Academic literature on the topic 'Food in kuwait'

AbstractObjectiveTo document food acquisition experiences during Iraqi military occupation in Kuwait.DesignRetrospective cross-sectional study.SettingUrban areas in Kuwait during occupation.SubjectsThose living in Kuwait during the period of occupation, and aged between 15 to 50 years at the time of occupation, recruited by snowball sampling. A total of 390 completed questionnaires (response rate 78 %, 202 female and 188 male) were returned.ResultsDuring the occupation, food became increasingly difficult to acquire. Two food systems emerged: (i) an underground Kuwaiti network linked to foods recovered from local food cooperatives and (ii) a black market supplied by food imported through Iraq or stolen locally. Food shortages led to reductions in meal size and frequency. Some respondents (47·7 %) reported not having sufficient income to purchase food and 22·1 % had to sell capital items to purchase food. There was a significant increase (P<0·01) in home production, with 23·1 % of people growing vegetables and 39·0 % raising animals to supplement food needs. Reduction in food wastage also emerged as a significant self-reported behaviour change. Respondents reported deterioration in the quality and availability of fish, milk, and fruit in particular. Despite a decrease in opportunities for physical activity, most respondents reported that they lost weight during the occupation.ConclusionsAlthough the Kuwaiti population fell by about 90 % and domestic food production increased during the 7-month occupation, the local population continued to rely heavily on imported food to meet population needs. The high prevalence of self-reported weight loss indicates the inadequacies of this food supply. High apparent food security in systems which significantly exceed the ecological carrying capacity of the local environment and rely on mass food importation remains vulnerable.

Many studies have tested the null hypothesis of the unit root of the real exchange rate to examine the validity of the purchasing power parity (PPP) hypothesis. Previous studies have reached different conclusions regarding that issue. This study tests the hypothesis of PPP in Kuwait using two tests of unit roots, the Augmented Dickey Fuller (ADF) and Phillips Perron (PP) tests. Using monthly data from 2006 to 2015, both tests reject the PPP hypothesis for the Kuwaiti economy. Using the components of the real exchange rate, we find that the levels of prices in both Kuwait and the US are not moving together to provide stationarity for the real exchange rate. This result could be attributed to the large increases in the prices of the housing and food and beverages sectors in Kuwait during that time.

This case makes an attempt to carry out financial analysis of the performance of Kuwait Food Company with a view to understand if it would be worth investing in it. The case is developed from the perspective of Mohd Hussain, a small investor in Kuwait, who had already lost heavily in speculative investment. Being from a commerce background, he decided to apply his learning from a finance masters class. As he started to explore the company, he was puzzled with the financials of the company. Although Americana’s share prices had increased, the company’s finances were not so impressive. The sales of the company had been increasing in the last three quarters, but the net profit had gone down over the previous few years from KWD 54 million in the year 2011 to KWD 50 million in the year 2012. Even the margins were squeezed for the recent three quarters in 2013. With this information, Hussain knew that several answers were needed before making the investment choices. Was the growth of Americana’s share prices a speculative mania, or did it actually represent value? What were the issues with Americana’s profitability? How was the overall financial health of the business?

Household expenditure is the second prominent component of GDP for Kuwait, consisting of 43% GDP, and it has been moderately growing for the past decade. It is essential to understand the nature of household expenditure, a fundamental macroeconomic driver with immense significance for policymaking. This paper utilises the latest Kuwait Household Expenditure Survey data to study household expenditure patterns in Kuwait. It examines and compares the variation of household expenditure patterns for nationals (Kuwaitis) and expatriate households over nine different major commodity groups. The paper investigates the patterns of household expenditure and the response of their characteristics on the level of expenditure by employing Heckman two-step estimation method. The results suggest that different factors affect the probability of consuming a commodity and the level of expenditure between the two household groups. Kuwaiti’s expenditure is more responsive to food, housing, communication and recreation commodities and less responsive to clothing, health, transportation and restaurants than expatriates. In general, there is a significant variation of expenditure patterns across all commodities between the two household groups.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the government in Kuwait implemented public health measures to control the spread of the virus. However, despite the importance of these restrictions, normal activities related to purchasing of groceries, concerns related to food safety, and overall uncertainty may have influenced food behaviors and food consumption. Hence, the study investigates the impact of COVID-19 on food purchasing behaviors, eating behaviors, and the perception of food safety and security among residents in Kuwait. A cross-sectional study was carried out using self-administered questionnaires between 28 July 2020 and 31 August 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Kuwait. A total of 841 respondents participated in the study. The study identified several changes in food purchasing behaviors, eating behaviors, food consumption, and consumers perceptions on food safety during the pandemic. The closures, restrictions, and changes in food purchasing evidently influenced individual’s eating behaviors. Largely, participants were found to (i) change their food purchasing behavior (74%); (ii) opt for online food delivery services (42.8%); (iii) purchase long-shelf-life foods (e.g., canned food and dry staples) (76%); (iv) consume more meals at home (76%); and (v) follow public health measures to reduce the spread of the virus and ensure their safety (98%). This study indicates that individuals during times of uncertainty and stress change their food purchasing behaviors, food consumption habits, and follow guidelines and recommendations. These findings may help public health initiatives to focus on raising awareness about the importance of health, wellbeing, and nutrition during times of crises.

