PP (iPP-g-MA) provides rigid crystalline anchoring but lacks the interfacial flexibility to accommodate complex micro-defects. Herein, we propose a defect-tolerant compatibilization strategy by developing a binary iPP-g-MA/aPP-g-MA masterbatch for real post-consumer rPP derived from food-service containers. The amorphous aPP-g-MA component is proposed to provide a compliant interfacial environment that accommodates stress concentrations associated with microscale defects, whereas the iPP-g-MA component contributes crystalline anchoring with the recycled PP matrix. This soft/hard interfacial architecture is supported by grafting-degree analysis, GPC, XRD, DSC crystallization behavior, and SEM fracture morphology. The 1:1 mass-ratio binary formulation shows a marked improvement in elongation at break to 200%, representing a 203% increase relative to the single-component iMA system. The notched Charpy impact strength is enhanced to 8.98 kJ m⁻², while tensile strength is retained at 20.9 MPa within the typical strength–ductility trade-off of polymer toughening. TGA shows no premature degradation within the melt-processing window, indicating adequate thermal stability for melt reprocessing. This study provides a compositionally tunable, data-supported route for high-value upcycling of heterogeneous post-consumer polyolefins. From an application viewpoint, the improved ductility-impact balance makes the material relevant to injection-moulded semi-structural products such as storage crates, appliance housings, and automotive interior panels. Full article

Background/Objective: Transitioning towards plant-based dietary patterns is essential to improve health and reduce environmental impact. Hospitals represent a key setting to implement such dietary shifts, yet data on the availability of plant-based meals in healthcare institutions remain scarce. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted across Dutch-speaking hospitals in Belgium to assess the meal plans and whether vegetarian or fully plant-based meal options were available for patients. Besides availability, the frequency and perceived barriers were assessed. Furthermore, the meal plans were analyzed to get an overview of the vegetarian and plant-based food options that were offered in different types of Belgian hospitals. Results: The availability of plant-based meal options was limited across hospitals. No meaningful differences were observed between general hospitals and other hospital types, including psychiatric, rehabilitation, and specialized hospitals. While plant-based fats and oils were widely available, key protein-rich plant foods such as legumes and minimally processed meat alternatives were rarely offered in all types of hospitals. Knowledge gaps among food service staff were observed, and structural barriers—including the need to accommodate diverse dietary requirements—were reported. Conclusions: Belgian hospitals currently underutilize the potential of vegetarian and plant-based nutrition to support patient health and sustainability goals. Strengthening institutional food environments by increasing the availability of nutritionally adequate plant-based meals represents a feasible and impactful strategy to align hospital practice with dietary guidelines and preventive healthcare priorities. Full article

This review analyzes the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) production and its contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A scoping review following PRISMA-ScR guidelines was conducted using the Web of Science (2020–2026), resulting in 225 included studies. Buffalo production is a multipurpose system that generates value through milk, meat, hides, manure, draft power, and animal-assisted services, with greater longevity than most livestock species. Economically, it supports income diversification, resource efficiency, and functions as a financial asset that can be sold to cover unexpected expenses. Socially, it enhances food security by providing nutrient-dense products, particularly milk with bioactive compounds associated with potential health benefits, and promotes women’s participation in livestock management and household economies. Environmentally, buffalo systems efficiently utilize low-quality forages, are adapted to marginal conditions, contribute to wetland conservation, and provide ecosystem services. These contributions align with several SDGs (1, 2, 5, 8, 12, 13, and 15). However, sector expansion is constrained by limitations in nutrition, management, veterinary services, and reproductive efficiency, as well as environmental challenges related to methane emissions and life cycle impacts. While global methane emissions from buffalo are lower due to their smaller population, emission intensity remains system-dependent and represents a critical challenge. In conclusion, water buffalo production represents a multifunctional and context-dependent system with significant potential to support sustainable development, although targeted innovations are required to improve productivity and address environmental challenges. Future research should integrate One Health and One Welfare approaches, develop long-term studies, and expand research under diverse experimental and field conditions to better characterize the potential health implications of buffalo-derived products. In addition, strengthening circular economy strategies, including region-specific diets to reduce emissions, remains a priority. Full article

This study examines the leadership skills of business executives and the skills considered important for employees in the tourism and cultural sectors in Crete, Greece. The findings show that the sample is concentrated mainly in Heraklion and Chania, where there is a strong presence of hospitality and food service businesses. The most important leadership skills identified are professional competence, integrity, and problem-solving, while for employees, the most significant skills are communication, collaboration, responsibility, and professionalism. Overall, the findings indicate that the effective operation of businesses depends both on high-quality leadership and on the strong soft skills of their human resources. Full article

