Farmers sign on as $84.4m crop drive begins to cut food imports

The Ministry of Agriculture has begun signing farmers on to a 16-crop programme projected to generate some $84.4m in wholesale value, as Barbados moves to cut its $80m to $100 million imported primary produce bill, officials confirmed on Wednesday.

Contracts are now being finalised with participating growers under the initiative, Chief Agricultural Officer Paul Lucas told Barbados TODAY. 

The programme is a coordinated effort between the ministry’s technical teams, its specialised planning unit, and the state-owned farming enterprise, the Barbados Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (BADMC), aimed at delivering long-term economic gains for agriculture.

“The dollar value based on our reports, based on the wholesale prices, we have it calculated at around $84.m,” Lucas said. “I believe in the long term, it allows us to cut costs and as much as we can, the objective is that we continue to reduce the amount of imports if possible.”

A central element of the strategy is targeting crops that are well suited to local conditions, with four already identified as requiring minimal imports due to strong domestic output.

“It must also be noted that of these crops, the 16 crops, there’s actually four that we import minimally,” Lucas said, identifying the crops as cucumber, cassava, sweet potato, and yams. “Those are examples of things that have been grown traditionally here and perform well, or the farmers are able to produce quite well.”

To support production, the ministry is providing key inputs and infrastructure — including water storage tanks — ahead of planting. Farmers entering the programme are also guaranteed a market for their produce, reducing exposure to price fluctuations and post-harvest uncertainty.

“For those farmers who want the guaranteed market at the end of the day, we are able to help those persons,” Lucas said. “They have a guaranteed market. So there’s no real loss in terms of what they would have at the end of the day in terms of marketing as such, because that is already taken care of.”

The initiative has already driven renewed interest in crops such as onions, supported by new infrastructure, including a BADMC onion drying facility. Inconsistent weather had made post-harvest curing risky for farmers, discouraging production.

“Since that has been put out there into the public domain, there’s been a renewed interest,” the chief agricultural officer noted. “Before that, there was always a concern in the post-harvest stage that they would suffer losses because of the drying process where you’re not always certain about the weather.”

But the rollout comes against the backdrop of a forecast El Niño weather pattern, with meteorologists warning of potential drought and added pressure on soil management.

Despite these concerns, the agriculture ministry maintained that technical support would help farmers meet production targets, and urged consumers to support the effort by choosing homegrown food.

“Once you buy local, we’re improving lives, improving livelihoods, and it allows us as a society to really strengthen our posture,” Lucas said. “We are able to benefit from having healthier food, more sustainable systems, and again, you’re helping families, you’re helping to develop communities. So always look at it as something that you’re doing to build the nation.”

What to know: 16-crop programme targets, projections

Barbados currently imports between $80m and $100m in primary produce annually.

– The programme covers 16 priority crops aimed at reducing food imports and expanding production. Four crops — cucumber, cassava, sweet potato and yam — already see minimal imports due to strong growing figures.

– Total projected wholesale market value: approximately $84.4m.

– Estimated production by crop (in kilogrammes):

  – Beet: 127 055  

  – Butter squash: 1 295 255  

  – Cabbage: 298 897  

  – Cantaloupe: 226 093  

  – Carrots: 510 719  

  – Cassava: 672 093  

  – Cucumber: 1 342 641  

  – Lettuce: 662 238  

  – Onion: 1 020 696  

  – Hot pepper: 625 121  

  – Sweet pepper: 878 460  

  – Pumpkin: 294 546  

  – Sweet potato: 2,897 083  

  – Tomato: 803 682  

  – Watermelon: 1 051 496  

  – Yam: 924 789 

(RR)