This study examined social media’s role in various levels of research, development, and performance within enterprises in Kuwait. The research incorporated four inductive case analyses in various sectors. The case studies epitomize the supply chain of Kuwaiti enterprises, including small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Media richness theory and social exchange effectuation theory were utilized to create an effective theory and a theoretical framework. This study collected data via a questionnaire completed by 100 managers employed by Kuwaiti SMEs specialized in the food sector and interviews with eight managers. Numerical data were analyzed via SPSS software, while textual data were analyzed by applying thematic analysis. The results of this study suggest that Kuwaiti companies should adopt social media platforms and other novel, innovative outlets to publicize their organizations and maximize performance. Social media richness and openness tend to determine the supplier selection process in most Kuwaiti enterprises, leading to positive transactional and social impacts on entrepreneurship.

The Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has brought about drastic measures that have significantly altered the norms of daily living. These measures have affected human behaviors in disparate ways. This study seeks to understand the impact of the pandemic on physical activity and dietary behavior among adults living in Kuwait. A cross-sectional survey was conducted between 18 June and 15 July 2020, using a questionnaire disseminated through social media, including WhatsApp and Facebook. The target population was individuals aged 21 years or older living in the State of Kuwait. The study included 679 respondents; 57.9% were females, and 67.7% were Kuwaiti nationals. Both genders reported an increased consumption of vegetables, fruits, and carbohydrates, and a decreased consumption of fish and sugary drinks. Compared to males, females reported eating more during the outbreak than their pre-pandemic eating behaviors (32.3% vs. 35.9%, p < 0.05). Approximately one-third of respondents (33.1%) reported performing less than 30 min of physical activity or exercise in a week, and 36.4% of respondents rated their quality of sleep as ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’. The rate of smoking cigarettes among males was significantly higher than in females (40.6% vs. 5.3%, p < 0.001). Physical activity was positively correlated with vegetable consumption and quality of sleep. Quality of sleep was negatively correlated with the consumption of sweets and snacks, just as the consumption of vegetables was negatively correlated with the consumption of sugary drinks. The overall negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Kuwait necessitates the development of health promotion interventions to support positive physical activity and dietary behaviors using alternative coping strategies among the residents of Kuwait.

This study investigated Kuwait food system. Firstly the current dietary consumption of a representative sample of the Kuwaiti population was assessed. Secondly the effects of the 1990 Gulf war on Kuwait's food and nutrition system were investigated. The major part of this study was a National Diet and Nutrition Survey of people aged 20 to 65 years, which is the largest and most detailed survey ever undertaken of the diet and nutritional status of adult people in Kuwait. A food frequency questionnaire was delivered to 491 subjects (response rate 81.8%, 278 female and 213 male). In addition, a sample of 383 (response rate 207 female and 176 male) were interviewed using a 24 hour recall method. This study aimed to provide a comprehensive cross-sectional picture of the dietary habits and nutritional status of the population of Kuwait. The energy and nutrient intakes in the survey were compared with the US RDA.

