Expert calls for vegetable market with cold storage

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Expert calls for vegetable market with cold storage

Governments have a responsibility to educate and inform people about the food they consume, and in doing so can help combat poverty as well as malnourishment, a visiting expert has said. He is in Qatar to promote investment in the development of agriculture and food security.

Director general of the AVRDC (World Vegetable Center), Dr Dyno Keatinge, addressed an audience at the Qatar Green Centre yesterday, where he claimed that growing vegetables offers a path out of poverty for farmers who can earn more money from vegetables than other crops.

During his seminar, entitled ‘Fighting the battle against poverty and malnutrition by diversifying cropping systems with fruits and vegetables’, Keatinge argued that modern society needs to redress the reliance on food companies for information and transform the way people think about their food.

“Next time you think of food security, think of food security and nourishment,” he argued, adding that the problem with the issue of nutrition is that it “falls between the cracks of government”.

“It is the responsibility of the Ministries of Education, Health, Agriculture and Environment,” he said, arguing that more needs to be done to address the issue in a focused manner.

He also spoke about indigenous vegetables, which offer a lot more nutrition than traditional vegetables but are rarely used. Keatinge argued that certain vegetables, including Bitter Gourd, could be especially welcome in Qatar as they help to deal with diabetes.

Keatinge spoke about the work the AVRDC has done in grafting different vegetables together to breed certain properties, such as disease, salt and heat resistance.

He argued that Qatar has a huge natural resource available and could harness solar power to help agricultural programmes.

Expressing his disappointment over Qatar’s vegetable market, Keatinge argued that much more could be done to create a better facility for trading fruit and vegetables.

He pointed out that with items kept out in the heat, half of the produce is discarded by midday. Keatinge suggested that the Qatari government should build an air-conditioned facility with cold storage to allow traders to keep their vegetables fresh for longer.

“Governments need to show courage and make medium and long term investments to lead to a better future,” he added.

Faced with the challenge of transforming the current world view, and battling malnourishment for both underweight and overweight people, Keatinge urged officials at the meeting to join him on his quest to promote the cultivation and trade of fruits and vegetables.