I had earlier cautioned readers to be sceptical of the widely held view that the European Community’s (EC) denunciation of the Sugar Protocol (SP) in 2009 was “the final nail in the coffin of Guyana and the rest of Caricom’s sugar industry.” I have put forward the alternative interpretation that this event was the proximate occurrence leading to the effective collapse of the region’s traditional sugar industry, and in no way either the sole or principal cause for that collapse.
On the same note I have further suggested that, while Caricom sugar producers other than Guyana have labelled their responses to the EC denunciation as “strategic”, in similar vein I would describe Guyana’s response as “opportunistic.” However, to date neither of these responses has given any indication of likely success.
During the SP period (1975-2009), Caricom (including Guyana) exported almost all its sugar to four markets. Apart from incidental exports to the