Food processing has taken on added impetus thanks to a new unit established by Bahamas Agricultural and Industrial Corporation (BAIC). Headed by Senior Food Processing Officer Tonjia Burrows, it recently completed a series of workshops on how to add value to locally grown produce.
“We throw away far too much food that could be preserved in various forms and used when needed,” said BAIC executive chairman Edison M Key.
“As the old folks use to say: waste not want not. Food processing and preservation will definitely go a long way toward national food security.” Toward that end, Mrs Burrows and her team have been on a mission impressing Bahamians with the importance of food processing.
“We want to empower Bahamians to be self sufficient,” said Mrs Burrows. “For too long we have been depending on others to provide for us. As an independent nation, we must take care of ourselves.”
She said workshops in Exuma, Andros, Abaco and Eleuthera were oversubscribed with participants “eager to learn.”
“A lot of fruit and vegetables go to waste because no market is found for them,” she noted.
“This is an opportunity for Bahamians to take farm produce that might have otherwise gone to waste, and turn them into viable products.” As an employee of the Ministry of Agriculture, Mrs Burrows studied under Senior Food Processing Officer, Keith Daley.
Shortly after joining BAIC she was asked to take on the challenge. It was her pleasure. She furthered her studies in food processing at the Ministries of Agriculture in Jamaica and Belize with the assistance of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture.
“There are many aspects of the food processing industry – juices, chips, dehydrated fruit and vegetables, pickling, jams, jellies, pepper sauces, spices – the list goes on and on. All of them can be produced right here in The Bahamas.
“When we teach the basic food processing technique, we try to get Bahamians to be more creative.
“And this is an additional way for them to understand the safety mechanisms that go along with preserving food.”
With the spotlight on New Providence, next year the focus will be on cheeses, soy milk, herbs and spices. Dehydration is a method of food preservation catching the interest of Bahamians.
“During tomato season, for example,” she said, “we throw away a lot of tomatoes that do not meet the grade 1 standard. We can dry tomatoes and turn them into powder which is used for sauces and other preparations.
“And that is just one of many ways to process tomatoes and have them available all year round. The same can be done for other native fruit and vegetables.
“We encourage Bahamian farmers to add value to their produce through processing.
“I am very passionate about this because it is very important that we learn how to take care of ourselves.”
By Gladstone Thurston
Bahamas Information Services
