Just back from a tour of several European countries, a delegation of private sector officials from CARIFORUM member states have concluded that trade agreements with the European Union (EU) are unlikely to bring significant economic gain to small operators in the short to medium term. Post-visit assessments of the significance of the visit to Europe have cited small scale production in plants in CARIFORUM countries as a factor that will affect pricing and the ability to compete.
Sonya Dunstan, Chief Executive Officer of the Jamaican firm Taste of Caribbean Ltd. and a spokesperson for the group that visited Europe is quoted as saying that CARIFORUM countries are “not yet ready for the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), citing an inability to compete on account