Millions of Haitians Hungry, Food Aid Rotting in Ports

CAP-HAITIEN, Haiti - While millions of Haitians go hungry, containers full of food are stacking up in the nation's ports because of government red tape — leaving tons of beans, rice and other staples to rot under a sweltering sun or be devoured by vermin.

Bidonville, Port-au-Prince, Haïti, originally uploaded by Martin Baran.

A government attempt to clean up a corrupt port system that has helped make Haiti a major conduit for Colombian cocaine has added new layers of bureaucracy — and led to backlogs so severe they are being felt 600 miles away in Miami, where cargo shipments to Haiti have ground almost to a standstill.

Haiti - Presidential Palace, originally uploaded by M_Eriksson.
Presidential Palace, Port-au-Prince, Haiti

Some are so poor they are forced to eat cookies made of dirt, salt and vegetable oil to satisfy their hunger.

With food prices rising, Haiti 's poorest can't afford even a daily plate of rice, and some take desperate measures to fill their bellies. Charlene, 16 with a 1-month-old son, has come to rely on a traditional Haitian remedy for hunger pangs: cookies made of dried yellow dirt from the country's central plateau.