Bahamas News
BAHAMAS: Agriculture Minister on Food Import Band
#Bahamas, February 5, 2018 – Nassau – Table tomatoes and sweet peppers should be better priced in The Bahamas now that farmers are yielding enough of the items to meet much of the local demand. Late January, The Bahamas Ministry of Agriculture announced a ban which will limit how much of these items are imported was instituted to the delight of local farmers… the ministry is calling this a great sign on the road to reducing food imports overall.
“It is such a wonderful time in our nations’ history and development when it is that I consider we’ve actually due to the quantity and the quality of both sweet peppers, we call them bell peppers as well, and table tomatoes have reached a level where this ministry has put a restriction on the importation of those two items because of the amount that we’be been able to produce in country by Bahamian farmers.”
The Minister, Renward Wells assured that Bahamian grown does not mean the quality is sub par either, in the statement issued about the national limit on imports of these tomatoes and sweet peppers there was talk about the quality of the produce.
“The quality of what we were able to produce is as good or better than what is being imported. And I also want the Bahamian people to know that the price point being offered for these two commodities is actually lower than what is being offered in the United States, substantially lower. And so this goes a very long way to our whole efforts in this ministry of bringing real food security to the Bahamian people.”
Food security is a serious topic in The Bahamas as growers argue for more investment and support from Government, this move was praised by the industry. The Minister is now encouraging consistency in production.
“We’re gonna be seeing how we completely diversify the Bahamian economy and bring more money to the agricultural industry to the pocket of farmers in this country.”