FLOOD DAMAGE to Guyana's rice crop could provide an opportunity for local growers of other crops to raise production, says president of the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS), Senator Norman Grant.
Jamaica does not produce rice, and currently imports approximately 10 per cent of Guyana's annual production of 380,000 tons. A month of non-stop rains in the mainland country has destroyed crops worth US$227 million.
"We do consume a lot of rice and it certainly does complement a meal, but this is a reminder that we need to eat more of our locally-grown products such as banana, yam, and we certainly need to increase our production of Irish (potato)," Senator Grant told The Gleaner.
UNDER WATER
The Associated Press reported that on Monday, about 11,000 acres (4,450 hectares) of paddies were under water in coastal Guyana, which is the region's largest rice producer, said Rajendra Singh, director of the state-owned Rice Development Board.
President Bharrat Jagdeo released about US$136 million in compensation for rice farmers last week, after demonstrators blocked roads in protest against alleged government indifference.
From December 2004-January 2005, the heaviest rains in the country's history caused weeks of extensive flooding and destroyed about 15,000 acres (6,070 hectares) of rice paddies.
