Getting food in Colombia
Colombia is a land rich in beauty. Its geography is covered with lush vegetation. Colombia is a mountainous country that is located around the equator. Therefore, its climate is temperate and suitable for farming year round.
These were the things Marilu knew about her family's native land. However, beyond these general characteristics, she knew little, so a search began on the internet. Colombia has a population of around 31.5 million people. 80 percent of the population live in urban areas. Colombia is a fairly modern society which is trying to pattern itself after the United States.
Colombia as a country has fully engaged in commercialization of its agriculture. Its main crops are coffee beans, rice, beans, bananas, corn, and potatoes. They are the second largest producer of coffee is the world which they export at a profit of $375 million each year. With an agricultural work force which only makes up about 29 percent of the total work force, Colombia is about 90 percent self-sufficient in feeding their own people. This self-sufficiency is met while only cultivating about 6 percent of the country's total area.
The majority of Colombia has developed its agriculture beyond most third-world technology. The only people who practice ancient types of food gathering such as horticultural techniques are the native Indians who live in the dense rural areas of Colombia. Pastoralism is non-existent in Colombia because it lacks pastoral land. The main way food gathering is practiced in Colombia is through intensive agriculture. They use the techniques of modern agriculture to make the best uses of their land. For instance, they use inorganic fertilizers, irrigation, and modern machines to get a 90 percent agriculturally self-sufficiency rate while only using 6 percent of their land. That is an amazing statistic on how developed food gathering techniques are in Colombia.
Much to Marilu's surprise, she found that the majority of the people in Colombia get their food from supermarkets or open-air food stands just as she does here in the States. Most people in Colombia pride themselves on preparing their meals from scratch. Marilu's family was not an exception to this rule. Growing up, her diet consisted mostly of some meat and beans and rice for all meals of the day. One day a week they would make a different ethnic dish such as spaghetti or hamburgers to break the monotony.
Marilu's family did not change their food gathering habits when they moved to the United States. Although often thought of as a third-world country, in agriculture and food gathering techniques, they compete with the Americans. Colombia is a society with a modern, efficient, intensive agribusiness that supports the nation's economy and has modernized their way of food gathering.