The AnswerBank Articles

Which Caribbean island is the real home of rum

A. Rum's hidden history starts 10,000 years ago when the sugar cane plant began its migration from the East Indies into China and India. Sugar cane became the main Caribbean/South American crop as01:00 Mon 03rd Dec 2001

Which foods are important in which countries at Christmas

A. Roast turkey is a newcomer to the British table and only made its way to Europe from North America in about 1650. Before that, roast swan, goose or peacock was considered traditional fare. Mince01:00 Mon 03rd Dec 2001

How is cranberry juice made

A. Cranberries are harvested in an unusual yet traditional way deep in the heartland of America. It's said that the cranberry harvest is a triumph of ingenuity over nature. Workers - mostly employed01:00 Mon 03rd Dec 2001

Are bitters really bitter

A. Spirits were originally introduced for your health. Any thoughts of pleasure were forgotten and while most have managed to extricate themselves from this original purpose, bitters remain firmly01:00 Mon 26th Nov 2001

What are the best slimming foods on the market

A. There are thousands of low-fat, low-calorie food products on the shelves in this country. Slimming Magazine has come up with a "Light & Low Awards" system to help consumers pick the best options.01:00 Mon 26th Nov 2001

Have fish and chips had their day

A. Fish and chips still claim their place as the UK's national dish, according to the Sea Fish Industry Authority. Last year, more than 272 million meals were sold, with at least one in 10 of the01:00 Mon 26th Nov 2001

What do the labels on egg boxes mean

A. There is a huge variety of eggs on the supermarket shelves. Farm Fresh: unless an egg box is labelled organic, free-range or barn produced, you're buying battery eggs. Up to 88 per cent of the UK01:00 Mon 19th Nov 2001

Why are babies given a Vitamin K injection

A. Babies are given an injection of Vitmain K shortly after birth to make the blood clot. Mothers are given the choice by their doctor or midwife, but most accept the injection is important in01:00 Mon 19th Nov 2001

Where is the world's only Cointreau museum

A. The Cointreau Museum is in Angers in the Loire Valley in north-west France, and is a dedicated shrine for lovers of the liqueur. It is the latest in a string of museums set up at distilleries at01:00 Mon 19th Nov 2001

Do chocolate and wine go together

A. Chocolate and wine are linked surprisingly often. Terminology in chocolate tasting often echoes that of wine: fruity flavours and long aftertaste, for example. Individual varieties of cocoa bean01:00 Mon 12th Nov 2001

What's the traditional way to drink schnapps

A. The word comes from the Old Norse snappen, meaning to snatch or gulp. That indicates how the drink should be taken: ice-cold in small shots as part of a meal. In Denmark it's traditional for each01:00 Mon 12th Nov 2001

Do sprouts deserve a makeover

A. Farmers are spearheading a campaign to improve the image of the humble sprout. They are urging supermarkets to drop the prefix Brussels and its political aftertaste because 30 million of sprouts01:00 Mon 12th Nov 2001

Are eggs really used in advocaat

A. Production of advocaat is dominated by Warnicks, which goes through an estimated 60 million egg yolks a year. The eggs are broken by a machine, separated, and up to 70,000 yolks per hour can be01:00 Mon 05th Nov 2001

Do supermarkets back British food

A. Efforts to restore consumer confidence among shoppers has led to a concerted drive to improve the quality and accountability of British food. As a result most supermarkets sell British meat and01:00 Mon 05th Nov 2001

Are artifical sweeteners bad for you

A Artificial sweeteners exist in all sorts of foods from yoghurt to fizzy drinks and toothpaste. The soft drinks industry is the biggest user, but they are present in many forms, including small01:00 Mon 05th Nov 2001

Who monitors the pesticides in our food

A. The government has set up a Residues Committee which reports every autumn on the amount of pesticies in our food. The detail varies every year, but consumer watchdogs say the findings are always01:00 Mon 29th Oct 2001

Who is a Bloody Mary named after

A. The Bloody Mary started life in the 1920s in Harry's New York Bar in Paris, where a barman named Fernand Petiot mixed vodka with tomato juice and called his creation 'The Bucket of Blood'. It01:00 Mon 29th Oct 2001

Does drinking water do you any good

A. Beauty experts have long since recommended drinking water to improve the appearance of your skin, hair and eyes. Drink enough of it, the theory goes, and you will boost energy levels and rid your01:00 Mon 29th Oct 2001

Do Welsh onions come from Wales

A. Welsh onions belong to the Green Onion family which are pulled while the tops are still green, before the onion has chance to swell. Welsh onions have nothing to do with Wales, and are also called01:00 Mon 22nd Oct 2001

Are you getting enough fibre in your diet

A. British government guidelines recommend we eat 18g of fibre (including both soluable and insoluble) a day, but only about 20 per cent of the population achieve that. The Cancer Research Campaign01:00 Mon 22nd Oct 2001