Project Name：Project for enhancing the efficiency of production-distribution supply chain in fruit and vegetable sector in St. Lucia

Project status：Completed projects

Cooperating Country：Caribbean, St. Lucia

Project Description：

From the restoration of diplomatic relations with Saint Lucia in 2007 to the present, the Taiwan Technical Mission in that country has used demonstration and promotional methods to successfully teach local farmers how to grow a diversity of fruit and vegetables. Currently, the Saint Lucia government has proposed a cooperative program with Taiwan to continue improving domestic agricultural capabilities and further promote agricultural development. Because Saint Lucia is heavily dependent on the tourism sector, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Physical Planning, Natural Resources and Co-operatives is focused on how best to deliver locally grown produce to tourist hotels and supermarkets (official markets) as a way of achieving fruit and vegetable import substitution, reducing the level of imports for seven agricultural crops, while also allowing farmers to increase their income by selling more to official markets. This program seeks to enhance the efficacy of the production and marketing supply chain, by not only revitalizing the agricultural intelligence information system so that it collects data on the production and marketing of fruit and vegetables, but also by analyzing market demand for produce and helping farmers’ cooperatives plan growing seasons based on market demand. It also provides climate adaption, protected structure cultivation and post-harvest processing and packaging techniques, establishes stable channels to sell produce to official markets and assists farmers’ cooperatives develop a corporate-like production and marketing, thereby increasing the volume of produce sold by local farmers to official markets.

Implementation Start Date：2018-11-21

Implementation End Date：2021-11-20

Project Objectives：Increase of 30 percent in volume of agricultural produce sold by Saint Lucian farmers to hotels and supermarkets.

Executing Agency：

Taiwan Technical Mission in St. Lucia / Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Physical Planning, Natural Resources and Co-operatives

Current Progress：

By the end of September 2021, the following activities have been completed:
1. Held 60 stakeholder production schedule meetings, and received 720 forms of Farm Baseline yield survey and Crop Monitoring Survey.
2. Provided 50 consultations of cultivating technologies and held 3 on-site cultivation demonstrations in the field.
3. Completed a packhouse renovation in Odsan, and provided 70 consultations of post-harvest processing and packaging.
4. Held 34 farmers vegetable markets.
5. Held 15 buyer-seller negotiations, and assisted 30 farmers to practice contract farming.
6. Arranged supermarket and hotel representatives to visit farmers’ fields.
7. Developed Agricultural Information System (iFarm)and put into formal use.
8. Completed 1 crop cultivation calendar.
9. Completed a 6-week workshop including the topic of production and marketing management, Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), traceability system, and post-harvest processing.
10. Encouraged 225 farmers join the registration and certification system.

Project Contact：Yueh-Hung TSOU

Phone：+886-2-28732323 ext. 6137

E-mail：y.h.tsou@icdf.org.tw

Projected Benefits：

1. Help farmers develop the ability to supply produce all year round (1) Hold two production season regulation meetings per month based on produce production season and volume adjustment plans to help the two farmers’ cooperatives and 200 farmers adjust production plans.
(2) Help two farmers’ cooperatives draft and execute a production and sales plan.
(3) Provide guidance on climate adaptation cultivation technology, disease and pest prevention, rational use of fertilizer and pesticide use, techniques needed for production season regulation 24 times each year to reduce production risks faced by local farmers.
(4) Enhance demonstration and experimentation functions of Union Farm, including education and training, smart technology agriculture displays, product collection, packaging and cultivation test site.
(5) Establish local facility cultivation design and hold four field observation tours.
(6) Work with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Physical Planning, Natural Resources and Co-operatives to promote a farmers’ certification system and hold technical workshop training courses (a total of five classes), with four courses a year held 20 times. Content will include production techniques, post-harvest processing techniques and cultivation production records.
(7) Enhance post-harvest processing techniques and establish fruit and vegetable packaging specifications and materials (three types) based on market demand.
(8) Assist the Department of Agriculture to establish the concept for material supply cycle and prepare the implementation report on material control and sales each year.

2. Establish an agricultural intelligence information system based on farmers’ production of produce and official market demand
(1) Conduct an inventory and survey to determine market specification grades and sales distribution ratios for the seven crops in target markets (hotels and supermarkets).
(2) Work with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Physical Planning, Natural Resources and Co-operatives to promote a farmers’ registration system and revitalize the agricultural intelligence information system. This will include data on volume of fruit and vegetables produced and supplied by farmers, official market demand and the establishment of a distribution mechanism.
(3) Train 20 extension officers to update fruit and vegetable production and supply volume on a weekly basis and establish an auditing mechanism to confirm the accuracy of data.
(4) Strengthen the connection between production and marketing in Saint Lucia, with the agricultural intelligence information system serving as a platform for production and marketing communications and with regular negotiations held. Before the program ends, monthly purchasing orders will be received from a supermarket chain and 16 hotels.
(5) Increase the visibility of locally grown produce through weekend fruit and vegetable markets and quality produce sections in supermarkets.

Mission：Taiwan Techical Mission in Saint Lucia