FAMILIES are being urged to turn to do backyard farming as a buffer against potential food insecurity linked to rising global tensions in the Middle East.
Minister for Agriculture Tomasi Tunabuna said households should begin preparing now by growing their own food, particularly as concerns mount over inflation and supply disruptions that could arise if the conflict escalates.
Speaking to this newspaper, Mr Tunabuna said many families who felt financially strained should consider practical alternatives to ease pressure on household budgets.
“Fijians are saying, ‘we are struggling to put food on the table’,” he said.
“We are not struggling to put food on the table, we are just not very actively growing our food.”
He stressed subsistence farming was both achievable and effective, even for those in urban areas.
“Because growing food is not difficult, I don’t see that as a very, very big task to grow our own food.
“Even for those living in urban and peri urban neighbourhoods, we can reduce our food bills by growing tomatoes around the house, beans, cabbages and the lot.”
Mr Tunabuna said simple crops could sustain families for extended periods during times of crisis.
“So the crisis people are fearing will come when the war intensifies, all we need to do is to plant.”
He also highlighted that government support was already available for those willing to take up farming.
“Distributing seeds has been something the Government has been doing for years, and we have provisions for our Fijians.”
Mr Tunabuna encouraged members of the public to make use of resources available through the ministry, including subsidised agricultural inputs.
“Come to our agriculture office in Koronivia, we have cheap fertilisers and seeds we can give for them to start planting now.
“We did it during the COVID time, we can do it even now.
“It’s time for people to come.”
