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By Kimone Witter
A new report from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations has revealed that 55.1 per cent of Jamaica's population experienced moderate or severe food insecurity from 2021 to 2023.
The report released Monday said this finding places Jamaica among the Caribbean countries with high food insecurity prevalence.
The 2024 Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition in Latin America and the Caribbean was published in collaboration with several organisations.
The report said in 2022, approximately 22.1 per cent of Jamaica's population could not afford a healthy diet.
It said this is one of the lowest proportions in the Caribbean.
In relation to child malnutrition, the report said the prevalence of wasting, or low weight-for-height, among children under five years in the country was 3.2 per cent, which is close to the global target of below 3 per cent.
It also said between 2012 and 2022, Jamaica managed to reduce the prevalence of overweight among children under five by 1.2 percentage points.
The cost of a healthy diet was another area examined in the report which found that Jamaica has one of the highest costs of a healthy diet in the region, estimated at 6.42 Purchasing Power Parity dollars per person per day in 2022.
This represents a significant increase from previous years, aligning with the general trend across the Caribbean.
The country was also categorised as a net importer of agri-food products, making it vulnerable to global food supply disruptions caused by climate variability and extremes.
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