While the country makes inroads with dialogue to concretise trading, training and other opportunities between Antigua & Barbuda and the United States Virgin Islands, concerns are being raised about service delivery and the quality of produce for the export market.
The country recently sent a delegation to represent Antigua & Barbuda at the just concluded St Croix Agriculture Fest, with the aim of increasing export opportunities for farmers here.
However, General Manager for the Central Marketing Corporation (CMC) Dalma Hill said while the team recorded some level of success, a good deal of groundwork needs to be covered before the full benefits could be reaped.
Hill said attention should be shifted to improving the production of local produce to ensure that it is fit for export.
“It is one thing to open up a market and to have the business activity. But if the people at your back, the producers, are not geared up to give you the supply in the way you want it …” Hill told state television.
Hill said he saw housewives shy away from a big potato, saying they couldn’t peel it. “So you have to understand that your produce has to fit into whatever it is that the consumer expects.”
The general manager said problems like these impede the exportation process.
A development structure, he said, will be introduced with the input of key stakeholders within the agriculture sector to improve the situation.
“If you create demand and you can’t supply it, it means you open up the opportunity for somebody else,” Hill added.
Due to glitches in the transportation and handling, the delegation to St Croix suffered considerable loss of produce, most of which had to be disposed of as the quality was not fit for display.
The CMC general manager said the transportation and handling issues will be dealt with shortly.
Then a document will be prepared, paving the way for the shipment of six particular products to the US Virgin Islands on an as-needed basis. In exchange, a number of commodities will also be made available on the Antiguan market.
Still, the Antigua & Barbuda delegation held its own at the 41st Annual Agri-Fest Exhibition held in St Croix with the main booth placing second behind winner Nevis, and young farmer Twin-I Payne placing third in his category.
The exhibition gives key stakeholders within the agriculture sector the opportunity to come together and display arts and craft of the region in a grand showcase.
The country has exported a mixture of produce to St Croix since talks between the two countries started last year.
The eight primary commodities identified for the export market included black pineapples, sweet potatoes, carrots, sweet peppers, cherry tomatoes, pumpkin, and onions.
(Source http://www.antiguaobserver.com/?p=71999)
