Venezuela creates urban farming ministry amid food shortage

Food staples such as bread, meat and milk, among others, are becoming less and less common in Venezuela. Opposition legislators in the country declared a “food emergency” last week to urge the government of President Nicolás Maduro to take action. Rather than making major policy changes, President Maduro called on Venezuelan people to start producing urban gardens, and created a Ministry of Urban Farming to jump start the process “Cilia [his wife and the first lady] and I have 60 laying hens,” said Maduro in a speech, according to National Public Radio (NPR). “We produce everything we eat.”More…