Meal by Meal: Venezuela’s Food Shortage
The combination of Venezuela’s sky-rocketing prices and chronic product shortages have left many struggling to put regular food on their tables to maintain a balanced diet. Take a look at what these families are eating in Caracas.
Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters
A combination photo shows Rosa Elaisa Landaez (Back) posing for a picture next to her relatives (L-R) Albert Perez, Abel Perez, and Yeiderlin Gomez and the food they have at their home in Caracas, Venezuela. "We are eating badly. For example, if we have corn flour, we eat arepas all day. If you have the money you can't find the foods and if you find you them you do not have enough money," Landaez said. Amid a severe recession and dysfunctional state-run economy, poorer families say they are sometimes skipping meals and relying more on starch foods. According to one recent study, 87 percent of Venezuelans say their income is now insufficient to purchase their food needs.
Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters
Here we see Mirella Rivero and her son Jose Rivero. "I breakfast on either an arepa or a tamale, to eat, at least two times a day," Rivero said.
"I'm eating less and also I'm eating excess things that should not be eaten," Antonia Torres said.
Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters
Yunni Perez (R) next to her relatives (L-R) Carlos Acosta, Adrian Gonzalez, Luis Oliveros, Luis Oliveros, and Hector Acosta and the food they have at their home.
Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters
Francisca Landaeta (R) next to her relatives, (L-R) Luisa Gomez, Gabriel Castillo, Kerlin Garrido, and Antony Arias. "We eat today, but we do not know what we will eat tomorrow. We are bad, I never thought it would come to this," Landaeta said.
Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters
Yaneidy Guzman posing for a picture next to her daughters, Esneidy Ramirez (R), (Front L-R) Steffany Perez, and Fabiana Perez. "Now eating is a luxury, before we could earn some money and buy clothes or something, now everything goes on food," Guzman said.
Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters
"We are eating in a bad way, we can not eat a balanced way. If we had lunch, not dinner and if we had dinner, not breakfast," Douglas Sanchez said.
Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters
Ricardo Mendez (2nd L) with (L-R) Raymari Guerra, Natalia Gerra, Ricardo Mendez, Dayana Mendez, Antonela Mendez, Yolimar Vetancourt, and Liz Torresand. "We're a big family, and it's constantly getting harder for us to eat," Mendez said.
ÃÂé Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reute
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