St Lucian bananas back in the UK

By Sherrica Thompson

Staff Writer

#StLucia, August 20, 2022 – St Lucia has resumed shipping bananas to the United Kingdom.  Less than a year ago, the St Lucian government had warned that poor-quality bananas shipped to the United Kingdom could result in the loss of new contracts in Europe.

Now the country is reporting that it can restore production levels to its contractual obligations.

Speaking at a recent Sitting of the House of Assembly, the Minister of Agriculture for St. Lucia, Alfred Prospere, stated that the fortunes of Saint Lucia’s banana industry were changing for the better.

“I am pleased to report that we have recommenced the shipment of bananas to the UK for the past nine weeks.  To date, we were able to restore production levels to our contractual obligations of 2000 boxes a week as of the end of July 2022.  The hard work and commitment of our farmers, field officers, the Banana Task Force and the NFTO have paid off,” Prospere said.

However, he noted that there was still more work to be done.

“The UK banana market is highly competitive.  Once you lose your spot on the market shelves, it becomes an uphill battle to regain that position. Farmers, we must focus on keeping with international standards to gain a competitive advantage,” he said.

St. Lucia’s banana industry has been declining due to competition from low-cost Latin American producers and reduced European trade preferences.  The government has been trying to help to revitalise the industry.