The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

A Cabinet minister yesterday said the Government’s greenhouse farming initiative is set to launch before the end of August 2023.

Clay Sweeting, minister of agriculture, marine resources and Family Island affairs, speaking ahead of the weekly Cabinet meeting, said: “In Eleuthera we have almost completed the greenhouses there. They have to put the automotive equipment in. So probably within two to three weeks we should get that one up and going.”

The initiative, designed to facilitate more consistent agricultural production in a controlled environment less susceptible to heat and other weather conditions, was first announced by the Bahamas Agriculture and Marine Science Institute (BAMSI). The Chinese government subsequently offered $800,000 in technical assistance to help support Bahamian farmers with the development of greenhouses this May.

Mr Sweeting said the partnership with Beijing is “deeper” than just greenhouses. “So the programme there is that we have two technicians. Where we provide a property, they will provide three large greenhouses and will provide technical assistance to farmers to do a seed bank," he explained.

“So the technicians are in country. We are clearing the land, one acre of property. So you should see that and we are just waiting for the greenhouses to come from China.”

Meanwhile, the Golden Yolk egg initiative is also progressing. Mr Sweeting said: “The feed mill is shipped from India. That should be here in the next four to five weeks. We're finalising the plans for the feed mill with the Ministry of Works. We should get those plans this week, and should go out to tender to build the facility so that, in time, we could get the feed mill up and running.

"The Golden Yolk programme, we are finalising the ordering of the houses - the layer houses - so we're hoping by the end of the year you should see things in production.” The plan is to have an increased volume of Bahamian eggs on local tables by next January.