Chocolate is the center of a massive global industry worth billions of dollars annually, yet its future in our modern world is currently under threat. In Chocolate Crisis, Dale Walters discusses the problems posed by plant diseases, pests, and climate change, looking at what these mean for the survival of the cacao tree. Walters takes readers to the origins of the cacao tree in the Amazon basin of South America, describing how ancient cultures used the beans produced by the plant, and follows the rise of chocolate as an international commodity over many centuries. He explains that most cacao is now grown on small family farms in Latin America, West Africa, and Indonesia, and that the crop is not easy to make a living from. Diseases such as frosty pod rot, witches’ broom, and swollen shoot, along with pests such as sap-sucking capsids, cocoa pod borers, and termites, cause substantial losses every year. Most alarmingly, cacao growers are beginning to experience the accelerating effects of global warming and deforestation. Projections suggest that cultivation in many of the world’s traditional cacao-growing regions might soon become impossible. Providing an up-to-date picture of the state of the cacao bean today, this book also includes a look at complex issues such as farmer poverty and child labor, and examines options for sustainable production amid a changing climate. Walters shows that the industry must tackle these problems in order to save this global cultural staple and to protect the people who make their livelihoods from producing it.

This book, written by global experts, provides a comprehensive and topical analysis on the economics of chocolate. While the main approach is economic analysis, there are important contributions from other disciplines, including psychology, history, government, nutrition, and geography. The chapters are organized around several themes, including the history of cocoa and chocolate -- from cocoa drinks in the Maya empire to the growing sales of Belgian chocolates in China; how governments have used cocoa and chocolate as a source of tax revenue and have regulated chocolate (and defined it by law) to protect consumers' health from fraud and industries from competition; how the poor cocoa producers in developing countries are linked through trade and multinational companies with rich consumers in industrialized countries; and how the rise of consumption in emerging markets (China, India, and Africa) is causing a major boom in global demand and prices, and a potential shortage of the world's chocolate.

Presents the story of the Mars family, their multinational company, and its successes and failures.

Food and agribusiness is one of the fastest changing global markets; change that is driven by technology, developments in manufacturing and supply, and a growing consumer engagement. The success of the agri-food industry and many of our household brand names will depend on how much you understand about these changes and the extent to which you can deliver secure and competitive products in the face of growing expectations about food safety and quality, as well as changing attitudes about the environment, human diet and nutrition, and animal welfare. The Crisis of Food Brands offers perspectives on many key aspects of these changes including the role of business, policy-makers, and the media in communicating with and engaging stakeholders about: o relevant and dynamic models of risk and crisis management; o the value of innovative and, sometimes controversial, food systems; o their buying behaviour and attitudes to movements such as organic and fair trade; o how and where we source and buy our food now (and in the future). The quality of the original research that underpins this book and the imagination and practicality with which the authors address its applications for the industry is first rate. Anyone with responsibility for marketing food, communicating about the food industry, or engaging with consumers will find this an important source of ideas and inspiration.

Fans of Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and readers of Chris Grabenstein and Wendy Mass will love is an action-packed mystery about what happens if the world is about to run out of chocolate! Life for Jelly Welly—or Jennifer Wellington—is totally and utterly normal in Chompton-on-de-Lyte. She lives with her mum and dad and gran, has nosy neighbors who like to gossip, and really needs to think of a science project that will get her a good grade. But when news breaks of an impending chocopocalypse, her whole world—and the world at large—is thrown into utter chaos. With only six days left until no more chocolate, Jelly has a sneaking suspicion that something isn’t right. She and her gran investigate, picking up on a mysterious trail of clues. Is it really the dreaded chocopocalypse, or is there a mastermind behind the madness? "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory fans and mystery enthusiasts will also enjoy this chocolatey adventure."-School Library Journal "[The Chocopocalypse] will likely find a place among readers who enjoy [Roald] Dahl's humor."-Kirkus Reviews

Stress is an unfortunate fact of modern life, and when those stressors are catastrophic - divorce, illness, caregiving, loss - a brain under stress becomes a brain in crisis. In this invaluable guide, award-winning psychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Love and neuropsychologist Dr. Kjell Hovik explore how to heal the damage that prolonged stress can do to your brain and your health. In When Crisis Strikes you'll learn how to prevent these side effects from hijacking your daily life.

As societies become more complex and interconnected, the global risk for catastrophic disasters is increasing. Demand for expertise to mitigate the human suffering and damage these events cause is also high. A new field of disaster medicine is emerging, offering innovative approaches to optimize disaster management. Much of the information needed to create the foundation for this growing specialty is not objectively described or is scattered among multiple different sources. This definitive work brings together a coherent and comprehensive collection of scientific observations and evidence-based recommendations with expert contributors from around the globe. This book identifies essential subject matter, clarifies nomenclature, and outlines necessary areas of proficiency for healthcare professionals handling mass casualty crises. It also describes in-depth strategies for the rapid diagnosis and treatment of victims suffering from blast injuries or exposure to chemical, biological, and radiological agents.

"This book aims to provide professionals and clinicians-in-training with the latest forms of treatment for children and adolescents who have been impacted by crises and trauma. The various treatment options presented here include approaches that focus on the individual as well as many that include a parent in conjoint or filial therapy, and others that employ a family treatment model. Many chapters in this book demonstrate the use of a variety of creative methods with young people who have suffered traumatic experiences such as sexual abuse, bullying, immigration, natural disasters, and witnessing violence"--