blemished
though perfectly nutritious food and vegetables never reach the supermarkets; in poorer developing countries, most of the waste is on farms.
The French President Francois Hollande has said that the
stalemate
at the United Nations over the conflict in Syria illustrates the need for a reform of the Security Council. Mr Hollande said the veto by Russia and China had weakened the UN.
"The question that is asked today is current members of the Security Council take the responsibilities to allow it to make decisions. Because blocking the system leads to either it being bypassed or its
impotence
. That is why I said to Russia and China that their attitude towards the Syrian crisis is weakening our capacity to fulfill the mandate of the United Nations charter."
Mr Hollande also urged the Syrian opposition to form a government of national unity, which he said France would recognize.
Meanwhile, the Turkish foreign minister has called for more international help with an
influx
of refugees from Syria. He said their numbers had doubled over the past two months to more than eight thousand.
BBC News
The United Nations says basic public services in Gaza must be improved urgently if, as it puts it, the Palestinian enclave is to remain 'livable'. The UN points a lack of clean water as the greatest challenge in Gaza, and it warns that health, power and education infrastructure are falling behind the needs of a rapidly growing population.