10162020 WORLD FOOD DAY

Published by The Tribune

World

Food

Day

PAGE 2 ● Friday, October 16, 2020

WORLD FOOD DAY

THE TRIBUNE

A GREETING FROM PERMANENT SECRETARY - JOEL LEWIS THE year 2020 has put the world’s supply of food into a sharper focus than ever before, particularly in The Bahamas. As a Small Island Developing State (SIDS), The Bahamas is faced with a number of challenges that can threaten our very existence. The effects of global warming on climate change is greatest of those threats we face. Also important is our ability to access and supply food for our nation, particularly the most vulnerable in our population.

The COVID-19 pandemic adds another layer of urgency to our desire

to be more food sufficient and also to look out for those who cannot do so for themselves.

This year’s celebration of World Food Day, we are celebrating three organisations as “Food Heroes” for the work they’re doing in bringing nourishment to those most challenged in our society.

The recognition is thru the production of a series of public service announcements showcasing the passion and joy they bring to helping to bring food relief to our brothers and sisters. They are the Bahamas Feeding Network, led by Mr Philip

Smith and Great Commission Ministry led by Bishop Walter and Elder Minalee Hanchell of New Providence and Mr Dudley Seide of Outreach Ministries of Freeport, Grand Bahama.

To them and all of the organisations and individuals out there helping to create a Zero Hunger Bahamas, I say thank you for your service and care. You are the embodiment of the theme for this year’s World Food Day: “Grow. Nourish. Sustain. Together: Our actions are our future.”

The importance of

World Food Day WORLD Food Day is celebrated annually on October 16.

It is the day set aside to promote worldwide awareness for those who suffer from hunger.

Global events held to commemorate this special day include national ceremonies, exhibitions, a variety of competitions, debates, fairs etc.

In the past, The Bahamas observed World Food Day by holding church services, national ceremonies, exhibitions, a Fun Run Walk-a-thon and Health fair. This year however, due to the COVID 19 Pandemic, The Bahamas, along with the rest of the world will have to find innovative ways to commemorate the importance of food and nutrition security.

Each year a theme is picked to call special attention to specific issues. Past themes include; • 1983: Food security • 1984: Women in agriculture • 2006: Investing in agriculture for food security • 2007: The right to food • 2015: Social Protection and Agriculture: Breaking the Cycle of Rural Poverty • 2016: Climate Change: Climate is changing. Food and agriculture must too • 2019: Our Actions Are Our Future. Healthy Diets For A #Zerohunger World

This year’s theme, "Grow, nourish, sustain. Together. Our actions are our future” can be seen as a call for global action to make healthy and sustainable diets affordable and accessible to all. This is particularly important now during the COVID 19 pandemic, as the number of persons requiring assistance in securing food increases.

People experiencing moderate levels of food insecurity and those who do not have regular access to nutritious food are vulnerable and are at a greater risk of various forms of malnutrition.

We have dramatically changed our diets and eating patterns as a result of urbanisation, income growth and busy lifestyles.

We no longer utilise seasonal produce and indulge in high calorie diets with lots of processed foods. We spend less time preparing meals at home and rely on supermarkets, fast food outlets and take-away restaurants rather than growing our own foods like our forefathers did.

There is an urgent need to reconsider the way we produce, supply and consume food. We must support local farmers and farmer markets and begin our own backyard gardening and community gardening projects to ensure the right to food is not only available for all but to ensure that what we eat is of good quality and healthy.

YOUNGSTERS from Huntley Christie High School learn about agriculture.

PAGE 4 ● Friday, October 16, 2020

WORLD FOOD DAY

THE TRIBUNE

Food for nurture... not for harm

By CAMELTA BARNES Sr Dietitian Ministry of Health, Nutrition Unit FOOD is the most basic of human needs, but yet in our world today, it poses a threat to both people and the planet.

