The farming community can look forward to more support, says Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture Avinash Singh.
Although he did not offer any details when he spoke at the opening ceremony of the World Cocoa and Chocolate Day 2015 at UWI, St Augustine, Singh said: "I anticipate that the farming population would be more comfortable now to produce more. I have every confidence that farmers could produce in this country and at the end of the day, we need to know that we have a market, we need to know that our produce is actually reaching somewhere."
Commenting on the current state of the local cocoa industry, Singh said the sector "is so fragmented everybody is trying to do something on their own."
He said: "Our approach would be an umbrella approach to give the farming population, as well as stakeholders, the tools and avenue to really have sustainability within themselves in their own operations and make it into a nationwide initiative, so the country could benefit."
He said it was important to target the right market for T&T's high quality cocoa, so it might not be necessary to produce cocoa in bulk. The farmers will benefit, he explained, from the sale of the cocoa to countries willing to pay a high price.
"At the end of the day, people want to see profitability, people want to see dollars and cents. The ministry's role is not to compete with farmers, we are here to facilitate the industry."
Prof Wayne Hunte, Pro vice chancellor research, announced that an International Fine Cocoa Innovation Centre will be established by the Cocoa Research Centre. The facility, which will be located at the back of Nestle factory on the Churchill Roosevelt Highway, will showcase an orchard plantation system, processing facilities, business incubators, chocolate restaurant, museum and shops.
Hunte said the cocoa industry is languishing and production is in serious decline, dropping from 35,000 tonnes to 500 tonnes.