it contains food producers, are the ones primarily responsible for the safety of the food you buying, but you can protect yourself and your family from diseases in the home by plying the 5 keys to safer food use them. you also have a role to play. ah, ah ah, this is dated. you news line from berlin, record numbers of coded 19 cases as armor crohn becomes the dominant variant in countries around the globe. germany's health minister warns the numbers could be

much higher than reported. also coming up. another independent voice in hong kong is silenced. the website stand, news says it's closing down after police arrest several staff members and confiscate documents, plus fewer animal juices and more creative juices in the kitchen. a master chef in france is turning away from using animal products and calling on other shifts to do the same. ah, i'm nicole foolish. welcome to the show. we'll have those stories in a moment, but we start with some breaking news in the united states. a jury there has found birth or social like elaine maxwell guilty. after days of deliberation. maxwell is charged with luring young women to be sexually abused by american millionaire

jeffrey epstein. the new york jury found maxwell guilty on 5 of 6 counts, including recruiting and grooming teenage victims and the most serious offense trafficking. a minor. with this verdict, it's possible maxwell could spend the rest of her life in prison. more on that story in our upcoming bulletins. but 1st, let's move on to other news. the american very into is causing skyrocketing cases of co, with 19 infections in countries around the world. french authorities reported more than 200000 infections in a single day and new, french, and european record italy, ireland, and portugal have also all announced record numbers of new cases. in poland, authorities recorded nearly 800 deaths in the single day. that's the highest number . so far they're 3 quarters of the dead were unvaccinated. germany says it's

official rates have dropped, but health minister calatrava is skeptical. we're seeing the true numbers, which he said could be 2 or 3 times higher. the director general of the world health organization says he is extremely worried about the massive spike in cases driven by the simultaneous spread of delta. and i'm a kron right. no delta and or me grown are tween threats that are driving up cases to record numbers. which again, is leading to spikes in wasp televisions. and does i'm highly concerned that on the chrome being more times miserable, circulating at the same time as delta is leading to a soon army of cases. and in the united states, health officials are predicting more than 44000 new coverage related deaths over

the next 4 weeks. this comes as the us to post record highs of new confirmed infections. new cases for a day have more than doubled over the past 2 weeks, eclipsing the previous record mark of 250000 set. in mid january of this year, peter chin hung as an infectious disease expert and a professor of medicine at the university of california. and he joined us now from san francisco. doctor, welcome. we're seeing record infection numbers in the us. how worried are you? well, nickel, i'm very, very worried, and i'm not just worried from the raw numbers, which as you pointed out, is record breaking. but i'm worried about the rate of increase, which has been really dizzying on what happened as a result of that is that we had very little time to prepare. if you think about testing, not enough, certainly not enough boxing uptake. i'm certainly not booster uptake by many ah,

we're not just seen death like one year ago, but we're seeing a lack of possible capacity not to. we could not because we're taking care of too many patients. but because healthcare workers are becoming ill themselves, and that's taking away from our ability to take care of patients, there is growing concern about armor con, threatening crucial infrastructure. not only hospitals around the globe. how well is the us prepared for such a scenario? i think we are not very well prepared at all. um we may be prepared in some regions, but because as so many different ecosystems of healthcare in the united states, again, we don't have a national health care system. there. lot of people who fall between the cracks, i worried about that group vulnerable populations. but also i'm also worried about the non cubic illnesses that have been neglected. health care screening cancer screening. and what we're seeing with our record breaking as kid admissions. so

kids under 5 children being hospitalized is not so much only over crime, but also all of the diseases and healthy maintenance that has been neglected over the last 21 months. what can be done to keep on the chron at bay at this stage? well it's, it's very, very complex. if you look at what happened in the 1918 flu pandemic, it ended after all, the pandemic stones last forever. we just don't know what will happen with cove it and sorry, covey to it could be that armor cron will devour on delta, which it seems to be doing and leads to a milder illness. we do have evidence from south africa within the last day that if you get delta, you're not protect against omicron. but interestingly, if you get home recross, you are protected against delta. i think you know that to be a scenario. many people don't think it will last forever because we will certainly

