A shift to a diet that includes more fast foods is damaging people’s health and hurting economies in Barbados and other CARICOM countries.
This charge was made by local representative of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Florita Kentish,Friday when the Ministry of Agriculture held its World Food Day annual awards ceremony at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre.
But Kentish told the gathering that CARICOM governments have moved to address the problem. She said Caribbean ministers of agriculture have agreed on the draft of a Regional Policy of Food and Nutrition Security, which tackles several problem areas, Kentish told the gathering.Under it, Caribbean governments are committed to “taking urgent and decisive action to correct the bias in food tastes and preferences towards fast foods and beverages crammed full of excessive salt, sugar and fats, which have caused a tremendous increase in non-communicable disease”, she reported.
“They also plan to reduce the total food import bill and attract women and youth entrepreneurs into agriculture, she said. (TY)
