23 Nov 2016

Call for US military on Guam to return farm land

1:27 pm on 23 November 2016
The US Naval base at Orote Peninsula, Guam

The US Naval base at Orote Peninsula, Guam Photo: Supplied

The Independence taskforce on Guam says the United States military should return land it's not using to the community for farming.

The taskforce held a public meeting at the Chamorro Village on Tuesday about food sovereignty.

A co-chair of the taskforce, Victoria Leon Guerrero, said the US military controlled the best farm land on Guam.

"The US occupies a third of the island but not all of that land is used, the majority of that land is not used. So we would argue that the land should be returned and that the land could be used in other ways for the community."

Victoria Leon Guerrero said Guam grew enough food to feed US forces during the Second World War, but now 90 percent of its food is imported.

She says non-communicable diseases caused by bad diet are the leading causes of death on Guam.