Typical snacks when I am in Grenada range from tamarind balls and guava cheese to cheese straws, channa and khurma.
When I’m healthy snacking, it’s popcorn and a mix of fruit, raw carrots, celery, pumpkin and christophene. The latter does not happen as often as it should since I have an insatiable sweet tooth; however, snacks take on a different meaning from what I see in the groceries in Beijing, China. Packaged snack foods appear to be big business; from what I see, there is room for innovation at home to expand our range of locally produced snacks.
Duck wings, necks and feet snacks. Photo: SLCT
Potato chips come flavoured with tomato, cucumber, honey or spicy barbeque sauce. There are bars with fruit that look like Rice Krispie treats and other bars with nuts and sesame seeds. Also available is a wide range of sweet and savoury biscuits and crackers, plus chocolate and dried fruit – you get the picture.
Jackfruit, banana and fruit chips. Photo: SLCT
But then there are packaged jackfruit chips, banana chips, sweet potato chips; garlic-flavoured peas and beans; dried mango and lemon slices; and peanuts with salty tititri-sized fish. Packaged meat snacks in sauce or dried jerky are very popular, as are chicken feet in various flavours, and duck wings, necks and feet.
Various meat jerky. Photo: SLCT
These snacks may look unconventional, but I kid you not; they are delicious and made with items available in Grenada. Using what we have in Grenada, imaginative approaches to snacks for export could be a game-changer for a small business. PS: prices shown are in Chinese currency called RMB or Yuan. 10 RMB or Yuan is approximately EC$4.