– NARI Director
NATIONAL Agriculture Research Institute (NARI) Director, Dr Oudho Homenauth, said Monday that canning fruits and vegetables is planned but will take some time to become a reality.

He offered the explanation in light of calls to establish the industry, at a recent Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) accountability seminar, in Hotel Tower, on Main Street, Georgetown.

Homenauth told the Guyana Chronicle that the cost of processing agricultural produce and the charge for electricity are the main deterring factors.

He also said that, unlike the availability here of bottle recycling facilities, there is none for cans and this is another disadvantage.

Homenauth said, through collaboration with IICA, NARI is trying to work out details of the enterprise and consolidate interesting partners in the venture.

However, he explained that the business is being promoted under the fruits and vegetables component of the Ministry led Agriculture Diversification Programme (ADP).

Currently, Homenauth said discussions towards the start are at the preliminary stage but, in a few years, a well thought out arrangement, covering a range of competitive products and market availability, is expected to be developed.

Several local companies are bottling various agricultural produce for both local consumption and export. (Tajeram Mohabir)