Thursday, August 16, 2018

Dependent on the Big Three

How many different vegetables, fruits, and grain products do you see every time you go to the grocery store?  Hundreds I'm guessing.  Most of us are blessed with a huge variety of choices.







But did you know that, according to food experts who recently met in Iowa, only 30 plant species provide 95% of our global food energy needs? And that only three of these crops (wheat, maize and rice) provide half of the world’s food?  When one of the staple crops fails due to drought, flood, or pestilence, tragedy is often the result.  We're working to introduce new kitchen-garden crops, one at a time, to increase foods available in our program areas.  Lunches at our schools started with maize (corn) porridge only.  Since then the Kafwa have begun growing small gardens with a variety of greens, tomatoes and other crops to supplement the children's diet.

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