Venezuelans asked to help others find food in their bin

Venezeulans are having to resort to all sorts of different measures to find enough to eat

A priest in Venezuela is urging compatriots to label their food waste so people scavenging in bins can find it.

The food shortage in the country is such that influential priest and journalist, Father Jose Palmar, is urging his countrymen to separate food waste in their garbage and to label it clearly, the Pan Am Post website reports.

The country has faced a severe shortage of food and basic goods for months. A survey in February found nearly three-quarters of the population had lost an average of 8.6kg over 2016 because they were eating less, the pan-Latin American Telesur website says.

Looking in garbage to find food is not the only method to which Venezuelans have resorted. The Miami Herald in February cited Zulia University biologists and biology students saying they were monitoring instances of protected animals being poached, including flamingos and giant anteaters.

The Herald said waste disposal workers had also noticed increasing instances of other discarded animal carcasses showing signs of having been eaten.

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