Sufficient rice available for CARICOM market; Grenada to abort plan to buy grain extra-regionally
Guyana has assured the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) market that there is sufficient rice and shipments of the grain are on their way to Grenada, effectively pushing back plans by the island to ask the regional trade ministerial council for permission to buy rice from outside the region.
General Manager of the Marketing and National Importing Board (MNIB), Elvis Young, said that after discussions with Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha, and the Deputy General Manager of the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB), he was satisfied that there was now a protocol to communicate with the GRDB about grain supplies. If necessary, concerns could be escalated to communication between the ministers of agriculture of both Grenada and Guyana.
A senior rice industry official stated that there was less Guyanese rice on the Grenadian market because there was delay in shipment, not getting vessel and containers in a timely manner. The state-owned MNIB is not Grenada’s only rice importer, but its General Manager said that one of the rice millers had informed him that there was a shortage of rice in Guyana due to bad weather, and another had said supplies were being reserved for Guyana’s domestic market. The Board’s order was placed since February, 2024.
In terms of easing the shortage in shops and supermarkets in Grenada, four containers of rice sailed on September 19, 2024, with supplies for two independent agencies, Renwick Thompson and Kalico. One of the Grenadian companies received its shipment on Friday and the other will receive its consignment next week. They are also expected to receive five additional containers of rice that are expected to leave Guyana on October 3. MNIB imports mostly bulk rice amounting to 24 metric tonnes per month, which does not include imports by the private sector.
