Colonial comida: the colonization of food insecurity in Puerto Rico

Abstract

ABSTRACT Food insecurity is prevalent in Puerto Rico due to intersecting structural inequalities, such as poverty and unemployment, which are rooted in the US’s colonialism in Puerto Rico. The impact of colonization on food access contributes to the complexity of food insecurity in Puerto Rico, particularly as its status as a US territory leaves Puerto Rico with limited economic resources from the US government for necessary programs like PAN (Puerto Rico’s version of SNAP). Furthermore, US-imposed taxation on imported foods also raised the prices of produce; given that 85% of food is imported in Puerto Rico, and that most agricultural outputs are exported, Puerto Rico is not able to sustain itself, but must rely on expensive foods to survive. This paper proposes that Puerto Rico’s status as a US territory contributes to food insecurity in Puerto Rico due to US colonialism, which affects everything from food prices to cuisine-based identity. Participants discussed exorbitant food prices, lack of safe neighbourhoods, unreliable transportation, and US cuisine-shaming of Puerto Rico as contributors to low food security. Puerto Rico’s subaltern status as a US territory deleteriously affects food access due to highly-taxed imported fresh foods and vegetables.