PARIS: French screen icon Brigitte Bardot will next month publish a book on her decades-long campaign for animal rights, she told AFP on Tuesday, taking a swipe at President Emmanuel Macron on the issue.
The 83-year-old star of “And God Created Woman” said the book, titled “Larmes de Combat” (Tears of Combat), will come out on Jan. 25.
It will be “the record of my existence, of my fight on behalf of animals and the deep expression of my disgust.”
“It will be the full record of my view of things, of society, of the way we are governed, of the way we treat animals in my country,” said Bardot, known in France by her initials “BB.”
She said she was “fed up” with what she called Macron’s lack of support for animal rights.
Bardot slammed the 40-year-old president for holidaying with his family this month at Chambord, a hunting chateau in the Loire Valley.
“He congratulated hunters in front of their game while it was still warm,” she said by telephone from Saint-Tropez. “It’s scandalous and very inappropriate.”
Bardot’s publisher, Plon, described the upcoming book as “an original reflection, both calm and outraged at the same time, on her existence and the meaning of her fight.”
The 1956 film “And God Created Woman,” directed by Bardot’s first husband Roger Vadim, propelled her to stardom but she retired less than two decades later, in 1973, when she was 39.
Bardot withdrew to a secluded home on the outskirts of Saint-Tropez on the Riviera.
Crusading against bullfights, hunting, and all forms of cruelty to animals, she is rarely seen in public except to press home her campaigns.
The former actress will publish an open letter in the Paris daily Le Parisien on Wednesday as her Brigitte Bardot Foundation launches its latest campaign against fur.
Brigitte Bardot documents campaign for animal rights in new book
Brigitte Bardot documents campaign for animal rights in new book
Thai coffee chains cut default sugar content in coffee and tea drinks in a new health push
- The Health Department says Thais consume 21 teaspoons of sugar daily, far exceeding the World Health Organization’s recommended six teaspoons
- Officials warn this increases obesity and diabetes risks. A survey found iced coffee and bubble tea contain high sugar levels
BANGKOK: For many Thais, a meal doesn’t feel complete without an iced coffee or tea so sugary it could pass for dessert. The government, concerned about the health consequences, wants them to dial it back.
Starting Wednesday, nine major coffee chains across the country have pledged to cut the default sugar content in some of their drinks by half in a government initiative aimed at tackling excessive sugar consumption.
According to the Health Department, Thais consume an average of 21 teaspoons of sugar per day, more than three times the World Health Organization’s recommended limit of six teaspoons. Health officials warn that such high intake increases the risk of obesity, diabetes and other diseases.
The initiative is the first significant step to change consumers’ sugar consumption behavior, said Amporn Benjaponpitak, the director general of the department.
Pakorn Tungkasereerak, the department’s deputy, said 2025 data show that about 45 percent of Thais aged 15 and older are obese, while 10 percent of the population has diabetes.
A survey by the Bureau of Nutrition found that a 22-ounce (650-milliliter) iced coffee contains an average of nine teaspoons of sugar, while a 10-ounce (300-milliliter) serving of bubble milk tea — an iced milk tea with tapioca pearls known as boba — can contain as much as 12 teaspoons.
Sirinya Kuiklang, an office worker, said she approves of the changes. She already orders her drinks at just 25 percent of the standard sugar level, but she is aware that many others consume too much sugar.
“It’s good for Thai people,” she said.
Another office worker, Porwares Tantikanpanit, said he has enjoyed his non-coffee beverages at their current sugar levels but is willing to adjust if shops reduce the sweetness.
However, putting the policy into practice may prove challenging. Officials have said each brand can apply the initiative as they see fit.
Some customers have expressed confusion in response to social media posts promoting the initiative, asking how to order drinks with the level of sweetness that they prefer. Several brands said that the reduction applies only to certain menu items.
