Business
BARVEN President Urges Government Action Amid Bleak Christmas Produce Predictions
Some vendors warn of a challenging Christmas for produce due to water price issues and climate change impacting agriculture in Barbados. Calls for government action to support farmers.
5 min read
Originally published by nationnews.com (opens in new tab)
Some vendors are predicting a bleak Christmas produce-wise, with president of the Barbados Association of Retailers, Vendors and Entrepreneurs (BARVEN) Alister Alexander saying agriculture itself was at risk if things did not change.
He is calling on Government to do more to ease farmers, especially concerning the price of water from the Barbados Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (BADMC).
“The truth is, though, that water is a problem. The farmers who are part of the Government projects will tell you that the price of water is now beyond them. It has carried their production costs above what they are able to handle and they are dreading the possibility of a drought or more drought-like conditions in the year. A lot of farmers are already devastated, this is a fact.
“BARVEN will be speaking to Government again. I know that Government faces certain realities, but we have to decide if we want to have agriculture or not; we have to decide if we want to be food secure or not. And if, therefore, we want to be food secure, then the water rate has to be lowered for farmers or agriculture will come to an end as we know it,” he said.
As for the availability of produce, the president said climate change seemed to be the culprit behind the scarcity.
“You usually find some produce is scarce during these months but it is even worse now. Because of the extreme weather, we have not had an abundance of produce at no time in the year,” he said.
Dangerous position
Alexander, speaking in the BARVEN market off the Mighty Grynner Highway on Saturday, advised the public not to bother looking for too many tomatoes or local carrots, adding there used to be gluts of them in times past. In fact, he advised Barbadians not to expect too much of anything.
“As far as I see it, in farming, somebody does get to grow something but not enough to supply a country. Even importing vegetables, that is so precarious now you see the wars in the world. I am telling you that we are in an absolutely dangerous position.
“What makes it worse is that customers are missing their local produce. Bajans, contrary to what people think, prefer the local stuff,” he said.
A vendor in Cheapside market, The City, who only gave his name as “Vegetable Man”, said he had given up on local produce.
“I don’t sell local food anymore because you can’t get any. I used to be able to get things like sweet potatoes, cucumber and squash but not anymore. I get produce from as far as Australia and South Africa but food scarce all over the world. I feel it’s weather patterns to blame,” he said.
