Gopee-Scoon: Local farmers can supply Nestlé

TRADE minister Paula Gopee-Scoon has lauded Nestle's continued investment in TT and says the government is committed to creating further incentives for farmers so they can supply the raw produce contained in Nestle's vast line of juices and milk-based products.

Gopee-Scoon, along with officials of the ministry and the TT Manufacturers Association and the media, toured Nestle's Valsayn factory on Wednesday, where company representatives showed off several new machines which are used to manufacture its domestically-produced items.

Nestle has launched dozens of new products within recent months, including its Orchard Fruit & Veggie 100% Juice.

The minister, addressing Nestlé head of market for the Anglo-Dutch Caribbean region, Patricio Torres, said, "We're excited because a lot of these are nutritious products.

"It pleases us to see the wider range of new products, and what it (comes down to) now is education, so the consumer appreciates that even though it's a little price sensitive – a little bit higher than the normal (juice or juice drink) – the point about it is it is very nutritious."

She said that boded well in the health ministry's effort to non-communicable diseases, most notably obesity and diabetes, which affect a considerably large number of locals.

She said while TT had the potential to produce most of the fruits and vegetables, they were currently imported.

"These nutritious products are what we should be focusing on and introducing to the public. The concern, though, is that a lot of input into the nutritious products come from the outside. So that all of the fruit mashes and vegetable purées and so on are external to Trinidad and external to the region.

The new product line, however, presents an opportunity – as with its milk-based products – for local farmers to become the primary suppliers for such products.

In an effort to promote the agriculture sector and by extension local trade and investment sectors, Gopee-Scoon said the government had focused on reducing all taxes for farmers in the last budget.

The idea is to get people interested in farming and agriculture.

Prior to the tour, Torres gave a presentation in which he stressed on Nestle's continued investment and interest in the TT market, which began over a century ago.

"We are not static," Torres said, boasting of the company's recent innovations.

"We are investing. We are not saying we're in the best situation; we have challenges but we (are) improving. We are determined to succeed."