Corned beef and fishcakes are two of the traditional Barbadian menu items that Minister of Agriculture Indar Weir would like to stop being fed to children.In fact, he believes that if the island is going to safeguard its future, it has to ensure that children are given the right meals on a daily basis instead of these “very unhealthy” foods. Speaking at the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) St. James North branch meeting held at the Gordon Greenidge Primary School, Rock Dundo, St. James Sunday night, the minister addressed the issue of Non-Communicable Diseases in Barbados and his desire for a healthier island.“For me, to see children eating vegetables as a part of a meal rather than what I am told is existing today where children are given a plate of macaroni and corned beef, this must come to an end if we are to save this nation and if we are to take Barbados forward. . . The children are the ones that will take over from us and in so doing we have a moral responsibility to ensure that they are exposed to healthy diets.“And that we must change their eating habits to the extent that our school feeding programme should be such that children no longer hear about macaroni and corn beef, fish cakes - very unhealthy. Our school feeding programme should not include large portions of bread unless it is made from cassava or sweet potato flour or breadfruit flour. And when we make this transition into hardcore healthy living, then we will save our future,” Weir said.
