‘Don’t blame me’, Minister Caesar tells dasheen farmers

Minister of Agriculture, Saboto Caesar has made it clear that he, and by extension his ministry, is not to be held accountable for the prices being offered to farmers by traffickers for dasheen exported out of St Vincent and the Grenadines.

He said that traffickers are defying the recommended price per sack of dasheen put forward by the Ministry which is resulting in farmers receiving between 50 to 60 percent less than the recommended market price.

Minister of Agriculture, Saboto Caesar

Minister Caesar said the onus is on dasheen farmers to stand firm on the prices they are prepared to accept from the traffickers, if the export market is to thrive and they are to benefit from it.

“There are some traffickers, who, even after the announcement made by the Ministry that dasheen should not go below $100 per sack, still are going to the farmers and offering the farmers $40 per sack and $50 per sack. I want to repeat this- if we mobilize ourselves and if we stand united… when the trafficker comes to buy from you and you tell the trafficker, no farmer selling for under $100 per sack, the trafficker cannot get any dasheen.”

His comments were made at the Richland Park Government School on Monday, August 12, 2024 at a consultation and farm implements distribution held under the UBEC CERC St. Vincent and the Grenadines Food Insecurity Project funded by the World Bank. The consultations are being held in various communities across the mainland and will focus on recovery from Hurricane Beryl and drought recovery efforts.

Minister Caesar told the farmers that if some farmers continue to sell to traffickers at reduced prices per sack, other farmers will continue to be cheated out of fair prices.

“… stand up to any buyer and say, this is our price, take it or leave it. Until that philosophy is in our blood as farmers to defend ourselves and our hard work persons will continue to come and peg us off every single week and give us prices where we can’t buy another sack of manure or, and you’re going to put the blame on me. Don’t blame me.”

Caesar also said he will be putting traffickers on “notice” to stop short-changing dasheen farmers.

“I also want to put the traffickers on notice, because I love the traffickers too, and the traffickers are doing good work in moving out the produce, but the traffickers have to do a better job in marketing your hard work to the people that they are selling it to. Is not the farmers fault of St Vincent and the Grenadines, and we are not going to continue to subsidize the housewives in Tuna Puna and in Arima. All of us are one Caribbean. I love them, but we can’t be Billy button working for nutt’n, that must stop.”

The Government has allocated a $22 million recovery programme to assist farmers and fishers. It was disclosed at the consultation that farmers will be receiving income support vouchers in increments valued at $500, $1,000, $1,500 and $2,000. The voucher amount given to farmers will be determined by the size of their holdings and can be redeemed at the Farmers Input Warehouse for equipment. Consultations are also set to be held in coming days at the Green Hill Hardcourt, Penniston Playing Field and Cumberland Playing Field.