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Corned beef and fishcakes are two of the traditional Barbadian menu items that Minister of Agriculture Indar Weir would like to stop being fed to children.
In fact, he believes that if the island is going to safeguard its future, it has to ensure that children are given the right meals on a daily basis instead of these “very unhealthy” foods. Speaking at the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) St. James North branch meeting held at the Gordon Greenidge Primary School, Rock Dundo, St. James Sunday night, the minister addressed the issue of Non-Communicable Diseases in Barbados and his desire for a healthier island.
“For me, to see children eating vegetables as a part of a meal rather than what I am told is existing today where children are given a plate of macaroni and corned beef, this must come to an end if we are to save this nation and if we are to take Barbados forward. . . The children are the ones that will take over from us and in so doing we have a moral responsibility to ensure that they are exposed to healthy diets.
“And that we must change their eating habits to the extent that our school feeding programme should be such that children no longer hear about macaroni and corn beef, fish cakes – very unhealthy. Our school feeding programme should not include large portions of bread unless it is made from cassava or sweet potato flour or breadfruit flour. And when we make this transition into hardcore healthy living, then we will save our future,” Weir said.
Moreover, Weir, who is also responsible for Food Security, suggested the community garden as a simple remedy to the financial pressures that some Barbadians are facing due to the increasing costs of some basic goods. And he challenged his Parliamentary colleagues to take the lead and push the initiative, which is backed by technical support through Project Community Agriculture Response and Empowerment (CARE), in their respective constituencies.
Through Project CARE, the Ministry of Agriculture will use its resources via the Barbados Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation and the Barbados Agricultural Management Company to identify communities where residents can grow their own food. With the support of the Ministry, such preparation work as the clearing of the land will be performed free of cost and a toolkit comprising, for example, a fork, a hoe, a garden hose, a spray can and planting materials will be provided to the community. On top of that, Weir, who expressed his desire for at least four community gardens in each constituency, said sowing will be followed by the facilitation of livestock farming, beginning with poultry farming, before transitioning to the rearing of black belly sheep. Once a space can be created this is expected to be followed up with pig and cattle farming.
Weir contended that a community garden programme not only has the potential to foster greater community relations but also source additional income, contribute to healthier diet choices and “undoubtedly prices will come down because prices are driven by demand”.
“In the Pine Basin, for example, we have identified some areas where the project will be done and then we are asking the churches to get involved as well so that through the church you can bring members of the church to get involved in the project . . . Through that same church, the projects can be shared with families who attend the church or families within the communities.
“Barbados is fairly fortunate that we don’t have a huge amount of people going two and three days without food but I am acutely aware that some people are going without food on a daily basis in Barbados and it has to stop. In order for us to stop this, we need to embrace Project CARE and make sure that we can grow our own food. When you are growing your own food a lot of things will happen,” the minister added. (KC)
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