‘Save the seeds, save the future’ - Ras Takura urges Jamaicans to boost food security

Amid warnings of a looming global recession and soaring food prices, cultural warrior Ras Takura is urging Jamaicans to strengthen the nation's food security by growing their own food.

"The answer to food security lies in natural seeds, local farming, and preserving traditional agricultural knowledge," he said.

"Jamaica is a food production space. That means we have a responsibility that the rest of the world don't have."

Takura, a native of St Ann who grew up on a farm, is the driving force behind the Dub Poems and Agro Festival, which returns for its 13th staging on May 18 -- for the first time in Kingston -- at the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre.

More than just poetry, the festival is a call to action for farmers and conscious consumers to protect the nation's food supply, starting with preserving and planting natural seeds.

"Food security is seed security," he said. "If you can't get proper planting material, then you can't grow the type of food that we used to grow back in the day."

At the heart of the event is a seed exchange, where farmers from across Jamaica are invited to bring their traditional planting materials to trade with others. Takura says it's about protecting native varieties from the growing threat of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and foreign hybrids.

"Traditionally, you plant a seed and save some to replant again. But now you have seeds you can only plant one time. That's a problem, because if you can only get one crop from it, then somewhere down the line there is going to be a shortage," he explained.

He shared memories of farming with his grandfather, who was a farmer. "Every time him plant, him save some corn to replant. Same corn him reap for years. But now we see corn coming in and you can only use it once, something is wrong."

With the Ministry of Agriculture reporting increased food import costs and unpredictable climate patterns, Takura's push for self-sufficiency is timely. He believes the food on our plates is directly tied to the nation's health crisis.

"The food that we eat can be an indicator of our health, and a nuff Jamaicans sick. If you consistently eat the same type of food over and over, you will see the results of what you are eating. And the food the animals eat, when you eat the animal, you get that same impact."

For him, the fight isn't against science, but for balance. "We not trying to downplay science and technology. But we have to preserve natural agriculture in order for life to continue as it used to be, with more food on the table and less health complications."

"There's no way you can look at the seed and know if it natural or not. But the farmer who has a history of planting the seeds, him will know."

"That's why we are encouraging people, especially the youth, to learn. Save the seeds, and you save the future."