American food supplies a hit at Afghan market

By The Associated Press

HERAT, Afghanistan – Excited crowds at Herat's main bazar jostled for a chance Tuesday to buy bright yellow packets of U.S. food aid, proving that "American" is a powerful brand name in western Afghanistan.

"I'm very curious to buy this because they are so good for the body, very healthful and fresh," said Haidi, a 13-year-old who uses only one name.

Hundreds of packets labeled "food gift from the people of the United States of America" and decorated with U.S. flags appeared at the bazar around noon. Sellers said they had been dropped near a village on the outskirts of Herat overnight.

The packets, slightly smaller than a bread box and containing foods such as stew, rice, fruit pastries and peanut butter, are meant as humanitarian aid. But local entrepreneurs are taking advantage.

Amid shouting and pushing crowds, each packet was selling for about 50,000 Afghanis – the cost of 10 loaves of the region's traditional flat bread and equal to $1 on the fluctuating Herat exchange.

Other goods are plentiful in Herat. A variety of fruits, cereals, even Coke is available, much of it from just across the border in Iran.

The United States has dropped more than 1.5 million food packets on Afghanistan since Oct. 7, when it also began a bombing campaign directed at the Taliban leadership and the suspected terrorists it is accused of harboring.

Some international aid groups have criticized the food drops, in part because it is impossible to ensure the aid reaches the needy.

AP-WS-11-20-01 1113EST