Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Transformation, the Honorable Israel Bruce, has unveiled key developments in the country’s Agricultural Marketing and Export Strategy, highlighted by signed trade agreements for local produce, new digital tracking infrastructure, and targeted price protection for farmers.
Speaking at a press conference, Minister Bruce announced that St. Vincent and the Grenadines has secured guaranteed international buyers in California for Vincentian dasheen and hot peppers, while establishing a digital partnership with global technology firm Quantum Inc. to streamline supply chain logistics.
The export push centers on two major off-take partnerships secured following trade missions to Los Angeles:
- Happy Produce Global LLC has agreed to take off shipments of Vincentian dasheen.
- Seasons Farm Fresh will manage the purchasing and distribution of Vincentian hot peppers.
The arrangements were facilitated by California-based Vincentian diaspora member Kishon Cupid, whom Minister Bruce commended for funding and driving the initial cross-border coordination.
To protect local producers from market volatility, Minister Bruce confirmed that the government has negotiated a price stabilization mechanism. Farmers will be guaranteed a standardized minimum floor price for their crops, shielding them against price drops while allowing payouts to increase if market rates rise.
To operationalize the trade agreements, Minister Bruce and Jacques Nack, CEO of Quantum Inc., formally signed a Data Sharing and Protection Agreement. The agreement governs the collection of agricultural data while safeguarding farmer privacy.
Quantum Inc. has launched the Quantum Farm App on iOS and Android to connect local producers directly with international distributors. The application enables field agents to map farm acreage under tree canopies, monitor planting yields, track crop health, and forecast harvest schedules in real time.
“What we are doing is building the connections between the farmers and the buyers,” said Nack, noting that Quantum’s system removes third-party brokerage fees so that a larger percentage of export revenue remains directly with the farmers. Local field agents, including Vincentian hire Usuza Pope alongside ministry extension officers, are being deployed across farming communities to onboard growers.
The export strategy directly incorporates critical road infrastructure upgrades. Dunston Johnson, Senior Project Officer at the Basic Needs Trust Fund (BNTF), outlined plans to rehabilitate the 1.3-mile Tibberu feeder road in Gregs village.
The road serves approximately 200 dasheen farmers accessing high-altitude farmlands down to the Pavement area. Heavily eroded asphalt and lack of lower-level drainage currently force truckers to charge premium transport rates or require farmers to haul crops manually. Under BNTF 11, $2.4 million EC in CDB-approved funding is allocated to build an all-weather concrete surface and drainage system to lower haulage costs and prevent crop damage during transit.
The press conference also underscored the strategic alignment between agriculture and tourism. Minister of Tourism Dr. Kishaw Shallow noted that while tourism brings external spending into the country, agriculture dictates how much of that currency stays in the local economy.
With current visitor spending averaging $59 USD per tourist in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Shallow highlighted opportunities for farm-to-table experiences and local hotel sourcing to capture a larger share of the $2.6 billion USD regional OECS visitor expenditure.
To combat praedial larceny, Minister Bruce revealed that the ministry is currently field-testing specialized surveillance cameras, with plans to purchase 1,000 units across four pilot zones nationwide.
Field visits and data mapping by Quantum Inc. and ministry technical staff are underway across Queensbury, Gregs, and the Mesopotamia Valley, as well as sea moss production facilities in Bequia. Extension officers are working with farming cohorts to align planting calendars with international shipping schedules ahead of initial export containers.
