A week-long technical mission by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has strengthened the coconut value chain in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, training 87 farmers, technicians and community growers in production, nursery management and pest control.
The mission, held from 24 to 31 August 2026 in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries, Rural Transformation, Industry and Labour, forms part of the Coconut Value Chain Pilot Programme under the FAO project Building Effective Public-Private Partnerships for Production and Marketing of Sustainable Agricultural Products. Coconut was identified through a market assessment as a priority commodity with significant potential for value addition and expanded market opportunities.
Training was delivered by FAO Fruit Tree Crop Specialist Dr. Abel Rebouças Sao Jose, drawing on practices that have built successful coconut industries in Brazil and the Dominican Republic. Sessions began at the Windward farming cluster in Orange Hill, where 43 farmers and technicians covered soil and climate requirements, coconut varieties and hybrids, propagation and nurseries, orchard installation, plant physiology, nutrition and fertilisation, and pest and disease management, alongside practical field demonstrations.
The programme then moved to the Leeward farming cluster in Barrouallie, where 30 Ministry staff and farmers covered the same core curriculum plus farm management. A community outreach activity on 29 August brought together 14 participants from Helen’s Daughters, Eco-home Garden Limited, and Rejoin Fruit and Farm, extending the training beyond the two clusters to grassroots groups and small-scale growers.
Discussing the challenges facing the sector, Dr. Rebouças said several issues still need to be addressed to increase production. «Expanding the area under cultivation through incentives that make coconut farming attractive and profitable is essential, but so is raising yields on existing land,» he said. «That means selecting high-yielding varieties, establishing nurseries that produce seedlings of good genetic and phytosanitary quality, and adopting good cultivation practices. Improving yields alone could meaningfully increase total coconut production.»
Local coconut manufacturer Ms. Sophia Searles highlighted the opportunities available to farmers. «This opportunity for coconut farmers extends well beyond growing and selling coconuts,» she said. «As manufacturers expand into value-added products, they need a consistent supply of quality raw material, and farmers have a real chance to become part of that growing value chain. Capturing it will require greater support for planting and rehabilitation, access to suitable land and inputs, and stronger linkages between farmers, manufacturers and markets.»
Building on FAO’s recent work to strengthen the soursop value chain in Belize and Grenada, Dr. Rebouças also led a rapid training session on soursop botany and Good Agricultural Practices, introducing participants to orchard establishment, crop management, pruning and hand pollination to improve productivity and fruit quality.
Agricultural Value Chain Specialist and Project Coordinator Mr. Jefferson Jaikissoon said the mission was about more than training. «This mission is about more than training, it’s about laying the groundwork for a stronger, more competitive coconut value chain,» he said. «The recommendations coming out of this week will directly inform the Coconut Value Chain Upgrading Strategy, including our farmer-led replanting initiative.»
As a next step, the Coconut Value Chain Pilot Programme will carry out a coconut replanting exercise in partnership with the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute from September to November 2026. The initiative will support farmers in re-establishing productive orchards, applying the improved varieties and practices recommended during the mission to strengthen the long-term productivity of the coconut value chain.
3
