Food on the table

“Until two years ago my husband was working as a peasant farmer with landowners of the sector having a very low income. I was concerned about his health due to the type of poison he used in his work. Now, in our own plot, he is working with green manure which is not harmful for health," Norma says.

She adds "all we had in my kitchen were rice, beans and corn tortillas, but now we have all kinds of vegetables which I cook with poultry or some other kind of meat." 

Selvin Merary, who is in third grade of elementary school had sight problems, now his health has improved due to the diet rich in vegetable, especially carrots, as it was suggested by the World Vision´s health volunteer.

“With the farming techniques that World Vision Honduras gave us, our diet has improved. We eat and sell the harvest we get from our plot. We are no longer going through hardships like before,” Norma says.

Selvin Merary is a very outstanding student and attends the Florencio Ventura Quezada Elementary School thanks to a scholarship granted by World Vision Honduras. He is also supported with school supplies, uniforms, shoes, medical care and medicines. Selvin wants to be a teacher and says "I would like to help children with learning disabilities".

On the other hand, Marco Antonio explains how he used to sow "it has been a long journey; in our culture we plant corn and beans leaving the grains on the soil expecting them to grow by themselves, with a distance of 50 cm between plants". He continues “We wasted money, energy, time and the little land we had, now, we have a drip irrigation system, plant in terraces, microtunneling for soil conservation and crop scheduling which have helped us to obtain lettuce, tomato, jalapeño peppers, beets, carrots, zucchini, broccoli in rows 30 cm apart".

"We have never had such support as the one given by World Vision Honduras. Currently, we have planted 6000 plants in a fenced quarter parcel of land", Marco Antonio adds.

Marco Antonio and his wife Norma sell the product in the community "and it was not enough, demand is high", he says happily. 

At present, Comunidades Solidarias Area Development Programme is working with 300 peasant farmers by promoting modern techniques for soil conservation, "We now feel more capable to work" says Marco Antonio. 

"All the families involved in this project eat what they produce. We now have good food on our tables and the most benefited are our children", ends Norma.