The whole food chain from farming through to transport, storage, processing, cooking, consumption and waste, contributes to destroying the environment upon which the future food production depends, while at the same time, not delivering adequate and affordable nutrition for all.

The Food and Agriculture Organization along with other scientific experts are calling for a transformation in the way food is produced, processed, traded consumed and wasted, in order to improve access to nutritious foods, while preserving the environment. This is also known as sustainable diets.

Although globally and nationally, food is relatively plentiful, malnutrition is still common as safe and nutritious foods are not always available and or accessible to all. According to the World Health Organization in 2016, globally, more than 1.9 billion adults, 18 years and older, were overweight. Of these over 650 million were obese. Worldwide, about 800 million are still suffering from hunger due to poverty and poorly developed food systems. Here at home, The Bahamas, with more than seventy percent of the adult population overweight or obese, we are leading the world in obesity, and chronic non-communicable diseases are at an alltime high.

The way that we eat have changed drastically in the past 50 years or so.

Nowadays, we have access to over 40,000 varieties of processed and packaged foods, and the ability to purchase foods from far away. This can be considered a win for the food industry, but not necessarily a win for good health, as the industrial food system threatens the health and well-being of populations everywhere by flooding the food market with highly, overly processed foods laden with empty calories, sugar, salt, fat and additives.

The Bahamas being a Small Island Developing State (SIDS) that imports approximately 92 percent of the foods consumed, is particularly vulnerable to the whim of the food market and food trends. This coupled with the nutritional profile of available foods being less than ideal, poses a threat to sustainable diets.

Regular access to a diverse balanced diet, (ie a diet high in vegetables, fruits, nuts, root, tubers whole grains and water, but low in meat) is necessary for both growth and development of the young, as well as for general good health for all ages. Because of our heavy reliance on the cheaper highly processed imported foods, access to a diverse balanced diet filled with fresh foods is becoming increasingly challenging. According to EAT-Lancet Commission on Food, Planet & Health, “Unhealthy diets now poses a greater risk to morbidity and mortality than unsafe sex, alcohol, drug and tobacco use combined”.

There is a need for our eating habits to shift to diets that are healthier for us is clear. Your food choices make a difference to your health and well-being whether you choose to admit it or not. An overdependence on highly processed select foods, a lack of diversity in your diet and continued over consumption of high sugar, salt and fatty foods are harmful to your health and the environment.

Recognising that what we eat

greatly impacts our health and the environment, the Ministry

of Health produced National Dietary Guidelines to help guide what we grow, ie agri• Align your food culture, food • Get to know wh choices with the dietary guidelines er . processing, • Eat less proces e your food comes from. se d fo od s. food imports, • Eat fresh ingred ie food choices • Buy locally prod nts as much as possible. and food • Eat a varied an uced foods as much as possible. d preparation.

• Eat different fo balanced diet. od groups and di those groups.

The guidefferent food from within lines were • Eat more plan ts fo od s..

Yo u do etarian, but eat a developed higher proportio n’t have to become a vegn of plant based foods. in response than animal • Purchase heal to the counthy food choices. yo ur try’s public Your purchase preferences an ducers and retaile d values and help shape the de expresses health and cisions prors make.

• Raise the deman nutrition d fo r he al th y food options an landscape of the priorities. d reshape the food Remember, your environment.

Food profo od ch oi ce s can make a posit not only to your duction ive he environment. Be alth and that of your family, budifference and concome a “food he t also the ro” food system i.e. wh sumption at is grown, what by helping to reshape the ab le is in retail, how imported, wh patterns of healthy food choi food is prepared and what is cons at is availthe nation ce and purchase umed, one at a time. should

NOW THAT YOU ARE AR DIETARY GUIDELINES… MED WITH THE NATIONAL WHAT CAN YOU DO?

reflect the dietary guidelines. Take a look at the guidelines below and aim to apply it to your daily life.

