Caribbean cuisine & foodways

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The 'King of Soca' Machel Montano’s guide to Trinidad and Tobago

Soca musician Machel Montano shares his recs for enjoying his home nation during Carnival season and beyond.

www.bbc.com

03/02/25

Here are Montano's favourite ways to experience Trinidad and Tobago.

For some of the best home cooking in Trinidad and Tobago, Montano loves hitting the food stalls at the Breakfast Shed

1. Best culinary experience: Street food and the Breakfast Shed ​

For Montano, the best food in Trinidad and Tobago is found in the streets.
Tip:

"Hire a friendly driver to take you around for your whole stay," says Montano. "When you’re liming, you never know how long you’re going to be in one place. The driver can always drop you off and wait around and spin back… they’ll take care of you. And they know all the best places to go." To make it happen, "Just ask one of the regular taxi drivers, 'Hey, can you be our driver for our stay?’," advises Montano. "Most of the time, you can find somebody here to do that."

"Our most famous street food, doubles [curried chickpeas served on two fried flatbreads, topped with condiments like mango chutney and tamarind sauce], is available on nearly every corner. It’s a food that [harks back to] our cultural roots. It’s affordable, tasty and something we're known for internationally." His pro tip: find a vendor selling fresh coconut water, as locals do. "Coconut water is the perfect pairing with any meal!"

When pressed to name a sit-down dining experience, Montano cites the Breakfast Shed: "You know when you’re looking for good food, you’re always looking for your grandmother’s cooking? We call it the Breakfast Shed, but it’s not really a shed. It’s what you would call a modern-day food hall. They cook only local dishes with what we like to call a 'sweet hand'; this means they use the best seasonings. Everything is so tasty."

Montano recommends ordering the callaloo, which is a popular Sunday dish in Trinidad and Tobago. "[It's] a mixture of bushes [dasheen bush, also known as taro leaves] with okra and spinach and all these different things in there." He also recommends trying traditional stews, curries, pies or plant-based ingredients like pigeon peas: "We call those plant-based dishes 'ground food'. Healthy food."

Montano especially loves people watching at the Breakfast Shed: "There are a lot of people from every walk of life, from salespeople to shopkeepers to students. Everyone is always rolling up to the Breakfast Shed."
Address: JFXP+M8M, Wrightson Rd, Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago

 

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03/05/25

 

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St. Kitts/Nevis Expanding Agriculture-Reducing Imports & Boosting Exports


Feb 14, 2025
In this episode of *I'm Making It Happen*, Nykole Tyson speaks with Samal Duggins, Minister of Agriculture for St. Kitts and Nevis. They discuss the country's goal to reduce produce imports by 25% by the end of 2025 and its efforts to supply fresh produce to the wider Caribbean. Minister Duggins shares insights into St. Kitts & Nevis’ strategies for boosting local agriculture and contributing to regional food security.

 

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Climate change threatens future of banana export industry​

03/06/25

Climate change is rapidly reducing the ability of banana producers to supply one of our favourite fruits.
New research from the University of Exeter, published in Nature Food, has found it will be economically unsustainable by 2080 for many areas across Latin America and the Caribbean to continue growing bananas for export, because of rising temperatures caused by climate change.

Bananas are a key export crop worth $11 billion (£8.9 billion) annually and are crucial for the economies of many countries. Yet in just over half a century, 60 per cent of the regions currently producing bananas will struggle to grow the fruit unless there are urgent interventions to tackle climate change.
The study also found that socioeconomic factors, such as labour availability and infrastructure, significantly constrain climate change adaptation. Most banana production occurs near densely populated areas and ports, limiting the potential for relocation to more suitable regions.

Professor Dan Bebber from the University of Exeter led the study and said: “Our findings are a stark reminder that climate change is not just an environmental issue but a direct threat to global food security and livelihoods. Without substantial investment in adaptation, including irrigation and heat-tolerant banana varieties, the future of export banana production looks uncertain.
“Bananas are one of the world’s most important fruits, not only for consumers but for millions of workers in producing countries. It’s crucial we act now to safeguard the industry against the dual threats of climate change and emerging diseases.”

The researchers developed a new method using satellite imagery to map banana production in Latin America and the Caribbean at very high resolution and then estimated the climate under which bananas are preferentially grown. Their findings showed climate change will reduce the best areas for banana growth and yields in many important producer countries, as well as increasing worker exposure to extreme temperatures.
Countries such as Colombia and Costa Rica will be the most negatively impacted as they are expected to become too hot for optimal cultivation. Ecuador and parts of Brazil are among the few areas to remain as important producers, as climate change is projected to be less severe there.

The researchers propose several adaptation strategies, including expanding irrigation infrastructure, breeding heat- and drought-tolerant banana varieties, and supporting banana producers to manage climate risks.
Dr Varun Varma of Rothamsted Research developed the remote sensing algorithms for the work and further assistance was provided by José Antonio Guzmán Alvarez of the Costa Rican organisation CORBANA, who support the national banana industry.
The study titled Socioeconomic Constraints to Climate Change Adaptation in a Tropical Export Crop is published in Nature Food and was funded by the Global Food Security Programme and Horizon 2020.


Study

The fundamentals of open access and open research | Open science | Springer Nature

www.springernature.com

 

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03/01/25

 

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Spoiler: permalink

 

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Spoiler: workers harvesting bananas

1957

 

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03/10/25

 

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03/15/25

 

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