Background: The Older Americans Act (OAA) home-delivered and congregate meal programs and related nutrition services are the largest federal programs in the United States (U.S.) to reduce malnutrition (undernutrition) among community-dwelling older adults. However, the prevalence of undernutrition has received little attention in the OAA programs, while many studies report the prevalence of overweight and obesity. Objective: We documented undernutrition risk prevalence estimates post-COVID-19 in a 2023 nationally representative survey of OAA participants in the U.S. Undernutrition risk prevalence may have been elevated among those surveyed previously in 2022 because data were collected during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Data were obtained from the 2023 National Survey of Older Americans Act Participants (NSOAAP) (n = 4159); a cross-sectional survey of OAA participants randomly selected from a stratified sample of Area Agencies on Aging throughout the U.S. The NSOAAP included measurement of undernutrition risk, the main outcome of interest, using the Malnutrition Screening Tool (MST) that queried self-reports of unintended weight loss and decreased food intake due to poor appetite. MST scores ≥ 2 were defined as indicating undernutrition risk. Data were reported using confidence intervals. Results: In 2023, nearly 1 in 5 NSOAAP respondents were at undernutrition risk; 9.9% (95% CI 7.3–13.0%) of congregate meal participants, 20.8% (95% CI 18.3–23.5%) of home-delivered meal participants, and 21.3% (95% CI 16.7–26.4%) of participants in OAA non-nutrition programs (transportation, case management, or homemaker services). Participants in different OAA program types also differed in many demographic and health-related characteristics. Conclusions: Since undernutrition risk is neither a definitive diagnosis of undernutrition nor its causes, it must be followed up by further nutrition assessment. Full article

Wild fruit species are key components of natural and semi-natural ecosystems, playing an important role in maintaining ecological balance and supporting biodiversity. This review aims to analyze these species from the perspective of their ecological functions, contribution to biodiversity conservation, and the ecosystem services they provide. Ecologically, wild fruit species contribute to soil stabilization, nutrient cycling, and carbon sequestration, while also serving as essential food sources and habitats for a wide range of organisms, including mammals, birds, insects, and microorganisms. Through these interactions, they support ecosystem functioning and resilience. Beyond their ecological role, these species provide significant socio-economic benefits, particularly in rural areas. They contribute to cultural ecosystem services and represent valuable resources for traditional medicine, while also offering opportunities for income generation through harvesting, processing, commercialization, and rural tourism. In the context of climate change, biodiversity loss, and increasing ecosystem degradation, wild fruit species represent multifunctional natural resources. Their conservation and sustainable use are essential for maintaining ecosystem functionality and promoting sustainable rural development. Full article

Environmental health services play a critical role in communicable disease outbreaks by addressing environmental determinants of disease transmission. However, the scope, impact, and challenges of Environmental Health Practitioner (EHP)-led interventions remain insufficiently documented. Aim and objectives: This systematic review objectively assessed the role, impacts, and challenges of municipal environmental health services in outbreak response, with a focus on South Africa, to inform the standardisation and strengthening of disease surveillance and prevention. Methods: The PICO framework guided the development of search terms and research questions. PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and Web of Science were searched for English-language, full-text studies published between 2010 and 2024. Studies not meeting these inclusion criteria were excluded. Screening and reporting followed PRISMA guidelines, and data were synthesised using a standardised extraction tool. Results: A total of 58 studies were included. The key EHP functions identified were water quality monitoring, vector control, food safety, waste management, and outbreak response. While South Africa demonstrated comparatively advanced systems, persistent implementation challenges remain, including the integration of environmental monitoring with disease surveillance. The findings emphasised the need for integrating environmental monitoring with disease surveillance systems and integrating WASH and climate-responsive strategies. Conclusions and recommendation: The review recommends strengthening guidelines and advancing evidence-based practice. Enhancing EHP roles within surveillance frameworks is essential for improving outbreak preparedness and public health resilience. Full article