NATIONAL DIETARY GUIDELINES

1. Use our “Drum” to help you choose a variety of foods daily.

Eating healthy keeps you healthy.

Choosing a variety of foods every day in moderation, will balance your diet and keep you feeling good.

2. As often as possible, limit the amount of high fat and greasy foods you eat. “Ease up” off the greasy food such as sausage, bacon, conch fritters, cracked conch, fries, fried chicken and regular ground beef. Eating too much of these foods daily are unhealthy and can cause heart problems and obesity. When preparing chicken, and other meats, try to take off the skin and fat. Go for leaner cuts of meats and poultry. Where possible, prepare your foods by baking. It does not take that much time.

3. Make starchy vegetables, peas and beans a part of your diet. “Boils” such as cassava, sweet potato, eddie, plantain and pumpkin are high in fiber, which makes them heart-healthy foods.

4. As often as possible, choose foods with less sugar and salt. Eating too much “high seasoned” and sweet foods increase your risk of developing heart disease, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes or “sugar”. Sodas, fruit-flavored drinks and desserts like guava duff and tarts contain lots of sugar. High seasoned

foods include fast foods, sausage, salted meats, most canned foods and chips. Use fresh herbs and spices to season food instead of salt.

5. Choose a variety of fruits and vegetables every day. For a healthy balanced diet plan to include vegetables and fruits in your meals every day. Fresh fruits and dark green leafy vegetables are packed with vitamins A, B, C and have cancer fighting powers.

6. Drink plenty of water every day.

The body is basically made up of water and it must be replenished. Water regulates all the functions of the body. Aim to drink six to eight glasses of water daily.

7. It is advisable not to drink alcohol, but if you drink, do so in moderation.

Too much alcohol is not good for your health. It can damage your liver.

8. Make physical activity and exercise a part of your lifestyle.

It can be fun and beneficial to your body, mind and soul. Aim for enjoyable exercises at least four times each week.

9. Choose foods for their nutritional value not for the “name brand” or cost.

Pay for food that will be nutritious and will cost less.

10. Breast milk is the best choice for infants to start a healthy lifestyle.

It builds the body’s ability to fight off diseases, prevent illnesses and or infections. In addition, breastfeeding saves time and money, and is the perfect food for infants from birth to six months.

WORLD FOOD DAY

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, October 16, 2020 ● PAGE 5

Grow. Nourish. Sustain. Together.

AS THE global community prepares to celebrate the United Nations’ driven World Food Day 2020, ‘Grow, Nourish, Sustain. Together.’, the Bahamas Agriculture and Marine Science Institute (BAMSI) joins with governments, businesses, NGOs and the general public to promote awareness and action for those who suffer from hunger and to ensure healthy diets for every community.

The celebration also marks the 75th anniversary of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation, which comes at a particularly poignant moment in global history as The Bahamas and countries around the world are faced with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chairman of BAMSI Stephen Turnquest pointed out that one of the things that has emerged during this season is a renewed focus on food: access to food, simple day to day access to food, access to safe, nutritious food especially for the poor and the most vulnerable communities.

“With COVID-19 effecting countless lives, the call to action presented by World Food Day 2020 becomes even more urgent,” Mr Turnquest said. “As one of the agencies tasked with improving food security and increasing the availability of safe and nutritious foods, BAMSI relies on the engines of research, education and public engagement to achieve its mission of improving the quality, variety and quantity of food being produced in the Bahamas”.

Local celebrations of World Food Day also underscore the FAO’s relationship with The Bahamas and its various agriculture departments. BAMSI’s relationship with the FAO includes former BAMSI president Godfrey Eneas serving as the Bahamas’ Ambassador to the FAO. The FAO has also financed a number of BAMSI projects. In 2018, the FAO funded, to the tune of some $20,000, a multi-faceted, deep water aquaponics system which serves as the base for the Institute’s current facility. They also supported BAMSI’s livestock project, with BAMSI in turn sharing animals with livestock farmers throughout The Bahamas. Further, top FAO advisors and ministers from across the region visited the BAMSI campus and farm facility in North Andros.

