Scientific names: Synsepalum dulcificum, Synsepalum subcordatumFamily: SapotaceaeCommon name: Miracle FruitOrigin: Ghana (Tropical West Africa)
...It is one of the strangest tropical fruits. The most unusual thing about it is the effect it has on one's taste after this miraculous berry has been consumed. The “miracle” is that if lemon or other sour food is eaten after the miracle fruit, the sour tastes sweet, as if sugar has been added. That kind of magical experience is unforgettable! The interest in this plant is so high that anyone who has a plant always finds eager volunteers to test its sweetening properties. A natural chemical in the fruit masks the tongue’s sour taste buds so that lemons taste like lemonade or lemon pie, or lemon candy. What causes the miracle? The fruit has a unique taste changing glycoprotein that inhibits tastebuds' perception of sour taste. The sweet sensation lasts for half an hour to a few hours...
A BIT OF HISTORY
The plant was discovered in West Africa, where the native diet revolved around a few basic foods, mostly of sour taste. Just imagine the delight of the people when someone ate a few red berries and later ate a meal of sour foods, to find everything suddenly sweet! The West African natives use the fruit to sweeten sour palm wine (beer) - Pito, and fermented maize bread - Kenkey.
This West African wonder was not botanically identified and named until the middle of the 19th century as Synsepalum dulcificum, a member of the Sapotaceae family, relative of the sapodilla (Manilkara zapota).
Bill Whitman was the first to grow the plant successfully in the US. He had a seedling all of 7" tall and a cutting of 4" bearing fruit upon the young twigs.
THE PLANT
This small, evergreen shrub grows very slowly to a height of 4-6 ft in container, and 10-15 ft in natural habitat. Eventual size depends on where the plant is grown; a 10 years old plant might be easily only 4-5 feet tall. It forms an oval to pyramidal shaped bush or small tree.
Inconspicuous brown-and-white 1/2 inch flowers are followed by bright scarlet, 1 inch footbal-shaped fruit, sweet and pleasant tasting. Most of the fruit is taken up by a single large seed, but the pulp around it can be nibbled off and then for the next hour or so, anything one eats that is sour has a sweet flavor. The plant starts fruiting when only 1 ft tall. It produces fruit practically year around. In native habitat, two large crops are available yearly, each after a rainy season. The mature bushes usually have a few fruits hanging around all year. Seed to fruit in 2 to 3 years. Flower to fruit in 30 to 45 days.
One of the many virtues of miracle fruit is its ease of cultivation, although, like with any plant, it would be nice if you learn its likes and dislikes before inviting it into your home or garden.
If planted in alkaline limestone based soils, the plant may die. These plants seem to live for acid, thriving in it, and then converting it! They must have rich, well-drained soils that are acid in pH, with lots of peat moss, and require constant supply of micronutrients. On alkaline soils they often are grown in large containers with generous amounts of peat moss for sustained success in fruiting. It makes an excellent container tree, which gives it the added benefit of mobility. Since it is so easily containerized, almost anyone can grow this plant whether they have an outside planting area or not. Miracle fruit can be a rewarding indoor plant. It is not a fast growing plant, which is another benefit for those who would like to grow it in their house or greenhouse. It thrives under warm temperatures, and high humidity. A 10 inch plant is happy in a one gallon pot. One that size will flower and fruit at least twice a year, probably more frequently.
Miracle Fruit thrives best in partial shade. When plants are small they are subject to frost damage, so they should be container-grown and kept indoors or moved to protected locations when frost or freeze threatens. Older plants may sustain some leaf and minor twig damage, but may sustain cooler temperatures without being killed. Although not thought to be frost tolerant, the synsepalum plants have been observed growing in Florida in protected from wind locations as far north as Tampa.
When propagating miracle fruit, sow the seeds in a rich, well-drained medium, just barely covered, and water lightly every other day. Seeds generally come up in about eight to ten weeks, but grow slowly the first year, often being only two to three inches tall at the end of almost one year of growth. It really takes three to four years before the plants reach a height of more than fifteen to twenty inches, and then they start to grow more rapidly. However, when growing this plant from seed, be prepared to wait for a few years until you can enjoy the first fruit. If possible, it is always recommended to get a mature full specimen, at least 1 ft tall, that is ready to bloom.