Poultry meat is considered to be the major vehicle of foodborne poisoning caused by the Gram-negative bacterium Salmonella. In the Kuwait State, the incidence of human salmonellosis has increased markedly over the last years. The adaptation responses of Salmonella enterica serovars to the current decontamination system used in poultry meat production in Kuwait enhanced their ability to colonise poultry meat and survive the system used in the Kuwait poultry processing plants. A commercial decontamination process is typically applied to remove bacteria from carcasses within a few minutes of chilling. This process usually involves washing the carcasses with a biocidal compound, such as chlorine in the form of sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl), and yet the washing process fails to remove all of the bacteria. This research was designed to investigate the increased colonisation abilities and adaptation responses of Salmonella in order to identify the main attributes of the pathogen in colonisation and survival in the poultry meat and to suggest interventions that could be used to control the organism during processing. This is particularly relevant to Salmonella enterica serovars Typhimurium and Enteritidis, which were found to be the most predominant strains from 2003-2011 among the human and food isolates in Kuwait (mainly raw chicken and cooked chicken products). The molecular typing technique of Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) was used in this research to determine the genetic diversity among the Kuwaiti culture collections of human and food isolates. A comparison between S. Typhimurium and S. Enteritidis isolates indicated a high level of genetic relatedness between the human and chicken isolates. The rate of attachment of the bacteria to chicken skin at chill temperature was measured that allowed detailed objective comparisons of the attachment processes under two different conditions, attachment of bacteria before and after exposure to chlorine. The rate of attachment was also compared with that of reference strains from international culture collections. A method to measure the probability of detachment was developed and was applied on the same bacterial strains. The outcome of measuring the attachment and detachment of bacteria to chicken skin showed adaptation responses of representative strains to chlorine, the adaptation that had led to enhanced ability of Salmonella to survive and colonise chicken carcasses. The origin of this adaptation was determined by the microarray technique at the Institute of Food Research, Norwich, UK. The data showed up-regulation of genes associated with oxidative stress response (mutT and icdA), iron stress (YbdZ), biofilm formation and cellulose biosynthesis (bcsG), transport (YgiK), and ribosomal proteins formation (RpsL, RpsQ, and RpsO). In contrast, genes predominantly associated with general cellular metabolism, ribosomal proteins, biofilm formation, flagella biosynthesis and virulence were down-regulated. Findings from this study suggest that the oxidative stress response and the formation of biofilm matrix may render Salmonella resistant to certain types of environmental stresses, which in turn contributes to its survival and persistence in the contaminated poultry meat products This research also includes a review of existing industry practices and control measures applied in the Kuwaiti slaughterhouses to control Salmonella in poultry meat against currently accepted standards such as those in the US, UK and recommended by international agencies. The information collected from selected slaughterhouses and the limited sampling at a number of arbitrarily chosen process steps indicated that there was little effective control and published good practice guidelines were not followed, which would explain the apparent high levels of Salmonella contamination. Given all the shortcomings and poor practices observed in some Kuwaiti slaughterhouses besides the inadequacy of NaOCl to affect a substantial enough reduction in Salmonella contamination in chicken skin, an alternative and more effective decontamination method was investigated. The preliminary study examined the efficacy of combining ultrasound with chlorine treatment on the inactivation of Salmonella inoculated onto the surface of chicken skin under laboratory conditions. Data from this study showed the effectiveness of this combined treatment in reducing the numbers of Salmonella to 2-2.5 log10 cycles with D-value of 30 min than those achieved by either chlorination or sonication alone, suggesting that there could be possible synergistic effects between chlorination and sonication. Findings of this research suggest that there was no major difference between the Salmonella strains isolated from the contaminated chicken meat in Kuwait and the international Salmonella strains in their colonisation, survival and attachment or detachment behaviour on chicken skin. Consequently, the development of HACCP-based food safety management systems, implementation of good hygiene practices and sustained food hygiene training of food handlers should prove to be effective measures to control the colonisation of poultry meat by and subsequent survival of Salmonella in Kuwait.