Beyond its association with this international agency, the Bahamas Government has positioned BAMSI as a research facility that will aid in upgrading and improving the country’s agriculture sector. One of the ways the institute has worked to achieve this is through its Roots and Tubers Project that was launched earlier this year as part of THE Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI) is happy to join with the global community to celebrate World Food Day, 2020. This year’s theme “Grow, Nourish, Sustain. Together.

Our Actions are Our Future” puts into focus the need for collective actions, to ensure all people have access to safe and nutritious food at all times.

The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed very clearly that although the world is producing enough food to feed all seven billion+ of us, widening inequality gaps are threatening the most vulnerable with hunger and malnutrition. In May, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) estimated that the number of people experiencing severe food insecurity in Latin America and the Caribbean will increase from 3.4 million to 13.7 million over the course of 2020.

COVID-19 has placed the Region’s food insecurity in the spotlight. As countries slowly embark on post COVID-19 recovery plans, we must be mindful and fiercely guard against a hunger pandemic. As rebuilding efforts continue it is important that plans are grounded in improving productivity, access and availability to safe, nutritious food, climate proofing the sector and preventing food wastage.

On the occasion of World Food Day, CARDI takes the opportunity to highlight some of the areas we are working on to improve regional food and nutrition security.

The institute continues to leverage our extensive network of regional and national partners to ensure the agriculture sector is productive, resilient and sustainable. We remain supportive of Governments initiatives which target vulnerable households to expand and improve emergency food assistance and

the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources’ Food Substitution initiative.

To date, almost 7,000 pounds of cassava sticks and some 60 bundles of sweet potato slips have been delivered to some 300 farmers across the nation. The aim of the project is to encourage more Bahamians to grow roots and tubers that can replace imported and nutrient deficient items like white rice and the Irish potato. It is hoped that the impact of the project will be a reduction in food imports while also providing a healthy alternative to these items.

Perhaps the institute’s most critical component in the move toward a food secure nation is the BAMSI College, with its campus in North Andros. The college provides Bahamians with the opportunity to receive a tertiary level education in agriculture, marine science, agribusiness, aquaculture and environmental science. Students are exposed to cutting-edge technologies, best practices, advanced research projects, and more all in an effort to grow the industry and ultimately build a food secure future.

The Fall 2020 semester brought about a number of significant changes and events for the college. The impact of the global pandemic that is COVID-19 has caused the school to engage with students over a virtual platform. While the technical aspects of agriculture, marine science and other studies requires hands-on experience and exposure, for the time being students are being fully engaged online. This has had the added and even unexpected benefit of attracting many non-traditional students who would not have been able to begin their programmes if classes were face to face in Andros.

The college was also able to secure the Bahamas Government’s Tertiary Grant for its students, making it a more attractive and affordable option especially for students coming from a financially disadvantaged background. And lastly, the college was able to roll out an additional five new programmes for the semester: Business Management, Agronomy, Animal Science, Art and Environment and General Agriculture.

Another example of BAMSI utilising research and education to tackle the issue of food security is its Associated Farmers’ Programme (AFP). Members of the AFP have access to funding, supplies and support in agriculture and livestock production and also research findings. The Institute connects farmers by building a community of support that benefits the farmer and the marketplace. social protection programmes.

Ongoing evaluation trials for key commodities such as roots and tubers, herbs and spices, coconuts and small ruminants are geared towards improving the quality and availability of planting materials and introducing new technologies and practices for boosting productivity.

Resilience, continues to be a priority area to guarantee impacted countries and communities quickly recover from climate related shocks. Evaluations on drought tolerance and other resilient high-yielding varieties are ongoing in Jamaica and other territories. Complementing this work are focused efforts on preserving and safeguarding local agro biodiversity.

