Tobago’s breadfruit story

DR RITA PEMBERTON

The introduction of the breadfruit plant into Tobago from its native home in the islands of the Pacific was no chance occurrence. It was the result of a confluence of factors and interests at both the imperial and colonial levels.

It must be noted that European imperialistic activity was multi-dimensional. While the planting of sugar, cotton and tobacco were very important activities that generated huge profits, there was conviction that there were more resources which could be exploited in the colonies.

One area that attracted much interest was the attempt to transplant spices from the east to colonies in the west in order to reduce transportation costs and make these highly-prized items more easily accessed for trade on the European market. In addition, the search was on for other exotic plants with economic potential to capture the European market. As a result there were botanists, plant enthusiasts and plant hunters who relentlessly pursued the exploration of these areas in search of valuable plants. These explorers scoured every colony for plants that could be marketed in Europe, thereby generating intense competition between Britain and France, who each sough to be the first to obtain any prized item and capture and control the market. Plant imperialism was therefore another dimension of European imperial activity in the colonial world. It was conducted by the establishment of botanic gardens, which served as the conduits through which new plants were propagated and disseminated to the colonies, as well as to identify new species that were found in the colonies.

Plant explorer Captain James Cook made a voyage to the Pacific, and on his return he recommended that the breadfruit plant be introduced to the Caribbean as a food source for the region because of its ease of cultivation and the abundance of its production. The suggestion captured the attention of officials at the colonial office, and English botanist Sir Joseph Banks made arrangements for the successful transfer of breadfruit plants to the region. In 1792 Captain William Bligh conducted a successful expedition and returned with 678 plants to be distributed between the botanic gardens at Jamaica and St Vincent for propagation and dissemination in the region.

This immediate motivation for this development was the crisis faced in the British colonial trading system when the American colonies successfully broke away from British rule. The independence of these colonies meant that they were no longer a part of the British trading system through which they supplied cheap food to the British colonies. The immediate problem was the shortage of food for the enslaved population and the threat of their extinction by starvation. It was in trying to solve this problem that breadfruit assumed importance in the imperial system. In order to stimulate breadfruit propagation, the London-based Society of Arts was established and it offered prizes to individuals who successfully introduced and cultivated breadfruit on their estates.

In Tobago, the food problem was extremely grave. Additionally, plantation operations on the island were disrupted by the contest for ownership between the British and French. In 1792 a young, enterprising plantation owner decided to apply to the society for an award for introducing breadfruit cultivation in Tobago. In his application, James Robley, president of council and owner of Golden Grove and two other estates on the island, indicated that he had introduced breadfruit plants on his estate in 1792, from plants he purchased from Martinique. He stated he was disappointed that the plants he received were of the seeded type and not the variety which he desired. He later obtained three plants of Otaheite breadfruit from Dr Alexander Anderson who was in charge of the St Vincent Botanic Gardens.

After six years of cultivation, he propagated 153 trees which produced more than enough food for the 1,000 enslaved Africans on his estates. Robley indicated that he had enclosed an area of his estate, bounded by the lagoon on one side and the sea on the other, which could accommodate 1,300 plants. His application was supported by the governor of the island, members of the council, speaker of the House of Assembly and George Lyall, manager of Robley’s estate. They all confirmed that Robley had 153 plants growing on his Golden Grove estate and he was awarded the premium prize of a gold medal in 1801.

What Robley did not indicate in his application was the negative reaction of the enslaved population to the breadfruit, with which they were not familiar. They showed a strong preference for bananas and plantains and scorned the breadfruit, which to some, resembled a poisonous African plant. To others it was considered fit only to feed pigs. Since then, of course, the breadfruit has come to gain high regard for its gastronomic potential and acclaim for its health benefits.