There are 2 known species of synsepalum that carry miracle fruits. Synsepalum dulcificum is a smaller-leaf version (leaves are narrow), and is somewhat slower growing plant. Synsepalum subcordatum (Giant Miracle Fruit) is a larger leaf variety, and grows into a small tree. The fruit are slightly bigger than those of s. dulcificum, and are produced more profusely, especially in first years. With age, the fruit crop amounts of these two species become about the same.
THE FUN, THE TRICKS AND RECEPIES
Many people are still unaware of this rare fruit and the effect it could have on enhancing the quality of their lifestyle.
Invite your guest to taste the small Miracle Fruit berry, which is usually liked for its own sweet taste. Then offer them to taste a sour fruit from your garden collection: lemon, calamondin, key lime, eugenia, amla or any other sour fruit. They will be amazed at the "new variety’s" taste and will be begging you for a cutting!
Offer the fruit and then a beer. It could kill beer appetite for more than an hour and makes beer taste like a lemonade. Heavy beer drinkers can take a brake!
Try to enhance the quality of other fruit. Enjoy the delights of a bowl of tart strawberries! Lemons taste like lemon sherbet.
Miracle Fruit enhances flavor of grapefruit. A havenly breakfast will be provided by a single Miracle Fruit berry before your morning grapefruit!
Organic acids - especially citric acid - are the substances that are modified to the greatest degree. Battery acid will NOT become a tasty drink.
Miracle Fruit is a great sweet enhancer for dieters.
The unique properties of miracle fruit have been used for an appetite stimulation of persons taking chemotherapy medicines to help them to remove the metallic taste and return the desire for food.
There are no artificial sweeteners proven absolutely safe. Sugar and other "natural" sweeteners are hardly to be considered as food with no ill effects. Miracle fruit is a natural, healthy and harmless sweetener! Due to its safety, it may have a great potential and practical use in everyday life and become a gift to humanity, a way to improve our diets and our health.
It is unfortunate that heat destroys the active principle, so that canning, jams, preserves, baking, drying, etc. are impossible. The fruits can be held for a short period of time by refrigeration or freezing.
The fruits themselves are of interest as a commercial source of artificial sweetener; however, large quantities of berries are needed to collect a substantial amount of the sweetener. The problem is how to increase the shelf life of the product. The berries are perishable, and once picked, last only a few days. Methods of shipment are not conducive to marketing the fruits and commercial cultivation of the plants was unsuccessful so far.
http://uk.images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fuk.images.search.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%2Fimages%3Fei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Dsynsepalum%2520dulcificum%26fr2%3Dtab-web%26fr%3Dslv8-bt&w=200&h=241&imgurl=toptropicals.com%2Fpics%2Fgarden%2F07%2Folymp2%2FP1232083s.jpg&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Ftoptropicals.com%2Fhtml%2Ftoptropicals%2Fplant_wk%2Fsynsepalum.htm&size=10.3kB&name=P1232083s.jpg&p=synsepalum+dulcificum&type=JPG&oid=c97c84ea11e4fd6c&no=19&tt=142&sigr=1215gnk3l&sigi=11kh06aiq&sigb=139cd57i0
Saturday, 17 January 2009
The Miraculous Fruit That Turns Sour Food Sweet In Your Mouth
By Jerome TaylorTuesday, 3 June 2008
At first glance, it looks and tastes much like an ordinary red berry.
Native to West Africa the synsepalum dulcificum is not much bigger than a grape and, other than an attractive red skin, is rather unassuming. But now the "miracle fruit", as it is being called, has become the toast of the culinary elite for its miraculous ability to change the way your mouth works – making sour things taste magically sweet.
The berry contains a glycoprotein that temporarily masks your mouth's ability to taste sour and bitter notes. Once the pulp is swilled around the mouth and the large stone spat out, lemons suddenly taste like sugary lemonade, vinegar takes on a peculiar treacly tang and Irish stout tastes frighteningly similar to chocolate milkshake.
In New York and San Francisco, the latest fashionable night out is to attend an evening "fruit dropping". Partygoers chew berries or pop (perfectly legal) pills of dried pulp before wolfing down enormous quantities of seemingly metamorphosed foodstuffs.
In Britain, meanwhile, demand for the fruit has grown to the extent that the country's two main suppliers have warned customers they may have to wait weeks before getting any.