Availability and affordability to nutritious food must be a pillar in all countries development plans. In Belize, yield trials

are ongoing to identify and select the most adaptable bio fortified beans. These beans will be useful in delivering much needed micro-nutrients to lower income families, where nutritional needs are largely unmet across the Caribbean.

Our vision is to have a food secure region.

We view this “as a shared responsibility and CARDI remains committed to working with all stakeholders to improve the Region’s self-sufficiency whilst, exploiting our full production potential in a sustainable manner” says executive director Barton Clarke.

This year we are inviting you to join with us in celebrating some of our food heroesthe people who continued during these challenging times to maintain our food supply chains. Follow our social media channels @CARDICaribbean as we celebrate them from 12th to 16th October.

PAGE 6 ● Friday, October 16, 2020

WORLD FOOD DAY

Renewed at 75, with a sense of purpose as relevant as ever

By DR QU DONGYU THE UN’s food agency was born in the wake of catastrophe.

Three-quarters of a century later, its mission has been made more relevant to the world at large by another global scourge.

I won’t deny it: when I took over as Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) last year, I could barely contain my emotion.

FAO’s foundation, after all, had preceded – if only by a matter of days – that of the United Nations itself. That I, born into a Chinese peasant family, would come to lead such a venerable institution was awe-inspiring enough.

What I did not expect was that a short while into my tenure, the world would be confronted with a challenge on a scale not seen since the end of World War II. The COVID-19 pandemic has not only taken a toll on human lives and health, it also threatens the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people across the world. Food security, until recently a rather foreign concept to many living in well-todo countries, would suddenly grab news headlines around the globe and claim the agenda at many highlevel events.

Let’s return to 1945, the year FAO was founded: a third of the victims of World War II had died of malnutrition and associated diseases. Famines had decimated populations over the previous decades. So nations came together, and FAO was established on 16 October 1945. Its founders invested in the new institution the world’s aspiration - to help the world rebuild and expand agriculture, and to end hunger forever.

Today’s crisis may be less tangibly apocalyptic. But the numbers are no less staggering. Even before COVID-19 hit, nearly 700 million people were undernourished. The economic disruption linked to the pandemic may add another 130 million or so to these. In the early days of the pandemic, when shelves went empty; when fruit-pickers went missing; when markets fell silent, we realised that we were taking these services, and the people that provide them, for granted. The moral

imperative to feed the world – safely, durably, with dignity for all – is as urgent now as it was after the War. I am aware, as I write these lines, that the analogy with 1945 can only get us so far. Back then, the crisis was one of production. FAO’s first years were largely focused on expanding the output of farms, boosting yields, supporting mechanisation and irrigation schemes.

DR QU DONGYU Over subsequent Director General of the decades, this vision Food and Agriculture became immensely Organization more complex, with a renewed enriched with envisense of purronmental and pose.

On the structural side, a sustainability concerns. A more holistic understanding of develop- flatter leadership structure and ment set in. Until the mid-2010s, a modular approach allow for a the world was making impressive more rapid reaction when crises progress in reducing hunger. But it hit. A comprehensive and holistic has since been rising again. Conflict COVID-19 Response and Recovand extreme weather patterns are to ery Programme proactively and sustainably addresses the socioblame, at least in part.

What we now need is smart, sys- economic impacts of the pandemic, temic action to get the food to those mitigating the immediate pressures, who need it and improve it for while strengthening the long-term those who have it. Action to pre- resilience of food systems and vent crops from rotting in the field, livelihoods. Our Hand-in-Hand for lack of efficient supply chains. matchmaking initiative accelerAction to enhance the use of digital ates agricultural transformation tools and artificial intelligence, so as and sustainable rural development to predict threats to harvest, auto- in countries that have the highest matically trigger crop insurance and rates of poverty and hunger. It is cut climate risk. Action to rescue supported by a geospatial platform biodiversity from relentless erosion. designed as an open-source public Action to turn cities into the farms good that is already aggregating vast of tomorrow. Action by govern- amounts of food security data. The ments to implement policies that position of a chief scientist has been make healthy diets more accessi- established to sharpen up knowlble. Action by agencies like mine to edge generation and drive scientific turn to think-tanks and action-tanks partnerships geared to the Susrolled into one, linking up with the tainable Development Goals. The research community and the pri- newly reformed FAO is more incluvate sector to unleash the power of sive, efficient and dynamic, focusing on what we have designated as the innovation.

