Dear Editor,
If ever there was a more hackneyed statement by politicians about our agriculture it is the oft-times reference to Guyana as the potential food basket of the Caribbean. That dream is now closer to reality with the fulfillment of another dream, that is, the discovery of oil and gas offshore. In the past, limited and conditional availability of internal and international funding for developing this agricultural capability was undoubtedly a challenge for state and private investors, as funding agencies could not in times gone by view any attractive collateral that served their interest. This has certainly changed.
Guyana has by Caribbean islands’ comparison been blessed with substantive swaths of fertile land on the coast and intermediate savannahs suitable for the economic cultivation of several food crop types, as well as aquaculture and livestock. The utilization of modern technology and state of the art equipment has now reduced the risks of failed crops by providing viable options to cater for unpredictable weather and debilitating pest or disease. Available marketing and meterological data can now be incorporated into crop modeling for computer generation of investor returns based on different production scenarios. The application of the science has therefore largely replaced rule of thumb guesswork in the planning and execution of major agricultural undertakings.
The value of well-funded applied research must evidently not be overlooked in supporting production, and the role of the National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI) consolidated by the continued training, recruitment and relevant exposure of our agricultural scientists is crucial in developing and sustaining technical knowledge and capabilities. With the growing expansion of air cargo facilities and frequency, even to the more distant extra-regional markets and the incentive given to providing greater reliability of regional surface transport, there would be little obstacle to delivering produce on a timely basis to export markets. The government is steadfastly fulfilling its obligation in developing internal road infrastructure which is integral to successful marketing.
The authorities will no doubt be required to negotiate and conform to regional trade and crop protection agreements, where necessary, to ensure unfettered entry of certain agriculture and food products to foreign ports. Much has been said already about commodities that Guyana can best produce in sufficient quantities to replace similar or equivalent imported agricultural products for Guyana and the region. Sugar cane and rice paddy still remain the crops Guyana can best produce and process for export to the region. For user convenience and producer value-added, product packaging rather than bulk handling is increasingly preferred. Corn and soya are not yet at the large scale production level and wheat is still in the embryonic stage but the region’s considerable import bill for flour and stockfeed components is a powerful incentive for accelerated development of local substitutes or replacements.
Mention had been made in an earlier Letter to the Editor that grain sorghum which is highly weather and pest resistant, lends itself as well to combine harvesting, was in the eighties successfully cultivated in Guyana. Sorghum, which incidentally is gluten free from a human dietary standpoint, has the potential as an economic nutritional component of livestock feed utilizing the newer more palatable varieties now available from germ plasm banks. Beef and mutton are excellent candidates for scaled-up export to the Caribbean, chilled fresh and air-freighted, for the domestic and tourist market, provided all the necessary abattoir and veterinary requirements are met. In terms of feedstock production, cultivation of pastures as a crop will improve the nutritional quality of forage which can be harvested mechanically and fed fresh or ensiled for presentation to livestock in covered feedlots. This livestock model with a zero-grazing option is advocated as most economic for intensive beef, dairy and mutton production for coastal and riverain areas in Guyana.
I believe it was the Trinidadians who in calypso style would say ‘Oil can’t spoil’ but the reality is that the geopolitics of marketing, pricing and processing of oil and gas are all controlled, manipulated and levered by forces outside of Guyana’s influence. While we should expeditiously take full advantage of our windfall as it may not last for as long as we may wish and hope for, we must also at the same time use current funds for developing accessible alternative energy sources. With the recognition now that Guyana has the potential to supply the Caribbean and nearby region with their food needs there is a real opportunity for University of Guyana and Guyana School of Agriculture graduates to take advantage of the relevant programmes at these institutions to embark on careers in agri-business that utilize their technical knowledge, with support of the state’s available development funding to promote their individual entrepreneurial skills.
The burning question will be ‘Does Guyana have the capacity in the foreseeable future to insulate itself at an effective level against the vagaries of geopolitics and commodity price swings?’ I believe that strategic and relevant agro-economic development, designed to cost effectively cater for an enlightened 21st century regional market, offers a distinct means of supporting in part the achievement of this end.
Yours faithfully
Fritz C McLean
Former GuySuCo Executive Director, Agriculture Research and Diversified Crops
