Agriculture Minister: Money doesn't grow on trees

MONEY does not grow on trees, but people feel one could just find the money, Agriculture Minister, Clarence Rambharat told farmers at the opening of the Central Market at Woodford Lodge, Chaguanas, today.

"There is something called the standing committee on finance, and this committee took the opportunity to drill me for as long as they wanted, so I have to account to the country on agriculture.

"I cannot say,'I went by a tree in Moruga and picked $1,000,000,' because when I took office I had to decide what is the priority in agriculture," he said.

The Woodford Lodge facility was offered to the Borough of Chaguanas in 2016, he said, but after several meetings and many exchanges, he had to move on and open the market.

The market is open, but there is a daily cost to maintain the facility, and the security bill alone is $1.4 million a year, he pointed out.

"For every day that the market is open, there is a need for six officers and one supervisor and it costs $4,000 a day."

Rambharat said when he took office, the Norris Deonarine Northern Wholesale Market was marked as a priority for development, as Namdevo had issues with parking. Namdevco's Debe Market had issues with flooding, and while there are issues surrounding health, the market remains open. The Norris Deonarine Market will be expanded.

Rambharat said the wholesale market in central put farmers in direct contact with consumers, and his government expanded the Port of Spain farmers' market to allow this.

He said consumers in search of fresh produce would go to the central market and jostle for parking space, and this became a habit.

But, he warned, "This generation will not go to the central market. Instead, they will go to the one-stop shopping at the supermarkets to get their produce."

When he became Agriculture Minister, he said, he had to look at what was happening across the country in terms of primary producers – farmers – being able to access the market to sell their produce. While farmers' produce can get into consumers' hands in a number of ways, "The number-one way is for farmers to sell their produce directly to consumers. This way they maximise their profit. The more interveners and interlopers you have, particularly in agriculture, wherever it is in the world, the less the farmer makes on the sale."

Rambharat said such middlemen tend to store the goods for a long period, and hence customers do not get fresh produce. This was why it was very important for the farmer to interface with the consumer.

"Supermarkets all over the country demand price, quality and reliability of supply. Farmers need to guarantee the supermarket a regular supply of produce at a consistent price," he said.

Supermarkets preserve their produce for long periods by using chemicals, he noted.

The restaurant industry also demands a high quality of produce on a regular basis.

The farmers' market in the Queen's Park Savannah was a resounding success, Rambharat said, and when the farmers' market was opened in Rio Claro, cassava sold out in 45 minutes. The markets in Couva and Diego Martin were also successful.