Over 1 000 pounds of produce gone as crop thieves strike at Spencer’s

Farmers in Spencer’s, Christ Church, said Tuesday they were at breaking point after thieves made off with more than $2 000 in produce, including over 1 000 pounds of squash and an entire crop of watermelons.

The brazen act of theft has left the farmer—who asked not to be identified—and his neighbours demoralised and frustrated.

The man has been working the land in Spencer’s, next door to the Grantley Adams International Airport, for the past five years. He said this is the worst case of crop theft he has experienced to date.

“We had about a quarter acre of squash—six rows, each over 400 feet long,” he told Barbados TODAY at the farm. “From the time the squash started to mature, we kept saying something looked off. It looked like somebody was taking them out but we didn’t pay much attention.”

It was not until harvest time that the extent of the loss became clear.

“When we came back and hit this spot, the best-growing area where the water settles, we realised there wasn’t a single squash left. Everything was gone. We estimate we lost close to a thousand pounds of squash right there.”

During the Budget debate in March, Minister of Agriculture Indar Weir noted that a farmer in Spencer’s had reported a large quantity of sweet potatoes being stolen, raising concerns about the growing threat of praedial larceny in the area.

Despite those concerns, farmers said little has changed on the ground.

The farmer said: “We retail squash for around $2.50 a pound. We invested over $3 000 in this crop—seedlings, fertiliser, pest control, water—and that does not factor in labour.”

He believes a recently cleared road at the back of the land made the fields more accessible to thieves.

“From the time the tractor cleared it, the land became easier to reach from the back. We suspect that’s how they got in.”

A neighbouring female farmer, who also works the land full time, reportedly lost her entire crop of watermelons and much of her squash. “I don’t even know how many melons they took—we couldn’t count. But we know everything’s gone,” the male farmer reported.

The losses extended beyond melons and squash. Sweet peppers were also targeted earlier, he said.

“They went through and only took the best ones. You could see they used secateurs (shears) to cut them. That’s how we know it’s somebody who knows what they’re doing. They didn’t pull or break them—they cut clean and left the smallest ones behind.”

He said that with the increase in homicides in the country, he did not bother to report the matter to the police.

“The police have their hands full. What can they really do?” 

Frederick Inniss, chief executive of the farmland’s owner, the Barbados Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (BADMC), did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The farmer called for the return of joint police and army patrols, an initiative he recalled from previous years.

“Back in the day, the Defence Force used to work with the police. They would use the Ministry of Agriculture’s four-by-fours and patrol the fields. It worked. They used to patrol all around Barbados,” he said.

Given Spencer’s proximity to the BDF’s base at Paragon, he believes regular patrols—every three to four hours—could deter would-be thieves.

“If people know soldiers or police might pass through, they might think twice. That’s all we want,” he said.

sheriabrathwaite@barbadostoday.bb