The Puerto Rico Planning Board (JP), in collaboration with the University of Puerto Rico’s Mayagüez campus (UPR-RUM), unveiled the Food Security Data Center, a free digital platform providing public access to data and research on food security in Puerto Rico. The initiative is led by Dr. Julio César Hernández and funded by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
The platform integrates databases, maps, interactive applications, and other digital resources to analyze and monitor food security conditions. It includes maps with estimates of food insecurity and caloric needs for more than 900 neighborhoods (barrios) across Puerto Rico, along with nutritional information, statistics on food imports and local production, pricing data, and other relevant indicators.
Alejandro Díaz Marrero, director of the Planning Board’s Economic and Social Planning Program, said reliable, accessible, and organized information is essential for understanding community needs and developing effective responses, and that the platform enables citizens, organizations, researchers, and policymakers to make data-informed decisions.