Accurate measurement of water activity (aw) is an important goal for the food industry because aw is a key parameter in microbial growth, biological reaction rates and physical properties. An experimental device was setup using air-product water balance to non-destructively estimate the time-course of mean aw at the food product surface under well-controlled airflow conditions. The device is especially suited for studying the ripening of cheeses and fermented meat products, where water fluxes exchanged between products and air are very low. The validation tests performed with aw-known model products showed that water fluxes of 10(−7) kg s−1 can be estimated with an accuracy better than 2% over very short periods of time, and that surface aw can be estimated with an absolute uncertainty of less than 0.01 aw units. A handful of cheese ripening trials illustrate the potential of the method, highlighting the effects of a low air velocity and high air RH on the water exchanges occurring at a cheese surface, thus demonstrating the strong surface sensitivity to external air conditions.

This is the first volume on the proceedings of the national conference on ‘Water for Food and Environment’, which was held from June 9–11, 2009 at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH). The volumes two and three have been produced as separate documents of this report series. In response to a call for abstracts, 81 abstracts were received from government institutes dealing with water resources and agriculture development, also from universities, other freelance researchers and researchers from the International Water Management Institute (IWMI).Forty Seven of the eighty-one abstracts that were submitted were accepted for compiling full papers.In the past couple of years the sharp increase in food prices worldwide has raised serious concerns about food security, especially in developing countries. To effectively address these concerns a holistic approach is required that encompasses improved agricultural water productivity, adaptation to climate change, targeted and appropriate institutional and financial measures, and a consideration of environmental issues. The main purpose of the conference was to share experiences in these areas and to find opportunities to improve farmers’ incomes and food production, and to promote environmentally sustainable practices in Sri Lanka in the face of growing water scarcity and the challenges of climate change.

This is the first volume on the proceedings of the national conference on ?Water for Food and Environment?, which was held from June 9?11, 2009 at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH). The volumes two and three have been produced as separate documents of this report series. In response to a call for abstracts, 81 abstracts were received from government institutes dealing with water resources and agriculture development, also from universities, other freelance researchers and researchers from the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). | Forty Seven of the eighty-one abstracts that were submitted were accepted for compiling full papers. | In the past couple of years the sharp increase in food prices worldwide has raised serious concerns about food security, especially in developing countries. To effectively address these concerns a holistic approach is required that encompasses improved agricultural water productivity, adaptation to climate change, targeted and appropriate institutional and financial measures, and a consideration of environmental issues. The main purpose of the conference was to share experiences in these areas and to find opportunities to improve farmers? incomes and food production, and to promote environmentally sustainable practices in Sri Lanka in the face of growing water scarcity and the challenges of climate change.

Objetivou-se avaliar o comportamento ingestivo e consumo de água de caprinos e ovinos alimentados com feno ou silagem de maniçoba (Manihot epruinosa Pax & Hoffmann). Foram empregados sete caprinos sem padrão racial definido, com peso médio inicial de 14,6kg e oito ovinos da raça Santa Inês de 13,9kg. Os animais foram mantidos em baias individuais e distribuídos em delineamento experimental inteiramente casualizado, em esquema fatorial 2 x 2 (forma de conservação x espécie animal). Foram avaliados os consumos de matéria seca, matéria orgânica, proteína bruta, fibra em detergente neutro, extrato etéreo, carboidratos totais e carboidratos não fibrosos. Para estudo de comportamento ingestivo, os animais foram observados a cada cinco minutos durante 24h. Os animais alimentados com feno de maniçoba mostraram maior consumo de proteína bruta e extrato etéreo (56 e 24 g/dia) em relação àqueles que receberam a maniçoba conservada pela fermentação (42 e 14g/dia), respectivamente. Não houve diferença entre os tempos de alimentação (405,00 e 399,38 min), ruminação (625,63 e 599,38 min) e ócio (413,13 e 44,01 min) entre os animais alimentados com silagem e feno de maniçoba, respectivamente. No entanto, os animais alimentados com maniçoba conservada mediante fermentação apresentaram menor consumo de água no bebedouro (0,473vs 0,990kg/dia para silagem e feno, respectivamente). Assim, conclui-se que o método de conservação de maniçoba não interferiu no comportamento ingestivo, mas a ingestão da maniçoba conservada mediante fermentação leva ao menor

Objective: To study whether eating or physical-activity (PA) habits differ between obese and non-obese monozygotic (MZ) co-twins independent of genetic effects. Methods: Rare MZ pairs discordant for obesity (n=14, body mass index difference 5.2±1.8 kg m–2) and weight-concordant control pairs (n=10, 1.0±0.7 kg m–2), identified through a population-based registry of 24–28-year-old twins (n=658 MZ pairs), completed 3-day food and PA diaries and eating behavior questionnaires. Each twin was asked to compare his/her own eating and PA patterns with the co-twin's behavior by structured questionnaires. Accuracy of energy intake was validated by doubly labeled water. Results: Non-obese co-twins consistently reported that their obese twin siblings ate more food overall, consumed less healthy foods and exercised less than the non-obese co-twins do. However, no differences in energy intake (9.6±1.0 MJ per day vs 9.8±1.1 MJ per day, respectively) in the food diaries or in the mean PA level (1.74±0.02 vs 1.79±0.04, respectively) in the PA diaries were found between obese and non-obese co-twins. A considerable underreporting of energy intake (3.2±1.1 MJ per day, P=0.036) and overreporting of PA (1.8±0.8 MJ per day, P=0.049) was observed in the obese, but not in the non-obese co-twins. Conclusions: On the basis of rare MZ twin pairs discordant for obesity, the co-twin assessments confirmed substantial differences in eating and PA behavior between obese and non-obese persons. These may be overlooked in population studies using food and PA diaries because of considerable misreporting by the obese.

This is the second volume of the proceedings of the National Conference on ‘Water for Food and Environment’, which was held from June 9 –11, 2009 at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH). The volumes 1 and 3 have been produced as separate documents of this report series. In response to a call for abstracts, 81 abstracts were received from government institutes dealing with water resources and agriculture development, universities, other freelance researchers and researchers from the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). Forty seven of the eighty-one abstracts that were submitted were accepted for compiling full papers.In the past couple of years the sharp increase in food prices worldwide has raised serious concerns about food security, especially in developing countries. To effectively address these concerns a holistic approach is required that encompasses improved agricultural water productivity, adaptation to climate change, targeted and appropriate institutional and financial measures, and a consideration of environmental issues. The main purpose of the conference was to share experiences in these areas and to find opportunities to improve farmers’ incomes and food production, and to promote environmentally sustainable practices in Sri Lanka in the face of growing water scarcity and the challenges of climate change.

This is the second volume of the proceedings of the National Conference on ?Water for Food and Environment?, which was held from June 9 ?11, 2009 at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH). The volumes 1 and 3 have been produced as separate documents of this report series. In response to a call for abstracts, 81 abstracts were received from government institutes dealing with water resources and agriculture development, universities, other freelance researchers and researchers from the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). Forty seven of the eighty-one abstracts that were submitted were accepted for compiling full papers. | In the past couple of years the sharp increase in food prices worldwide has raised serious concerns about food security, especially in developing countries. To effectively address these concerns a holistic approach is required that encompasses improved agricultural water productivity, adaptation to climate change, targeted and appropriate institutional and financial measures, and a consideration of environmental issues. The main purpose of the conference was to share experiences in these areas and to find opportunities to improve farmers? incomes and food production, and to promote environmentally sustainable practices in Sri Lanka in the face of growing water scarcity and the challenges of climate change.