Charlestown, Nevis
September 12, 2007
Sea Island Cotton planting commenced in earnest on government estates and private owned lands in Nevis. The exercise was in keeping with an earlier announcement by Agriculture officials on the island, of the Department of Agriculture’s plans to reintroduce cotton production on the island.
During an interview with the Department of Information on location at the Port Works Agricultural Station on Tuesday September 11, 2007, Communications Officer at the Department of Agriculture Mr. Eric Evelyn said that the Sea Island Cotton fetched premium prices on the world market and Japanese manufacturers had indicated their interest to purchase the cotton from Nevis.
A total of 40 acres are cultivated on government estates, 20 acres short of the initial plan which was caused by late planting and irrigation difficulty. However, Director of Agriculture Dr. Kelvin Daly said, the 40 acres cultivated represented an 800 percent increase over the last Sea Island Cotton Crop in 2003, when only five acres had been cultivated on government estates.