AGRICULTURE Minister Dr. Leslie Ramsammy has indicated that a number of activities have been finalized regarding the future of the coconut industry following a stakeholders’ conference held in the Boardroom of the Ministry of Agriculture last month.

The major decision has been how locally produced coconut products are to be exported. In an interview last Monday, the minister said that, thus far, Guyana’s coconut products have been exported mainly to Trinidad, and the ministry has begun to match the investors in Trinidad with producers in Guyana, so that some production can be shifted to Guyana.
He mentioned that another issue which came up during the conference has been that Guyana could be a major supplier of virgin coconut oil, the demand for which is currently increasing around the world.
“I think Guyana has missed an important opportunity that came out during the coconut conference, which is that virgin coconut oil is now emerging as a very important product in the Caribbean and other places,” he stated.
Dr. Ramsammy noted that Trinidad, for instance, will import from Thailand some 4,000 tonnes of virgin coconut oil during the course of this year. He stressed that Guyana, with its present production, can satisfy that need in Trinidad; and explained that virgin coconut oil is a niche product which can generate a much higher income than coconut water.
“So we have to move in that direction. So where we have gone now is to begin to put together, since that week, the certification process for virgin coconut oil that will now allow our people to produce enough virgin coconut oil,” he said; adding that, through quota, they could demand that the region place high tariffs on virgin coconut oil coming from other countries, thereby forcing purchases from within the region.
At the stakeholders’ conference, Dr. Ramsammy had related that approximately 24,000 hectares will be devoted to coconut cultivation this year.
He noted that Guyana currently produces between 90 and 100 million coconuts per year, which approximates to some 70,000 tonnes of the product.