Agro-Processor and tangled foot

06.MAR.09

Editor, AGRO: Belonging to fields and soil. Processor: One that processes: As one that processes agricultural products, foods or similar products. Tangled foot: Self explanatory.

The parents of LAUDERS AGRO-PROCESSORS INC (LAP) are National Properties Limited (NPL) and Windward Island Banana Development and Exporting Company Limited (WIBDECO).{{more}} LAP was established in October 2007 by the abovementioned stakeholders to Process and Package Root crops.

The Tangled foot mentioned above has to do with LAP presently purchasing and exporting root crops to the United Kingdom and elsewhere. What the stakeholders in LAP have unwittingly done/ are doing is de-emphasising other agricultural produce, even at this most critical point in time.

In fact, the expectation of the stakeholders in LAP is equal to that of a cock-eyed optimist. In other words, LAP is obviously trying to do what the St. Vincent Marketing Board was doing in the 1960s and 70s with buying depots through out the entire country. That system effectively took the burden off the farmers worrying about selling whatever crop they produced.

What is most urgently needed is a single entity to purchase and market as many agricultural products as possible. If that is done, not only LAP but others interested in Agro-Processing could easily source what they want. What this is effectively doing is to let Agro-Processors be just that (Agro-Processors). Further to that, Agro-Processors would no longer need to salvage their produce, as is now the case.

Surely, with such large amounts of our agricultural produce continuing to go to waste in this small poor country, a system should be put in place whereby NPL, WIBDECO or who else could extend credit to Agro-processors for the produce that is needed.

Stanley M. Quammie