Food Production Minister, Vasant Bharath, says the "agricultural sector is no longer a sleeping giant." Bharath made the statement on Wednesday at the Tucker Valley Farm in Chaguaramas, where for the first time local onions-the cirrus- were harvested for commercial use. A pilot project was conducted in collaboration with Caribbean Chemicals on a half-acre plot of land, where two varieties of onions were successfully grown. The Mercedes, a yellow-skinned variety, is already produced in other Caribbean territories. Trinidad is the first Caribbean territory to evaluate the cirrus, which is a white-skinned variety. The onions harvested would be sold directly to stockholders in the food and beverage industry.
The goal of the project was to produce onions locally on a large scale. Bharath said the ministry returned its seed production facility to the Tucker Valley location and had already begun the production of seeds for crops such as corn, bodi, ochro, melongene, sorrel and pigeon peas. The seeds would be made available to the local farming community. Bharath believes that the crops the Government were focusing on would add significantly to the food security programme.
Trinidad and Tobago has imported more than $100 million worth of onions in the last five years but agriculturists have found a solution to grow locally- and commercially-viable substitutes.
Managing director of Caribbean Chemical Agencies Ltd, Joe Pires said, "with 100 acres, we could provide 20 per cent of our requirements for onions." He said on a per annum basis, T&T currently imported $16 million worth of onions and $70 million worth of citrus concentrate which is converted into juice by major local juice producers. However, he said, attempts were being made to resuscitate the citrus industry by producing 100,000 disease-free plants every year, over the course of five years. For every 100 acres of onions, 35 labourers would be used. There would be no cost in creating the farms because the lands belonged to the state.
Reporting by Rashanda Mc Kenna
