President of the People’s National Party (PNP) Patriots, the Reverend Paul Blake says Jamaicans have been forced to take their calculators along with them whenever they go grocery shopping because of the frequency of price increases.

Blake made the charge on Sunday while addressing the public session of the PNP’s 88th Annual Conference at Independence Park in Savanna-la-Mar, Westmoreland.

“Too many Jamaican families are now living in fear of the supermarket. People are walking with calculators in the supermarket, they are picking up and checking the price and they are putting it back,” said Blake.

With a recent United Nations (UN) report stating that up to 55 per cent of Jamaicans were facing food insecurity, Blake gave his take on what this meant.

According to the Patriots’ president, “Food insecurity is when a mother drink tea so the family can eat food. Food insecurity is when a child goes to school without breakfast and is expected to learn on an empty stomach. Food insecurity is when working people go to work every day but can’t afford to feed their family,”

According to UN data released this month, more than half of Jamaicans are facing food insecurity, with 28 per cent experiencing severe conditions in which they go hungry or spend entire days without eating.

The information was released at the launch of the 10th International Food Security and Sovereignty Conference at Sandals Dunn’s River.

Speaking at the launch, Dr Cecil Cornwall, head of the Western Hospitality Institute, said 55 per cent of Jamaicans face uncertainty about having enough food, including running out of food or skipping meals.