So at 75, FAO is far from thinking “Four betters”: better production, of riding off into the sunset. We are better nutrition, a better environnot day-dreaming either. COVID- ment, a better life.

We strongly believe that the 19 has made it abundantly clear that future is made of such gestures – our mission is as relevant as when our founders created FAO in 1945. by ourselves, by our partners, by Cataclysms spur renewal. The pan- civil society. It takes vast numbers demic has reminded everyone that to achieve Zero Hunger. Indeed, it food security and nutritious diets takes all of us. matter to all.

Dr QU Dongyu is the directorThis is why FAO is today embarkgeneral of the Food and Agriculture ing on the next chapter in its story Organization of the United Nations.

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WHAT IS FAO ALL ABOUT? THE United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is an intergovernmental organisation headquartered in Rome with a membership of 194 countries. FAO’s representative for The Bahamas, Crispim Moreira, is also responsible for Jamaica and Belize and currently resides in Jamaica.

Achieving food security for all that is to ensure everyone has regular access to sufficient high quality food to lead active, healthy lives is the main goal of FAO. This is to be accomplished through: • The eradication of hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition.

• The elimination of poverty and the driving force for economic and social progress for all.

• The sustainable management and utilisation of natural resources including land, water, air, climate and genetic resources for the benefit of present and future generations.

FAO was initially recognised as a food and agricultural organisation however, due to the importance of broader issues related to food security, the organisation now interacts closely with a wide range of stakeholders such as the Ministries of Health, Education and Social Services. FAO also works closely with the Department of Forestry as it relates to the sustainability of natural resources. In order to coordinate the multiple stakeholders from the government and private sector, a National FAO Committee was established under the guidance of His Excellency, Godfrey Eneas, and The Bahamas’ former Ambassador to FAO. This committee continues to function and is now chaired by Her Excellency Verna Grant, The Bahamas’ current Ambassador.

The Government of The Bahamas, with FAO’s assistance, has identified priority areas for technical assistance for the period 2016–2020. These areas are: • Food and nutrition security and safety.

• Climate change and sustainable resource management.

• Poverty elimination.

These priority areas build on FAO’s technical assistance projects which have been implemented in a wide range of areas that include: include “Agro ecological production of small ruminants”, “Rebuilding fisheries livelihoods in Abaco and Grand Bahama following Hurricane Dorian”, “Port State Measures Support Project”, “FAO Bahamas Hand in Hand Initiative” and the newest project, which is a collaboration between the Government of Mexico and FAO, “Resilient school feeding programs”. These programs are worth a combined value of approximately $500,000.

There is a governance structure that ensures that FAO’s vision and policies are carried out in an effective and transparent way so the organization fully complies with its mandate. The governing bodies consists of three components: The Conference, Council and Committees. During the 41st FAO Conference held in Rome in June 2019, The Bahamas was unanimously supported by the Caribbean countries and elected to one of the forty-nine seats of the council. For the next three years, The Bahamas will be responsible for engaging leaders of the region to ensure that their priorities and goals are included in FAO’s program at the international, regional and country level. Koschina Marshall was recently endorsed by Cabinet to be the council member representative.

WORLD FOOD DAY

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, October 16, 2020 â—? PAGE 7

Teaching the next generation THE Ministry of Education established Agricultural Science as a structured course of study in the junior high schools since 1975. This initiative was accomplished through close collaboration between the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources. With the introduction of Agricultural Science, schools were encouraged to cultivated gardens.

