Agriculture

St. Kitts – Nevis Allocates 44 Acres Of Land To Farmers

Basseterre, Saint Kitts – Nevis
April 9, 2008 (CUOPM)

Two days after a Cabinet announcement that some 100 acres of land was allocated to local farmers in Estridge, Mansion, Phillips’ and Old Road, the St. Paul’s Community Center was the venue for re-settling 44 farmers on 80 acres of land in the Fahie’s Agricultural Belt, bringing to 240 acres the amount of land made available for farming in an area called “the Bread Basket of St. Kitts.”

“It is an exercise that will continue the empowerment of the ordinary man and woman in St. Kitts and Nevis and in particular our small farmers,” Prime Minister and Parliamentary Representative, Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas said at the ceremony at which the farmers signed contracts for the lease of the land they will cultivate under the “Small Holdings Act. “

“This empowers you to have the right to plots of land and give that right to develop that land by farming and making a living from that land and contributing to the provision of food not only for your families, but your neighbours and visitors to St. Kitts ad Nevis,” said Dr. Douglas, who disclosed that some 1,000 acres of land has been earmarked for agriculture in the area stretching from Newton Ground to Bellevue.

The leased land allocated to the farmers will be given rent-free for the first two years and would be extended for several years once the land is continued to be used for farming.

Prime Minister Douglas told the farmers that they have a very important role to play in the development of St. Kitts and Nevis as agriculture is critical to play in the continued development of the twin-island Federation.

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St. Kitts – Nevis Farmers To Receive More Land

Basseterre, Saint. Kitts – Nevis
April 01, 2008 (CUOPM)

The governing St. Kitts – Nevis Labour Administration is giving local farmers more land for crop and livestock production.

According to the post-cabinet statement, the growth in the tourism industry, the high cost of imported food, and the availability of fertile land provide an opportunity for local farmers to expand their businesses and for new farmers to get onboard.

The Cabinet at its meeting on Monday, in response to the increasing demand by local farmers for agricultural land for crop and livestock farming, approved the distribution of 20 acres of land to small local farmers in the Estridge, Mansion and Phillips areas.

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Nevis Onion Production Up

Charlestown, Nevis
February 20, 2008

The Department of Agriculture on Nevis announced that it increased its onion cultivation for the 2008 planting season from 7.5 acres in 2007 to nine acres to take advantage of the commodity’s increased world market price.
 
Director of Agriculture Dr. Kelvin Daly on the island told the Department of Information in a recent interview that the Department of Agriculture had toyed with the idea of phasing out onion cultivation in 2007 because it was not cost effective. However, since that year’s harvest, world prices had increased by 100 percent, a decision was taken to increase production.
 
“Since the last crop in 2007 the cost has increased almost 100 percent on the international market it [onion] has become now a more viable product to anything else. So we are increasing the acreage, the price has stabilized around $75-$80 per 50 pound bag and up to last year, it was up to $117 per bag.

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Nevis Island Begins Sea Cotton Harvest

Charlestown, Nevis
February 08, 2008

The first harvest of Sea Island Cotton on Nevis in three years commenced recently as scheduled and Director of Agriculture in the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) Dr. Kelvin Daly said the crop would be ready for processing by mid March with a projected first shipment by April or May.
 
During an interview with the Department of Information on February 08, 2008, Dr. Daly said though the cotton crop was not fully matured, the Department had harvested close to 1,000 pounds with labour from within the Department and small scale assistance from outside.
 
“The harvest areas we are picking from are Port Works and New River. The crop at Indian Castle is not yet ready but it should be ready before the end of this month in February. We expect the full harvest to be ready for processing by the middle of March. Once processed the first shipment should be ready to be shipped by April early May.

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St. Kitts – Nevis Farmers Team Up With Taiwan Technology

Basseterre, St. Kitts – Nevis
February 05, 2008 (CUOPM)

Local farmers in St. Kitts and Nevis are expected to benefit from a new technical cooperation agreement signed between the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis and the Republic of China on Taiwan.

The new agreement will provide for the introduction of new agriculture and fruit crops to the twin-island Federation.

St. Kitts and Nevis’ Minister of Agriculture, Hon. Cedric Liburd said the new agreement will also extend technical assistance to the fishing industry and develop the aqua-culture sector. “This will enrich the diet of our population and also improve food security,” said Liburd, during a signing ceremony at the Ministry of Foreign Affiars in Taipei.

Minister Liburd also said that the agreement will further provide assistance and develop the horticulture industry as well as provide the necessary technical help in conducting a feasibility study to determine the suitability of growing certain exotic food crops in St. Kitts and Nevis.

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