Chas Barr, a former IT specialist from south London, began selling berries through his website miraclefruit.co.uk after reading about them eight months ago on a botanical blog. He says demand has soared. "If I was lucky, I might have made, say, £5 a day," he said. "But in the past couple of weeks it has gone nuts. I'm selling thousands of pounds worth in a week, literally kilos every day."
Jonathan Hobbs, who ships freeze-dried berries using the site http://www.miracleuk.info/, says "fruit dropping" is becoming popular. "An amazing thing about miracle fruit is the range of people who want to try it," he says. "It does seem to be a bit of an internet phenomenon."
Although the effect has yet to be backed up by scientific evidence, fruit growers say miracle berries are popular with chemotherapy patients because they help diminish the unpleasant metallic aftertaste that comes with treatment. Others say the fruit could one day produce a natural alternative to sugar that would be suitable for diabetics.
The taste test
*Buying the fruit:
Just getting hold of some miracle fruit is half the fun. Very few people sell it and most of those that do are struggling to cope with demand. In Britain miraclefruit.co.uk and miracleuk.info sell berries and powder.
*Lemons:
Citric fruits are a fruit droppers' favourite tipple because the effect is so dramatic. For me, the effect was quite simply astounding. I was able to munch my way through an entire lemon without a squint. The sour tang had been completely replaced by a smooth sugary taste, a little like a sherbert lemon or homemade lemonade.
*Vinegar:
Vinegar tasted nothing like it did before when I had nearly vomited trying to swallow a gulp down. Although it still tasted like vinegar, the acidic tones had completely disappeared and had taken on an almost treacle taste.
*Pineapple:
The pineapple chunks I tried were almost unbearably sweet, a sickly version of pineapple cube sweets.
At first glance, it looks and tastes much like an ordinary red berry.
Native to West Africa the synsepalum dulcificum is not much bigger than a grape and, other than an attractive red skin, is rather unassuming. But now the "miracle fruit", as it is being called, has become the toast of the culinary elite for its miraculous ability to change the way your mouth works – making sour things taste magically sweet.
The berry contains a glycoprotein that temporarily masks your mouth's ability to taste sour and bitter notes. Once the pulp is swilled around the mouth and the large stone spat out, lemons suddenly taste like sugary lemonade, vinegar takes on a peculiar treacly tang and Irish stout tastes frighteningly similar to chocolate milkshake.
In New York and San Francisco, the latest fashionable night out is to attend an evening "fruit dropping". Partygoers chew berries or pop (perfectly legal) pills of dried pulp before wolfing down enormous quantities of seemingly metamorphosed foodstuffs.
In Britain, meanwhile, demand for the fruit has grown to the extent that the country's two main suppliers have warned customers they may have to wait weeks before getting any.
Chas Barr, a former IT specialist from south London, began selling berries through his website miraclefruit.co.uk after reading about them eight months ago on a botanical blog. He says demand has soared. "If I was lucky, I might have made, say, £5 a day," he said. "But in the past couple of weeks it has gone nuts. I'm selling thousands of pounds worth in a week, literally kilos every day."
Jonathan Hobbs, who ships freeze-dried berries using the site http://www.miracleuk.info/, says "fruit dropping" is becoming popular. "An amazing thing about miracle fruit is the range of people who want to try it," he says. "It does seem to be a bit of an internet phenomenon."
Although the effect has yet to be backed up by scientific evidence, fruit growers say miracle berries are popular with chemotherapy patients because they help diminish the unpleasant metallic aftertaste that comes with treatment. Others say the fruit could one day produce a natural alternative to sugar that would be suitable for diabetics.
The taste test
*Buying the fruit:
Just getting hold of some miracle fruit is half the fun. Very few people sell it and most of those that do are struggling to cope with demand. In Britain miraclefruit.co.uk and miracleuk.info sell berries and powder.
*Lemons:
Citric fruits are a fruit droppers' favourite tipple because the effect is so dramatic. For me, the effect was quite simply astounding. I was able to munch my way through an entire lemon without a squint. The sour tang had been completely replaced by a smooth sugary taste, a little like a sherbert lemon or homemade lemonade.
*Vinegar:
Vinegar tasted nothing like it did before when I had nearly vomited trying to swallow a gulp down. Although it still tasted like vinegar, the acidic tones had completely disappeared and had taken on an almost treacle taste.