These gardens are primarily used for instructional purposes to compliment the theory presented in the classroom. Prior to 1975, schools with available space and interested staff organised and cultivated vegetable gardens.

In 1982, a National Curriculum Guideline for Agricultural Science was developed for primary and high schools. The revised guidelines in 1997 emphasised the need to compliment classroom instruction with practical know-how.

Currently, school farms consist of vegetables, fruit and small-scale animal husbandry units (with emphasis on swine, small ruminant and poultry

production). Trained Agricultural Science teachers supervise the programmes in thirty one junior and senior high schools throughout The Bahamas.

As an applied science, emphasizes is placed on the acquisition of knowledge and technical skills that would enable students to pursue careers and/or further their education in one or more of the related fields.

To ensure uniformity, teachers follow the curriculum guidelines designed for junior and senior high schools in addition to City and Guilds Tropical Examination Syllabus. Course assessment includes, but not limited to theory, research and practical work, school based examination and an Advanced Diploma in Agriculture Offered by City and Guilds.

Currently, emphasis is being placed on the implementation of agriculture technology, proliferation of school based gardens at the primary level and fostering awareness of the synergy between agriculture production, food security/sustainability and nutrition.

LEARNING begins young - with students discovering agriculture in, clockwise from top left, CV Bethel Senior High School, LN Coakley High School and HO Nash Junior High School.

Joining in the celebration THE Department of Agriculture joins millions around the world in celebrating this year's World Food Day under the theme, "Grow, Nourish, Sustain. Together.

In light of the new environment presented by COVID-19, the department continues to develop an environment that encourages and supports the, "growth, nourishment and sustainability," of communities through better agricultural practices and products.

We understand that food is vital to our human survival and realize that growing more food is not only the answer but rather, the development of a realistic and strategic approach to growing our food makes the difference in supporting and encouraging human sustainability.

The department supports the development of a stronger local food system with better production practices that provide and support

the growth of a greater diversity of foods with nutritional benefits.

Moreover, we are working in partnership with other governmental agencies and private organisations to encourage a greater focus on targeting production toward the fight against poor nutritional choices, high rates of obesity and food wastage in our communities.

We hope our efforts in this fight will go a long way in ensuring the availability of local and nutritious food sources at all levels in our communities. Additionally, we are working toward the inclusion of practices that recognise the impact of climate change and are developing approaches that makes this concentration on climate smart technologies transferable to our farmers.

Presently, educational training, awareness and support initiatives are offered online to the community by the Department in areas such as Food Technology and Extension.

Online courses are also available on Good Agricultural Practices, as well as ongoing webinars to educate and bring awareness on how to strengthen the local production chain and produce nutritious foods.

We recognise that we must approach this effort together as a community focused initiative. To demonstrate this, the Department has been partnering with many organisations who assist in supporting the growth of nutritious food. The Breadfruit Planting Project in Abaco is one such project.

Breadfruit provides a good source of nutritional value that can be used as a substitutionary food source for rice. The distribution of Backyard Farming Starter Kits to communities is another ongoing project to support diverse subsistence farming at the household level. This type of farming also provide the potential for economic contribution.

CHICKS AT STAPLEDON SCHOOL Another programme engaged by the department includes the Layer Production Program thru the distribution of baby chicks to poultry farmers throughout The Bahamas.

This initiative aims to increase local egg production as another quality protein food source for community consumption. In conjunction with the Ministry’s Policy and Planning Unit, we are also introducing vertical hydroponic

farming to local farmers and enthusiasts to capitalise on our focus on techniques that leave very little negative impact on the environment.

These are just a few of the many programs the Department is engaged in with a focus of growing awareness and community involvement for sustainable environments that will provide for us as a people for years to come.

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WORLD FOOD DAY

THE TRIBUNE