Background: Food insecurity is an important but under-recognised issue in cancer patients. It is linked to malnutrition and contributes to inequities in care. As there is minimal national population data available, this study aimed to assess the food security status of people receiving treatment for cancer in the state of Victoria, Australia. Methods: A multi-site point prevalence study was conducted in Victorian acute health services in July 2024. Adults receiving ambulatory treatment and multi-day stay inpatients were included. Patients were screened and assessed for malnutrition (using the Malnutrition Screening Tool and Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition criteria) and assessed for their food security status (using the Household Food Security Survey Module for Adults). Results: A total of 24 health services recruited 2121 adults with cancer. Overall, 6.9% experienced food insecurity, with the majority (52.4%) experiencing marginal food insecurity. No differences in food security status were observed between admitted and ambulatory patients, nor between metropolitan and regional/rural locations. Culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) patients recorded higher rates of food insecurity compared to non-CALD patients (10.4% vs. 6.0%; p = 0.001). Patients who were food insecure had a higher prevalence of malnutrition compared to food secure patients (37.4% vs. 27.5%; p = 0.014). Conclusions: Although the prevalence of food security was low overall among patients with cancer, it was more pronounced in patients with malnutrition or from CALD backgrounds. To effectively address the issue of malnutrition in patients with cancer, food security must be considered as part of a multi-modal intervention. Full article

Grain production resilience forms a critical foundation for national food security, and the ongoing development of land transfer provides essential momentum for establishing a more resilient grain production system. Using panel data from 30 provincial-level regions from 2013 to 2024, this study constructs a multi-dimensional evaluation system for grain production resilience and calculates the comprehensive grain production resilience index using the entropy value method. This study applies two-way fixed effects and mediation models to empirically analyze the impact of land transfer on grain production resilience and its underlying mechanisms. The results show the following: (1) Land transfer significantly enhances grain production resilience: a 1 percentage point increase in the land transfer rate leads to a 0.0014-point increase in the resilience index, equivalent to 0.64% of the sample mean, and this finding remains robust after model replacement, extreme value trimming, and variable substitution. (2) Land transfer exerts its positive effect through three mediating pathways: agricultural insurance (scale dimension), specialized farmer cooperation, and agricultural mechanization. (3) Heterogeneity analysis reveals significant regional differences: the enhancing effect is more pronounced in non-major grain-producing regions and areas with underdeveloped agricultural service systems; while in major grain-producing regions and high-service-level regions, the relationship presents an inverted U-shape, with turning points at 66.794% and 71.921% of the land transfer rate respectively. Accordingly, this study proposes that China should further improve the institutional design of land transfer to systematically support the development of grain production resilience, optimize relevant policy pathways, and implement region-specific measures for targeted and effective intervention. Full article

Traditional Peruvian cuisine has become a globally recognized experience, but its impact on visitors to the Caral Supe archaeological site—one of the oldest centers of civilization in South America and a UNESCO World Heritage Site—has not been studied. The main objective was to explain the constructs of the perceived authenticity of traditional food, loyalty to traditional food, service quality at traditional restaurants, and tourist satisfaction with visits to archaeological sites, based on the experience economy theory. An explanatory study was conducted using a structural equation modeling approach (PLS-SEM), applied to a sample of 381 tourists who visited the archaeological site and consumed local cuisine at restaurants in the destination of Barranca. The findings confirmed significant relationships among the model’s constructs (p < 0.01). It is suggested that the perception of authenticity of traditional food is a determining factor for loyalty (R² = 0.743) and a driver of satisfaction with the visit to the archaeological site (R² = 0.617), which constitutes the study’s contribution. However, the R² value for the construction of the tourist experience at the destination (R² = 0.301), the model does not fully capture the complexity of experiential processes at this particular heritage destination, which may depend on emotional, cultural, or contextual variables not included in this study. Satisfaction with the visit to the archaeological site is primarily related to staff attentiveness, the quality of guide explanations, and safety. It is concluded that the interplay between satisfaction with the visit to the archaeological site, the perceived authenticity of traditional food, and the quality of service in restaurants is fundamental to enhancing the experience at the heritage destination, thereby positioning traditional food and archaeotourism. It is recommended that the public and private sectors design strategies aimed at generating authentic and sustainable experiences for visitors, strengthening factors such as the destination’s reputation, the positive image of the site, satisfaction with the trip at the destination, and the positive experience. Full article

Urban expansion is a major cause of the loss of fertile soil, biodiversity and ecosystem services at the rural–urban fringe. Different patterns of urban development need to be considered to protect and integrate a green space that supports these functions. The Compact City has become the paradigmatic counterpoint to urban sprawl, but many critics highlight the challenges of integrating green space within the densifying city, as well as protecting green space outside the city. This research uses a qualitative case study to explore perspectives on the protection and integration of green space at the rural–urban fringe. Using theorisations of urban spatial form to interpret public submissions and semi-structured interviews, four city ideals are conceptualised: Arcadian City, Compact Green City, Neoliberal City, and Biophilic City. While there is no consensus on a preferred model, pathways towards the protection and integration of green space for food production and ecological function are explored. Full article