WILLEMSTAD – Curaçao spends between ANG 112 million and ANG 172 million annually on healthcare costs directly linked to unhealthy diets, according to research by Benjamin Visser presented by Ergün Erkocu during a recent meeting of the University of Curaçao Economenclub.
The findings place new urgency on the debate surrounding food systems on the island, suggesting that the main vulnerability is not food availability, but the structure of the system itself.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, food supply to Curaçao remained largely stable, with containers continuing to arrive and volumes showing little change. However, prices surged significantly. In 2021 alone, the island paid more than ANG 50 million extra for the same quantity of food.
“COVID-19 was not the food shock, but the X-ray of the system,” Erkocu explained, highlighting Curaçao’s heavy reliance on imports—estimated at between 85 and 95 percent—as a key risk factor.
According to the research, the perception of cheap imported food is misleading. While prices at the checkout may appear low, they are offset by high societal costs, particularly in healthcare. More than 30 percent of total healthcare spending is linked to diet-related conditions such as obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases.
The findings suggest that Curaçao’s current food model—based heavily on imported, often processed products—may be financially unsustainable in the long term, as hidden costs continue to place pressure on the healthcare system.