An eye on...; food

Washington: The National Conference of Catholic Bishops has voted to study a proposal to resume the practice of eating no meat on Fridays, which was abandoned in the 1960s. Monsignor Lorenzo Albacete of New York is one of those in favour of the proposal, but urges caution in its application. "My concern is that it not be presented as, `If you eat meat on Friday you'll burn in hell.' I think that would be an abysmal mistake," he said.

Hong Kong: Sales of Shanghai crab have plummeted since the recent collapse of prices on the Hong Kong stock market. The dish, formerly considered a delicacy, is known as "tai chap hai" or "big shackled crab" which is though to be an inauspicious name.

Somerset: Chicken legs were used as missiles when a fight broke out at an arts centre in Bridgwater between groups of Czechs and Germans on cultural visits. A Liberal Democrat councillor said: "Given the past history between Czechoslovakia and Germany I would have thought they would go out of their way to be a bit more friendly - Czechoslovakia was the first country Hitler invaded."