Lots to eat and drink at national food fair
About a billion people are without food around the world and at least fifty-four thousand families have been affected by a food crisis in neighboring Guatemala. On this side of the border, the National Food and Nutrition Security Commission is hard at work to guarantee food security to the population. So they teamed up with the World Food Day Committee to hold a national food fair. The highlights of the day included cooking demonstrations and competitions, product samples and of course, there was plenty to eat and drink. But the activities also provided a chance for food and beverage related businesses to get some much needed exposure to promote their products. News Five’s Delahnie Bain headed to Central Farm for the fair.
Delahnie Bain, Reporting
Central Farm in Cayo was the venue for the World Food Day activities. There were abundant displays ranging from cultural foods to meals for the health conscious.
Marlene Castillo, Sandy Beach Women’s Cooperative
“We prepared to make Hudut to display here and to sell.”
Delahnie Bain
“How has the day been for you?”
Marlene Castillo
“Good because we sold out everything. I like it; this is my first trip here but I enjoyed it.”
Ignatius Languil, Gomier’s Restaurant, PG
“I brought a bunch of vegetarian food like brown rice because I am trying to promote health. I had my tofu and like veggie burgers and then I had some food and stuff for presentation.”
Delahnie Bain
“What was the response like to that from the public?”
Ignatius Languil
“It was very good. A lot of people responded and it was new to some people so I think it was a good thing.”
And for those with a sweet tooth, Mz B Preserves brought out unique jams and Western Dairies provided the ice cream.
Bernadette Leslie, Mz B’s Preserves
“I have my pepper jelly or pepper jam, as it’s locally known. The different flavors I have right now are pineapple, mango and carambola or the star fruit. I’m also doing the, I call it the grandma’s guava jam, which is an old recipe that I got through generations.”
Armando Estrada, Western Dairies
“We brought ice cream and milk and cheese; a lot of sample of cheese. We have about five different kinds of cheese, mozzarella, cheddar and processed cheese.”
Delahnie Bain
“Have you participated in the World Food Day before?”
Armando Estrada
“Yes, we do every year.”
After all that sweet, the best thing to wash it down is a good drink of water and BEL Agua Water Company had enough of the H2O.
Nathan Reid, Bel-Agua Water Company
“We actually run water delivery routes from down in Benque Viejo on the Western Border down to past the zoo toward Belize City and Belmopan, San Ignacio and a lot of villages.”
Delahnie Bain
“What all did you bring out today?”
Nathan Reid
“Today we just brought a sample of our different size of water from our pouch water to our five gallon jugs.”
Some businesses like Mz B’s and BEL Agua attended the World Food Day for the first time but Western Dairies was among the regulars and they all plan to do it again next year. Delahnie Bain for News Five.