Background and Objectives: Childhood obesity and its comorbidities are an emerging health problem among the Kuwaiti population and their neighboring countries. The food environment and parental role are among the key determinates of eating behavior in children. Parents influence their children's eating through both their food parenting styles (FPS) during meal and snack times, and their goal-directed food parenting practices (FPP). The majority of studies have examined nuclear families; however, with the increased cost of daily living and women in the workforce, many mothers are feeding their children in multigenerational or extended family households. This study aimed to examine the prevalence of FPS and FPP among Kuwaiti mothers with school-age children and the demographic variables associated with them; and to further explore the mothers' benefits, challenges, and strategies of child feeding between those who live with their in-laws, those who live independently, and during Zwara the weekly family gatherings. Methods: Using a sequential explanatory design, this mixed-methods study consisted of two distinct phases. Phase 1 (quantitative): 1625 Kuwaiti mothers with children aged 6 to 12 years completed a cross-sectional electronic survey including the Caregiver Feeding Styles Questionnaire (CFSQ), five constructs from the Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire (CFPQ) and a range of socioeconomic and living situations. Phase 2 (qualitative): 32 mothers took part in a follow-up in-person semi-structured interview about benefits, challenges, and strategies of child feeding within two groups - 16 living with in-laws, and 16 living independently; each group consisted of equal numbers of Authoritative and Indulgent feeding styles. Conclusion: Phase 1: The mother's perception of child weight was the only factor associated with both FPSs and FPPs, indicating that it as a key influential factor. The mother's education level and childbirth order were associated with FPPs, implying their direct influence on specific goal-directed practices of child-eating. Whereas, living arrangements, number of hired help, living district, and child age were associated with FPSs, suggesting their indirect influence on the parent-child interaction. Phase 2: The benefits, challenges, and strategies of child feeding differed between the living arrangements, and the Indulgent and Authoritative feeding styles differed only by the strategies used. Also, the Kuwaiti mothers were more prone to follow the Indulgent style during the weekend gatherings, despite being more likely to use the Authoritative style during the weekday. Likewise, Kuwaiti Grandparents were perceived to have Indulgent feeding styles tendencies with Grandchild, which has been linked with higher child weight in other studies. These differences in usage of FPPs and FPSs in different settings suggest that there is a need to develop and implement nutrition interventions to improve maternal feeding practices based on their household arrangements.

This chapter examines the politics of the sanctions imposed on Iraq by the United Nations four days after Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait on August 2, 1990. The UN Security Council's decision to impose sanctions for Iraq's aggression against Kuwait was justified. However, these should have been accompanied by a carefully crafted humanitarian exemption to ensure that the civilian population would receive what they needed for a dignified survival, especially food, medicines, clean water, and electricity. The UN's failure to do so eventually led to the successive resignations of Denis Halliday and the this chapter's author as Baghdad-based UN assistant secretaries-general and humanitarian coordinators. The chapter recounts how the UN sanctions on Iraq during the period 1990–2003 were implemented in “an iron-fist and an inhuman” way at the expense of the Iraqi civilians. It also considers how the humanitarian exception to these sanctions—via the Oil-for-Food program—was overshadowed by powerful Western interests for regime change in Iraq. The chapter suggests that the UN was caught between geopolitical considerations and its humanitarian mission.

Abstract Precise predictions and solutions for tomorrow's needs are the key to building a growing, sustainable business. This requires a mixture of vision, strategic risk taking business model and investment in new technology. Refining trends forecast is useful for predicting possible landscape, where in challenge would be to meet twice the energy levels from today with half the CO2 emissions by 2030. Increasing and diversification of world's energy supplies to support the population of over 8 billion then would be a mammoth task, given that the triangle of energy, food and water will be crucial. Three fundamental factors that will influence and shape this setting are: Global products demand will rise by 1.1% - 1.3% annually by 2030 to over 115 million barrels per day, with marginal influence of crude oil prices;Reinforced legislation targeting reduction of GHG emissions, requiring improved clean transportation and bunker fuels - accounting 2/3rd of total demand and growth;Refining and Petrochemicals form the backbone of global economics and meeting demand with inevitable steady profitability is a major task possibly also using alternative unconventional sources. In competitive context – innovation, operational excellence and implementation of robust strategies are critical for sustenance and growth. Project returns can however be enhanced by incorporating integration principles and model at the design stage itself. Whilst development pace of new technologies would accelerate which can radically alter business structure in certain geographies, question remains on what makes a successful project come to fruition. The presentation discusses futuristic economic unlocking of value by application of technology models and best practices by utilizing various feed-stocks, including natural gas as a main competitor and maximum upgrading bottom-of-the-barrel. Besides, novel process designs and operational control would be squeezed as it is invariably the last fraction which is most difficult to remove! This paper contains forward-looking scenario about global Refining strategy, Petrochemicals feed-stock cost advantages, technology diversification routes to maximize returns from cheaper sources, financial performance and economics, growth opportunities in various countries, sectors or markets, besides a focus on Europe and GCC regions and current projects in Kuwait. However, these involve uncertainty as they depend mainly on future circumstances like commercializing R&D, not all of which can be controlled or accurately predicted, hence are directional for investment decisions.

