About ten years ago, I remember the then Minister of Agriculture Roger Clark announced in Parliament that in 2009, the former Minister of Agriculture Dr. Christopher Tufton initiated the number of rice in a 25-acre experimental rice field in Amity Hall. You can eat it. There is no doubt that he is implying that this project is too small to meet the needs of one person, let alone the needs of Jamaicans.

When he said this, the council burst into laughter. This is the typical Roger Clark. His personality will never be copied, but there is a deeper message that emphasizes his humor: Jamaicans ate a lot of rice back then and even now.

Jamaica’s annual rice import costs exceed 85 million U.S. dollars (13.2 billion U.S. dollars).

Last year, Jamaica imported more than US$31 million (US$4.8 billion) of chicken backs and turkey necks, most of which were resold at a price of US$250 per pound. Why do we buy so many chicken backs and other offal instead of good cuts? In short, it boils down to something that many Jamaicans can afford every day. More than 70% of our population does not have enough resources to obtain safe or nutritious food. (Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey III, 2016-2017)

This year, local chicken prices for Jamaican consumers have increased fivefold. A quarter of a pack of two legs now retails at US$1,069 per kilogram (US$488 per pound) in some supermarkets. This is almost 3.25 times the US retail price.

The chicken back is what remains after the main part of the chicken is removed. It consists of 44% bones and most of the skin, which contains a small piece of meat called an oyster. The United States does not have a market for these goods, so they are usually dumped here. There is no beef offal market in the United States. Namely liver, kidney, tongue and tripe. These were also sent to Jamaica, where we consumed more than $12.8 million (1.9 billion) worth of products.

Therefore, any increase in our exchange rate will increase the cost of these items. As inflation rates continue to rise around the world, many Jamaicans cannot afford even these minimal proteins, so they turn to foods to help them feel full, such as rice and flour, to increase their meal.

Wheat flour is the main staple food in Jamaica. As the country has one of the highest per capita consumption of flour and flour products, Jamaica's wheat imports in 2019 were 215,000 metric tons-the highest number reported by Caribbean countries since 2013. (Www.statista.com)

The Mayo Clinic recommends that people who do not exercise should consume 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight. For example, a person weighing 165 pounds or more should consume at least 60 grams of protein. Chicken back and other sources of beef offal cannot provide enough protein, especially if it is only consumed once a day.

Protein is one of the three macronutrients needed by the body to provide energy and satiety. Without it, a person will often feel hungry.

Studies by the American Psychological Association have shown that insufficient food and hunger can lead to toxic stress, negative emotions, and lead to a higher prevalence of poor health. Severe hunger is related to anxiety and depression in children and suicidal tendencies in adolescents.

UNICEF has marked the growing child malnutrition as a crisis facing the world. This includes hidden hunger caused by children’s lack of essential nutrients, malnutrition and obesity. In its 2019 report, one-third (200 million) of children under five in the world are undernourished or overweight. Almost two-thirds of children between six months and two years of age do not receive food to support their fast-growing body and brain, which makes them face greater brain development, low learning ability, low immunity, The risk of infection increases, and in many cases, death.

In 1962, malnutrition was the single largest cause of death for children under one year old in Jamaica. Although our child malnutrition rate is declining rapidly, a recent study of children aged 3 to 5 years old in rural Jamaica showed that 16% of children are at nutritional risk-9% are moderately to severely malnourished, and nearly 7% are due to energy and Insufficient other nutrients lead to overweight (Solving the Malnutrition Problem of Jamaican Children, 1962-2020, Hernice Atlink).

Currently, 11.3% of Jamaicans have diabetes-almost twice the global average of 6.3%.

Two months after the pandemic began, 62% of Jamaican households reported an income below the national minimum wage. Low-income families and women were the hardest hit, with 59% and 53% of people unemployed, respectively. For households that rely on savings, 50% said that their savings can only last for two weeks, 30% said they can only last for one week, and 18% said they can only last for one day. As a result, many children in these living environments experienced and continue to face daily food shortages. About 47% of them live in rural areas. (Caribbean Policy Research Institute (CaPRI), March 2021)

Currently, all fresh fruits and vegetables (including green and ripe bananas and plantains), all ground foods (yam, miso, potatoes, etc.), all beans (peas, beans, etc.), onions, garlic, all meats (Except chicken), all fish, crustacean or mollusk milk, infant formula, rice and plain flour are not subject to General Consumption Tax (GCT). Recently, due to the increase in food prices, the Trinidad and Tobago government has decided to abolish the value added tax (VAT) on the goods most commonly purchased in supermarkets by most households. Family cereals, steel cut oats, children's cereals, hot cereal oats, milk substitutes, condensed milk, instant coffee, ground coffee, black tea, green tea, orange juice, apple juice, bottled water, seasoned meat, sausage (canned or other), canned tuna , Canned mackerel, canned peas, mixed vegetables, beans and corn, mayonnaise, ketchup, rotti peel, packaged soup, geera (crushed or grated), soy chunks, soy grated, grated dhal, cheese Slices, edible butter, peanut butter, pigtail, sliced ​​ham, sliced ​​turkey, chicken luncheon meat, Bologna, fresh juice, biscuits and crackers, vegetable/soybean oil, olive oil, coconut oil, canola oil, ghee, black pepper and Other spices.

We have an obligation to prevent our people from suffering from hunger or malnutrition. We have an obligation to help our people always get the right food in an affordable way, so that they can choose to eat a lot of protein, healthy vegetables, fruits and carbohydrates. Too many Jamaicans can only eat one meal a day, which may not be enough to maintain their long-term health and development in terms of nutrition. This fact is not a good reflection of us as a country.

We need to review the basic food basket that currently does not attract GCT, and implement a key agricultural system in it, which employs the unemployed to produce basic food to help feed our children and the elderly at subsidized costs so that our people can afford daily The recommended dose of protein and vegetables.

Former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Adela E. Stevenson said: "Hungry people are not free people." Bob Marley said: "Hungry people are angry people." Many people who have turned to criminal life mentioned it. Insufficient state support and lack of opportunities as a means to support yourself and your family-this shows that lack of access to food has always been an important factor in crime. It is time for us to address how hunger affects the social structure of our society.

Lisa Hanna is a member of the Southeastern Assembly of St. Ann, the spokesperson of the People's National Party for foreign affairs and foreign trade, and a former cabinet member.

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