get another variant until we vaccinate the entire world. and a vaccine is the only way we can prep protect ourselves against the future and not just of presence. we do have initial findings, they'll pointing to a milder course of the disease with on the con. could this very rapid spread that we're seeing now potentially bring us closer to turning cove it into a manageable threat? it is possible. i, at some point cove, it is going to be endemic, meaning, like influenza will accept a certain amount of cases in the world where we are comfortable with that our health systems can absorb our right now. i think the numbers are way too high. ah, you know, even if people get infected all around the world with on their chron, it's still going to lead to disproportionate. that's like you reported in countries where there isn't enough vaccinations. so again, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, we can't really even think about and amiss,

city until the whole world is vaccinated. peter chan. hong always great speaking to you. thanks so much nicole. a sound get a round up of some other headlines making news around the world day a day after russian authorities order the closure of rushes most prominent right group memorial international. a court has shut down the affiliated memorial human rights center. the organization has campaign for the victims of rights abuses and political prisoners and russia. the european court of human rights which russia is subject to has urged moscow to suspend the decision. indonesian authorities have agreed to let $120.00 ro hinge a muslim stranded at sea to come ashore. the decision comes after aid organizations called for them to be rescued. the country security ministry previously said it would push the vessel back to international waters. the overcrowded boat has

a damaged engine and has been drifting for days off indonesia, northern coast, south africa holding vigils following the death of anti apartheid hero, archbishop desmond, to do mourners left flowers at saint george's cathedral in cave town. as the bells rang out into two's honor, they will sound for 10 minutes each day until the nobel peace laureates funeral at the cathedral on january 1st. one of hong kong last independent news outlet says it's folding after being rated and having its assets frozen. hong kong police searched the offices of stand news on wednesday, arresting 7 and removing evidence. it's the latest blow to the territories shrinking free press. over $200.00 police were seen entering the pro democracy news websites headquarters. they had a warrant under

a national security law enacted last year to seize journalistic materials. they arrested 7 people, including the current and a former editor in chief of stan, use and polk star tone, democracy activist, denise ho, a former board member. early wednesday, deputy editor ronson chand, streamed live footage of police trying to enter his home. although he had seen what was coming back in june. i know why i finger the situation and the message is clear to from the government that mac and reports on dory and covering new story will have some kinda old results. you may be charged that you may be in with your freedom, whatever. so it's not easy to say that i'm more afraid of the situation to pro beijing authorities of hong kong. see stan use as a threat to national security. thicker backwards, all her young,

their objectives include inciting, hatred and contempt towards the hong kong government, inciting hatred towards the hong kong judicial system, inciting dissatisfaction among hong kong residents, inciting people to use violence and instigating people to disobey the law or legal orders. hong kong largest pro democracy paper, the apple daily was rated and forced to close in june. it's founded jimmy ly was recently sentenced to 13 months in jail. critic se china's communist party is shutting down all free press in hong kong. in order to snuff out the last vestiges of democracy in the form of british territory is considered a delicacy in france and beyond. but far, gra has long been. the object of controversy is produced by force feeding ducks, and geese, and animal rights activists want the gourmet food off the menu. now the british

government may ban imports afar gra, and is calling on chest to come up with alternatives. one of london's top french restaurants has gotten to work and invented the vegan. pho, gra, it looks just like for growth, the french delicacy made of duck or goose liver, but in fact, no birds were harmed in the making of this patty. it doesn't taste of torture, which is or which one of the, the calling region of the river and not in this one. ah, i live a used for making real progress is considered a luxury ingredient. but it's fattened by force feeding the birds. the substitute for gra is made with mushrooms lentils, and spices. beetroot is then added so that the patty looks like the real thing. if you put the right amount becomes just like it's almost on