Abstract The Petroleum Working Group (PWG) of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) has developed the Petroleum Resource Specifications and Guidelines (PRSG) to facilitate the application of the United Nations Framework Classification for Resources (UNFC) for evaluating and classifying petroleum projects. The UNFC was developed by the Expert Group on Resource Management (EGRM) and covers all resource sectors such as minerals, petroleum, renewable energy, nuclear resources, injection projects, anthropogenic resources and groundwater. It has a unique three- dimensional structure to describe environmental, social and economic viability (E-axis), technical feasibility and maturity (F-axis) and degree of confidence in the resource estimates (G-axis). The UNFC is fully aligned to holistic and sustainable resource management called for by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 Agenda). UNFC can be used by governments for integrated energy planning, companies for developing business models and the investors in decision making. Internationally, all classification systems and their application continue to evolve to incorporate the latest technical understanding and usage and societal, government and regulatory expectations. The PRSG incorporates key elements from current global petroleum classification systems. Furthermore, it provides a forward-thinking approach to including aspects of integrity and ethics. It expands on the unique differentiator of the UNFC to integrate social and environmental issues in the project evaluation. Several case studies have been carried out (in China, Kuwait, Mexico, Russia, and Uganda) using UNFC. Specifically, PRSG assists in identifying critical social and environmental issues to support their resolution and development sustainably. These issues may be unique to the country, location and projects and mapped using a risk matrix. This may support the development of a road map to resolve potential impediments to project sanction. The release of the PRSG comes at a time of global economic volatility on a national and international level due to the ongoing impact and management of COVID-19, petroleum supply and demand uncertainty and competing national and international interests. Sustainable energy is not only required for industries but for all other social development. It is essential for private sector development, productive capacity building and expansion of trade. It has strong linkages to climate action, health, education, water, food security and woman empowerment. Moreover, enduring complex system considerations in balancing the energy trilemma of reliable supply, affordability, equity, and social and environmental responsibility remain. These overarching conditions make it even more essential to ensure projects are evaluated in a competent, ethical and transparent manner. While considering all the risks, it is also critical to reinforce the positive contribution a natural resource utilization project provides to society. Such an inquiry can focus on how the project contributes to the quality of life, environment, and the economy – the people, planet, and prosperity triad. Such an approach allows consistent, robust and sustainable investment decision making and energy policy development.

Abstract Torsional vibrations are a very common phenomenon affecting drilling operations by limiting efficiency, increasing the risk of downhole equipment failure and generating additional costs, particularly when their most severe form is encountered, the stick-slip. It is less known that torsional vibrations also strongly affect directional drilling operations reducing directional stability and tool face control. In this paper, the highly variable solicitation induced by torsional vibrations is addressed with a statistical approach. This approach, used successfully in Kuwait applications, resulted in an operational savings of 30% of the cost per foot over a panel of more than 15 runs analyzed. Steerability and directional stability is critical on directional wells, especially when using push-the-bit systems with PDC bit due to side force distributed unevenly over one bit revolution. Most of today bit design comparisons are made with an average steerability factor computed over one full revolution of the bit. The method described in this paper is going further in details and looks at the evolution of directional performance indicators within one bit revolution. With the help of a state-of-the-art 3D bit-rock interaction model, which simulates the drilling environment considering the drive system mechanism and both the drill bit and the hole being drilled as a set of 3D meshed surfaces, an accurate picture of the directional stability of the bit design is available. This approach is complemented by a statistical analysis which allows to simulate a multitude of input parameters combinations and to map the directional response of a bit design in a more robust way. Based on the results of the statistical analysis, an optimized design was selected and manufactured for a 12 ¼’-in. rotary steerable system (RSS) directional application known for having torsional vibration limitations. As revealed by the simulation results, this design was expected to exhibit a better directional stability than previous bit design iterations. This optimized design was run on RSS and positive displacement motor (PDM) assemblies and successfully drilled several wells in different fields of Kuwait operations ground. It experienced smooth and stable directional control while reducing the risk for torsional vibrations and resulted in tremendous reduction of the overall cost per foot. PDC bit selection and design process have considerably evolved in the last decade with the use of increasingly accurate simulations models. This paper presents the next step of evolution dedicated to delivering the best adapted solution to any given scenario by examining in greater detail the directional response of a drill bit.