The People's Liberation Army (PLA) Garrison stationed in Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) participated in the 22nd voluntary blood donation event on Friday.
The event was jointly organized by the garrison and the SAR government, with approximately 120 service members donating nearly 50,000 milliliters of blood.
This year, the garrison conducted pre-donation health screenings for participating personnel and organized educational campaigns on voluntary blood donation, clearly outlining eligibility criteria and precautions to ensure both blood quality and donor safety.
The donated blood will be used to treat patients in Macao suffering from cancer, surgical blood loss, anemia, and congenital diseases, according to the organizer.
Since the garrison's stationing in Macao, PLA personnel have donated approximately 1 million milliliters of blood over 2,500 donations. The annual event highlights the garrison's enduring support for public health and social welfare in the region.
PLA Garrison in Macao joins 22nd voluntary blood donation drive
Global food commodity prices climbed for a second consecutive month in March, driven mainly by higher energy costs linked to escalating conflict in the Middle East, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said in report released on Friday.
The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in the international prices of a basket of globally traded food commodities, averaged 128.5 points in March, up 2.4 percent from February and 1.0 percent above its level a year ago.
According to the report, the FAO Vegetable Oil Index and Sugar Price Index showed the largest increases, up 5.1 percent and 7.2 percent, respectively.
The FAO Cereal Price Index increased by 1.5 percent from the previous month, driven primarily by higher world wheat prices, which rose 4.3 percent.
The FAO Meat Price Index rose by 1.0 percent from the previous month, and the FAO All-Rice Price Index declined by 3.0 percent in March, according to the report.
FAO stated that rising energy and fertilizer prices have been driving up agricultural input costs.
If the conflict stretches beyond 40 days, farmers will have to choose to farm the same with fewer inputs, plant less, or switch to less intensive fertilizer crops, according to FAO Chief Economist Maximo Torero.
These choices will hit future yields and shape food supply and commodity prices for the rest of this year and beyond, Torero said.
Global food prices rise for 2nd consecutive month in March amid Middle East conflict: FAO