harder for a french celebrity chef like alexis could you, to turn his back on for gra, the dish was one of the top sellers in his restaurant. but he became a target for animal rights activists. eventually they convinced him to change. and so from then i decided that i need to still be a french f, as still, you know, do gasoline food. but i need to remove all the ingredients. so we started. fresh food writer jo warrick, is also in favor of eating less meat still. he's not sure about the imitation patty . it definitely doesn't resemble program and i suppose maybe in terms of the texture a little bit but but not, not the not the flavor on it, not the finish on. it hasn't got that fighting as, as, and got that richness. restaurateur, alexis, good, he is undeterred. he's now become an influential campaigner,

ministers in the u. k. are considering bending the input of genuine for gra, from france. some critics see doubled standards, get rid of an elite, you know, french foreign, luxury product, and say that, that you're making a point about animal welfare. but if you really wanted to make a point about out on the welfare, what you would do is address, you know, the way chickens are being formed intensely form the way pork spin intensely formed . all the same chef alexis good cheese change of heart is paying off. he's fully booked for the next monday, or hopefully he's going to inspire or the restaurant to do the same. and most importantly, although chef who are going to go and put their creative juice into this and come up with a, with come base creation that we cannot live without. ah, that's good news for ducks and geese. and it's fine by this food right to, to, as long as chefs don't start passing off substitutes as the real thing. why not

just call it mushroom patty? you're watching the w news, and here's a reminder of the top story we're following for you. read her so she like gillian maxwell has been found guilty of loring teenage girls to be sexually abused by american millionaire jeffrey epstein. the near jury found her guilty of 5 counts, including recruiting and grooming teenage victims and the most serious offense trafficking, a minor that's our time for now. i'm nickle further from me and the entire team here in berlin. thank you so much for your company. thanks to the dark side. wherein to agencies are pulling the strings. there was a before 911 and after 911, he says after 911,

the clubs came off. were organized crime rules. were conglomerates make their own laws? work through it big. it doesn't matter. the only criteria is, well, we'll hook people up. we shed light on the opaque world. who's behind the benefits? and why are they a threat to us all o peak worlds starts january 5th on d, w ah, europe's 1st home grown battery facility begins production. we'll look at what sweden's north full could mean for european car makers and just how charged up wall street investors are over all things. electric cars. also on the show,

germany near the end of its decades long relationship with nuclear power. some of its neighbors say they plan, however, to build more reactors and turkeys. economic woes are turning books into a luxury. publishers and customer say they can barely keep up with rising prices. hello and welcome to the show. i'm seeing beardsley in berlin. what's being held as a milestone for europe, the swedish battery cell maker, north vault has officially begun production at its facility in the countries north . that makes it the continents 1st homegrown battery cell production line for customers like volkswagen, volvo, and b, m, w. that's good news for their plants for the coming years. just 200 kilometers south of the arctic circle this factory. and while, if they all produced its 1st battery cell, this week, the location was chosen because it's near important sights of renewable energy production in northern sweden, including hydro electric power,

intended to compete with the u. s. electric car, giant, tesla and asian produces of lithium ion batteries. the site is expected to produce enough batteries to power $1000000.00 electric vehicles every year. north vault expects to make its 1st deliveries to commercial customers. in early 2022. the company has already secured $30000000000.00 worth of orders from european comic as including germany's b, m, w, and folks wagon and sweden's volvo with which it plants. a 2nd european factory test lays due to launch its 1st factory in europe soon. and asian rivals have significant operations in poland and hungary. but no european firm had opened a major facility until now. well, 2021 was a big year for electric vehicles and electric infrastructure companies like ford and g m. announce ambitious e v production goals. investors meanwhile search for the next tesla,

