THOUGH a slump in the prices for rice and gold has dampened business in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), there is still a demand for coconut oil in the region, even though production has been significantly scaled down.Several persons in Pomeroon produce coconut oil, mainly for personal consumption, but Rosemund Benn, who has been in the business for the past six years, is into commercial production. She supplies markets in St Vincent, Jamaica and Canada on a small scale.

Benn regularly supplies The Pomeroon Women’s Agro Processors Association with coconut oil; but, she said, business in the past few months has not been as bright as it used to be. Nevertheless, she is optimistic that sooner rather than later, prices for rice and gold will become favourable again.

“The Pomeroon Women’s Agro Processors Association used to buy about 20 to 25 gallons of oil per month, but from January of this year to now, they have only bought nine gallons. Because of this, I had to reduce production from an average of 20 gallons per week to between five and 10 gallons. I am happy that the business is still there and is still going. I also supply residents and other markets on the Essequibo Coast, but I am hoping that things will pick up again and I will be in a position to produce more,” Benn disclosed.

She told the Guyana Chronicle that she makes the oil all by herself, and the coconuts are supplied by her husband and son, both of whom have coconut farms. She buys the coconuts from the men and patiently invests her time in converting their contents into coconut oil.

The process is largely done manually, with the aid of a wooden mill. The oil is extracted from the fresh coconut meat without the meat first passing through the drying process. The coconut milk is then pressed out of the wet coconut meat, and the oil is separated from the water by boiling.

This coconut oil is excellent for cooking. Besides being a skin moisturizer, it reduces dandruff, helps in hair growth, eases constipation, and reduces cracks in the heel, among numerous other benefits. Benn has been making the oil since 2010, after a team from GO-Invest had explained to her how the product is made.

PROFITABLE BUSINESS
She told this publication that producing the oil is a profitable business. Prior to getting into the oil business, the mother of two was a vegetable farmer who worked with her husband on his farm. Because production of the oil is time consuming, Benn has given up on farming, and her husband and son are now fully in charge of that business.

The businesswoman said that since her operation is small-scale, she does not bottle and label her product, but sells it by the bucket to The Pomeroon Women’s Agro Processors Association, which in turn bottles, labels, and markets the oil as Virgin Coconut Oil to a number of local buyers for a profit.

MORE FINANCIALLY SECURE
Benn related that the business has kept her occupied, and has provided her with the means to better support her family.

“I got enough money to support my son financially at the University of Guyana. I was able to pay for a course in cosmetology which my daughter did. I was able to buy her some tools to practise her trade. This business has made me more financially independent; I feel empowered, as I am in a position to contribute more to my family and to generally enjoy a better life,” she said.

She, however, believes that the Government, through GO-Invest, can do a little more to help her business. The last time she received an order for an overseas market was last September, when she supplied 50 gallons of oil to a buyer in Antigua. And the linkage was not made through GO-Invest, but through the Women’s Agro-processors Development Network (WADN).

Aside from GO-Invest, Benn has received technical support from WADN, which is registered as a friendly society whose objectives include developing market linkages locally and overseas, building capacity of member groups, and providing support to the communities in which member groups are located.

Sitting very relaxed in a wooden chair under the shed where she makes the oil, just outside her Marlborough Wide Garden home in the Lower Pomeroon, the businesswoman told this publication she is hopeful that GO-Invest will locate markets outside of Guyana for her product.

“I can make about 20 gallons of oil per day, and I know that they (GO-Invest) have been working to find overseas markets for local suppliers. I am hoping that they can locate a market that realistically I can supply,” Benn said, even as she remains hopeful that the prices for rice and gold will soon improve.