International (MNN)–The food crisis in the Caribbean is dire.
Rather than plan long-term hand-out projects, one group has taken an approach of not only teaching the peopel to fish, but also helping them grow their own.
Food For The Poor’s Angel Aloma says that’s why they’ve gone to fish farming, which will continually move poverty-stricken communities in Honduras and Guatemala, with plans to toward self-sufficiency.
There are also plans to develop similar ponds in Jamaica and Haiti. Aloma explains, “Tilapia is a very productive way to increase the food supply of a country, particularly a poor nation.”
He goes on to say that, “One of the biggest problems in poverty-trapped countries is that there is not enough protein supply to nourish the children properly.”
Tilapia farms are fully functional in four to six months. They generally consist of at least three ponds that are rotated between stages of reproduction, nurturing fingerlings (young tilapia), and harvesting mature tilapia for distribution.
A portion of the catch will be used to feed the needy in the town where the farm is located. The remaining fish will be sold in the surrounding communities at affordable prices to ensure that it is easily accessible to the residents.
Aloma says tying their Tilapia ponds into an outreach ministry is a natural fit. “It reminds me so much of the instances of the multiplication of the loaves and the fish, of Jesus using fish to feed the hungry multitudes. We don’t want these people to be fainting from hunger, because the Word of God better enters the ear when the person is alert and well-fed.”
For more details, go to: http://www.foodforthepoor.org