while elevating firms with a focus on electric infrastructure. among the biggest winters was electric vehicle maker revene automotive. now it raised over $12000000000.00 in its market debut in november, a munich based sono motors, a small developer of solar powered electric vehicles, had a bit more of a humble i. p. o, but still beat expectations. raising $150000000.00 in its to view a charge point, a company that manages electric charging networks went public in march and raised around $615000000.00 in cash. though it stock has fallen lately, and we should mentioned that none of these companies, however, is actually profitable thus far. right for more, let's go to james sweeney in new york. james, good to see you. this has been a big year for electric vehicles. so far all things, electric on wall street, a lot of appetite from investors. what do we expect for the next year? let me put it this way. 2021 is the year in the startups made their name on wall

street that we all heard of them. 2022 looks to be the years that dominate the headlines on the street. and we're not just talking about startups here. we're talking about all around electric vehicle production, especially from the big companies, while she was enamored or you would tesla caribbean, even lucid recently. and you look at living river that the man is there, the 1st day, the 1st 5 days went public, the company's market cap surpass volkswagen. and don't forget like you said earlier, $150000000000.00 as evaluation in november with 0 revenue at all. then it's been one and a half months now, and that excitement is not cool down. test lu, front and center and the men isla. most tweets grabbing the headlines. we also have the big boys about getting with forward releasing its f 150 lightning electric vehicle. pick up where say the, the a, m g, e q, s tesla, its cyber truck is on the way. we can put it to rest electric vehicles. enthusiasm is only just begun. that's going to be big in 2022 or so one of the things that could, however, slow down the automotive industry in that next year, even as that excitement for electric grams up is the supply of chips. we've seen

that be a real problem of the past year is going to get any better in this next year. well, the funny thing about the chip shortages is that before this, investors were worried more about the man than ships. but now that's not even a concern because the demand is there. so regarding computer chip supply, we can see some relief in 2022. but we need cove it in on the chronic ease because that's what's key to ensure that these producers and ship plans can get back to work healthy. that's why reopens voters allows shipments of products, research and development for improve computer hardware. and we also need some more effort on behalf of global political leaders to reach trade agreements. that won't keep our computer chips and general cargo sitting on ships off the coast for a month at a time at different prices. so can we see a trip shortage relief next year? yeah, we can definitely, but there's a lot of pieces to that puzzle to put it all together. all right, james sweeney in new york. talk about the car industry and the i'll look for next year. thank you. thank you. and out of some of the other global business stores making headlines, trouble,

chinese property developer ever grant appears to have missed another bond payment deadline. the due date on $2.00 bond coupons went unpaid, potentially complicating evergreen's ongoing efforts to restructure offshore debt and complete housing projects. every grant has a 30 day grace period before the debt is declared. in default, more details have emerged of chinese ride helen giant dds plans to de las from new york and remus on the hong kong stock exchange. reuters is quoting 2 sources, saying the company plans to use a mechanism that will allow it to list without raising capital or issuing new stock listing by introduction, as it's known, would allow holders of its u. s. shares to gradually transfer them. apple has placed an indian fox con i phone factory on probation overwork conditions. the plant which employ 17000 people was closed on december 18th. after more than $250.00 women who worked there had to be treated for food. food poisoning an investigation by apple and fox con,

concluded that dining rooms as well as dormitories did not meet required standards . free forwarding company, flex port, says is dispatching 3747 aircraft loaded with potatoes to help ease a french fry shortage at mcdonald's restaurants in japan. now, the scarcity had led the restaurants to limiting orders to only small fry orders. supply chain problems have been blamed for the scarcity or less than 2 days. now, germany will say good bye to its 7 decade relationship with commercial nuclear power reactors representing almost half the country's remaining nuclear capacity will be shut down before the new year. was the final step in a plan began 10 years ago to assure germany out of a power source that has long been controversial. in the meantime, neighboring countries have taken a different approach to the power source. take a look. ah, these protestors are making their voices heard and have been doing so for decades

