THE Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries is dedicating itself to assisting in providing better nutrition for the nation's children by pumping natural juices into the school-feeding programme.

According to Dr Mark Panton, come January next year, the ministry will be providing fresh juices of cucumber, apple, melon and June plum, to replace the syrup that is now available.

He said local mangoes would also be targeted.

"In Jamaica, we have too much waste and, for last year, we spent more than $20 million on imported juice, and we simply cannot afford it. Therefore, to feed the children, we must start food security now," Panton said.

Reducing food imports

He told the gathering that Jamaica in 2008 imported $860 million on food imports, of which US$24 million was for various types of juices, most of which are produced locally.

Panton was addressing the fifth staging of the Linstead Ackee Festival in St Catherine, where he lauded the work of the local planning group that sought to use ackee in various ways.

He told The Gleaner after his presentation that, if the country is to see any growth, the first step is to deal with food security.

''It is simple. The food that we produce is better for consumption. It tastes better and is fresher when you have it, even in the concentrated form. Therefore, it will have to start sooner rather than later,'' Panton remarked.

rasbert.turner@gleanerjm.com