*Pineapple:
The pineapple chunks I tried were almost unbearably sweet, a sickly version of pineapple cube sweets.
Monday, 15 December 2008
Understanding White and Black Experiences
There's another must read piece from Lynne Winfield in today's Bermuda Sun. In order to understand the social makeup of Bermuda today, we have to understand our history.
Lynne Winfield outlines two hypothetical experiences that reflect the stories of many white and black Bermudians. While everyone's stories are certainly unique, stories like these are all too common across our island. The White Experience:
You are a first generation Bermudian male, your father/mother having arrived in the late 1960s or 1970s as part of a large influx of whites from the U.K. responding to increasing opportunities in international business and the ongoing general Government policy of encouraging whites to settle in Bermuda. Your parents were working/middle class and they arrived with barely a penny in their pockets and a high school education. Unknowingly your parents jump to the top of the hiring pool, not understanding that at the time of their arrival segregation had only just ceased to exist, and that negative white attitudes/perceptions towards black Bermudians were still firmly entrenched.
Within seven years your parents achieve Bermudian status which opened doors and provided more advantages. They moved up in their organizations, perhaps achieving positions of power and influence. They worked hard, bought a home and sacrificed and saved to send you to private school and then you were the first one in your family to go to university. This was possible because your parents were able to get a loan against the equity in their house. With solid pensions built up over the years and their home fully paid for your parents are now retired. Their major medical is still covered due to an arrangement with their ex-employers to continue to keep them on the company's medical plan at the lower rate.
At 21 you have graduated and are now living in an apartment under your parent's house paying a low rent, while you save towards the down payment on your first house and the knowledge that your parents will more than likely help you secure your first mortgage in a couple of years. You have a terrific job in the international business sector. The sky's the limit.
This is a story of opportunity, and, that opportunity was created by a combination of individual initiative and historical and social circumstance. Now, let's examine a very different story - The Black Experience:
Compare this to the black Bermudian experience in the 1960s and 1970s with a similar high school education. By and large jobs in the service industry were open to them with the concomitant low pay. Due to continued racist attitudes and stereotypes, there were minimum opportunities to move into higher paying jobs with a future or management training progammes.
Mortgages were virtually unavailable due to continued racism, low incomes, and the stereotypes about blacks being high credit risks. Your father had excelled at high school but because of the times could only obtain work in the construction industry and your mother was a domestic. Both industries provided inadequate to non-existent pensions. However, your parents worked hard, saved hard and held down two jobs. Through sheer effort and sacrifice they saved enough to buy a small piece of land in Pembroke, and through the help of friends and neighbours bit by bit built a home, but money was scarce and despite your graduating near the top of your class at high school, there was nothing to spare for further education.
Your parents would like to retire but cannot afford to do so. The government pension combined with the little private pension they have accumulated since 2000 is just insufficient to meet their needs. They only have HIP insurance because they cannot afford Major Medical insurance. A long term illness would be catastrophic for the whole family, financially. You live at home; you've been working full-time since you were 16 and now at 21 realize that you need to take evening classes at the Bermuda College if you want to move up into management.
You hope to be able to eventually save enough to complete your degree overseas or at the very least get a business degree by correspondence courses. This all depends on your parents' ability to keep working and maintain their health, as otherwise you would need to continue to work full time in order to help support them. With luck it will be five years before you graduate and you'll be 26, but then you still have to find a job and get experience in the field before you can start making some 'real' money.
Two life experiences just a few miles apart. Both families with similar values, beliefs and attitudes towards hard work, family and trying to get ahead, but with widely disparate outcomes with regard to education, employment, housing and health!
The PLP Government is committed to promoting opportunity for all Bermudians. We're addressing these social and historical concerns through initiatives such as the Big Conversation. We're also committed to improving education and creating job opportunities for all Bermudians.
These historical and social injustices will take time to heal. We all believe in moving toward equality. That's why we must not be complacent. We must learn from the past lest we be doomed to repeat it.
