Arine Valstar is Associate Professional in the Nutrition
Programmes Service, FAO Food and Nutrition Division. She was APO
for the International Conference on Nutrition Follow-up at the
FAO Representation in Jamaica. Home gardening provides a low-
cost, sustainable strategy for increasing household food
security by providing direct access to food (Marsh, 1998). Home
gardening, which does not depend on imported inputs, high
technology tools or food aid, increases the self-reliance of
households. When introducing home gardening in a community,
traditional food production methods and popular, well-known and
nutritious crops should be taken into account. A participatory
approach that considers gender roles is also important. This
strategy is not limited to rural areas, but can also benefit the
poorest segments of the urban population as is illustrated by a
home gardening and small-scale poultry production project being
implemented in Jamaica in urban and peri-urban communities. The
project was implemented as part o