Thirty-seven rice farmers have received disease-resistant, high-yielding rice seeds from Guyana, as part of the first phase of a farming project led by the Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries.
The Ministry has allocated over $2 million to support this initial rollout.
The revitalisation and modernisation of the agriculture sector is a move the Minister of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries, Ravi Ratiram, says has already begun with the first phase of the rice seeds distribution.
“This includes the procurement of 100,000 high-quality rice seeds for the 2025 planting season from the Co-operative Republic of Guyana; support for the commercial planting of approximately 2,000 acres across Trinidad and Tobago; field-level investments in access roads, drainage, irrigation and on-site technical support; and—I’m sure the farmers will love to hear this one—addressing the land tenure and land security issues that farmers are facing.”
As a machinery and equipment supplier, FT Farfan has years of collaboration with the Ministry and farmers. Agriculture Division Manager Sandy Samnarine pointed to a few areas that need to be addressed to support farmers.
“What the farmers need are a couple things, they need some assistance with respect to capital purchase, maybe a system where one harvester or a fleet of tractors can be used among the group of farmers. They would need to change the way they do nutrition for the rice, because it is not just done traditionally, you use one product followed by another followed by another. There are ways you can do soil testing, leaf analysis, to bring better productivity at a lower cost.”
For rice farmer Eniat Hosein, the rice seeds from Guyana will provide quality produce, addressing the previous issue that rice farmers were dealing with.
“We’re trying to get the industry kicking off and one of the problems that we have is good seed quality, so this is to maintain good seed quality from whatever we have, the best dock is to be planted in this way so that when we harvest we will harvest a good seed for the following crop.”
Minister Ratiram assured farmers of continued support from the Ministry to ensure that this project produces outcomes that drive the advancement of the agricultural sector.
“Our officers will continue to work alongside you to ensure that this rice programme delivers not just activity but outcomes, more acreage, higher yields, better margins, stronger communities and yes, greater food security for all of Trinidad and Tobago. We must reach a point where local rice is not just the exception on the shelf – it is the standard on the plate.”
As a crop that grows on floodplains, the farmers said although the rain is beneficial for them, excess water would affect the growth and production of rice and so they’re eager to work alongside the Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries to minimise the impact of flooding.