PLP Blog site http://www.plp.bm/blog
Lynne Winfield outlines two hypothetical experiences that reflect the stories of many white and black Bermudians. While everyone's stories are certainly unique, stories like these are all too common across our island. The White Experience:
You are a first generation Bermudian male, your father/mother having arrived in the late 1960s or 1970s as part of a large influx of whites from the U.K. responding to increasing opportunities in international business and the ongoing general Government policy of encouraging whites to settle in Bermuda. Your parents were working/middle class and they arrived with barely a penny in their pockets and a high school education. Unknowingly your parents jump to the top of the hiring pool, not understanding that at the time of their arrival segregation had only just ceased to exist, and that negative white attitudes/perceptions towards black Bermudians were still firmly entrenched.
Within seven years your parents achieve Bermudian status which opened doors and provided more advantages. They moved up in their organizations, perhaps achieving positions of power and influence. They worked hard, bought a home and sacrificed and saved to send you to private school and then you were the first one in your family to go to university. This was possible because your parents were able to get a loan against the equity in their house. With solid pensions built up over the years and their home fully paid for your parents are now retired. Their major medical is still covered due to an arrangement with their ex-employers to continue to keep them on the company's medical plan at the lower rate.
At 21 you have graduated and are now living in an apartment under your parent's house paying a low rent, while you save towards the down payment on your first house and the knowledge that your parents will more than likely help you secure your first mortgage in a couple of years. You have a terrific job in the international business sector. The sky's the limit.
This is a story of opportunity, and, that opportunity was created by a combination of individual initiative and historical and social circumstance. Now, let's examine a very different story - The Black Experience:
Compare this to the black Bermudian experience in the 1960s and 1970s with a similar high school education. By and large jobs in the service industry were open to them with the concomitant low pay. Due to continued racist attitudes and stereotypes, there were minimum opportunities to move into higher paying jobs with a future or management training progammes.
Mortgages were virtually unavailable due to continued racism, low incomes, and the stereotypes about blacks being high credit risks. Your father had excelled at high school but because of the times could only obtain work in the construction industry and your mother was a domestic. Both industries provided inadequate to non-existent pensions. However, your parents worked hard, saved hard and held down two jobs. Through sheer effort and sacrifice they saved enough to buy a small piece of land in Pembroke, and through the help of friends and neighbours bit by bit built a home, but money was scarce and despite your graduating near the top of your class at high school, there was nothing to spare for further education.
Your parents would like to retire but cannot afford to do so. The government pension combined with the little private pension they have accumulated since 2000 is just insufficient to meet their needs. They only have HIP insurance because they cannot afford Major Medical insurance. A long term illness would be catastrophic for the whole family, financially. You live at home; you've been working full-time since you were 16 and now at 21 realize that you need to take evening classes at the Bermuda College if you want to move up into management.
You hope to be able to eventually save enough to complete your degree overseas or at the very least get a business degree by correspondence courses. This all depends on your parents' ability to keep working and maintain their health, as otherwise you would need to continue to work full time in order to help support them. With luck it will be five years before you graduate and you'll be 26, but then you still have to find a job and get experience in the field before you can start making some 'real' money.
Two life experiences just a few miles apart. Both families with similar values, beliefs and attitudes towards hard work, family and trying to get ahead, but with widely disparate outcomes with regard to education, employment, housing and health!
The PLP Government is committed to promoting opportunity for all Bermudians. We're addressing these social and historical concerns through initiatives such as the Big Conversation. We're also committed to improving education and creating job opportunities for all Bermudians.
These historical and social injustices will take time to heal. We all believe in moving toward equality. That's why we must not be complacent. We must learn from the past lest we be doomed to repeat it.
