Sad Story: Hunger drives Haitians to eat mud

Haiti is a country located in the Caribbean Sea, occupying one third of the island of Hispaniola. The rest of the island is the Dominican Republic. Haiti gained independence from the French occupation in 1804, but since then it has been plagued by tyrannical rulers, making Haiti the poorest country in the hemisphere. And 80% of its population live below the poverty line.

The rampant corruption in Haiti has caused a sharp rise in food prices, prompting the poor Haitians to eat what is not eaten, the clay made in the form of cakes. It is not surprising that hunger makes people ugly. Clay cakes are made of mud, butter and salt, But it is not for its consumers who are poor but for its factories are also poor. The manufacture of mud cakes is a semi-sole source of income for its workers.

Pregnant women from the poorer classes in Haiti have long relied on mud cakes to fill their stumps and get a little calcium, which suggests that the future generation will suffer many symptoms of undernourishment.

The City of Sulai is the largest gathering of the Haitian poor, with some 400,000 people. It is located on the outskirts of the capital Port-au-Prince.

Source:
http://www.lolwot.com/some-haitians-are-still-eating-mud-and-dirt-cookies/