The Virgin Islands will join nations around the world in officially observing World Food Day on Saturday, via administrative proclamation and a "Youth Against Hunger" program the following day on the St. Croix campus of the University of the Virgin Islands.
Gov. Charles Turnbull, in his proclamation, noted that each day millions of people around the world face hunger and malnutrition, threats to the survival of family farming and concerns about food safety. "These problems are devastating to developing countries, where they cause immeasurable human suffering, especially among children," he said.
World Food Day emphasizes the need to develop innovative approaches to easing global hunger and to promoting greater understanding between nations in need and those with food to share, he said.
The food resources fair on Sunday on the St. Croix UVI campus is a joint project of the Agriculture Department and UVI's Cooperative Extension Service and Agricultural Experiment Station. After music by Stanley and the Ten Sleepless Knights from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., there will be an opening ceremony, followed by workshops at 2 p.m. on nutrition and health, healthful vegetarian meal preparation, and pumpkin cultivation. All events are free and open to the public.
The fair continues until 6 p.m. Other attractions will include a daylong farmers' market of fresh produce, food and drink booths, activities for children, and the collection of non-perishable foods for distribution to the needy. Finishing off the day's events will be performances by the Guardians of Culture Mocko Jumbies, Uprising Cultural Theater/Dance and DJ Dog Heart.