outside a nuclear power plant in northern germany for over 35 years now. activists have been meeting up once a month to call for the reactor to be shut down. today is the 425th meeting and the final time that they'll be here breathing the elements. that's because the blocked off nuclear power plant. one of the most controversial in germany will be decommissioned at the end of the year for a pastor and protest co founder hans cont vanna. it's a day of mixed feelings. as you have used, it is mainly a sense of relieve that the nuclear power plant is, find the history of what we never imagined back then that we'd have to hold out for so long as that's about the 2011 fukushima nuclear disaster prompted germany to declare a nuclear phase out by the end of 2022. but many countries continue to rely on nuclear power. this promotional film made by the french nuclear industry depicts it

as clean and above all climate friendly. a line of argument also favored by the countries president. yet dondo the subject to achieve our objectives, in particular carbon neutrality by 2050. and we will, for the 1st time in decades relaunched the construction of nuclear reactors in our country and on that would be that's why the greenhouse gas emissions are lower than those from fossil fuels. but compared to wind or solar power, nuclear energy production is far more expensive. it's really clear those countries around the world that are most intensely committed to civil nuclear power. ah, either countries with nuclear weapons or countries really demonstrably cain on nuclear weapons. the reactor will be shut down, but the radioactive waste will remain in storage there for decades to come. there's still no permanent disposal site anywhere in the world, which is why the activists plan to continue their fight over to turkey,

where the economy remains in crisis. rising inflation and a plummeting mirror have undercut wages and made staples like food increasingly more expensive. well, books have not escape the pain. rising prices are posing a problem for customers. and the publishing industry alike, turkeys, debilitating and raging economic crisis is increasing prices across the board. and the latest victim seems to be the publishing industry where some books have increased in price by over 50 percent. again is i just asked about the cost and i was told that the book i want to buy now costs $38.00 lira today. i had bought it before for 24 lira. i used to buy books in several combine because i like to give them to my friends is presence, but the prices have become too expensive. they say that this is due to the lack of paper on the market, which doesn't surprise me. in turkey, everything is imported. now when i see the imported paper is

a big part of the problem, global supply chain issues had already made the raw materials for book paper more expensive. but turkey's unique inflation problems aren't helping when the value of the lira falls. so does the purchasing power of turkish buyers for foreign goods. as a result, each book becomes more expensive to produce in rossville. if you print the 1st run and let's say your book is doing well, you've calculated all your costs and decided it would cost $30.00 lira the book sells. well, you do a 2nd printing in the same week, the price goes up to $35.00 lira. then for the 3rd or 4th printing on the god knows how much it will cost not to go back to publishers said they're already planning to put out your books in the next year. it's an effort to minimize risk as the turkish economy teeters on the edge. and finally, 2021 has been

a year of supply train problems while a cold spell in the sea of japan has caused a different kind of back up with merchandise check this out. dozens of cars have been caked in ice, up to half a meter thick on their way to the russian port of lot of our stock. the japanese ship experience high winds with minus 19 centigrade, temperature's wave splash over the cars, which were on the deck and froze and that cracked wind screens and cause other damage. it's going to take more than an ice scraper. all right, that's it for me and did on the business team here. melinda will be back shortly with a little bit more. in the meantime, check on our website, doc. com slash business. i've seen beardsley watching into the conflict zone with tim sebastian at least 27 migrant parish in the english channel. will this now force europe to commit to safer migration policy?

uber hofstadter in bradford member of the european parliament. i'm a former prime minister in belgium. one huffman for the use much more value and what performs in india. com click next on d w. he's known for his venus sandra, but a tele renaissance genius. but she also had a dark side. for years he painted helm just as masterfully and mysteriously as the poet dantes depicts bought italy's infer, now d, w with

we're all the kids to go beyond be obvious, where as we take on the world 8 hours, i do all this. we're all about the stories that matter to you. whatever it takes by policeman, a dealer here we are, your is actually on fire. this week on conflict zone, at least 27 migrants perish in the english channel. will this now force europe to commit to safer migration? policy.