PLP Blog site http://www.plp.bm/blog
Friday, 12 December 2008
Business Exodus Warning
More companies are considering jumping ship to Switzerland, as the "quiet drain" of money and personnel from Bermuda appears to be gathering pace. Industry insiders said yesterday most Bermuda-based insurance firms have one eye on moving their headquarters to Europe - following the route taken by three separate companies on Wednesday. The news comes as the industry continues to digest the "implosion" of XL, a company once considered a barometer for the health of Bermuda's economy as a whole. XL's share price crashed through the floor on Wednesday amid rumours the company is up for sale. And the Bermuda Sun has learned that the company has already shed up to 70 jobs - far higher than the official number of layoffs. Golden era over?Former premier Sir John Swan said yesterday that the "golden era" of international business on the island now appears to be over. He said even a modest decline in big business will affect every Bermudian, with taxi drivers, restaurateurs, house painters and anyone with an apartment to rent feeling the "trickle down effect." Minister of Finance Paula Cox struck a calmer note, saying recent developments are "cause for close monitoring" but insisting the island is in a strong position to endure economic turbulence. (See page 6 for Ms Cox's comments). Sir John urged all Bermudians, from the man on the street to the leaders of the country, to try harder to make international business feel welcome. "Unfortunately, when things were going really well, when things were at their best, we were at our worse: making more noise about race and about term limits," Sir John said. "We thought: 'we don't need to think about these people; they [international big business] will always be here.'" Referring to Government's announcement this week that they will review the six-year work permit limit law that proved so unpopular with big business, Sir John said: "Now things have started to slow down we are thinking about those things. Six months ago you couldn't get anyone to talk about work permit limits. But now it may be too late; you have to make your friends before you need them."Changes to tax lawsSir John said many of the factors affecting big business are out of the island's hands, including the global economic downturn and moves in the U.S. to change offshore tax laws. However, making the island more welcoming is up to everyone. He said: "It requires a sacrifice from all Bermudians. If you want to have a loose tongue and tell people [ex-pats] where to get off; if you want to think only what is best for you; if you want to be that arrogant then we all suffer the consequences." Don Kramer, head of Ariel Re, is an ex-pat and long term resident. He agrees that subtle messages have been sent out making international business leaders feel less welcome. He said: "For example, at the airport, there used to be a line for residents and non-residents. Now it is Bermudians and non-Bermudians. The Government is in a difficult position: it has to pander to a segment of their constituency that considers ex-pats a waste of oxygen on their island. On the other hand, I have to believe that Government is intelligent enough to know where the wealth comes from." Mr. Kramer - who oversees around 60 employees at Ariel Re - said he has had a serious look at moving his own headquarters to Switzerland, although he has decided that option is currently "not on the radar." He believes all insurance firms have been obliged to consider such a move. The reason is increasing "aggression" from lawmakers and tax inspectors in the U.S. No longer preferredShadow Finance Minister Grant Gibbons said that recent moves to Switzerland are symbolic and prove Bermuda is no longer the "preferred jurisdiction" for companies considering a move. He said: "There should be serious concern in the community about the health of our international business." Mr. Gibbons believes Government has squandered its goodwill with big business by obsessing about race. He said Premier Ewart Brown's recent remarks in Parliament about white Bermudians not supporting Barack Obama was just the latest example of Dr. Brown sending out the wrong message. Mr. Gibbons said: "The PLP needs to think long and hard about its leadership at this present time." Describing the consequences to the country if big business declines, Mr. Gibbons said: "Most directly, 60 per cent of employees in those companies are Bermudians. If jobs are lost, Bermudian families suddenly find themselves without a breadwinner. Then there is the huge amount of money Government makes directly from payroll tax - that goes. Business people take taxis, eat at restaurants; they work in offices that have to be built and maintained. They stay in apartments that will soon be empty if we are not careful." Officially, XL announced it had shed 47 jobs. However, insiders say at least 70 of around 320 staff have moved on, with many jumping ship before being pushed. One insider said parts of XL's offices now resemble "a ghost town" with desks empty and morale low. The entire operation could fit inside one of the company's two towers and XL has lobbied Government to try to rent out its second tower, the insider said. However, when XL and ACE were granted special permission to buy property in Bermuda it was done on the proviso they would not rent out any office space.The Bermuda Sun called XL spokeswoman Carol Parker-Trott for comment yesterday but received no reply by press time.XL’s decline: should you be worried?As a long-standing powerhouse of Bermuda's insurance industry, XL has long been seen as a barometer for the health of the economy. So does its rapid decline forebode a similar collapse for the island's other firms? No, experts say; XL's problems are individual and tied to specific investments. Peter Everson, a consultant for Schroeder's asset management, said: "The factors affecting XL are related to that company and that company alone. General Motors, one of the most prestigious companies in America, has had to go to the Government for help; that does not mean all American automotive companies are in trouble." David Ezekiel, chairman of the Association of Bermuda International Companies, agrees XL's problems are specific. However, he said the decline of such an "iconic" local company was still a psychological blow for everyone in the industry. Mr. Ezekiel said: "The [local] industry has been defined by Ace and XL. It's a blow to the psyche."by Tim Hall
Thursday, 4 December 2008
Global War for Talent
Article published December 4. 2008 01:10PMIsland in a 'global war for talent' says BEC study By Alex Wright
The number of Bermudians filling jobs in the domestic market will not be enough to sustain the Island's economic prosperity over the next two decades.
