AGRICULTURE and Marine Resources Minister Michael Pintard.
By Earyel Bowleg
ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
AGRICULTURE Minister Michael Pintard told the Prime Minister that there was no anticipation of a scarcity of food in the short term despite reported fears in the US of a meat shortage – although he did urge Bahamians to look for more locally produced goods.
Smithfield Foods Inc, the world’s largest pork processor, shuttered two of its American plants. The company’s Missouri plant closed for two weeks while their Sioux Falls, South Dakota, slaughterhouse’s closure was indefinite. More than 200 employees at the South Dakota slaughterhouse were infected for COVID-19. The JBS SA beef facility in Colorado and Cargill meat-packaging plant in Pennsylvania also had COVID-19 cases.
Mr Pintard told The Tribune that he had a discussion with Caribbean ministries of agriculture and they are aware of some companies that have not been able to harvest because of a shortage of labour or being affected because of the lockdown. However, the minister said country leaders in the region have noted an “excess”.
Mr Pintard said: “Is there disruption in the international market? Without question. How soon that could mean a serious scarcity for The Bahamas – the purchasers locally don’t foresee that over the next several weeks or so, possibly months and I do not have a reason to disbelieve them but I’m certainly reading enough and talking to ministers of agriculture throughout Latin America, the Caribbean and talking to some of my colleagues across the Atlantic.
“So I’m talking to enough persons that they know they see problems if this matter, if COVID persists, if these lockdowns, where if the curves are not flattened and if this continues into Fall they see a potential problem. I'm underscoring that Bahamians ought not wait and see. We have to wean ourselves off the addiction of things coming from overseas.”
Comments
Well_mudda_take_sic 4 years, 7 months ago
Pintard can talk all he wants, but at the end of the day it's only what shoppers don't see on the food store shelves that really matters to their state of mind.
CaptainCoon 4 years, 7 months ago
food stores are the least of this country's woes. Economically the Bahamas is about to go under.
joeblow 4 years, 7 months ago
The worlds largest producers of wheat flour, grain, rice, potatoes, safflower oil and other food items have started to significantly reduce export of these items. The short term is not a problem, but what happens if this coronavirus issue extendes 6 -12 months,we may not be able to import flour to bake bread!
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles…
These dimwits are always behind the eight ball!
Bonefishpete 4 years, 7 months ago
Well there's always Conch.
SP 4 years, 7 months ago
Michael Pintards' statement "We have to wean ourselves off the addiction of things coming from overseas" is something we the people have been warning successive governments about for decades.
To carry the importance of the point a few steps further, we have also been warning successive governments about giving foreigners 100% of development opportunities. If a potential foreign investor doesn't want a Bahamian investor component, then that foreign investor obviously does not have the well being of the Bahamas and Bahamians in mind and should be automatically denied.
Warning successive governments of the dangers of issuing work permits to nonessential ex-pat workers doing jobs that Bahamians could do has also always fallen on deaf ears. In fact, the more we warned them about the folly of this stupidity the deeper they dug-in even to the point of Brent Symonett thinking and bragging about his issuance of $20M in work permits being a good thing!
The multifaceted socioeconomic damaging effects caused by nonessential ex-pats of rising unemployment and the associated increase in crime, negative pressure on foreign reserves due to repatriation of income, a drastic decrease in local consumption because they do not spend in the local economy and the hugely negative impact on commercial banking because of the substantial amount of local currency being diverted out of circulation. These problems are now manifesting themselves and all coming home roost compliments of COVID19.
Michael Pintard needs to man-up and accept the fact that although we have the perfect climate, we have always failed, and need help in the production of food. Now is the time for us to seriously pursue cooperatives with other CARICOM and Latin American states with proven food production abilities. And for GOD's sake DO NOT tell us you are looking at bringing in Haitians.
Identifying food imports and development partners from CARICOM states and Latin American countries in the immediate term should Pintards top priority which should be implemented immediately so that our country has an established secondary food supply chain up and running just in case.
Governments are notorious for being pig-headed and ignoring our suggestions and just as notorious at failure because of it!
xtreme2x 4 years, 7 months ago
MR PINTARD
I WOULD SUGGEST YOUR MINISTRY WITH OTHER STAKE HOLDERS START A BACKUP PLAN FOR THE LONG TERM NOW.
"We have to wean ourselves off the addiction of things coming from overseas.”
ALL GOVERNMENT SHOULD HAVE BEEN ENCOURAGING BAHAMIAN HOME OWNERS TO GROW BACK YARD FARMING FROM 45 YEARS AGO OR SOONER AND ENCOURAGE ALL FARMERS IN THE ISLANDS TO GROW ONE (1) FRUIT OR VEGETABLES AND ENSURE THERE ARE PLACE FOR FARMERS TO SELL THEIR CROP. SO LONG AS THE CROP IS READY TO BE HARVEST.(not like some limes and bananas that are too young and not ready for harvesting that some stores are selling)
hrysippus 4 years, 7 months ago
this minister can say as many reassuring things as he likes but the simple facts are this country has almost 400.000 people living within its borders. It is simply impossible to grow enough food to feed this number of people given the cost of electricity and the annual rainfall without doubling or tripling the cost of our food. We cannot compete in any way with the cost of production generated by US farms of tens of thousands of acres.
SP 4 years, 7 months ago
The notion that we "can't" farm profitably is absolute nonsense. we are surrounded by water, R/O systems are a dime a dozen, there is also ample access to shallow well water, and solar and wind power is already in use throughout the islands producing power at a fraction of local cost.
The Cayman Islands and Bermuda are much smaller than we are albeit with less population, face similar challenges, but they both are more successful at farming than the Bahamas.
Hatchet Bay Eleuthera was a shining example of what could be accomplished with the right expertise and there was no hindrance to water shortage. Instead of reinventing the wheel "again" we should look into bringing in the right people for guidance and re-establishing operations at Hatchet Bay. It worked before and should work again with PROPER management and less government interference.
The Bahamas needs to source experts capable of determining what products should be grown on various islands, best methods, and how to capitalize on the $100M's in losses suffered annually by California and Florida citrus industry to cold and frost.
Our main problems are being too pig-headed to admit WE KNOW NOTHING ABOUT FARMING and being smart enough to seek the help we need, and mandating the government to keep their political hacks and interventions out of the business!
hrysippus 4 years, 7 months ago
SiP. Good luck with your farm. In countries where farming is viable those farms are passed down for generations of the same family. Now lets see, how many large scale family farms that are viable in the Bahamas have been passed down through multiple generations of the same family? That is the correct answer; absolutely none at all. I wonder why? And if you think that solar provides free or cheap electricity to run an RO system to produce cheap fresh water then I can only wish the best of luck with your farm because you are definitely gonna need it.
Bahamianbychoice 4 years, 7 months ago
To start Pintard needs to support the Bahamian boat owners/fishermen in developing the industry ...instead of always playing politics and victimizing. This industry is the easiest and quickest to further develop. It can help feed people quickly and the exports generate much needed US dollars. Pintard just needs to get out of the way!
The_Oracle 4 years, 7 months ago
Smithfield Farms is Chinese owned. Plants are typically disassembled and shipped to China to be used for processing there. So the raw U.S. food is shipped to China for processing and shipped back to the U.S. for consumption. You really want to be eating Smithfield products? Google them.
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