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Local Farmers Sign Agreement with Marketing Board

Contact: Primus Hutchinson

Wednesday, July 03, 2002 - The St. Lucia Marketing Board has signed a contractual agreement with a number of local farmers’ organizations. The agreement seeks to facilitate a higher level of trading among local farmers and the St. Lucia Marketing Board. According to the General Manager of the Marketing Board, Michael Augustin, this agreement will not only assist in forging greater partnership between the Board and the Farmers organization, but will provide the Marketing Board with selective crops over a period of one year.

The crops that have been selected to be traded under this contractual agreement, include cabbage, tomatoes, pumpkin, watermelon, cantaloupe, dasheen and honeydew among others. The contract also makes provision for the farmers’ groups to be paid a minimum price agreeable by both parties and one which would provide some kind of stability in the pricing structure.

A representative of the Mabouya Valley Farmers’ Group, Cornelius Lynch, says with the introduction of this contract it is anticipated that trading arrangements with the Marketing Board will be greatly enhanced alleviating the many frustrating experiences of the past regarding the marketing of produce. It will also serve as a model for the further development of the farming community.

The pricing arrangements agreed by both parties range sixty cents to two dollars and fifty cents for the various selected produce. A dispute settlement clause also forms part of the contractual agreement between the St. Marketing Board and the Farmers’ organizations.

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