That was the stark message from the Bermuda Employers' Council (BEC) survey entitled 'The Shift: An Examination of Employment Trends in Bermuda', which reveals there is an impending labour market shortage due to a falling birth rate and a low projected population growth for the country in the next 20 years.
The study, which was carried out in June 2008 and presented to delegates at the BEC's Annual General Meeting held at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess hotel yesterday, also shows a shift to a more knowledge-based economy which has created additional pressures on the private sector to secure the level of skilled resources needed to sustain and grow their businesses.
Allied to this there is already some evidence of offshoring jobs to other jurisdictions due to the shortage of certain skilled workers in Bermuda, a trend which is set to continue and accelerate in the future as worldwide demand for talented employees increases.
The report found that even at modest growth rates in the economy of one percent per year, the projected rise in the amount of jobs will lead to an inevitable drop in the percentage of Bermudians in the total workforce, with the percentage of working black Bermudians expected to decline to less than half the workforce over time.
"Even conservative economic growth will lead to a higher demand for workers than Bermuda can produce domestically," it read.
"Public policy must recognise this and should focus on efforts to maximise the employment opportunities for all Bermudians, with strong emphasis on training and education to prepare future generations, especially for the higher level knowledge-based job opportunities that are being created."
The survey called on employers to think about repatriating Bermudians working overseas, while it said Government's "disproportionate employment" of available Bermudians should also be considered given the negative impact it has on the availability of Bermudians in the private sector in a bid to mitigate the need to import additional workers.
"Bermuda is faced with a significant dilemma: the need to maximise the job opportunities for its citizens, balanced with the need for continued economic growth that is insufficient to meet economic growth even at modest levels," the report continued.
"Government policy really must recognise and focus on this reality and develop strategies that will prepare the next generation of Bermudian workers with the necessary skills and education to take full advantage of an increasingly sophisticated job market.
"At the same time Government must recognise that it is a global war for talent that is becoming more competitive with each passing day and work hard to ensure that Bermuda remains a place of choice for those willing to relocate to the Island to help build the country's long-term prosperity."
The report concluded that the reality of a growing economy and the need for more workers than the Island can produce was that Bermudians were increasingly likely to be a minority group in a range of occupations and professions, dating back to 1994 and set to continue.
It said Government needed to ensure that Bermudians are well-prepared to take on the highest level of employment and the most desirable jobs in the economy, using a long-term strategy focusing on training and education to maximise job opportunities for Bermudians.
"Bermuda's economy has outgrown Bermuda's domestic workforce and both the country and its citizens must adjust to this reality if economic prosperity is to continue," it said.
The number of Bermudians filling jobs in the domestic market will not be enough to sustain the Island's economic prosperity over the next two decades.
That was the stark message from the Bermuda Employers' Council (BEC) survey entitled 'The Shift: An Examination of Employment Trends in Bermuda', which reveals there is an impending labour market shortage due to a falling birth rate and a low projected population growth for the country in the next 20 years.
The study, which was carried out in June 2008 and presented to delegates at the BEC's Annual General Meeting held at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess hotel yesterday, also shows a shift to a more knowledge-based economy which has created additional pressures on the private sector to secure the level of skilled resources needed to sustain and grow their businesses.
Allied to this there is already some evidence of offshoring jobs to other jurisdictions due to the shortage of certain skilled workers in Bermuda, a trend which is set to continue and accelerate in the future as worldwide demand for talented employees increases.
The report found that even at modest growth rates in the economy of one percent per year, the projected rise in the amount of jobs will lead to an inevitable drop in the percentage of Bermudians in the total workforce, with the percentage of working black Bermudians expected to decline to less than half the workforce over time.
"Even conservative economic growth will lead to a higher demand for workers than Bermuda can produce domestically," it read.
"Public policy must recognise this and should focus on efforts to maximise the employment opportunities for all Bermudians, with strong emphasis on training and education to prepare future generations, especially for the higher level knowledge-based job opportunities that are being created."
The survey called on employers to think about repatriating Bermudians working overseas, while it said Government's "disproportionate employment" of available Bermudians should also be considered given the negative impact it has on the availability of Bermudians in the private sector in a bid to mitigate the need to import additional workers.
