Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha yesterday commissioned a $60.4 million (US $302,000) Fertilizer Testing Laboratory at the Pesticides and Toxic Chemicals Control Board (PTCCB), according to the Department of Public Infor-mation (DPI).
The Laboratory, which is located in the NAREI Compound, Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara will monitor the quality of fertilisers imported to Guyana.
“Since taking office, I have had the opportunity to visit a number of farming communities in many Regions and I can clearly tell you in many of those visits, farmers echo concerns about the quality of fertilisers imported and distributed in Guyana”, Mustapha said.
Mustapha said agro-chemicals will not only be monitored for quality, but the PTCCB will support the monitoring of storage facilities and practices, as the chemical properties of fertilisers could be impacted by storage conditions.
PTCCB’s Registrar, Trecia David said the new establishment would provide adequate support to the expanding agriculture sector and enhance the lives of farmers, according to DPI.
“In 2017, the Bureau of Standards along with other agencies within the Ministry of Agriculture would have identified the gap in Guyana where there is no testing for fertilisers and in 2019, at the level of the Board, we began chasing down the opportunity to make this a reality for Guyana,” David said.
The facility is set to start operations immediately.
