Food and Agriculture

1
Food and Agriculture

• The Caribbean no longer is a major exporter of
  any one crop
• Over 50 of food is imported for domestic
  consumption
• In Puerto Rico, Antigua, Barbados, Trinidad and
  Tobago, and Bahamas it is 80 and more!
• Food costs are 50 100 higher than the U.S.

The Caribbean produces what it cannot eat and
eats what it cannot produce (Freguson p. 93)
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Staples Foods Rich in Carbohydrates
Mercado Modelo, Santo Domingo, DR
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Starchy Rhizomes, Tubers, Roots
Economic Botany, 2000, p. 163
Crop Water Calories Protein Fat Carbs Vit. A
Vit. C () (g) (g) (g) (IU)
(mg) Manioc 13 352 1 0.2 86 0 0 Potato,
sweet 71 114 2 0.4 26 8,800 21 Potato,
Irish 80 76 2 0.1 17 trace 20 Taro 73 98 2 0.2 24
20 4 Yam 74 101 2 0.2 23 trace 9
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Cassava (Manihot esculenta)
Honduras
yuca, manioc, mandioca
www.iita.org/crop/graphics/cassava.jpg

• The Caribbean accounts for 19 of the total world
  production of cassava.
• The average yield world wide in 2000 was 10.2
  tons/ha, but this varied from 1.8 tons/ha in
  Sudan to 27.3 tons/ha in Barbados.

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Corn (Zea mays)
Trinidad
Maize originated from Mexico. By the time
Columbus arrived in the New World, there were
already many domesticated varieties. Maize has
become a particularly important crop in North
America and Africa. (http//www.museums.org.za/bi
o/plants/poaceae/zea_mays.htm)
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Rice (Oryza sativa)
International Rice Research Institute,
Philippines - A Future Harvest Center
- http//www.irri.org/
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???
Jamaica, DBML
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Breadfruit - Artocarpus altilis
Jamaica, DBML
Ripe breadfruit. In K. and J. Morton, Fifty
Tropical Fruits of Nassau, 1946.
http//www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/breadfru
it.html
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Akee Blighia sapida
Food Uses The akee must be allowed to open fully
or at least partly before it is detached from the
tree. When it has "yawned", the seeds are
discarded and the arils, while still fresh and
firm, are best parboiled in salted water or milk
and then lightly fried in butter. Then they are
really delicious. In Jamaica, they are often
cooked with codfish, onions and tomatoes. After
parboiling, they are added to a stew of beef,
salt-pork and scallions, thyme and other
seasonings. Sometimes they are curried and eaten
with rice. They are served, not only in the home,
but also in hotel dining rooms and other
restaurants. In Africa, they may be eaten raw or
in soup, or after frying in oil.
The akee (Blighia sapida) from Africa is a
favorite in Jamaica but the fleshy arils are
poisonous until fully exposed to light. The seeds
are always poisonous.
http//www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/akee.htm
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