"Bermuda is faced with a significant dilemma: the need to maximise the job opportunities for its citizens, balanced with the need for continued economic growth that is insufficient to meet economic growth even at modest levels," the report continued.
"Government policy really must recognise and focus on this reality and develop strategies that will prepare the next generation of Bermudian workers with the necessary skills and education to take full advantage of an increasingly sophisticated job market.
"At the same time Government must recognise that it is a global war for talent that is becoming more competitive with each passing day and work hard to ensure that Bermuda remains a place of choice for those willing to relocate to the Island to help build the country's long-term prosperity."
The report concluded that the reality of a growing economy and the need for more workers than the Island can produce was that Bermudians were increasingly likely to be a minority group in a range of occupations and professions, dating back to 1994 and set to continue.
It said Government needed to ensure that Bermudians are well-prepared to take on the highest level of employment and the most desirable jobs in the economy, using a long-term strategy focusing on training and education to maximise job opportunities for Bermudians.
"Bermuda's economy has outgrown Bermuda's domestic workforce and both the country and its citizens must adjust to this reality if economic prosperity is to continue," it said.
Friday, 28 November 2008
Wednesday, 19 November 2008
Island aims to lead with GIS technology
Bermuda is aiming to become a world leader among small island nations in the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), according to Telecommunications Minister Terry Lister.
Police and Fire Services use the technology to quickly determine the locale of an incident, while Government uses it in planning applications, land valuation and protecting the Island's healthy coral reefs, the Minister said.
Speaking at a press conference marking International GIS day, Mr. Lister said: "GIS in Government is a collective and co-operative effort driven by a number of departments.
"The Government has made exceptional progress in the use of Geographic Information and Bermuda is well positioned to become a worldwide leader among small island nations in the use of GIS. Our main challenge now is to effectively meet and manage the increasing demand for GIS services as more Government departments and businesses begin to realise the value of GIS.
"As Bermuda's environment becomes more complex, emergency services are becoming increasingly dependent on the ability to access multiple layers of geographic data, which can be provided by several departments as for instance, roads, addresses and buildings are provided by the Ministry of Works and Engineering.
"The GIS Committee created the following vision statement as part of its strategy. It states that: 'The Bermuda Government will be, and will be recognised as, a world class provider and user of geographic information and services. With our collaborative, accessible and reliable spatial data infrastructure, we will enhance efficiency and promote integrated decision making to positively impact Bermuda's society, environment and economy.'
"I am confident that the collective efforts of the Government departments on Government's GIS Committee and the strategy we are now embarking upon will make this vision a reality and will position Bermuda to take advantage of the many opportunities and services that can be provided by this technology."
Demonstrations of GIS in surveying, habitat mapping, conservation, planning, archaeology and tourism will take place at Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo on Monday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.
By Tim Smith
Police and Fire Services use the technology to quickly determine the locale of an incident, while Government uses it in planning applications, land valuation and protecting the Island's healthy coral reefs, the Minister said.
Speaking at a press conference marking International GIS day, Mr. Lister said: "GIS in Government is a collective and co-operative effort driven by a number of departments.
"The Government has made exceptional progress in the use of Geographic Information and Bermuda is well positioned to become a worldwide leader among small island nations in the use of GIS. Our main challenge now is to effectively meet and manage the increasing demand for GIS services as more Government departments and businesses begin to realise the value of GIS.
"As Bermuda's environment becomes more complex, emergency services are becoming increasingly dependent on the ability to access multiple layers of geographic data, which can be provided by several departments as for instance, roads, addresses and buildings are provided by the Ministry of Works and Engineering.
"The GIS Committee created the following vision statement as part of its strategy. It states that: 'The Bermuda Government will be, and will be recognised as, a world class provider and user of geographic information and services. With our collaborative, accessible and reliable spatial data infrastructure, we will enhance efficiency and promote integrated decision making to positively impact Bermuda's society, environment and economy.'
"I am confident that the collective efforts of the Government departments on Government's GIS Committee and the strategy we are now embarking upon will make this vision a reality and will position Bermuda to take advantage of the many opportunities and services that can be provided by this technology."
Demonstrations of GIS in surveying, habitat mapping, conservation, planning, archaeology and tourism will take place at Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo on Monday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.
By Tim Smith
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